HP Victus 15 2024, Core i5-12450H, 32GB, 1TB SSD + 128GB SSD, RTX 3050, Blue

The HP Victus 15 gives you 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD at a budget price, which is rare. But the RTX 3050 holds it back for modern gaming, and battery life during play is a known weak spot. Worth considering if you play esports or older titles and want the extra RAM, otherwise look for a better GPU.

The Core i5-12450H is a middle-of-the-pack mobile CPU, sitting right at the 50th percentile in our database. It's fine for gaming and daily tasks, but don't expect it to crush heavy productivity workloads. The RTX 3050 with 4GB of VRAM lands in the 75th percentile, which sounds better than it is. That 4GB buffer is tight for modern titles, and ray tracing is basically a checkbox feature here, not something you'll actually want to enable. The 32GB of RAM is the standout, hitting the 73rd percentile, and the 1TB SSD at the 88th percentile means load times won't be your problem. The 144Hz display is smooth for competitive shooters, though it's only average for this category overall.

Stacked against the ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14, the Victus 15 gets smoked on build quality, portability, and GPU performance, but it costs way less. The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i is in a completely different league for gaming, though you'll pay double or more. Against the MSI Prestige, the Victus actually wins on gaming specs but loses on portability and screen quality. The MacBook Pro M4 Pro isn't even a fair fight for gaming, but for creators it's no contest. The Victus 15 is a budget play, and it competes best when you ignore the premium options entirely.

At $988 to $1,080 USD, this is a tough call. The 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD combo is genuinely unusual at this price, and you're getting a 144Hz panel too. But the RTX 3050 is aging fast, and the reliability percentile of 33 means we'd be nervous about longevity. If you can find this closer to the $900 mark, it starts to make more sense. At full price, you're paying a premium for RAM you might not need while the GPU holds you back.

The HP Victus 15 is a budget gaming laptop that punches above its weight in a few key areas. You get 32GB of RAM, a 1TB NVMe SSD, and a 144Hz 1080p display, which is a solid combo for the price range this thing sits in. The RTX 3050 is the bottleneck, but for esports titles and older AAA games it'll do the job.

What's interesting here is the mismatch between specs and real-world feedback. The hardware looks great on paper, but owners have gripes about battery life during gaming and some Wi-Fi 6 software quirks. That's the story with budget gaming laptops, you get the specs but the corners get cut somewhere.

Skip this if you want to play modern AAA games at high settings, the RTX 3050's 4GB of VRAM will frustrate you within a year. Also skip it if you need something portable, at 2.29kg and with a 30th percentile compactness score, this is a desk machine. And if reliability is a top concern, the 33rd percentile score should give you pause.

This is a decent entry-level gaming laptop for someone who plays esports titles, older games, or indie stuff. The 32GB of RAM and 1TB SSD are genuinely nice, and the 144Hz screen makes a real difference in fast games. But if you're hoping to play Cyberpunk or Starfield at decent settings, the RTX 3050 will disappoint. Buy it for what it is, a budget machine with a couple of premium specs, not a future-proof gaming rig.