The days when gaming on desktops was superior to notebooks seems to be increasingly over. Of course, the performance is often even better, but there are more and more laptops on the market that are a great replacement for gaming. Last summer, manufacturer HP added two new models from the OMEN series, one of which is the HP OMEN 15. During the heat wave, we got the chance to test this model in the backyard. You can read our impression in this review.
One of the first things you notice about the HP OMEN 15 is how sleek and stylish the design is. Gaming laptops are sometimes notorious for their clumsy appearance or strange bells and whistles. HP makes short work of this and has designed a stylish matte black laptop. The chassis is quite thin which gives the laptop a fairly slim look and the OMEN logo has been given a makeover. The laptop looks very professional, making it not only interesting for the gamer, but also for work or study. However, despite the slim appearance, it is striking that the device is on the heavy side. Not surprising because where ultrabooks are built to be as light and mobile as possible, gaming laptops often contain sturdy hardware for good performance. Nevertheless, the weight of 2.3 kg is quite heavy, making it less pleasant to carry the laptop. A sturdy backpack or shoulder bag is certainly a valuable addition. Furthermore, the OMEN 15 is equipped with an illuminated RGB keyboard and typical for HP, speakers with Audio from Bang & Olufsen.
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It’s not just the exterior of the HP OMEN 15 that is impressive, so is what’s inside. In the Netherlands, the laptop is available in four different configurations. The first difference is the processor options, there are two models with a 10th generation Intel i7, one with a 10th generation Intel i5 and one with an AMD Ryzen 4600H. The latter is a special addition because it is quite recently that AMD has started to focus more on processors for gaming laptops. The Ryzen model includes an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti as a graphics card, where the Intel variants all got an RTX 2060. Finally, there are some smaller differences such as the size of the working memory and the amount of storage capacity, but the screens are especially interesting. These come in variations from Full-HD to 4K and with refresh rates of 144Hz and 300Hz. The latter is a technique that we see more and more often in screens and laptops in recent years, which greatly improves the quality. Because images are shown with a faster frequency, the whole seems much smoother and ensures fantastic images during gaming. Once you are used to such a screen, you don’t want anything else. We can therefore really appreciate that HP has included this technology in the design. The prices of these models vary from € 999 for the cheapest model with AMD processor and GTX 1650 Ti to € 1699 for the Intel i7 variant with RTX 2060. We had secretly hoped an RTX 2070 in the most expensive model. since the 2060 is the budget model and therefore not always the highest settings in the latest generation of games can be reached.
All models come with Windows 10 and an annual subscription to McAfee. HP has also added a program itself, OMEN Command Center. Here it is possible to configure various settings, ranging from performance to lighting effects and even coaching for games. What is special is that HP has managed to bundle these functionalities, which are usually spread over different programs, into a general program. It may also very well be that you hardly use it, but it is still nice to have everything in one central place. It is also possible to view all performance here, such as the temperature and how much the processor or video card is loaded. This is one of the more interesting aspects because how does the laptop actually perform? We tested this out by installing and playing League of Legends during the heatwave this summer. As a result, the HP OMEN 15 proved its worth and provided many hours of fun. It is of course noticeable that the laptop gets a lot warmer, especially the noise production increases. Still, this was not experienced as disturbing and we are impressed that the laptop survived well during days of 30-35 degrees. We can therefore conclude that this is a great laptop to take with you on vacation.
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One of the trickier things is the battery capacity and how long the laptop lasts. Of course, there is little to criticize here when it hangs on the adapter. However, we do notice that gaming on battery costs a lot of energy, especially at high quality with a 300Hz screen. The model we were allowed to test contained a battery of about 70Wh, which is enough for an afternoon of gaming without recharging. However, it is noticeable that the performance is less good than when the laptop is connected to the adapter. This is partly caused by settings in Windows to save as much battery as possible and is therefore something that can still be configured. Still, there is still a loss of performance when playing on the battery.
HP has left a good impression with the introduction of the HP OMEN 15. Not only does the laptop look very stylish and sleek, this model also performs well when it comes to gaming. One aspect that impresses us most is the addition of a 144Hz or 300Hz display. In addition, the laptop cools well without enormous noise production during a good heat wave. There are actually few disadvantages to mention except that it is a somewhat heavy laptop. In addition, we would have liked a configuration with a slightly better video card from the RTX 2000 series. Nevertheless, the laptop has a great price for all the functionalities on offer.
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