HP OMEN 16 2025, Ryzen 9 8940HX, 64GB, 2TB SSD, RTX 5070, Shadow Black

The HP OMEN 16 is a 16-inch gaming laptop with a Ryzen 9 8940HX, 64GB of DDR5, and a 240Hz 500-nit display. It's a performance monster for multitasking and creative work, but the RTX 5070's 8GB VRAM and the 7.05 lb weight are real trade-offs. At $2,699, it's best for buyers who need workstation-level specs in a gaming chassis.

The Ryzen 9 8940HX is a monster. 16 cores, 32 threads, boost up to 5.3GHz, and 64MB of L3 cache. In our database, this CPU lands in the 94th percentile for gaming laptops, which puts it among the best you can buy right now. The 64GB of DDR5 is even more extreme, sitting at the 96th percentile. You'll struggle to max that out unless you're running multiple VMs or editing 8K footage.

The RTX 5070 with 8GB of VRAM is the more grounded component here. It's a solid 89th percentile GPU, capable of high-refresh 1440p gaming in most titles, but 8GB of VRAM will start to feel tight in a couple of years. The 2TB SSD is also top-tier at the 94th percentile, so load times and game installs won't be a headache. In practice, this thing chews through esports titles at 240fps and handles AAA games at high settings without much drama.

Against the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 10, the OMEN 16 wins on raw CPU and memory specs but gives up some GPU headroom depending on the config. The Legion line tends to have better build quality and cooling, and Lenovo's reliability scores in our database are stronger. The ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 is the opposite approach, much more compact and portable, but you'll sacrifice screen size and raw CPU muscle. The MSI Raider is a closer match in size and power, though MSI's pricing often lands higher for similar specs.

The Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max is the wildcard. It's not a gaming laptop in the traditional sense, but for creators, the M4 Max's efficiency and display quality are hard to beat. The OMEN 16 counters with Windows flexibility, upgradeable storage, and a much higher refresh rate panel. If you're a developer or creator who also games, the OMEN's 64GB of RAM and 16-core CPU make it a compelling alternative to Apple's walled garden.

At $2,699, the OMEN 16 is priced like a premium gaming laptop, and the CPU, RAM, and storage justify a good chunk of that. But the RTX 5070 with 8GB VRAM feels a little mismatched against the rest of the spec sheet. For similar money, you could look at a Legion Pro 7i Gen 10 or a ROG Zephyrus G14, both of which offer different trade-offs. If you need the 64GB of RAM and 2TB SSD specifically, this config makes sense. If you're mostly gaming, you might get more frames per dollar elsewhere.

The HP OMEN 16 sits in that upper-midrange gaming laptop bracket, and this config is a weird one in the best way. You're getting a Ryzen 9 8940HX with 16 cores, 64GB of DDR5, and a 2TB NVMe SSD, all paired with an RTX 5070. That's a lot of headroom for multitasking, streaming, and creative work, even if the GPU is the more modest part of the equation. At $2,699, it's not cheap, but the spec sheet reads more like a portable workstation that happens to game.

People searching for a 240Hz gaming laptop with a bright 500-nit display will find a lot to like here. The 16-inch WQXGA panel covers 100% sRGB and hits 3ms response time, so it's built for fast-paced shooters and color-sensitive work alike. And yes, it's heavy. 7.05 lbs is not a backpack-friendly number, but that's the trade-off for this much hardware.

HP clearly aimed this at buyers who want a desktop replacement that can handle gaming, video editing, and heavy multitasking without breaking a sweat. The Ryzen AI branding is there too, though we wouldn't buy it for that alone.

Skip the OMEN 16 if you travel often or need something portable. At 7.05 lbs, it's a desk-bound machine, and the compact score in our database is one of the worst we've seen for this category. Pure gamers who don't need 64GB of RAM or a 16-core CPU should look at the ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 or a Legion Pro 7i with a higher-tier GPU instead. And if you're a creator who values battery life and display accuracy above all else, the MacBook Pro M4 Max is the better call.

Should you buy the HP OMEN 16? If you want a desktop replacement with a top-tier CPU, absurd amounts of RAM, and a gorgeous 240Hz display, yes. This config is built for people who multitask hard, edit video, stream, and game on the same machine. The 64GB of DDR5 and 2TB SSD mean you won't be upgrading anything for years.

But if you're a pure gamer chasing maximum frames per dollar, the RTX 5070's 8GB VRAM is a real limitation. And at 7.05 lbs, this is not a laptop you'll want to carry around daily. The reliability scores being below average also gives us pause, especially with only 4 customer reviews to lean on. It's a great machine on paper, just make sure the spec sheet matches what you actually need.