HP 14, Intel N150, 8GB, 128GB SSD + 128GB SSD, Rose Gold

The HP 15-fc0033ca is a refurbished 15.6-inch budget laptop with a 512GB SSD and 1080p display, but its AMD Athlon Silver 7120U processor is one of the slowest we've seen. It's fine for very basic tasks like email and word processing, but anything more will feel sluggish. At $265 USD, you're better off looking for a refurbished laptop with a quad-core processor.

Let's be blunt: the AMD Athlon Silver 7120U is a 2-core, 2.4GHz processor that belongs in a museum. It's a dual-core chip in a world where even budget laptops are moving to quad-core or better. Our database puts this CPU in the 4th percentile, which means 96% of laptops we've tested have a faster processor. Opening more than a few browser tabs will make this thing wheeze. Basic tasks like web browsing, email, and document editing are doable, but anything beyond that is asking for trouble.

The AMD Radeon 610M integrated graphics are equally underwhelming. The GPU sits in the 31st percentile, so it's below average even for integrated graphics. Gaming is essentially off the table. The gaming score in our database is 9.9 out of 100, which is one of the worst we've seen. You can play Solitaire and maybe some very light indie games, but don't expect to run anything from the last decade at playable frame rates. The 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM is also on the low side, landing in the 23rd percentile. It's soldered on, so there's no upgrading it later. The 512GB NVMe SSD is the one bright spot here, sitting in the 60th percentile. It's not blazing fast, but it's solid and gives you plenty of room for files and apps.

The HP 15-fc0033ca doesn't really compete with the laptops in our top competitor list. The Apple MacBook Pro MWP72LL/A, Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 21KC00A8US, and Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge NP960XMA-KB1US are all premium machines that cost several times more. They're in a completely different league. The ASUS Vivobook TP3407SA-DS74T and Microsoft Surface Laptop 165H are also far more capable, with better processors, displays, and build quality. Comparing this HP to those is like comparing a bicycle to a sports car.

Where this HP actually competes is against other sub-$300 refurbished laptops. In that space, you might find older ThinkPads or Dell Latitudes with Intel Core i5 processors from a few generations back. Those would be significantly faster than the Athlon Silver 7120U, even if they're older. The trade-off is that this HP has a newer design, Wi-Fi 6, and a 1080p display, which some older budget laptops lack. But raw performance matters more for everyday use, and this HP falls short there.

At $265 USD, the HP 15-fc0033ca is cheap, but cheap doesn't always mean good value. You're getting a 512GB SSD and a 1080p display, which is more than some budget laptops offer. But the processor is so weak that the laptop will feel slow even doing basic tasks. For a bit more money, you can find refurbished laptops with Intel Core i3 or Ryzen 3 processors that will run circles around this thing. The 8GB of RAM is also a limitation, especially since it's soldered and can't be upgraded. If you're on a very tight budget and only need a machine for light web browsing and word processing, this might work. But most people would be better off saving up a little more for something with a quad-core processor.

The HP 15-fc0033ca is a refurbished 15.6-inch budget laptop that sits at the very bottom of the performance ladder. At around $265 USD, it's aimed at people who need a basic Windows 11 machine for light tasks and don't want to spend much. The spec sheet looks decent on paper with a 512GB NVMe SSD and 8GB of RAM, but the AMD Athlon Silver 7120U processor is where this thing really struggles. We pulled the percentile data from our database and the CPU lands in the 4th percentile. That's not a typo. It's one of the slowest laptop processors we've tracked.

The display is a 15.6-inch 1920x1080 IPS panel rated at 250 nits. That's fine for indoor use but nothing special. The screen sits around the 32nd percentile, so it's below average compared to other laptops in this category. You get a decent port selection with one USB-C, three USB-A ports, HDMI, and Wi-Fi 6, which is actually a nice surprise at this price point. The whole thing weighs 1.47kg, so it's reasonably portable for a 15-inch machine.

One thing to keep in mind is that this is a refurbished unit. The listing mentions upgrades and modifications, so the manufacturer box has been opened for testing and inspection. That's normal for refurbished laptops, but it does mean you're not getting a brand new machine. The 45Wh battery is small, and combined with the weak processor, you shouldn't expect all-day battery life despite what some listings might suggest.

Skip the HP 15-fc0033ca if you plan to do anything beyond basic web browsing and document editing. Students who need to run multiple apps at once, anyone who wants to play games, and people who edit photos or videos should look elsewhere. The dual-core processor will frustrate you daily. If you need a budget laptop, look for refurbished options with Intel Core i5 or AMD Ryzen 3 processors from a few generations back. They'll be faster and more capable, even if they're older. Also skip this if you need a bright display for outdoor use, since 250 nits is on the dim side.

Should you buy the HP 15-fc0033ca? Probably not. The AMD Athlon Silver 7120U is just too weak to recommend, even at this low price. It's a 2-core processor in 2024, and it shows. The laptop will handle very basic tasks like checking email, writing documents, and light web browsing, but it'll struggle with anything more demanding. The 8GB of soldered RAM means you can't upgrade it later, and the 250 nits display is dim by modern standards.

If you absolutely need a laptop right now and your budget is capped at around $265 USD, this will technically work. But we'd strongly suggest looking at refurbished options with at least a quad-core processor, even if it means getting an older machine. The performance difference will be night and day. This HP is a case where the low price is tempting, but the compromises are too significant to ignore.