(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)
HP announced its upcoming lineup of gaming laptops and desktops at CES 2025, showing off two new Omen laptops and a fashionably compact Omen desktop. Before HP's announcements, I had the chance to take a look the products in New York City, though not thoroughly test-drive them.
These new systems are the Omen 16, the Omen Max 16, and the Omen 16L desktop. As you'll see is the case with many PCs at CES this year, the laptops' headliners are the latest processor and graphics platforms from AMD, Intel, and Nvidia—with the Max model having the higher ceiling of the two new Omen laptops. The Omen 16L, meanwhile, is HP’s smallest gaming desktop yet.
Two Good Omens? An Updated Flagship, Plus the New Omen 16 Max
Let’s start with the Omen 16 (starting at $1,599.99), HP's most straightforward mainstream gaming laptop. We last reviewed an HP Omen 16 in 2023 with Intel’s 13th Gen processors (and, more recently, its Omen 16 Transcend sibling), and it seems to have evolved since. In addition to the new parts, which I'll get to in a moment, the laptop has been redesigned, with cooler and quieter running in mind.
The thermals have been redesigned (including an additional heat pipe for the CPU and GPU) to maximize power while aiming to keep heat and noise lower, a goal that reflects user feedback. HP estimates roughly 1.5 times better airflow through the system gen-over-gen, while fan noise has dropped a few decibels, according to HP's own testing.
As mentioned, this new Omen 16 model arrives with processors from Intel's and AMD’s latest platforms in tow. Both Intel’s "Raptor Lake Refresh" (14th Gen) and new Arrow Lake-H chips are available on this machine, up to a Core i9-14900HX and Core Ultra 9 285H, respectively. On the AMD side, the choices max out at a Ryzen 9 8945HX or a newer-generation Ryzen AI 9 365 chip. You can outfit the system with an entry-level Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060, or with Nvidia’s next-generation graphics.
On the outside, the Omen 16 comes in white and black options, while the keyboard features four-zone RGB lighting. The 16-inch screen displays up to a 240Hz QHD+ (2,560-by-1,600-pixel) resolution, with more modest 160Hz and 144Hz 1,920-by-1,200-pixel resolution screens also available. It weighs 5.41 pounds and measures 1.17 inches thick. Expect to see the HP Omen 16 this March.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)The Omen Max 16's name tells much of the story: This system shares much in common with the Omen 16 but elevates the feature set and components. The processors run up to AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 or the Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX, while GPU options consist entirely of Nvidia’s next-generation chips.
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(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)HP's display options up the ante, going as premium as a 240Hz QHD+ OLED panel. The chassis is a bit slimmer than the Omen 16's, and it comes in black and white. I look forward to testing this system when possible and seeing how much it can push the power ceiling beyond the standard Omen 16.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)The 16 Max should be available in the spring starting at $1,699.99, according to HP.
A Chic, Compact Omen Desktop
On the desktop front, HP's Omen 16L is appealing for its size and style, not to mention its approachable $949.99 starting price. Most prebuilt gaming PCs from major manufacturers are on the larger side, but this is a relatively compact 16-liter tower (hence the name "16L"). Releasing in February, it’s hardly a mini PC and not quite a small-form-factor model, but it will take up much less space on your desk or floor than some gaming systems will.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)Like the laptops, it is black and white, with a latticed front and a small side window. I do mean small—it’s just about wide enough to give a peek at the components, as opposed to the usual full side-panel glass. Overall, I think the tower avoids an overly gamer-centric look but brings just enough style to avoid being boring.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)As for those components, the Omen 16L can also be configured with Intel or AMD processors. You can choose among a Core Ultra 5 225, a Core Ultra 7 265, a Core i5-14400, or a Core i7-14700 processor on the Intel side. For AMD, the options are a Ryzen 5 8500F, a Ryzen 7 8700F, a Ryzen 5 8500G, or a Ryzen 7 8700G. The tower runs a 120mm front fan, a 90mm rear fan, and a 92mm RGB CPU-cooler fan to keep the system running cool under load.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)Those are quick enough chips, but given the tower’s size, it stops short of the high-performance "9"-tier processors. You'll encounter similar limitations on the graphics front: The Omen 16L runs from a GeForce RTX 3050 to an RTX 4060 Ti for Nvidia cards and only a Radeon RX 7600 card for AMD. It maxes out at 32GB of memory (two sticks of DDR5) and 2TB of SSD storage. The power supply will either be a 400- or 500-watt unit, depending on the configuration needs. This is likely intended to serve as both a compact productivity system and an entry-level rig for space-starved and budding PC gamers, respectively.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)Come back to PCMag for thoroughly tested reviews of these systems as units become available.