Introduction
If you are a gamer geek in search of the best graphics and features in a laptop, you might have heard about brands such as Alienware, Republic of Gamers, and MSI. However, HP’s Omen brand is just as good. It is one of the best gaming laptops under 800 dollars that tends to pack a wide range of features at an amazing price. Boasting an Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti Graphics Card and packed with 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8750H processor, 12GB RAM, the HP Omen 15 is ideal for full-time gamers.
The HP Omen 15 is at par with its competitors such as Dell G7 and Asus TUF FX504. Additionally, this laptop has features that can keep up with the devices that tend to cost way higher. This HP Omen 15 AX250WM Review will surely confirm whether or not this laptop is one among the best value laptops for gaming below 800 dollars.
The Good
- Super-Fast Performance
- Updated Design with Stylish & Sleek Look
- Multiple features including 144Hz display and G-Sync
The Bad
- Unsatisfactory battery life
- Irritatingly noisy fans that worsen with time
- Trackpad and keyboard aren’t stellar
- Performance doesn’t match up to the 144Hz display
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Bottom Line
For someone who has been invested in gaming for quite some time, the HP Omen 15 is undoubtedly the best gaming laptop under 800 dollars. Alongside excellent performance, faster speed, solid display, and a line of power-packed specs, this laptop is a definite buy for HD gamers. The HP Omen 15 allows a proper functionality for all recent computer games that function smoothly in its matte Full High-Definition display. HP uses a perfectly responsive 144Hz based IPS panel. Without wasting much time, let’s start the HP Omen 15 Review.
Key Specifications
- Intel Core i7-8750H
- Nvidia GeForce 1050Ti GPU
- 12GB GDDR5 RAM
- 1TB HDD+ 128GB SSD
- 15.6-Inch Full High Definition 144Hz Display
- Weight: 2.52 Kg
- Dimensions: 360X263X25mm
Contents
Detailed Gaming Laptop Analysis
Design
When it boils down to gaming laptops, there is a fine line amid flavorless and cheesy. While some are jam-packed with designs and décor brighter than a house in Christmas, others lack features and flair making it no different than just another budget laptop for students. The HP Omen 15- AX250WM is a well-balanced gaming laptop with the right amount of designs and colors.
The brushed metallic lid and black chassis help HP Omen 15 look premium and edgy. The emblem and red logo are sufficient enough when it comes to the flair that reflects elegance without being too much. Additionally, this laptop is one among the gaming options with a beautifully incorporated ultra-slim bezel.
The rear-half of Omen 15 comes with massive exhaust fans to help bring down any risks stemming from overheating. However, fans tend to be noisy. With a weight of 2.52kg, this laptop isn’t light enough but thinner than all its rival laptops for gaming below the 800 dollars price tag. The speakers are located at the base of HP Omen 15. Now, unless you love a slightly muffled sound, this location for adding speakers to a laptop is a bit odd. The general assumption with various gaming laptop makers is that gamers generally use headphones while playing which doesn’t bring any requirements for top-notch speakers. Additionally, the laptop offers 3 USB ports to connect your gaming gadgets. There are also ports for headphone and microphone.
Keyboard
The keys in HP Omen 15 are smooth and produce an oddly satisfying click upon being pressed. The Anti-Ghosting technology enables the simultaneous push of keys with no taps going undetected when playing your favorite game. The beautifully highlighted “W-A-S-D” keys make it a definite win among the gaming laptops. Additionally, you get the option that activates Chroma lighting as you play your game.
Now, you might not change colors for each key; you can easily switch colors for 4-different sections on your HP Omen 15 keyboard. The default color line includes Yellow, Purple, Orange, as well as Blue. You can swap the colors as required across the board.
However, the trackpad provided with the laptop can be unresponsive at times with unregistered taps. Fortunately enough, HP Omen 15 is equipped with a left and right-click trackpad button making it highly user-friendly.
Display
One of the known areas that experiences quality sacrifices in an effort to decrease the costs is the Display Section. Both Dell G5 and Dell G3 did this thinking gamers will mostly connect with their external monitor.
