Product Listing

HP Omen 15 review: Fast, and with a ton of memory

By Koh Wanzi - 12 Dec 2018
Launch SRP: S$3599

Introduction

HP Omen 15

HP’s gaming line has come a long way

HP isn’t a brand you’d traditionally associate with gaming. When I think of HP, I think of its Pavilion and Envy notebooks, and also enterprise stuff like printers and servers. But the company has come a long way in creating a niche for itself in the gaming space.

The Omen brand is HP’s dedicated gaming line-up, and its devices shed the company’s corporate veneer in favor of a more upstart look that gamers tend to favor. This means aggressive designs and RGB lighting, in addition to a very distinctive tribal mask that serves as its logo.

Those who follow developments in the industry will probably recognize it as the original Voodoo PC brand logo, which HP acquired back in 2006.

The latest Omen 15 laptop hews to a trend I’ve written about and reviewed extensively – slim and light gaming notebooks. It features a GeForce GTX 1070 Max-Q, so it’s competing directly with laptops like the Razer Blade (2018) and MSI GS65 Stealth Thin.

Here’s an overview of its specifications:

  • 15.6-inch 1,920 x 1,080-pixel IPS 144Hz G-Sync display
  • Intel Core i7-8750H processor (2.2GHz, 9MB L3 cache)
  • 32GB DDR4-2666 RAM
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Max-Q
  • 256GB SSD + 2TB HDD
  • 70Wh Li-ion polymer battery
  • 360 x 263 x 26mm
  • 2.4kg

The above will cost you S$3,599, which is actually a pretty competitive price. It’s at least a couple of hundred dollars cheaper than its competitors like the Gigabyte Aero 15X and MSI GS65 Stealth Thin, so HP is starting out with an advantage on the pricing front.

But how good is it really? We take a closer look at the laptop over the next few pages.

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8.0
  • Design 7.5
  • Features 8.5
  • Performance 8.5
  • Value 8
  • Mobility 6.5
The Good
144Hz G-Sync display
Solid build quality
One of the best speakers on a gaming notebook
Great gaming performance and generous 32GB of RAM
Rich selection of ports and connectors
The Bad
Thick and heavy for a Max-Q laptop
Battery life doesn't measure up to competitors
No Windows Precision Touchpad
No per-key RGB backlighting
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