HP Stream 11-ah055sa Review: A Stylish and Portable Netbook

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HP Stream 11-ah055sa: At First Glance

During the early 2000s, netbooks were quite popular due to their affordability and portability. However, during the advent of Chromebooks, only a few netbooks were able to stand the test of time.

One netbook that stood the test of time is the HP Stream 11-ah055sa. To make it more suitable for modern-day needs, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa runs on Windows 10 Home OS.

Meanwhile, just like every other netbook, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa is pretty affordable. Specifically, at the time I wrote this review (March 2022), the HP Stream 11-ah055sa had a starting price of $204.99.

Now, you might be wondering if the HP Stream 11-ah055sa is capable of running modern-day software. To find out about that, come along with me as I analyze this HP laptop.

HP Stream 11-ah055sa: Design, Dimension, and Weight

Despite the price category of the HP Stream 11-ah055sa, it still made an effort to be stylish. This laptop is enclosed by a plastic case that is surprisingly sturdy.

Furthermore, it comes in two beautiful colors – ‘horizon blue’ and ‘orchid magenta’. Honestly, any of these colors make the laptop look stunning.

Moving on, at the center of the laptop’s lid, you will find an ”HP” logo with a black background. In addition to being a brand identity, the glossy logo also adds to the aesthetics of this laptop.

Now let us open the lid to see more features of this laptop. One of the features you will find on opening the lid is the laptop’s bar hinge which connects the lid to the base.

Thankfully, due to the sturdiness of the hinge, the laptop does not give room for flex. Hence, the laptop’s lid can not be flipped open easily with just one hand.

Another feature of this laptop you will see when you open the lid is its 11.6-inch display surrounded by huge bezels. The top bezel houses an HD webcam with an integrated digital microphone, while the bottom bezel houses an HP logo.

Talking about the webcam, it delivers poor video and picture quality. However, it is still sufficient for casual video chats.

Now, let’s discuss the HP Stream 11-ah055sa’s display features in-depth. To begin with, the 11.6-inch display of this laptop has an HD (1366 x 768 pixels) resolution.

Although HD resolution is not the best resolution out there, it is unsurprising to see it on a laptop at this price. Thankfully, due to the small size of the display, the HD resolution makes pictures decently sharp.

In addition to its HD resolution, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa display also uses SVA technology. For clarity, SVA (Super Viewing Angles) is a technology that helps displays to exhibit wide viewing angles.

Hence, SVA displays like that of the HP Stream 11-ah055sa will retain picture quality even when you view them from extreme angles.

Another display feature of this laptop we will talk about is its maximum screen brightness. In that regard, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa has a maximum brightness of 276 nits.

Hence, the display is decently bright and sufficient for outdoor use. To make outdoor usage even more seamless, you won’t have to worry about sunlight reflection because the display has an anti-glare coating.

In addition to the display features we have talked about in this section, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa’s display is also WLED backlit. For better understanding, this technology emits white lights which improves the display visibility.

Having talked about the display, let’s move on to the next thing you will find on this laptop which is obviously the keyboard. The well-spaced keyboard sits comfortably on the laptop’s deck.

Thankfully, it is decent and comfortable to type with. Sadly, the keyboard isn’t backlit; hence, it will be difficult to type in the dark.

Still, on the laptop’s deck, you will find the dedicated touchpad located below the keyboard. Thankfully, this touchpad has a smooth cursor movement, and it is quite clicky.

Hence, one can use this touchpad conveniently instead of a mouse.

Moving to the sides of the laptop, you will find the connectivity ports. Specifically, the left side has an AC charging port, one USB 3.1 port, one HDMI port, and an SD card slot.

Meanwhile, on the right side, the laptop has one USB 2.0 port and a combo headphone jack.

In terms of weight, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa is unsurprisingly lightweight at 1170 g. Furthermore, it is also portable with a dimension of 300 x 205.7 x 18 mm (W x D x H).

Hence, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa can be easily carried around.

In comparison with the 10.1-inch Dell Inspiron Mini 10, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa is lighter. To be precise, the Dell Inspiron Mini 10 weighed 1370 g despite being smaller.

In conclusion, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa design is impressive for a laptop of this price category. It is also lightweight and portable which means you will have no trouble carrying it around.

Based on these, I will be rating the HP Stream 11-ah055sa an eight out of ten in this section of the review.

HP Stream 11-ah055sa: Processor (CPU) Performance

The HP Stream 11-ah055sa comes with a dual-core Intel Celeron N3060 processor. This processor has a 2 MB cache memory, a base frequency of 1.60 GHz, and a maximum frequency of 2.48 GHz.

However, the Intel Celeron N3060 is an entry-level processor and not a high-end processor. Hence, you should not expect the HP Stream 11-ah055sa to perform intensive processing tasks.

For detailed information about this laptop’s processing performance, I will be sharing its Cinebench R15 test result. Basically, a Cinebench benchmark is a test that evaluates a computer processor’s performance by stressing the processor cores.

Hence, this test is usually in two parts; the first part is the single-core test, where only a single processor core is used. Meanwhile, the second part is the multi-core test, where all the processor cores are used (2 cores in this case).

It is also important to note that the laptop with the highest score in this test emerges as the best performer.

That said, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa scored 28 points in its single-core test. However, in the multi-core test, it scored 57 points.

In comparison, the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE with an Intel Pentium N3540 processor performed better. The Lenovo S21e-20 had a score of 42 points in its single-core test and 155 points in its multicore test.

Furthermore, HP X360 310 G1 with the same processor as the Lenovo S21e-20, also performed better than the HP Stream 11-ah055sa. The HP X360 also scored 42 points in its single-core test and 156 points in its multicore test.