However, that’s not the case with HP Omen 15 as the laptop has managed to keep up the display settings without any display quality loss. The popping colors glowing through the Full High Definition display keeps the visuals at par the original makeup. HP Omen 15 allows a brightness max of 300 nits with contrast ratio going as high as 965:1. HP Omen 15 is decked with a 15.6-Inch display with matte screen and 1920X1080 resolution.
Additionally, HP Omen 15 boasts of 144Hz Refresh Rate. It is something very few laptops can claim at the price tag.
Performance
HP’s Omen 15 is up-to-date with the current speed requirement for most games. It was a breeze when it comes to browsing with multiple tabs open. This smooth speed is due to its Intel Core i7-8750H Processor. When compared with other laptops, the HP Omen 15 AX250WM gathered a Geekbench Multi-Core score of 18,134 while its competitors Dell G5 15, Asus ROG GL504 Hero II, and Razer Blade 15 scored 9342, 17092, and 17823 respectively.
The HP omen 15 AX250WM comes with a default Nvidia GeForce 1050 Ti GPU. However, you can easily upgrade to a GTX 1070 by paying an additional $325 if required. However, when it comes to performance, the laptop doesn’t make the best out of its 144Hz Refresh Rate. It states that you can easily play any game with Full HD graphics that can be cranked to the max. However, highly intensive games like Ghost Recon Wildlands might only muster a performance speed of 34FPS which isn’t as ideal.
Additionally, HP Omen comes with incredible write and read speeds at 1386.5 MB/s and 3140.7 MB/s. It suggests Omen 15 can save as well as load data at a very fast speed. The Omen 15 processor comes at the basic speed going at 2.2 GHz that can be enhanced via Turbo going 3.9 GHz (6 cores), 4GHz (4 cores), as well as 4.1 GHz (1 or 2 cores) respectively. The i7 Intel Core houses 45 watts TDP which can be increased to 78 watts TDP for a short-term.
Battery and Maintenance
The HP Omen 15 is just like any other average priced gaming laptop with a battery life going somewhere around the timeline of 4 hours with video playback and web browsing. However, regular testing with gaming noted that the laptop only provides 2 hours backup during a non-stop session. Now, this was without the Chroma turned off. With the lights turned on, the battery life goes significantly down.
The HP Omen 15 doesn’t offer any maintenance cover. If you want to access its insides, you need to remove its bottom case.
Power Consumption
During idle use, the HP Omen 15 AX250WM noted a minimum power consumption going as high as 24 watts. Here is where we can note the deteriorating effect of integrated GPU deactivation. During the start of the stress test, its consumption enhanced to a mark of 190 watts which later on leveled out to 158 watts given the fact that GPU and CPU are throttled. During the gaming sessions, the overall power consumption isn’t as high ranging somewhere between 140 to 150 watts with The Witcher 3 game.
Storage Solution
Talking about the HP Omen 15 AX250WM laptop’s storage solution, the NVMe SSD provided by Toshiba assists the laptop’s system drive. The M.2-2289 model comes with a 512MB capacity. When delivering its services, around 433 GB of the same is usable. Additionally, the SSD tends to deliver an outstanding transfer rate. The NVMe SSDs have been connected through the PCI Express 3.0×4 enabling a significantly higher rate of transfer as compared to a connection made through SATA III. Apart from the SSD, this laptop houses a 2.5-inch 1TB Hard Drive with 7200 rpm for data storage and 12GB RAM.
Why Purchase the HP Omen 15 Gaming Laptop?
Are you in need of a laptop below the 800 dollar mark for High Definition gaming? If yes, then HP Omen 15 is just what you need. Apart from catering impeccable features for gaming at a budget price, this laptop has additional add-ons like Nvidia G-Sync Technology, sleek design, and 144Hz Display that makes its competitor Dell G5 look like a so-so deal.
Verdict
The HP Omen 15 AX250WM’s extremely sleek, speedy NVMe SSD allows you to access a quick system. Additionally, this laptop has been constructed with 1TB Hard Drive; both the storage modules have a scope for replacement. It is packed with a great keyboard. The completely matte HD display caters stable angles for visibility. Now, the build quality cannot be dubbed the best in the market but at the price range it offers, this is actually top-notch.
