Artificial Intelligence
HP EliteBook Ultra G1q Review: Balancing Power and Portability

The HP EliteBook Ultra G1q is a sleek, lightweight laptop designed for business professionals who prioritise portability and battery life. Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E78100) chip, it offers impressive performance for everyday tasks and excellent battery endurance.
Design and Build Quality
The EliteBook Ultra G1q boasts a premium aluminium chassis that feels sturdy and well-constructed. Its thin and lightweight design, weighing just under 1.3 kg, makes it easy to carry around all day. The laptop’s 14-inch touch display has a 2.2K resolution, offering sharp visuals and good colour accuracy. While the 60Hz refresh rate might not be ideal for gamers or video editors, it’s perfectly adequate for most productivity tasks.
Hardware
As mentioned earlier, the EliteBook Ultra G1q comes packed with a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E78100) chip and a Qualcomm Hexagon NPU. Graphics is handled by the Qualcomm Adreno GPU and the laptop runs Windows 11 Pro. You also get 16 GB of LPDDR5x RAM and up to 1TB of PCIe Gen4 NVMe TLC M.2 SSD storage.
In terms of connectivity, you get one USB Type-C 40Gbps port, one USB Type-C 10Gbps port, one USB Type-A 5Gbps port, and one stereo headphone/microphone combo jack. When it comes to audio, you get dual speakers with discrete amplifiers which are powered by Audio by Poly Studio, and integrated dual array microphones.
Performance
The Snapdragon X Elite chip, built on the ARM architecture, delivers snappy performance for everyday tasks such as browsing the web, video conferencing, and running productivity apps. However, some Windows applications might not be fully optimised for ARM, leading to occasional compatibility issues or performance hiccups. The laptop’s 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 1TB of SSD storage provide ample space for your files and apps.
As an AI PC, the HP EliteBook Ultra G1q offers features to boost productivity and collaboration. Its Hexagon NPU enables the local running of AI applications, reducing latency and improving performance. Additionally, the Poly Camera Pro provides advanced video conferencing capabilities, including auto-framing, background blur, and virtual backgrounds.
Battery Life
One of the standout features of the EliteBook Ultra G1q is its exceptional battery life. With its 59Wh battery, the laptop can easily last for over 12 hours on a single charge, making it ideal for long workdays or travel. The included 65W USB-C charger provides fast charging, bringing the battery from 0 to 100% in about two hours.
Verdict
The HP EliteBook Ultra 14-inch G1q Notebook AI PC is a powerful and efficient laptop that excels in performance, battery life, and connectivity. Its advanced features and AI capabilities make it an ideal choice for professionals seeking a reliable and versatile device for their work.
Price: $1,699.99 onwards
HP EliteBook Ultra G1q $1,699.99 onwards
Summary
The Snapdragon X Elite chip, built on the ARM architecture, delivers snappy performance for everyday tasks such as browsing the web, video conferencing, and running productivity apps.
User Review
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Artificial Intelligence
Microsoft Intros New Surface Copilot+ PCs for Business

Microsoft has launched its latest Surface for Business Copilot+ PCs in the Middle East, featuring the powerful Intel Core Ultra (Series 2) processors. This new lineup, including the Surface Laptop, Surface Pro, and the upcoming Surface Laptop with 5G, is designed to boost productivity and AI innovation for professionals in the region.
Check out what Microsoft 365 Copilot can do for you:
Engineered for exceptional performance, enhanced security, and seamless connectivity, these PCs offer unparalleled speed and efficiency for demanding tasks like multitasking, data analysis, and creative work. The sleek Surface Laptop provides a reliable and stylish solution with a high-resolution display and long battery life. The versatile Surface Pro offers tablet flexibility with laptop power, ideal for professionals on the go. For constant connectivity, the Surface Laptop with 5G will provide lightning-fast internet speeds, ensuring productivity anywhere.
“We are excited to introduce the new lineup of our Surface for Business Copilot+ PCs, which are designed to empower professionals across the Middle East to thrive in today’s highly dynamic business landscape,” said Zubin Chagpar, Senior Director and Business Group Leader for Modern Work & Surface Devices at Microsoft CEMA. “In today’s fast-evolving, AI-powered work environment, businesses seek tools that not only boost productivity but also spark creativity and innovation. With cutting-edge performance, enhanced AI capabilities, and seamless connectivity, this new lineup empowers professionals to excel in their work, no matter where they are. At Microsoft, we remain deeply committed to empowering every professional across the workforce to achieve more, and the Surface for Business Copilot+ PCs are a testament to this mission.”
These Copilot+ PCs are Microsoft’s most secure Windows devices yet, featuring the Microsoft Pluton security processor enabled by default. This chip-to-cloud security technology, embedded in the CPU by silicon partners, provides a secure vault for sensitive data like passwords and encryption keys, protecting against physical and remote attacks.
Alongside the new PCs, Microsoft is launching several innovations. The new Surface USB4 Dock offers enhanced connectivity with faster data transfer and multi-display support. Microsoft Teams Rooms on Surface Hub 3 are improved for seamless meeting collaboration. Finally, the Security Copilot in the Surface Management Portal provides advanced security features and insights for efficient Surface device management and protection by IT administrators.
The new Surface for Business Copilot+ PCs are now available for pre-order. The Microsoft Surface Laptop for Business with Intel Core Ultra processors (Series 2) has been available for delivery in the Middle East market since March 4, 2025, and the Microsoft Surface Pro for Business with Intel Core Ultra processors (Series 2) can be pre-ordered now for delivery starting March 24, 2025.
Apps
Google’s Latest AI Model Enables Watermark Removal from Images

