HyperX - HP OMEN MAX 16" 2K OLED Gaming Laptop - Intel Core Ultra 9 (2026) - 32GB Memory - NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti - 1TB SSD - Shadow Black

This PC has power to spare. With a high-end CPU, a powerful GPU, and 32GB of RAM. More storage would be useful, but one thing that doesn't show up in the spec sheets is the sheer size and weight of the power adapter (it's huge) - and the fact that you're going to need to bring it with you because there's a tradeoff between power and battery life.

I had bought this for my mechanical engineering classes as well as gaming and have found it suitable for both. I would not recommend buying it at full price, but at just under 3k when I bought it, I love it.

This year model includes a third fan which definitely helps with thermals! Phenomenal performance all around!

I was incredibly excited to check out this Omen HyperX system. It has insane specs from top to bottom. This is a machine that's truly set up for gaming and HP didn't hold back on what they've included. If you want a portable gaming system (or an overly competent general laptop), you would be doing yourself a favor by considering this amazing machine. Where to begin... Let's start with the display. This is a 2K OLED display with a gloss finish that makes colors just absolutely beautiful. The depth of color is really unbelievable. The contrast levels are ridiculous with blacks being absolute and shadows letting you still see what's waiting in them. It's also capable of up to a 240Hz refresh rate that makes first person shooters like DOOM The Dark Ages play as smooth as butter. I don't think I've played on a more amazing display. I know some people prefer a more matte finish on a display to keep the reflections down, but I've always been a huge fan of the gloss displays. The colors just pop so much more, and I tend to play in a dimmed room anyway, so reflections aren't a problem for me. Resident Evil Requiem looks nothing short of phenomenal. All the shadow effects combined with the flashlight beam is really amazing. The shadows and lighting effects give this game a truly creepy feel. Of course a lot of this is also due to the Geforce RTX 5070 Ti graphics card. This is a card that can handle all the video and display options on high! Seriously, I went into the DOOM display settings, and whatever wasn't already maxed out, I maxed out. The game still played fast and smooth. I noticed no tearing or glitching or studdering at all. This card comes with 12GB of onboard RAM and had no trouble at all living up to my expectations for the video quality of this machine. This is an air cooled system and the fans made me think I was going to see guy start hovering off the desk. The fans spin up to ridiculous speeds. At that point, the HyperX is not at all quiet, but if it was I'd be suspicious. The air flow through this case is powerful. You'll feel it blowing out the back and both sides. I really like that the case is quite raised up to allow for adequate air flow. I think a lot of other machines fail in that respect. But the HyperX has a significant amount of space underneath it, which is where the fans draw from. The Intel Core Ultra 9 processor is about as good as it gets. I don't think anyone will have any issues running any game with this beast. This machine is fast! What helps out in the speed department is the 32GB of DDR5 memory. So many machines come with a standard 16GB these days, it was really refreshing to see the HyperX came with 32. I'm not sure if it's possible to upgrade the amount of memory even higher. There doesn't seem to be any provision for a user to be able to do that. No access door underneath, but I can only imagine a scenario or two where you may want more. Heavy video editing maybe or building code. But this is a a gaming machine first and foremost and what it comes with is plenty for even the most demanding games. If I was forced to pick something that could be improved on, I guess I would have to say that it would have been nice to include a 2 or even a 4TB drive. But now I'm getting into the wish list category. The included 1TB drive is sufficient. As far as the deck is concerned, I like the keyboard, the keys are short throw and responsive. The track pad is large but the left and right buttons suffer from the same mushiness as most track pads do. It's not a big deal and if you like to play games with a mouse (as I do), it really isn't a concern. Each key is has a really nice translucent border that shows it's outline without the annoying inconsistent light bleed that most keyboards suffer from when you look at them from different angles. Each key can be individually color controlled so you can setup different key highlights for different games and save the setup in different profiles. You also have control of the light strip under the front edge of the machine which is a cool look. You can monkey around with fan settings and overclocking right from the Omen Gaming Hub as well. As far as the connectivity is concerned, you have the dedicated power entry on the back, along with an HDMI 2.1 jack and an Ethernet (RJ-45) jack. There are two 10Gbs USB-A jacks. One on the right and one on the left. There's two Thunderbolt type 4 jacks on the left side (with 40Gbps rate and USB PD 3.1 capability). And last but not least, a combo audio jack. You also get a 1080p front facing camera and decent sound system (although I've never really raved about the sound quality on any laptop I've used), but these are adequate. All in all, this guy is an absolute beast and a joy to game on. With machines like this, you pretty much get what you pay for and the price tag on this machine will not be for the faint of heart, but quality specs come at a price. And if you're considering a machine of this caliber, the price won't shock you. And make no mistake, this is guy will not show up in the “bargain” section. It's built for serious gamers who can justify spending money for a quality build. A beautiful machine, no question about it.

