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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 12, 2024·
When deciding between the HP Stream 14" and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2, consider the tradeoffs between cost, performance, and features. The HP Stream is significantly less expensive, making it a budget-friendly option. It also has a longer battery life, which can be beneficial if you need to use your laptop for extended periods away from a power source. However, its performance is more suited for basic tasks due to its less powerful processor and lower resolution screen. The Surface Laptop Go 2, while more expensive, offers a better performance with a stronger processor and better graphics capabilities, which makes it more suitable for more intensive tasks and applications. It has a higher-resolution screen, giving you a sharper image that is especially apparent when working on detailed tasks or enjoying media content. Additionally, it sports a more premium design with a smaller size and lighter weight, enhancing its portability. Ultimately, if you require a laptop for everyday use with minimal investment, the HP Stream 14" may suffice. However, if you plan on doing more demanding work or seek a higher-quality display and build, the Surface Laptop Go 2 could be worth the additional cost. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the HP Stream 14"
- The HP Stream 14" has no clear advantages over the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2.
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
- Good for general use
- Good for software development
- Good for content creation
- Good overall build quality
- Excellent portability
- Very good speakers
- Good keyboard
Key differences
Engineering and Design
5.7
6.5
3.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is only fair for engineering and design, while the HP Stream 14" is poor.
The HP Stream 14" falls short for engineering and design due to its lower performing Intel Celeron processor and Intel UHD Graphics, along with a lower-resolution TN screen that offers poor color coverage, which are significant drawbacks for CPU-intensive tasks and detailed visual work required in these fields.
Screen Quality
5.2
6.9
14.0in
SIZE
12.4in
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
220.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
401.0 nits
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has a better screen than the HP Stream 14" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 provides a sharper and brighter display, enhancing everyday activities like browsing and video streaming, unlike the lower resolution and dimmer screen of the HP Stream 14". The Surface Laptop Go 2's more accurate color representation makes it suitable for engineering and design tasks where precise color work is important, a feature where the HP Stream falls short. However, for gaming and 3D applications that benefit from high refresh rates, neither laptop is ideal, with the HP Stream's basic display and the Surface Laptop Go 2's focus on resolution and color accuracy instead of fast refresh rates.
Portability
Very Good
Excellent
14.0in
SIZE
12.4in
3.5 lbs
WEIGHT
2.4 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has excellent portability, while the HP Stream 14" has very good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
5.5
7.8
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has good build quality, while the HP Stream 14" has poor build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$299
$565
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
The HP Stream 14" has a price of $299 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 costs $565.
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Key similarities
General Use
6.5
7.0
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
220.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
401.0 nits
7.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
6.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
8.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
9.2/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 to be good for general use, while the HP Stream 14" is only fair.
The HP Stream 14" offers ample RAM for general use tasks, but its Intel Celeron processor and TN screen panel with basic resolution limit its performance and display quality, though the device is quite portable with a satisfactory battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2, on the other hand, features a more powerful i5 processor, a higher quality IPS touchscreen with better resolution, and superior portability due to its smaller size and lighter weight, but it comes with less RAM and storage, which might affect multitasking and data storage capacities.
Gaming and AI
5.7
6.0
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 to be only fair for gaming and AI, while the HP Stream 14" is poor.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Content Creation
6.7
7.1
3.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 to be good for content creation, while the HP Stream 14" is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
6.5
7.0
3.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
6.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 to be good for software development, while the HP Stream 14" is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Battery
7.5 Hours
8.0 Hours
The HP Stream 14" has 7.5 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has 8 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
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How the HP Stream 14" and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| HP Stream 14" | Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$299 | $565 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | January 1, 2022 | June 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 12.8'' x 8.9'' x 0.7'' | 11'' x 8.1'' x 0.62'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 3.5 lbs | 2.48 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 12.76" | 10.95" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 8.86" | 8.12" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel Celeron N4120 | Intel i5-1135G7 | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 320 GB | 128 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 7.5 Hours | 8 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 41 Wh | 41 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 14" | 12.4" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | TN | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1366 x 768 | 1536 x 1024 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 220 nits | 401 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 5.6/10 | 7.8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 8.2/10 | 9.3/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 8.8/10 | 7.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 8.4/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | No | No | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 1 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | No | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 1 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Ports | |||
Thunderbolt Ports | 0 | 0 | |
Shopping
HP Stream 14"
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Zachary Cuevas | November 2021
"With half of the main system memory and a fraction of the storage that we recommend in any budget Windows laptop, the HP Stream 14 does not impress. Perhaps it doesn't need to, depending on your reference point. For the price, you're getting a functional laptop with Windows 10, which already places the HP Stream 14 above most Chromebooks on that merit alone. Still, in this price range, you can't do much worse, but you can do better. In fact, for just $100 more, you can grab the much superior budget option, the Lenovo IdeaPad 1 14."
Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | August 2022
"The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 review is a compact companion with old hardware. The Surface Laptop Go 2 shows some weaknesses. Microsoft didn't really develop the second generation of the Surface Laptop Go 2 any further but has only equipped it with a slightly more powerful Core i5 processor. However, the performance still remains at a fairly low level overall, but for many users, it definitely should still be sufficient for everyday tasks."
Get a great deal on the HP Stream 14" or the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
About HP
HP, also known as Hewlett-Packard, is an American technology company that develops personal computers and computer peripherals. In the laptop industry, HP is known for its entry level Essential series laptops, its mid-range Pavilion, Envy, and Victus series, and high-end Omen and Spectre series, in addition to its business-oriented EliteBook, ProBook, and Dragonfly series laptops. HP laptops generally undercut other mainstream competitors in terms of price, placing itself as the value-oriented mainstream brand.
About Microsoft
Microsoft is an American technology corporation. Microsoft is best known for their Windows operating system and Surface laptop series. The Surface Laptop is their standard notebook offering, while their Surface Go, Surface Pro, and Surface Studio are their 2-in-1/tablet offerings in order of increasing capability. Although Microsoft charges a premium price tag for their laptops, buyers can expect a well integrated and packaged device since Microsoft develops the Windows operating system.
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