Even with the rising energy of built-in graphics, the prospects of getting high-quality, high-rez gaming functionality in a laptop computer of ultrabook proportions remains to be years from changing into a possible actuality. Till then, slimmer gaming laptops just like the HP Omen Transcend 16 stay the closest approximation of that dream, cramming discrete GPUs – the Nvidia Geforce RTX 4060, on this case – into lighter, narrower chassis designs.
The standard catch with such units, sadly, is an overeagerness to look aspirational. Which is, to be clear, the nicest factor I can say a couple of Razer Blade 16 costing £2500 for its personal RTX 4060 mannequin. Regardless of the identify, nevertheless, the Omen Transcend 16 is far more right down to earth – it nonetheless gives sufficient premium trappings to really feel like a step up from chunkier laptops, however at its present pricing of £1199 / $1429, it’s a good commerce as properly. And it helps Nvidia DLSS 3, sprint of futureproofing tech which may simply soothe any worries about shopping for a 2023-spec PC in 2024.
Not that the Omen Transcend 16 is missing in modernity in any other case. The slimline bodywork cuts a pointy determine, fortunately quick on pointless prospers (colored WASD keys however) and well transferring a whole lot of the ports to the rear edge, the place plugged-in cables can’t litter up your mouse-swishing house. These connections are high-spec, too, with HDMI 2.1 and two Thunderbolt 4-ready USB-C ports as commonplace. I might have traded one of many latter for a 3rd full-size USB-A port, admittedly, however two is greater than sufficient for video games responsibility. The webcam additionally permits face sign-in for Home windows, one other comfort which all the time labored shortly and flawlessly on my bespectacled mug.
At 2.2kg, the Omen Transcend 16’s weight is properly beneath common for a 16in gaming pocket book. You’ll be able to go even decrease with some 14in and 15.6in fashions, naturally, however this can be a good shoulder-sparing possibility should you particularly desire a bigger laptop computer that also takes an occasional backpack journey. There advantages to the scale, to make sure: the chiclet keyboard is comfortably proportioned, as is the (huge) trackpad. The keys received’t singe your fingers, both, as HP’s twin-blower cooler works properly sufficient to maintain the internals from broiling the chassis. Count on loads of fan noise when operating video games, thoughts – the audio system can drown it out, however a headset makes for a worthwhile accent.
The 1920×1200 show, in the meantime, is superb. It’s a vibrant, IPS display screen that covers 98.4% of the sRGB color gamut, and its peak brightness and distinction ratio are – at 472cd/m2 and 1255:1, respectively – the very best I’ve personally examined in years. Nvidia G-Sync help and a 165Hz refresh fee additionally give actual gaming credentials which can be backed up in regular use, with little to report in the best way of ghosting, tearing, or undue blurring. The 1920×1200 decision is much less thrilling, being only a hair above boring previous Full HD. Or, in different phrases, not that many pixels to unfold throughout a 16in panel. Nonetheless, it seems to be sharp sufficient, and at the least the decision isn’t overtaxing that RTX 4060.
As such, the Omen Transcend 16 can comfortably run video games (and particular person high quality settings) which can be merely past these different choices for light-weight PC gaming,: handhelds just like the Steam Deck and Lenovo Legion Go. It would deal with Starfield on our advisable settings, and with some upscaling assist from DLSS, it will probably even get Psycho-quality ray tracing operating properly in Cyberpunk 2077: 48fps on common, with all the things else on Extremely. Add in DLSS 3 body era, and that jumps as much as 76fps.
The remainder of our common gaming benchmarks affirm the RTX 4060 as a succesful, if hardly ever excellent mid-range cell GPU. It simply beats the laptop-grade RTX 3070 at native decision, with clean outcomes like 73fps in Complete Battle: Three Kingdoms, 92fps in Murderer’s Creed Valhalla, 88fps in Forza Horizon 5, and 91fps in Horizon Zero Daybreak. These had been all on their Extremely (or highest equal) presets, so there’ll normally be no must drop settings.
That stated, ray tracing remains to be finest accompanied by some upscaling, even at 1200p. In Watch Canine Legion, the Omen Transcend 16’s preliminary 70fps end result (on Extremely high quality) fell to 40fps with the addition of Extremely RT results. That’s nonetheless playable, however as Cyberpunk 2077 reveals, whacking on DLSS (or AMD FSR, relying on the sport) is a simple technique to hold each high quality and efficiency on the upper facet.
In pure efficiency phrases, then, this can be a first rate gaming laptop computer for the cash. Although it’s much less spectacular as a multipurpose workstation, a semi-shortcoming owed to its Intel Core i7-13700K processor. It’s superb for video games, however lacks multitasking prowess, scoring simply 6012 within the Cinebench R20 multicore take a look at. That’s lower than half what the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17’s AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX produced, although to the Intel chips’s credit score, each scored an similar 714 within the single-core benchmark. See? High-quality for video games, particularly older ones that don’t make intensive use of multithreading.
It is more durable, sadly, to search out the brilliant facet of the Omen Transcend 16’s battery life. HP claims gentle utilization will permit it to maintain trekking for almost eight hours, however below the cosh of operating an precise recreation, that type of longevity is nowhere to be seen: I bought simply 53 minutes into Shadow of the Tomb Raider earlier than the total battery ran dry. That was with display screen brightness on max, however in any other case on a fairly on a regular basis batch of settings. It’s notably disappointing to see this diploma of draining on a thin-and-light gaming laptop computer, one which’s certainly designed as such for superior portability.
The SSD is nothing particular, both. With an AS SSD sequential learn take a look at results of 4357MB/s, and a sequential write results of 1970MB/s, it’s solely actually quicker than what you’d get on funds laptops just like the Gigabyte G5. The drives inside higher-end notebooks, together with the ROG Strix Scar 17, will repeatedly outpace it.
And but, these received’t all the time have the stunning construct of the Omen Transcend 16, nor the show high quality, nor the vary of instruments for retaining framerates excessive. Its short-livedness is irritating, however in order for you the final capabilities and svelteness of a Razer Blade with out the self-imposed monetary ruination, it will definitely do the job.