Based on the test performance, I will be rating the HP Stream 11-ah055sa seven out of ten in this processor review section.

HP Stream 11-ah055sa: Memory (RAM) Performance

The HP Stream 11-ah055sa comes with DDR3L-1600 SDRAM memory with a standard memory capacity of 2 GB. Unfortunately, this laptop comes with just a single memory slot soldered to its motherboard.

Therefore, 2 GB is the absolute memory size supported by this laptop which means that it cannot be upgraded. Hence, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa is only powerful enough to perform very light multitasking.

For instance, with 2 GB RAM on this laptop, it should be powerful enough to open up to 5 Chrome browser tabs. Meanwhile, you should also be able to watch a YouTube video on one of the tabs.

However, for an in-depth understanding of the laptop’s memory performance, I will be sharing its PCMark test result with you.

Talking about the PCMark test, it is a tool that evaluates the performance of a computer’s memory. Similar to the Cinebench test used in the processor section, a higher score in the PCMark test represents better performance.

Therefore, in the PCMark 2008 benchmark test, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa scored 1487 points.

In comparison, the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE scored 1468 points. From the comparison, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa is obviously the better performer.

Based on this, I will be rating it eight out of ten in this memory section of the review.

HP Stream 11-ah055sa: Storage Options and Performance

For storage, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa employs an eMMC storage type. eMMC storages are very cheap; as a result, they are usually found on inexpensive laptops like this.

Also, probably because of how cheap they are, eMMC storages usually come in mediocre storage capacities. For instance, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa model I am reviewing comes with 32 GB of storage space.

Unfortunately, this is a very disappointing storage capacity and will mostly be insufficient to store most modern applications. To make things a bit better, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa has a multi-format SD media card reader for storage expansion.

At this point, I will share with you the performance of this laptop’s storage in a CrystalDiskMark test. By the way, a Crystaldiskmark test measures a computer’s sequential read and write speed.

Talking of the read speed, it measures the swiftness of a computer in opening files. On the other hand, write speed shows how long it takes a file to be saved to the computer’s storage.

As expected, a higher read and write speed is preferable.

Therefore, in the benchmark test, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa had a read speed of 154.2 MBps. It also had a write speed of 76.57 MBps.

In comparison, the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE had a higher read speed of 175.5 MBps. However, it had a lesser write speed of 69.05 MBps in the benchmark test.

Also, the Acer Aspire Switch 10E SW3-013 had a higher read speed of 167.6 MBps than the HP Stream 11. Also, it had a better write speed of 88.41 MBps.

Hence, based on the test result, I will be rating the HP Stream 11-ah055sa seven out of ten in this storage section.

HP Stream 11-ah055sa: Graphics Card Performance

For graphics, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa comes with an integrated Intel HD Graphics 400. This graphics card has a base frequency of 320 MHz and a boost frequency of 600 MHz.

Being an integrated graphics card, the Intel HD Graphics 400 does not have a dedicated Video RAM (VRAM) for its graphics. As a result of that, this laptop has a limit to the graphics content it can handle.

Notwithstanding, with this graphics card, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa should be able to run some games smoothly.

Speaking of games, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa should be able to play Team Fortress 2 at 16 fps on a medium setting. Not only that, it should be able to play FIFA 2016 at 14.2 fps on high settings.

For more graphics performance information, I will be sharing the 3DMark benchmark result of this laptop with you. For a brief explanation, 3DMark 11 is a test that evaluates a computer’s graphics handling ability.

Similar to every other test I have discussed in this review, a high score on the 3DMark test signifies better performance. That said, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa had a score of 375 points on the benchmark test.

In comparison, the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE and the Acer Aspire Switch 10E SW3-013 performed far lesser than the HP Stream 11 in this test.

Specifically, the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE had a score of 230 points. On the other hand, the Acer Aspire Switch 10E SW3-013 had a score of 181 points.

Considering these results, it is safe to say that the HP Stream 11-ah055sa performed impressively. Based on this, I will be rating it nine out of ten in this graphics section.

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HP Stream 11-ah055sa: Battery Life and Performance

The HP Stream 11-ah055sa comes with a 2-cell 37.69 Wh Li-ion Polymer battery. According to HP, this laptop battery can last up to 10 hours and 45 minutes.

The 10+ hours of battery life claimed by HP is very impressive, and it implies that one can use this laptop all through work hours without the need to charge it. However, it will be safer if we do not rely solely on the manufacturer’s claim.

Hence, I will be sharing some of this laptop’s battery tests with you.

Speaking of which, this laptop lasted 8 hours 45 minutes in a web surfing test performed by notebookcheck.com. Although the battery performance from the test is lesser than HP’s claim, it is pretty outstanding.

In comparison with the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE, the HP Stream 11 performed better in the test. Specifically, the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE lasted 4 hours 22 minutes in the same web surfing test.

However, you should be aware that the Lenovo S21e-20 80M4004MGE uses a smaller 23 Wh battery.

In conclusion, the HP Stream 11-ah055sa has a dependable battery that will last you for a considerable amount of time. Therefore, I will be rating it nine out of ten in this section of the review.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

The HP Stream 11-ah055sa is a portable, lightweight laptop with a decent design. It also has a decent keyboard that will deliver a comfortable typing experience.

Additionally, this laptop has enough battery power to last you through the day’s work. Its display quality is also satisfactory.

Sadly, the internal storage capacity of this laptop is disappointing, although you can use an SD card for external storage expansion. All in all, if you need a laptop for performing light computing tasks like schoolwork, I recommend HP Stream 11-ah055sa.

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