In 2015, we’ve seen mid-range desktop PCs come in all shapes and sizes, but the All-in-One (AIO) form factor has definitely stood out as the desktop of choice. And, if it is touch-enabled and with Windows 10 being rolled out; then it is ready for a good run in the market. The 23-inch HP 23-q014 AIO illustrates why this is, combining a classy design, a decent collection of components in an all-in-one design.
Providing a touch-based Windows 8.1 experience that won’t clutter your desktop, and is just as usable in the family room or kitchen as it would be in the home-office (can be upgraded to Windows 10 as it is available since end of July). For that, it gets a nod in our Editors Choice for budget mid-range AIOs as it is a machine that will meet most of your home-productivity and multimedia needs and save you some desktop space along the way.
The Touchscreen HP 23-q014 uses what is now a tried and true design for HP, with a beautifully engineered aluminum-coated stand and a single riser bar holding up the PC off the desk. The easel stand has a place to stow the keyboard when not in use, and it does allow you to adjust the angle of the all-in-one somewhat, while the rise bar provides you with a solid foundation for the display.
Design
The HP 23-q014 features a 23-inch display with 1920 by 1080 resolution, offering support for 1080p HD content and providing plenty of room for multitasking with two or more tiled windows. Just like most capacitive touch displays, which feature edge to edge glass and narrow bezels, the HP 23’s FHD multi-touch screen offers impressive clarity and beautiful colors. This allows you to use all of the side swiping, edge touching gestures of Windows 8.1 and even better in Windows 10, but it adds up for a total 1.8 inches of space between the edge of the display and the edge of the chassis.
There is no major compromise in the name of affordability, however. It comes with a modern wireless chiclet style keyboard and mouse (which is a little big) combo and both fit the AIO screen nicely in design and colors as they are white underneath and black on top and the touchscreen is white at the rear and black at the front.
All of the components are installed in the 17.74-by-22.35-by-7.60-inch (HWD) black cabinet. The system weighs 17.7 pounds and is supported by a boomerang-shape stand that lets you tilt the display forward five degrees and backward 30 degrees and edge-to-edge tilt of 178 degrees for optimal viewing.
The one area where the HP 23-q014 didn’t lead its other entry-level competitors was in graphics performance. Utilizing Intel’s integrated HD Graphics 4400, the HP 23 fell behind in 3DMark 11 and both of our gaming tests, Heaven and Aliens vs. Predator. None of the comparable systems offer playable results in either game, but the HP Pavilion 23-g010 did pull into the lead thanks to the excellent AMD Radeon HD 8280 Graphics solution.
This means that older games are playable at higher settings while some of the latest titles can be played at lower resolutions. There is no HDMI output and you need an HDMI adapter if you want to connect to another screen (the latest iMac’s also don’t have the HDMI by default). There is only a single power cable and none for the keyboard or mouse and the whole computer is already inside the 23 inch screen.
Performance
With a 4th-generation 3.1 GHz (3 MB cache) Intel Core i3-4160T processor and 8GB of RAM (expandable to 16GB), the HP 23 is fairly decent for a mid-range system. You won’t be editing hours of HD video on this PC. For that, you’ll have to look upwards maybe consider the 23-inch Intel Core i7-powered Dell Inspiron 2350 (2015 model). But it’s just right for being the center of a home organization. For a budget mid-range system, the Core i3 processors offers decent performance, especially when put side to side with other lower-powered alternatives found in some competing systems.
Don’t let the Core i3 give you the wrong ideas, in our tests the system pulled a Passmark Benchmark Score of 4439, which is better than some 4th and 5th generation Intel i5 processors, which is of course helped by the 8 GB memory. This is better than HP Pavilion 23-g010 (2,377) equipped with a low-voltage mobile Core i5, while the Intel Core i5-equipped Samsung ATIV One (DP700A7K-K01US) scored 1,612 points. This solid performance also extends to multimedia tasks, although it is a tad slow for our Editors Choice Apple iMac 21.5-Inch (2015-model).
The HP all-in-one also boasts a 1TB 7,200rpm hard drive, offering plenty of space for your programs, files, and media library. The system comes with Windows 8 preinstalled, along with a few extras. The hard drive’s 7200rpm speed is faster than the standard 5400rpm although not as fast as a Solid State Drive (SSD). Connectivity options include the 802.11bgn wireless, Bluetooth 4.0, SuperMulti DVD/CD burner, 3-in-1 Memory Card Reader that supports SD, SDHC and SDXC memory card formats, 2 x USB 3.0 ports, 4 x USB 2.0 ports, a Microphone/headphone combo jack and an integrated TrueVision 720p high definition webcam with microphone.
Summary
All things considered, including the price, the HP 23-q014 is a good choice for the user who wants a PC for keeping the family organized, putting Internet access in the kitchen or living room, saving save on the office desk, or just wants a touch-capable all-in-one for day-to-day use. If you don’t particularly want Windows 8.1 as your primary transition to a touch screen, you can upgrade to the latest Windows 10 for free.
However, if you don’t particularly want Windows 8.1/10 or touch capability, we’d recommend the Editors’ Choice for mid-range all-in-one desktops, the Apple iMac 21.5-Inch (2015), which offers competitive performance and side-steps some of the perceived problems with Windows 8. Still, the HP 23-q014 is what we can call a step in the right direction and is highly recommended.
