HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9 Review: Trully Workstation

Telset.id – The ZBook Firefly 14 G9 is one of HP’s flagship laptops in the business segment. First introduced back in 2022, this laptop offers everything a workstation needs. Starting from a wide screen, reliable CPU, to long battery life. To prove it, here’s a review of the ZBook Firefly 14 G9!

HP continues its adventure in the business segment by presenting the successor to the ZBook Firefly 14 G8. Apart from being powerful, the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 is also fairly compact, with dimensions of 31.56×22.43×1.99 cm and weighing less than 1.5 kg.

In terms of capabilities, the 12th Generation Intel Core i7 processor, plus NVIDIA T550 and up to 64GB of memory is definitely not something that can be underestimated. Not only writing documents, this workstation is also capable of doing many other things, including processing large files and running professional applications with ease.

The HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9 Mobile Workstation also supports a multitude of better connectivity, communication and collaboration thanks to the presence of an AI-based 5MP auto-frame camera feature, audio amplifier to block ambient noise and 5G network options to allow users to stay connected from any location.

For more details about the experience of using this workstation, the following is the result of the introduction Telset.id with the HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9 Mobile Workstation.

Design and Screen

Like its predecessor, the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 also comes with a metal finish. It looks expensive, that’s for sure (because it is). But we see more elegance in its appearance, with a silvery gray hue that makes it look simple but cool at the same time.

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Don’t forget the chrome Z logo on the face. Ordinary people will not think that there is a cell phone behind this display. Oh, you are one of them?

Anyways, back to matters of portability. Don’t forget, we are talking about a laptop that will be used for work all day. With dimensions of 31.56 × 22.43 × 1.99 cm and a weight of 1.47 kg, the HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9 Mobile is not in the very light category. But this obviously won’t break your hand, even if you have to carry it around all day. After all, don’t we put our laptops on the table more often when we work?

Behind the cover bearing the Z logo, we will find a 14-inch screen surrounded by a thin plastic bezel. The webcam is centered above the screen and hidden in the bezel. At the time of testing, we did a zoom meeting, and the quality didn’t disappoint. Clear enough.

Moving to the bottom, there is a black Chiclet-style backlit keyboard with letters displayed in a crisp white font. And in general, the chiclet keyboard is soft, so it’s quite comfortable to use for long periods of time.

The touchpad, which is under the keyboard and right in the middle, is also very wide and responsive. Zooming in and zooming out feels flawless. Not far from there, to be precise on the right, under the keyboard, there is a fingerprint reader that will help secure our files and data.

Turning to the screen, the HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9 Mobile Workstation maximizes user creative productivity with a 14-inch screen – 16:10 HP DreamColor and 100% DCI-P3. Not only bright, the colors on the screen also look clear and accurate.

Also add a 2K+ panel (2560×1600), we will surely get a comfortable viewing experience.

We went on YouTube to watch the trailer for Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. From here one can see the color quality is impressive, especially when Optimus Prime and Bumblebee appear. The 14-inch screen of the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 reproduces bright red colors well, and is sharp.

In short, not only is it made comfortable when you have to use this device to complete several jobs, from typing to editing photos, entertaining yourself with a number of shows is also very possible with this HP workstation.

Performance and Connectivity HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9

ZBook Firefly 14 G9 comes with 12th Gen Intel Core i7 Processor, NVIDIA T550 GPU and up to 64GB of memory. On paper, these specs look good, and they are. Its placement as a workstation is very acceptable.

We tried to test its ability to handle multitasking, by opening 27 tabs at once in Google Chrome – one of them YouTube, and started typing and editing news. The result, aaaaaan. No hiccups or performance issues. The ZBook Firefly 14 G9 really makes work easy and does its job very well as a workstation.

In the Geekbench performance test, the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 scored 1721 (single-core) and 4962 (multi-core). It’s not the most powerful, but it’s more than enough to meet the basic needs of an everyday user. The combination of a 12th Gen Intel Core i7 CPU with NVIDIA T550 GPU and up to 64GB of DDR5 RAM is more than enough to make it a flagship workstation.

