HP Spectre x2 Battery Life

[Ciscoloco86]

Greetings.

About two weeks ago, I finally decided to order a customised HP Spectre x2 (2017) after a lenghty internal struggle as to whether or not I should purchase the product. The major point of contention was the battery life. HP claimed that the Spectre x2 had an 8-hour battery life span, and though other 2-in-1 devices boasted better battery life, I opted to risk it and purchase the Spectre x2 due to it being a better "bang for my buck."

Fast-forward to today, 09JUL2017, and I am beating myself up black-and-blue over the fact that I should have listened to my gut. The battery-life is absolutely atrocious. I purchased this product with the intention of using it when the new semester begins at my university, but in less than four hours, the battery is nearly drained. That's half the life-span that HP claimed the Spectre x2 to have! I do not understand why it is being drained so quickly, either. When unplugged, I keep the device with the lowest possible brightneess setting, I've set the battery-saving mode to kick in when the battery gets to 35% from the original 15%, and I try not to tax the system at all. I rarely watch videos when it is unplugged, most of my time "off-the-plug" (for test purposes) is spent surfing the web and word-processing, things I most likely will be doing a lot come Fall. Are any other Spectre x2 owners having the same issue? Is there anything that can be done about it, or is the best course of action just to sacrifice the $270 "re-stocking fee" and return the product? If that is the case, does the Spectre x2 also follow the same return policy as the majority of other HP products (30-day time frame)? I still have the box it came in and all the original accessories if I decide within these 30 days to do just that.

I apologise if I'm coming across with a bit of hostility. My intention isn't to ruffle any feathers, it's just difficult to handle the intense feeling of disappointment after being so hyped up for the release of the Spectre x2.

V/R,

Francisco Javier Rodriguez

[Riddle_Decipher]

@Ciscoloco86

Thank you for posting on the HP Support Forums, 

I have escalated your concern to HP's Support Team in your region to have it reviewed for available options (if any). 

You should be contacted within 4 business days (Excluding Holidays & Weekends). 

Response times may vary by region. 

Please send a Private Message, if you aren't contacted within 4-5 business days.  

Additionally, keep in mind not to publicly post personal information (such as serial numbers and case details).

And Feel free to post your query for any other assistance as well, 

It's been a pleasure interacting with you and I hope you have a good day ahead.

[Ciscoloco86]

Thank you very much for the reply and for pointing me in the right direction, Riddle_Decipher. I'll await contact as suggested.

The earlier, the better, just in case I may have to return the product. I'm pretty sure I'm within the return-policy time period, but you never know. Thanks again and I hope you have a great day as well. I may be very disappointed with the actual product, but from the little contact I've had with HP customer support thus far, you guys have yet to let me down. Top-notch customer service!

Take care!

V/R,

Francisco Javier Rodriguez

P.S. I will keep those security concerns in mind for any future posts.

[Ciscoloco86]

Just an update for anyone having a similar issue after having got in contact with HP Customer Support.

As always (in my experience), HP's customer support is absolutely top-notch. The representatives and technicians that I spoke to were very professional and polite, telling me what I needed to know and pointing me in the right direction for returns. This branch of the company is, without a doubt, it's shining star and if there were surveys to get them the recognition they deserve, I would be the first in line to fill one out.

Now onto the bad news...apparently, a reprehensible battery life of <4-hrs is completely normal for this product when it is used normally (HP Spectre x2; 2017), which is a shame, because it is otherwise an above-average 2-in-1. I understand that the i7 CPU is pretty taxing on the battery, but it still doesn't change the fact that the advertised 8-hour battery life is extremely misleading. While I am sure more proficient computer users know this already, there are those of us that are not privy to the fact these battery life claims are based on tests when the computer is idle (which is what I was told by customer support). That being said, that "8-hr battery life" becomes the aforementioned <4-hr battery life with only conservative use (web-browsing, word-processing, etc). You can absolutely forget about playing any media off of the charger, for that will tear through the x2's battery with the fury of a thousand suns. I admittedly haven't tested it, but I suspect that it wouldn't even last through a single feature-film on a plane-trip. 

All that being said, I must again laud the wonderful customer support, but warn others who may be considering this 2-in-1 of my experience with this product. I still have a week and a half of my return policy left, so I am currently in the market for a replacement.

Thank you,

Ciscoloco86