While the manual may not have said to fully charge, HPs come with a quick start guide where they typically say to fully charge the battery before using. And note not all notebooks are the same. Some require a battery to be in circuit - that is, some will not operate on charger only. And when a computer is brand new and turned on the first time, a lot of setup is required - so the setup routine may be expecting a battery too.
There is absolutely nothing in any of the "quick-start" papers or online manual for this model (HP 15-f027ca Notebook, fwiw) that mentions ANYTHING about charging the battery, etc. It's all based on what to do AFTER the machine is powered up. Very odd for HP to leave out such important info, but there it is. I did wonder if this particular model was different from past models I've owned.
Bottom line, it was DOA, so it went back the store for exchange. The replacement behaved normally, no problems.
Sorry, but ... we have no clue what your experience or level of expertise is because YOU FAILED to state your experience when you started this thread. So we have no choice but to assume you are a newbie to notebooks because it is more egregious for helpers to assume a poster who provides next to nothing for information is an expert. After all, why would they be seeking help if they had years of experience, unless they provided clear information in the first place?
The troubleshooting I had already done (and did mention)... isn't a typical newbie thing to do. And it's hard to provide a lot of info about the laptop when I can't even turn it on. Model numbers and basic info that's on labels isn't really that helpful. PLUS, based on past experience, when I provide a lot of info (if it's available), the majority of helpers don't bother to actually read it, and ask me the same things I already posted. So now I wait for helpers to ask, because they're going to anyway.
Plus YOU FAILED to tell us anything about this notebook other than it is a new HP. Unless you state the specs, or let us know this is the same computer as listed in your System Specs (since many posters have more than one computer, or come seeking help for others), we can only speak generically and must assume that you are a newbie to notebooks, and forums too.
Again, little to post since the machine wouldn't boot up to gather the more vital/useful information.
Also, being a brand new laptop, unable to turn on, it would be 100% unlikely that it's listed in my system specs.
So I would ask when you are seeking FREE help from people who are donating their time that you think before taking offense to an helping hand.
The only offense I took was the person who assumed I hadn't read the manual. True, many people don't, but to basically accuse a person of not reading, that's a tad arrogant; especially if he/she thought I was a newbie. That's an unfriendly way to talk to a newbie.
...And when seeking help you post complete information about your hardware, the problem, and your experience level so we can all start from the same page without anyone taking offense when nothing but sincere good intentions was meant. Thanks.
Complete information about the hardware:
As mentioned above, most people don't bother to (or don't want to) read a lot of details and specs and text. They like to read the first sentence or two, then start asking questions that have already been answered. If they don't have the time to read my detailed issues, I certainly don't have time to type it all out. And in this case, there weren't many details to give anyway.
Complete information about the problem:
Pretty much did that. New laptop. Won't turn on. Added a few details about what I tried to get it to work. Can't say much more than that regarding the actual problem.
Complete information about my experience level:
Why? It makes no difference. Laptop won't turn on. Obviously, whatever experience level I'm at, it doesn't include this. That's like asking someone what their level of driving experience is when they take their car in to see why it won't start.
Anyway, I'm off to get things done now. Thanks for your feedback/input.