As an illustration, here are some benchmark results obtained by the ZBook Firefly 14 G9.

The good news is that the HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9 comes with a multitude of connectivity options. On the left, we’ll find HDMI 2.0b; SuperSpeed ​​USB Type-A 5Gbps; 2 Thunderbolt 4 with USB4 Type-C 40Gbps and a smartcard reader. While on the right there is a combo audio jack; SuperSpeed ​​USB Type-A 5Gbps; and SIM Card slot (optional).

Additionally, there is WLAN support: Intel® Wi-Fi 6E AX211 (2×2) and Bluetooth 5.2 M.2 combo, vPro; WWAN: Intel® XMM™ 7560 LTE Advanced Pro Cat 16; Intel® 5G Solution 5000; and Optional Near Field Communication (NFC).

Oh, the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 also has the HP QuickDrop feature which allows users to easily share files between devices. This feature allows users to connect to Android, Apple or Google mobile devices.

Audio HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9

Designed as a workstation, the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 doesn’t necessarily ignore other things, including audio matters. The name Bang & Olufsen emblazoned on the right of the keyboard is proof of that. This time, HP placed the speakers on the sidelines of the laptop lid, not on each side of the keyboard in a triangular pattern like in the previous series.

Talk about quality, okay. The speakers are loud enough to be heard clearly throughout the home, with distortion-free sound. We opened Youtube and listened to “Dreamers” by Jungkook BTS, the speakers were clear enough even though the volume was positioned at 100. It’s just, it’s really noisy. In the sense that it has the potential to disturb neighbors.

I watched Emergency Declaration on Viu and the audio was very clean and clear. Again, this is a workstation and not meant for endless entertainment.

Battery HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9

The ZBook Firefly 14 G9 comes with an HP Long Life 3-Cell, 51 Wh Li-ion Polymer battery, with a battery life of up to 13 hours. This device also supports fast charging, where it can charge up to 50% in 30 minutes.

In its journey, this workstation from HP will last longer than the average of 8 hours for normal use. But that’s not the case when burdened with excessive tasks, especially when it comes to acting as an entertainment machine.

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We tested it with a concert video (almost 3 hours long) as well as some MVs on YouTube for marathon viewing. As a result, the trip which started at 19.00 WIB, with a battery position of 100%, had to end at 00.00 WIB a little less. That means, the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 can only last less than 6 hours.

At that time, after hours of use, the ZBook Firefly 14 G8 even started to have a fever. On the one hand, we really regret this, but on the other hand we also try to understand. Why not, with a slim and concise body, it is certainly a challenge for HP to remove heat from the body of the ZBook Firefly 14 G9.

Conclusion

The ZBook Firefly 14 G9 does its job very well as a workstation. Apart from a reliable processor, this device has everything you need to be a pleasant work companion. One of them is a comfortable keyboard.

Good screen quality, with a wide 14-inch size also allows users to maximize their productivity. Not only bright, it also presents clear and accurate colors. So, for workers who like to watch movies in their free time, this is of course a complement.

As complete as the port support that the ZBook Firefly 14 G9 brings. Yes, from SuperSpeed ​​USB Type-A 5Gbps to Thunderbolt 4, from combo audio jack to SIM Card slot (optional), everything is there. Plus there is a special feature called HP QuickDrop which allows users to easily share files between devices.

All of these specifications are even supported by a charming design and appearance. Simple but classy at the same time. The silver color also adds to the impression of being expensive. And yes, it is expensive.

To be honest, The ZBook Firefly 14 G9 does its job well as a workstation. But this is also not exactly the best. So, in our opinion, the price of Rp. 30 million, which is priced by HP for this device, is a bit expensive.

The advantages of the HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9

• Reliable performance
• Comfortable keyboard
• Abundant ports
• NVIDIA graphics processor
• Simple but cool design

Disadvantages of the HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9

• Not the lightest in its class
• Hot fast
• A bit pricey

Specifications for the HP ZBook Firefly 14 G9