HP Elite Dragonfly Pro Testers: Security and Enterprise Infrastructure Integration

In partnership with HP, the ZDNet team is offering three of its readers the opportunity to test the HP Elite Dragonfly PC (reference 8ML09EA#ABF), a lightweight, compact and convertible professional ultraportable. The brand provides the laptops to the participants while the ZDNet team takes care of selecting the readers, defining a "practical" test protocol, sending the products to the testers, gathering their opinions and publishing several articles making the summary of feedback from participants.

After sharing their opinions on the design and ergonomics of the product, its capabilities in a mobile situation and its daily performance, our three Pro Testers discuss with us the delicate subject of safety and integration of the product within their business infrastructure. A program somewhat battered by the long period of confinement, and therefore telework, from which we have just come out.

"Elite Dragonfly's Windows Hello settings have been successfully tested by me. My favorite identification system is undeniably facial recognition, which works in more than 80% of cases. Sometimes, in bright light, it has trouble working, while conversely, in the middle of the night, the lighting of the screen and the keyboard is enough for face detection and unlocking the computer. Fingerprint recognition is also very effective (much better than on my Huawei P30 Pro smartphone). But let's admit that facial recognition is simpler, more efficient and faster. So much so that you quickly forget to use the fingerprint sensor. Although I didn't really need it, confinement requires, the privacy filter is impressively effective. However, I hijacked its main function to drastically lower the brightness of the screen and adjust it more finely. Thus, I was able to use this PC several times in complete darkness without having the impression of lighting up the room in which I was on my own.

For those who are concerned about their intimacy and privacy, the webcam's physical shutter is easy to activate and effective. Plus, it has the right tone of being contrasting when deployed. So you can see right away if the lens is blocked. No need for an additional indicator light. As far as the security utilities and software provided are concerned, I admit that I did not have the need or the opportunity to use them. I only use my company's apps. »

Matthieu CANDEIAS is a business engineer at ISORE Bâtiment.ISORE Bâtiment is a company specializing in the rehabilitation of building facades, mainly social housing, for 30 years thanks to the implementation external insulation called "cladding".

“I am currently using Windows Hello authentication with the webcam. On the ultraportable Elite Dragonfly, this unlocking mode works very well, like on a smartphone. During my test, I took the time to try fingerprint authentication. Setup is easy and authentication faster. Arguably better than face authentication via Windows Hello. So, I decided to adopt this function to unlock my computer.

The privacy filter is the Elite Dragonfly's biggest surprise. On my PC, I'm currently using a fixed filter on my screen. A solution that is certainly effective, but not practical at all. Here, with this ultraportable, you just have to press the F2 key and, wow, the filter activates. Convenient for a mobile user like me! As for the camera shutter, I didn't find it spontaneously or by browsing the documentation. Your team had to ask me what I thought about it to know that this function existed and how to activate it. In short, a point to improve on the side of the manufacturer. »

Laurent MAURER is Chairman and CEO of Mandarine Academy.Mandarine Academy specializes in the adoption of new IT uses, collaborative tools such as Office 365 and business applications . We support users using a method and our Dileap platform dedicated to the adoption of uses. For this support we mix a digital approach with videos, and a human one with training in virtual classes.

“I set up the multi-factor authentication system the first time I used the HP Elite Dragonfly. I use Dashlane as a password manager and one of its great qualities in my opinion is the possibility of configuring biometric authentication to unlock access to its passwords on Android mobile and, now, also on PC. Indeed, all you have to do is set up Windows Hello, which supports biometric data in Windows, register your fingerprint for the authentication module to work with Dashlane. Once activated on the PC, one is simply prompted to use it in Dashlane. Now, to quickly log in to any site or online service, I just have to put my finger on the little square next to my keyboard... We love this system, me and my personal data !

Contrary to other testimonials we collected, this tester reader is less enthusiastic about trying out the privacy filter. "Regarding the built-in privacy filter, in my view, people positioned to the sides of the screen will have a harder time reading the information than people in front of the computer, but some information will still be visible." The camera shutter is a real good idea. I no longer have a Post it or sticker in front of my webcam. Thank you HP, it was enough to think about it!

Finally, I took a look at the security apps that come standard with HP. I must admit that I find it difficult to assess their quality and to sort through this plethora of software: Sure Sense (AI anti-blocking software, including ransomeware), Sure Click (to block navigation on insecure sites) , Sure Start (BIOS self-healing function after attacks or corruption attempts), Sure Run (checking registers before restarting key processes to prevent them from being replaced by malware), Sure Recover (fast recovery of the last image of the system with a simple network connection)... A veritable arsenal of defense in which it is easy to get lost. All this software has its interest and the precautionary principle means that we will use them without complaining, at least if your company authorizes their use. To do this, simply launch HP Client Security which helps the user to set up, step by step, all the defenses and security of the PC. In the end, I do not know if I am more protected than with my old machine, because in my opinion, nothing replaces human vigilance when it comes to safety. Nevertheless, the Elite Dragonfly offers a maximum of hardware and software functions to simplify this vigilance and, therefore, better secure its data. It's hard to go back..."

Régis Ollivier is Digital Assets Coordinator at Royal Canin FranceFor more than 50 years, Royal Canin has been committed to providing healthy nutrition solutions for cats and dogs and improving their quality of life . Founded in 1968 by French veterinarian Jean Cathary, Royal Canin has always worked daily in partnership with nutritionists, breeders and veterinarians around the world. Royal Canin's mission is to transform the health and well-being of every cat and dog by pushing the boundaries of nutrition and nutritional knowledge in partnership with animal professionals.

To sum up. The ultraportable HP Elite Dragonfly has everything you need to preserve the privacy of its user, but also the often sensitive data of the company to which it belongs. Among the points most raised by our three testers, we should point out the multi-factor authentication system, which proves to be both fast, reliable and efficient. If the fingerprint recognition system is not necessarily favored by all our readers to unlock the PC, it is useful for connecting in the blink of an eye to the company's online services. The webcam's hardware shutter also caught the eye of our readers and proves to be more than just a gimmick for those who want to preserve their privacy. The confidentiality filter is welcome even if it does not prove to be as efficient as a real hardware filter to be placed on the PC screen. Finally, although our readers are a bit lost in the panoply of security software provided by HP, they feel reassured to have all this arsenal on hand in the event of a problem. It is therefore on this new positive note that this Pro Testers dedicated to the Elite Dragonfly ends, a laptop PC truly designed for business fleets in an ultra-mobile situation.

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An operation in partnership with HP

HP and ZDNet are partners for this "Pro Testers" event. HP provides Elite Dragonfly ultraportable PCs to attendees. For its part, the ZDNet team is responsible for choosing the participants, defining a "practical" test protocol, gathering their opinions and publishing several articles summarizing the feedback from readers.

Technical characteristics of the model tested (reference 8ML09EA#ABF):