HP Pavilion 15 2022, Ryzen 7 4800H, 12GB, 512GB SSD, GTX 1660 TI, Black

The HP Pavilion 15 gets the gaming basics right with a GTX 1660 Ti and Ryzen 7 4800H, but 12GB of RAM and a below-average screen hold it back. It's a decent mid-range option if you're willing to upgrade the memory yourself. At $1,230, it's a fair deal, not a steal.

The GTX 1660 Ti is the star here, landing in the 73rd percentile for GPU performance. That's enough to push most AAA games at 1080p with settings dialed to medium or high, though you'll feel it sweat on newer titles. The Ryzen 7 4800H is a solid workhorse, sitting right around average for CPUs in this class. But the 12GB of RAM is a head-scratcher. It's expandable up to 64GB, which is great, but out of the box it's a bottleneck for multitasking and heavier creative work. The 512GB NVMe SSD is about average, fast enough for quick boots and game loads but not a standout.

Stacked against the ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 or Lenovo Legion Pro 7i, the Pavilion 15 feels like a budget option wearing mid-range clothes. The Zephyrus G14 brings a better screen and more polished build quality, while the Legion Pro 7i outmuscles it in raw performance. The MacBook Pro M4 Pro and Surface Laptop 7th Edition are in a different league entirely, aimed at creators and professionals rather than budget gamers. The Pavilion's main advantage is price and upgradeability, but it gives up a lot on screen quality and reliability to get there.

At $1,230 USD, the Pavilion 15 is in a weird spot. You're paying mid-range money for a laptop with a solid GPU but a mediocre screen, limited RAM, and a reliability score that lands in the bottom third. The upgrade potential helps, but you shouldn't have to spend extra just to make a new laptop feel complete. If you can find this on sale, it's a more interesting proposition. At full price, it's a tougher sell.

The HP Pavilion 15 is a mid-range gaming laptop that leans on a solid GTX 1660 Ti and an 8-core Ryzen 7 4800H to get the job done. It's not flashy, but it's built for people who want playable frame rates without selling a kidney. The 512GB NVMe SSD keeps load times snappy, and the 15.6-inch IPS panel is fine for everyday gaming and streaming.

That said, this thing has some rough edges. The 12GB of RAM is a weird middle ground, and our database puts it in the bottom quarter for memory. Port selection is decent, but the screen and reliability scores are nothing to write home about. It's a capable machine with some clear compromises.

Skip this if you care about screen quality or out-of-box performance. The display is below average for this class, and 12GB of RAM will frustrate anyone who multitasks heavily. If you need a laptop that just works without upgrades, the ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 or Lenovo Legion Pro 7i are better bets, though pricier.

This is a laptop for someone who wants a capable 1080p gaming machine and doesn't mind tinkering. The GTX 1660 Ti and Ryzen 7 4800H are a solid combo, and the RAM expansion path means you can fix the biggest out-of-box weakness yourself. But if you want a polished experience with a great screen and proven reliability, you'll need to spend more or look elsewhere.