This 16” Omen MAX laptop is a powerhouse. Powered by an Intel Ultra 9 with 32GB RAM and a 5070 Ti GPU, I was happily able to go ultra graphics with ray tracing on some of my favorite games and it didn’t flinch. The anti-glare 240hz 2K OLED screen produces beautiful color with inky blacks and is a joy to look at. As a high end media and gaming machine it’s fantastic, but think of it more as a portable gaming/media machine than a carry everywhere daily laptop. It’s hefty at 6.5 pounds and at over 1” thick, it isn’t very compact by today’s standards. Sure, it’ll fit in most backpacks but I wouldn’t want to lug it to class everyday. The powerbrick is hefty too, but for a serious gaming machine, that generally means it’s high powered and that’s a great thing. Maybe not for your utility bill, but the performance is worth it. And while it’s top notch in most performance areas, I was really surprised by how average the speakers sound. Or maybe it’s a software issue? I’m not really sure anymore, but playing Forza Horizon 6 and Cyberpunk 2077, the speakers didn’t get nearly loud enough and the imaging was mediocre, if not muddy playing Forza. Even web browsing and streaming YouTube, they sounded lackluster. But then for some reason Diablo IV sounds great. Take that for what you will. That said, it’s still a powerhouse and works great with my headphones. I’ll emphasize again, as a portable gaming machine it’s incredible, but it leaves a few things to be desired as a daily laptop. And it’s really just personal preference here, but I find the keyboard a bit hard to type on. The keys feel too close together and the flat shape makes it hard for my fingers to discern what keys they’re on when typing. I’m sure I’ll adapt to it, but it's worth noting. On the bright side, there’s a full number pad and it has the most gorgeous RGB lighting I’ve seen on a keyboard. I also really like how the illumination shifts to the function keys when I press Function (love little details like this). Open the supplied OMEN app and you can customize the lighting, change performance levels, monitor temps, and even overlock the laptop. However, in Balance performance mode I was able to play Forza Horizon 6 on ultra + ray tracing graphics in 2K and still averaged 65 FPS without frame generation (87 FPS with frame gen at 2x). I didn’t feel the need to turn it up for Cyberpunk or Diablo IV either, which is a testament to how high of a performer this machine is. Should you get this powerful behemoth of a gaming laptop? If you want a serious gaming machine that you can nearly max out the graphics with and plan on keeping mostly stationary, then yes. The screen is beautiful and it’s a beast of a machine. You likely won’t need to upgrade in a long time and it’s fantastic to play games on. But it is the exact opposite of an ultra portable if light weight and long battery life are your priorities. If you can, get a cheap one of those and spring for this for the home. Your back and eyes will thank you. And maybe some of your family too. PROS - Powerhouse gaming and media laptop - Responsive and snappy - Beautiful 2k OLED anti-glare screen - Forza Horizon 6 in 2k @240hz with Ultra+RT graphics at 65 FPS (no frame gen) - Cyberpunk 2077 in 2k @240hz with Ray Tracing: Medium graphics @ 71 FPS (no frame gen) - NVIDIA RTX5070 Ti is a beast - Intel Ultra 9 CPU handles it all - 32GB DDR5 RAM - Huge power supply - Full keyboard with number pad - Factory overclockable - The power of a desktop in the body of a laptop - Customizable RGB lighting looks great - Easy to switch performance modes - Ethernet port CONS - Heavy - Sound volume is low and lacks oomph (except in Diablo IV) - Portable in the way that heavy, thick gaming laptops are portable (not ideal for class or the park) - Battery only lasts a few hours at most - Keyboard spacing is compact - No camera lens cover - Not many ports