The HP Omen 17 Inch Laptop, especially the higher-end models, may be a little too advanced to be considered a best laptop for Sims 4, but it will run the game to perfection. In fact, the lower-end model may just be the right kind of powerful to play the game without having to spend too much money and have all that extra strength go to waste. Check it out to see if it fits your description for the best gaming laptops.
Why We Like It – HP Omen 17 Inch
The HP Omen 17 Inch is a powerful and large budget gaming laptop that looks imposing and is, in actuality, very imposing. The Intel Core i9 processor tuen graphically advanced games into chop liver and the 32 GB of RAM means you can run as many windows as you want without ever slowing down.
- Plays Simple and Complex Games Very Well
- Great Variety of Ports
- Incredibly Smooth
- Poor Battery Life
- No Per-Key Configuration
Performance/Power
HP Omen 17 Inch Gaming Laptops run the gamut when it comes to gaming performance. A standard model runs an Intel Core i7, 4GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card (Max Q if you’d like), 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD, such as in the Acer Predator Helios 300 GTX 1660 TI, and high end versions have an Intel Core i9, 8GB Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 , 32GB of RAM, and a 1TB hard drive. Depending on what you need, the laptop can run both simple and difficult games quite easily. If you are a gamer that likes to go to the extremes, you also need to look at our HP Omen X review for another powerful laptop.
Battery
While the HP Omen may earn the distinction for being one of the most versatile gaming laptops, it’s battery life leaves a lot to be desired. Like many other gaming laptops, such as the MSI GF63 Thin or the Razer Blade Base, it just doesn’t have the capacity to play for too long. This time around, battery life clocks in at three hours and fifteen minutes. But I guess this is just a theme with budget gaming laptops.
Ports/Expandability
A good variety of ports come with the HP Omen. Another theme that seems to be apparent in budget gaming laptops. The packed left side contains an Ethernet port, HDMI and mini DisplayPort, a pair of USB 3.1 Type-A ports, a Thunderbolt 3 port, an audio combo jack, and a separate microphone jack. The right has a USB 3.1 Type-A port and a full-size SD card reader. All in all, this means the laptop acts as something you can use besides gaming.
Build Quality
Judging by aesthetics alone, the HP Omen just looks the part of a powerful gaming laptop. It’s a 17 inch laptop, as you may have guessed, but its inward-sloping edges make it look a touch more refined. It weighs about seven pounds which isn’t heavy by any stretch of the imagination but does beg the question as to why such a big laptop has poor battery life. Wi Fi 6 is supported by the laptop by the Intel AX200 Card.
Value
All of the specs mentioned in the Power section allow the laptop to run at 1080P full HD just like the Lenovo Ideapad L340 Gaming Laptop. The laptop also runs a high refresh rate with a G-Sync display for one of the smoothest running experiences you’ll find on a budget gaming laptop. Unfortunately, keyboard backlighting is dim and there’s no option for a per key configuration. One of the best gaming laptops under $1000 is featured in our HP Envy X360 13 gaming review.
HP Omen 17 Inch Wrap Up
In another game of trade-off, the HP Omen 17 Inch Laptop trades absolutely outstanding gaming performance for sub-par battery life and no per-key configuration. If you’re not a particularly hardcore gamer, this configuration probably means nothing to you. But if you are and you have time in your day for an epic game session then three hours of battery life just won’t cut it.
