Quick look at HP’s newly announced Omen 15 (2016) gaming notebook

A few weeks ago we introduced you the freshly updated portfolio of HP with all of the ultrabooks, convertibles and mainstream offerings. However, today we will focus on the gaming front where HP aims to bring a much more affordable version of the arguably unsuccessful Omen. An HP representative told us that the new Omen will focus on the hardware and performance while downgrading the chassis to fit into a much more affordable segment of the market. Well, the new Omen is in our hands so here’s what we think of it so far.

The new 2016 model isn’t out on the market yet, but you can regularly check here wheon it comes out: http://amzn.to/24Kyavw

Design

As stated above, the Omen offers a downgraded chassis, which is a tad bulkier than the older version and also sports a more modest choice of materials. Anyway, the plastic around the whole surface doesn’t feel cheap at all but instead offers an interesting texture on the lid and matte finish for the interior.


IMG_1725

IMG_1731

Opening the notebook reveals a similar appearance we saw in the HP Pavilion 15 Gaming Notebook – the keyboard gets a red theme instead of green but retains the cool font of the characters and overall pleasant ergonomics. The keys feel a bit shallow but provide excellent feedback with the only notable drawback being the arrow key design. From a gaming laptop, one would expect big, highlighted buttons with enough spacing but here, they are a crammed between the neighbouring keys so playing racing games might feel a bit tricky.

The touchpad is another detail that brings us back to the HP Pavilion 15 Gaming. It’s stretched, narrow and big enough for normal use but fails to offer the needed feedback when clicking and swiping. It just feels a bit too stiff to our taste.

IMG_1752

Finally, we are presented with a very “healthy” port distribution instead of sticking all connectivity options on one side. The left side holds two USB port while the right side offers an HDMI, USB and LAN connectivity. Basically, the “downgraded” chassis might look like one compared to the last generation but the chances are you won’t notice it. It’s neither worse or better than its competitors in the mid-range gaming segment – Acer Aspire V15 Nitro Black Edition, Lenovo Y700 and ASUS ROG GL552VW.

IMG_1755

Hardware

It’s a bit too early to talk about configurations as the OEM hasn’t released any solid data on pricing and hardware but we have a good source citing that the machine will cost around $1 200 – $1 300 for the basic version with NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M, Intel Core i5-6300HQ, and 8GB of RAM. The GPU, however, can be upgraded up to GTX 980M for the 17-inch model but we are unsure whether the premium version will use this case. However, the 15-inch variant will most likely adopt the GTX 965M as a maximum, which is actually the unit we are currently reviewing.

Other specs are as follows: Full HD IPS panel with 1920×1080 resolution, HDD + an M.2 SSD slot for your main drive while the battery capacity remains the same as before – 58Wh. We expect the latter to perform a bit better compared to its direct competitors.

Specs sheet

The specs sheet may vary depending on your region.

CPUIntel Core i5-6300HQ (2.30 – 3.2 GHz, 6MB cache) / Intel Core i7-6700HQ (2.60 – 3.50 GHz, 6MB cache)
RAMup to 32GB of DDR4-2133 RAM
GPUup to NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M (4GB GDDR5) for the 15-inch version and up to GTX 980M for the 17-inch variant
HDD/SSDHDD + M.2 SSD
Display15.6-inch Full HD (1920×1080) IPS, matte
Optical Drive
Other features
  • 3x USB 3.0
  • Intel RealSense 3D Camera
  • HDMI
  • front-facing stereo loudspeakers Bang & Olufsen
  • 3.5 mm audio jack
  • SD card reader
  • keyboard LED backlight
Battery4-cell, 58Wh
Thickness23 mm (0.91″)
Weight2.259 kg (4.98 lbs)

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments