HP's ultralight Elite Dragonfly laptop brings a Chromebook friend to CES 2022

If there's one laptop marketing term you're going to see a lot of this year, it's "hybrid work." With more businesses moving away from traditional office spaces toward hoteling and hot-desking mixed with remote work, PC makers are designing laptops to accommodate the needs of work-anywhere professionals. HP's new Elite Dragonfly G3 laptop announced at CES 2022, for example, adds improvements for conferencing and collaboration, while also making it easier to get stuff done without the need to be at your desk or any desk. 

Unlike the G1 and G2, the Dragonfly G3 is now a regular clamshell laptop instead of a two-in-one. HP also changed from a 16:9, 13.3-inch display to a 3:2, 13.5-inch size. That'll give you more vertical space for less scrolling through documents and spreadsheets. It's available with three panel options including a full-HD screen with a 1,000-nit brightness -- perfect if you need to work outside or near windows -- and a 3,000x2,000-pixel OLED display. 

For better video conferencing and collaboration, HP added a 5-megapixel webcam with Auto Frame, which helps keep your camera focused on your face even if you're moving around. The laptop also has four discrete amps to create more immersive sound and dynamic voice leveling to improve clarity. AI-based noise reduction is used as well to improve audio even if the person speaking is wearing a mask, HP said in its announcement. 

A closer look at the HP Elite Dragonfly G3

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Running on new 12th-gen Intel processors announced at CES, the 1-kilogram Dragonfly G3 can be configured with up to 32GB of LPDDR5 memory and up to a 2TB PCIe 3x4 NVMe solid-state drive. Fast Wi-Fi 6E wireless, Bluetooth 5.2 and optional 4G LTE and 5G (depending on your region) are part of the package, too. And for those times when you want to sit down and connect to a larger display, keyboard, mouse and other peripherals, the Dragonfly has two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, a USB-A port, a headset jack and an HDMI 2.0 output, so no dongles are really needed. 

Pricing wasn't announced, but it is expected to start shipping in March. In April, it will be joined by the HP Elite Dragonfly Chromebook Enterprise and Elite Dragonfly Chromebook. 

As you might expect, the Elite Dragonfly Chromebook has a lot in common with the Windows 11 version, but this one is a two-in-one with an optional magnetic pen that attaches and charges wirelessly on the side of the device like HP's Chromebook x2 11. The premium Chromebook is the first with a haptic trackpad and is also the world's first Intel vPro Chromebook, which is, frankly, the more important of the two "world's first" features. That means the security features here are even better than the strong protection Chromebook Enterprise already offers. 

These models also get a 5-megapixel webcam with a shutter that blocks it when you want some privacy. HP will also offer its integrated privacy screen for the display to help stop people from seeing what's on your screen from off-angle. 

Pricing will be announced closer to its availability in April.