HP’s HyperX Omen 15 Falls Short of Budget Gaming Laptop Expectations

The HP HyperX Omen 15, which debuted at CES, takes over from the HP Victus 15, a popular choice for budget gaming laptops. The Victus was priced around $800, making it an attractive entry point for gamers on a budget.

The Omen 15 brings some solid upgrades to the table. It features an RTX 5050 Laptop GPU capable of running the latest games from 2026, though you might need to dial down the settings a bit. The display has been improved with a brighter 16:10 aspect ratio and a higher refresh rate, plus it includes a 1080p webcam for those non-gaming tasks.

While I’d label it a solid gaming laptop, the Omen 15 starts at $1,200 due to rising RAM prices, a significant jump from the $800 price tag of its predecessor. However, with current market trends, this is one of the more affordable options for modern gaming hardware.

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Component report card
* Screen: C
* Webcam: C
* Keyboard: C
* Trackpad: D
* Port selection: C
* Speakers: C
* Number of ugly stickers to remove: 3
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Our review unit of the HyperX Omen 15 is priced at $1,199 and comes equipped with an eight-core Intel Core 5 210H “Raptor Lake” processor, an RTX 5050 GPU, 16GB of DDR5 RAM, and a 512GB SSD. There are more expensive configurations available with RTX 5070 GPUs and OLED displays, but that’s akin to paying luxury car prices for a compact. On the lower end, HP still offers a Victus 15 with the RTX 5050 for $900, but it only has 8GB of RAM, which isn’t ideal for the latest gaming titles.

The good news is that the Omen 15 with the RTX 5050 performs well at its native resolution of 1920 x 1200. Older titles like Control can run smoothly at 70 to 80fps on High settings with DLSS enabled. Cyberpunk 2077 can be played on Ultra settings (without ray tracing) with DLSS set to Quality, achieving 60 to 70fps, though it may drop to 40fps during intense scenes. Standard frame generation can boost performance to 95 to 105fps, while driving can yield 70 to low 80s. Multi Frame Gen, a feature not available on older GPUs, can push those numbers even higher if you’re okay with some “fake frames.”

For newer games, expect to lower the settings to Medium or Low. Helldivers 2 runs just above 60fps on Medium with DLSS set to Quality, but can dip into the 40s during chaotic moments. Battlefield 6 performs lower, around 50fps on Medium with DLSS set to Performance. I also tried Halo: Campaign Evolved, which defaulted to Very Low settings, looking quite rough. On Low settings with DLSS set to Medium, it managed 50 to 60fps, but frequently dropped into the 40s with many enemies on screen.

While gaming, the fans do ramp up but remain at a tolerable volume, and the chassis stays relatively cool. The hottest point reached 113 degrees Fahrenheit (45 Celsius), but the areas where your hands rest don’t get too warm, which is impressive for a compact gaming laptop.

The RTX 5050 GPU and its 8GB of VRAM can handle the latest graphically demanding games, as long as you’re not expecting top-tier visuals. But how does the rest of the laptop hold up?

A lot of the Omen 15’s cost is tied to its specs, which means some areas feel a bit rough. The trackpad has a responsive click, but lifting the laptop by the front corners can cause accidental clicks due to chassis flex, a common issue in mostly plastic laptops. The keyboard offers decent tactile feedback, but the inclusion of a number pad makes the 15-inch laptop feel cramped, and typing isn’t as enjoyable as on other HP models. The speakers sound a bit muddy, especially for music, and while it has HDMI 2.1 and gigabit ethernet, it only includes one USB-C port alongside two USB-A ports, all at a modest 10Gbps speed—not exactly cutting-edge for a gaming laptop.

Aside from gaming, the Omen 15 shines with its display. The 1920 x 1200 IPS panel is bright at 400 nits, offering good contrast and color, making it suitable for gaming and light productivity tasks. I managed some Lightroom Classic editing on the Omen 15, and while my 50-megapixel RAW files were manageable, the limited 512GB storage filled up quickly, especially with games like Battlefield 6 taking up 142GB. There is a second M.2 slot for additional storage and a second RAM slot for upgrades, which is great, but those upgrades can be pricey. If RAM and SSD prices don’t drop soon, the Omen 15 might feel outdated before long.

The Omen 15 also handled my everyday tasks well, from browsing with multiple Chrome tabs to using apps like Signal and Slack. The 1080p webcam is a bit grainy but works fine for video calls. The main drawback for productivity is the battery life, which never exceeded five and a half hours. While not the worst for gaming laptops, you’ll want to keep the power adapter handy.

The HyperX Omen 15 is a decent gaming laptop, though it doesn’t offer the same value as the Victus 15 did. However, that’s the case across the board. Unless you find a great deal, expect to pay over $1,000 for anything with the RTX 5050, often much more. Investing in even the entry-level 50-series grants access to Nvidia’s latest features, including Multi Frame Gen and future iterations of DLSS. While last-gen 40-series or AMD GPUs are viable options, Multi Frame Gen can help maintain playable frame rates longer.

It’s still worth hunting for sales. There are often deals on HP’s product line. Currently, there’s an Omen 16 with an RTX 5060 and a slightly larger (but dimmer) screen available for just $100 more than the Omen 15.

With rising RAM prices, buying a new gaming laptop can be challenging. If you need to purchase now and want to avoid open-box or secondhand options, be prepared for higher prices than similar models from a year or two ago, even in the entry-level category. Given the current landscape, the Omen 15 is a reasonable choice at $1,200 for those looking to dive into laptop gaming.

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HyperX Omen 15 specs (as reviewed)
* Display: 15.3-inch 1920 x 1200 165Hz IPS, 400 nits, anti-glare
* CPU: Intel Core 5 210H (Raptor Lake, 8 cores)
* GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5050
* RAM: 16GB DDR5 (two SODIMM slots, user-accessible)
* Storage: 512GB NVMe M.2 (two slots, user-accessible)
* Webcam: 1080p
* Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3
* Ports: 2x USB-A 10Gbps, 1x USB-C 10Gbps, AC power (barrel plug), HDMI 2.1, RJ-45 gigabit ethernet, 3.5mm combo audio jack
* Biometrics: none (lockscreen password only)
* Weight: 5 pounds / 2.27kg
* Dimensions: 13.5 x 9.96 x 0.89 – 0.93 inches / 342.9 x 252.98 x 22.61 – 23.62mm
* Battery: 70Wh
* Price: $1,199