A potentially controversial application of Google’s new Gemini 2.0 Flash AI model has emerged: users are leveraging it to remove watermarks from images, including those from stock photo sites such as Getty Images.
The recently expanded image generation feature of Gemini 2.0 Flash allows for native image generation and editing, a powerful tool that seemingly lacks robust usage restrictions. Social media users have highlighted how the AI can not only remove watermarks but also intelligently fill in the resulting gaps, often with impressive accuracy, and it’s currently free within Google’s AI Studio developer tools.
While labeled “experimental” and “not for production use,” Gemini 2.0 Flash’s ability to bypass watermarks stands in contrast to models like Anthropic’s Claude 3.7 Sonnet and OpenAI’s GPT-4o, which explicitly prohibit such actions, citing ethical and legal concerns.
It’s important to note that Gemini 2.0 Flash isn’t foolproof; it can struggle with semi-transparent or heavily overlaid watermarks. Nevertheless, the ease with which it can remove watermarks raises potential copyright issues, as removing a watermark without the copyright holder’s permission is generally illegal in many countries. This situation underscores the ongoing challenges of balancing powerful AI capabilities with copyright protection.
Artificial Intelligence
Huawei Heralds Dawn of Mobile AI Era at MWC 2025

Huawei concluded its successful participation at Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona 2025, where the company unveiled groundbreaking solutions aimed at accelerating the transition toward an intelligent world. Throughout the event, Huawei emphasized how the convergence of 5G-Advanced and AI technologies creates unprecedented opportunities for carriers to transform into technology companies (techcos) and continuously create new value.
5G-Advanced and AI: Powering the Mobile AI Era
At the Mobile AI Network Summit on the sidelines of MWC, Huawei Chief Strategic Architect Dang Wenshuan highlighted how 5G-Advanced is essential for unlocking new business value in the mobile AI era. Networks are rapidly evolving to support 10 times faster uplink speeds and 10 dB better coverage with 10 times higher spectral efficiency, establishing a robust foundation for universal AI accessibility. Meanwhile, AI is revolutionizing networks by increasing operations and maintenance (O&M) efficiency by 30%, reducing energy consumption by 20%, and enabling service assurance rates exceeding 90%.
Industry experts from Ookla, Omdia, ABI, Zhipu AI, and SHARGE confirmed that the rapid advancement of large language models drives the mobile AI boom. The increasing adoption of AI phones, smart glasses, and other intelligent devices enhances multimodal interaction capabilities, underscoring the importance of reliable real-time mobile connections and setting the stage for significant increases in network data traffic.

Dang Wenshuan, Huawei’s Chief Strategy Architect, speaking at the summit
Transforming Carriers into Techcos with the “Five Ones” Model
James Chen, President of Huawei Carrier Business, introduced the “Five Ones” capability model designed to facilitate carriers’ transformation into techcos. This comprehensive approach helps reshape business models, O&M practices, and infrastructure to enable carriers to seize transformation opportunities and continuously create value.
The Five Ones model includes a differentiated experience monetization model, a home AI service entry supporting multimodal interaction, a one-stop cloud platform for B2B services, a telecom foundation model introducing general AI agents and digital twins, and a synergetic architecture enabling all-element collaboration across networking, storage, cloud, and computing resources.
More than 35 carriers worldwide have already adopted experience monetization models, while carriers in China and South Korea have launched AI-powered home hubs that seamlessly connect to various smart home devices through multimodal interaction.
Innovative ICT Services & Software Solutions
Bruce Xun, President of Huawei Global Technical Service, unveiled five innovative ICT Services and Software solutions designed to accelerate digital intelligence. These solutions address critical industry challenges, from equipment center office modernization to intelligent operations for mobile broadband cross-domain service continuity. By integrating AI Copilot, AI Agent, and Digital Twin Network (DTN) capabilities into operational processes, Huawei enables efficient human-machine collaboration that creates tangible business value for carriers.
At Huawei’s Digital Economy Development Forum, David Wang, Director of the Board and Chairman of the ICT Infrastructure Managing Board, outlined five ways ICT infrastructure can drive digital economy development. Wang emphasized that a thriving digital economy requires solid digital infrastructure, accelerated digital transformation across industries, future-oriented industry policies, extensive digital talent development, and open, collaborative ecosystems. The forum brought together policymakers, industry association leaders, and experts to discuss strategies for high-quality development of the global digital economy.
He Bo, President of Huawei Data Center Facility & Critical Power Product Line, introduced the “Single SitePower” architecture and the RASTM guideline for AI data center construction. These innovations help operators thrive as energy prosumers and build better ICT facilities in the AI era. The Single SitePower architecture implements bidirectional interaction of power and information flows, while the RASTM guideline addresses the reliability, agility, and sustainability challenges AI data centers face.
As commercial 5G-Advanced deployment accelerates in 2025, Huawei continues to work actively with carriers and partners worldwide to reshape business, infrastructure, and O&M, paving the way toward an intelligent world.
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