At the end of last year, HP unveiled their latest bid to crack the competitive laptop gaming market – the HP Omen 15
Ever since the unveiling of the Omen 15 in December 2018, it has quickly become a major talking point in the tech world. Whilst some critics suggested that its battery life was below par, others commented that its lightning fast performance made the laptop perfect for playing processor-heavy gaming titles. As a result, we are going to take a second look at the HP Omen 15 to see whether it has lived up to the hype.
First impressions of the HP Omen 15
The Omen 15 was launched with plenty of fanfare from HP. By attempting to deliver year’s definitive gaming laptop, they will have attracted plenty of interest from the tech world. The brand made the smart move of teaming up with Germany’s top CSGO team, Berlin International Gaming, to promote the new product. And whilst Berlin International Gaming regularly feature on the odds featured at betting resources like counterstrikebetting.com, it’s clear that this was uncharted territory for a brand like HP.
Splashing out over £1,000 on a gaming laptop is clearly going to be a big investment for anybody. Thankfully, the HP Omen 15 looks great and works like a dream. With a nicely customisable back-lit keyboard and a beautiful Full HD display, the HP Omen 15 is a gorgeous machine that feels much more expensive than it actually is. With a sleek black chassis and a nicely brushed metal lid, it has an agreeable textured feel, and the classy red logo adds a touch of danger to the fun.
The inclusion of some hefty fan exhausts at the back will obviously help to avoid overheating, but it does mean that the HP Omen 15 feels heavier than it looks. Similarly, HP have taken the odd decision to include speakers on the bottom of the laptop which might not make for crystal clear audio quality. And with three USBs, a HDMI port, headphone and microphone ports, an Ethernet socket and a USB-C socket, it seems that the HP Omen has all of the essentials in place.
What is the HP Omen 15 like to use?
It’s easy to be wowed by a gaming laptop’s stats, but it’s essential to know how the machine actually plays. Playing first person shooter like CSGO on the HP Omen 15 proved to be a breeze. The backlit keyboard was very smooth and responsive, and we liked the specially highlighted WASD keys. Similarly, the trackpad worked well although it occasionally seemed to miss a few taps.
So far, so good, but can the HP Omen 15’s display keep up with the action? The Full HD display thankfully managed not to skimp on price and shows colours with a wonderful sense of depth. Even if you are looking from an angle, the sense of contrast didn’t suffer too much. But it’s the fact that the HP Omen 15’s screen has a 144HZ refresh rate that should be of greatest interest. This results in a very smooth performance that’s perfect for action-packed first-person shooters like Counter Strike Global Offensive.
In terms of processing power, the HP Omen 15
Other things to consider
Battery life is always the toughest test for any piece of gaming hardware. And we found that HP appear to have struggled to give gamers a battery that lasts much longer than two hours of intensive gaming. Whilst this is pretty much an industry standard, it would have been nice to get a little more time out of the laptop.
Plus you should also know that the fans can often get pretty noisy if you are hitting the gaming particularly hard. But on the whole, it’s clear that HP have stepped up to the mark in delivering one of the defining gaming laptops of recent times. With a relatively low price point, an awesome display and plenty of processing power, there is plenty to enjoy here. So be sure to check out the HP Omen 15 and see where it takes you.
