What we tested

Before we started testing, we set both 14-inch business laptops to “best performance” power mode. Other than making and verifying those changes, we used out-of-box OEM performance settings.

We ran the following performance-based benchmark tests twice—once with the laptops plugged in and again with them unplugged:

• PassMark PerformanceTest 11
• Cinebench R23
• 3DMark^® Fire Strike
• 3DMark Time Spy

For our surface temperature tests, we ran a sustained CPU-intensive Cinebench R23 workload for 50 minutes, taking keyboard and bottom hot spot temperature readings every 10 minutes. We then ran the CPU-intensive Cinebench R23 workload again for 20 minutes to record how much noise each device’s fan produced under load. The benchmark, thermal, and noise results we report reflect the specific configurations we tested. Any difference in configurations, as well as screen brightness, network traffic, and software additions, can affect these results. For a deeper dive into our testing parameters and procedures, see the science behind the report.

Productivity benchmarks: Work equally well when you’re unplugged

Whether employees mostly stick to one application or program to complete their work, or if they need to complete many kinds of tasks, system performance is critical to getting things done. If your employees are on the go—moving around the house, the office, or traveling—performance needn’t suffer just because they aren’t able to plug in.

On a variety of industry-standard performance benchmarks we tested, the HP EliteBook 845 G10 with AMD Ryzen^™ 7 PRO 7840U processor achieved higher test scores than the Dell Latitude 7440 with Intel Core i7-1365U vPro processor.

Stronger-performing systems deliver better productivity on the go

A popular industry-standard productivity benchmark, PassMark PerformanceTest 11.0 combines CPU, disk, memory, and 2D/3D graphics performance metrics into an Overall PassMark rating. Higher PassMark rating numbers indicate a faster system.⁴

Figure 1 compares the PassMark PerformanceTest ratings of the systems, both while plugged in and unplugged. Unplugged, the HP EliteBook 845 G10 with AMD Ryzen^™ 7 PRO 7840U processor achieved a 75 percent higher score than the Dell Latitude 7440 with Intel Core i7-1365U vPro processor. The performance of the HP EliteBook 845 G10 dropped only 17 percent after we unplugged it, while the performance of the Dell Latitude 7440 dropped by 26 percent.

Strong general system performance plugged in or not

The Cinebench R23 benchmark measures general hardware performance by completing common Cinema 4D tasks that tax multiple CPU cores and modern processor features.⁵

As Figure 2 shows, the HP EliteBook 845 G10 with AMD Ryzen^™ 7 PRO 7840U processor achieved a 40 percent higher Cinebench score plugged in and a 92 percent higher score unplugged compared to the Dell Latitude 7440. The difference in unplugged performance is stark because the HP EliteBook 845 G10 experienced no drop in performance when we unplugged it—while the Dell Latitude 7440 performance dropped 27 percent.

Comparing graphics- and CPU-heavy performance with 3DMark

An industry-standard benchmark that focuses on 3D graphic rendering and heavy CPU performance, 3DMark is nicknamed “The Gamer’s Benchmark.” It includes the following tests that we ran on our systems:

• 3DMark Fire Strike: A DirectX 11 benchmark that “… includes two graphics tests, a physics test and a combined test that stresses the CPU and GPU.”⁶
• 3DMark Time Spy: A DirectX 12 test “that supports new API features like asynchronous compute, explicit multi-adapter, and multi-threading, Time Spy is the ideal test for benchmarking the latest graphics cards.”⁷

As Figures 3 and 4 show, the HP EliteBook 845 G10 outperformed the Dell Latitude 7440 by as much as 76 percent on these 3DMark tests. Plus, the EliteBook 845 G10 maintained strong performance while unplugged, dropping just 1 percent, while the performance of the Dell Latitude 7440 dropped by 14 and 15 percent.

Thermal testing: Cooler temperatures mean better user comfort

When you hold your system on your lap while working from the couch or while plugged in at the gate waiting for your plane to board, the heat your laptop gives off can affect your comfort level. The cooler a laptop is while running a workload, the more comfortable you are.

During our thermal testing, both systems were plugged in and ran the Cinebench R23 Sustained performance workload. As Figure 5 shows, the HP EliteBook 845 G10 achieved a higher performance score while remaining cooler than the Dell Latitude 7440. At the keyboard deck, which users touch with their fingertips, the HP EliteBook 845 G10 was over 3 degrees Fahrenheit cooler (123.3°F/50.7°C vs. 126.5°F/52.5°C) than the Dell Latitude 7440. At the undersides of the laptops, which often rest on users’ laps, the HP EliteBook 845 G10 was 18 degrees Fahrenheit cooler (108.5°F/42.5°C vs. 126.5°F/52.5°C) than the Dell Latitude 7440.

Acoustics testing: Keeping quiet under pressure

When you’re plugged in and working from your favorite coffee shop, you have enough noisy distractions that affect your work. There’s no reason your laptop needs to add to the din. When we measured the noise levels of each plugged-in device while running a Cinebench R23 multi-core workload, we found that the HP EliteBook 845 G10 Notebook PC with AMD Ryzen^™ 7 PRO 7840U processor was on average 1 decibel quieter than the Dell Latitude 7440 laptop over the course of the test (see Figure 6).