When you’re buying the best HP gaming laptop for yourself, you can be assured that you’re getting quality. HP has come up with different lineups for its gaming laptops. Each of them offers something unique to gamers in every spectrum. Moreover, the one pervasive element in all of their laptops is quality. You can rest assured that you’re getting superb quality for the price you’re paying.
However, buying a gaming laptop is not an easy affair. It requires hours of research to find an HP gaming laptop that will suit your needs within your budget. Prices of gaming laptops also tend to change based on market trends. This is why we’ve brought you a comprehensive buying guide to choosing the best HP gaming laptop for yourself.
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How to buy the best HP gaming laptop?
External factors may affect the price when you’re buying a gaming laptop. These factors keep changing based on what’s happening around the world. For example, GPU prices increased due to semiconductor shortages during the Covid pandemic. This led to an increase in the prices of laptop GPUs as well. These factors keep on changing with time. Regardless, you need to remember a few crucial points when you’re buying a gaming laptop. Let’s have a look at them now.
Graphics Card
Gaming laptops often rely more on the graphics card to play demanding games. This is why you should go for a gaming laptop with a powerful GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). Don’t worry too much about the other aspects of the gaming laptop. A modern entry-level or mid-range GPU will work wonders if you have a balanced combination of the rest of the components. If you notice that your budget is only getting you an entry-level GPU paired with a mid-range CPU, don’t buy the laptop. You’ll be better off if you save more money and then spend it on a laptop with a better GPU. Remember – once you buy a laptop with a particular GPU, it cannot be changed.
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CPU
This is another vital component that governs how good your gaming laptop will be. The best HP gaming laptop has the perfect balance of CPU and GPU. If your CPU is more powerful than the GPU, you will face bottlenecking issues. The same is true for a vice versa situation. For example, pairing an Intel Core i3 processor with an Nvidia GeForce RTX GPU will bottleneck the GPU, decreasing performance. Ensure that the CPU and GPU tiers are compatible with each other.
RAM
This is another vital component when you’re buying a gaming laptop. Most gaming laptops these days, even at the entry-level, come with 8GB of RAM. While this is enough and can be compensated through a good GPU and CPU, there’s always room for an upgrade. The current recommended requirement of most PC games comes at 16GB of RAM. So, it’ll be better if you can buy a gaming laptop with a pre-installed 16GB of RAM. If that isn’t an option, you could also opt for a gaming laptop with 8GB of RAM but provides an extra slot for upgrades.
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Storage
Storage isn’t one of the most significant factors that determine a gaming laptop. However, it’s always nice to have an SSD inside the laptop. While SSDs provide less storage capacity, they make up for it through breakneck reading speeds. Installing a game on an SSD will result in higher FPS in the game. However, SSDs are expensive and could increase the price of your laptop. You could always opt for a gaming laptop that provides an HDD instead. While you will lose out on the slight FPS boost, you will get more storage capacity, reducing the laptop’s price. Ultimately, the choice is yours.
Screen resolution
Screen resolution is an essential determiner of how your laptop will run the latest games. Never go for a gaming laptop that offers less than 1080p resolution, i.e. 1920 x 1080. This is the minimum resolution that all gamers abide by when they want to play new games. Of course, there are premium gaming laptops that provide 2K resolutions or even 4K resolutions. However, they are pretty expensive and may not fit your budget. Moreover, 1080p or 1440p resolutions are perfect for mainstream gamers who want to comfortably play the latest AAA titles.
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Battery Life
One thing you have to know about gaming laptops is that their battery life isn’t all that great. Even the best HP gaming laptop works better when plugged into a power supply. A direct power supply helps the laptop’s CPU and GPU work to their full potential. Unless you plan on travelling and working with the laptop extensively, you shouldn’t check for laptops with excellent battery life.
Keyboard
A gaming laptop’s gaming keyboard must be good. This is especially important if you play plenty of shooting games. Since a lot of pressure is put on the keys when playing certain games, they must be durable. Furthermore, the keyboard should provide proper response times. In online gaming, any delay or latency in the input can result in underperformance. The key travel distance shouldn’t be too much either. The perfect distance is between 1.5mm and 2mm. Any higher than this, you will have to press the keys harder to register the input.
When it comes to keyboard lighting, some laptops provide RGB lighting configurations. You can change the keyboard lights through in-built software. Whether you prefer each key to have different lights or a single keyboard light throughout is entirely up to you. As long as the lighting is present and helps you find the keys faster when you’re gaming in the dark, you have nothing to worry about.
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Use cases
Your budget also determines your use case of the gaming laptop. There are three primary use case scenarios when it comes to gaming. Let’s have a look at them now.
For the first case, we have entry-level gaming. This is for people who like to work on a semi-powerful laptop and play casual online or offline games. You do not need a powerful laptop if you’re in this category. A laptop with the latest Intel Core i3 processor and a reasonably priced GPU (Such as Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650Ti) will be fine for you.
Next up, we have mainstream gaming. This is where most gamers fall into. As a mainstream gamer, you’re someone who likes to play all the latest AAA titles but doesn’t want to spend a fortune on a gaming laptop. In fact, a mid-range gaming laptop or slightly below mid-range will work for gaming at 1080p. For example, a laptop comprising an AMD Ryzen 7 4800H and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 will be perfect. This will allow you to play the latest games on Ultra settings. You can also enjoy the latest Nvidia GameWorks technology, such as Ray Tracing and DLSS.
Finally, we have the hardcore and enthusiast gamers. Gamers who fall into this category can be into high-level content creation, professional gaming and have no constraints on the budget. Players of this type like to play the most demanding games at 2K to 4K resolutions. You should go for the latest 12th gen Intel Core i7 and i9 processors if you fall into this category. Pair a powerful CPU with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 or better, and you can play every game in the best settings for the foreseeable future.
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Which is the best HP gaming laptop for you?
The best HP gaming laptop for you will be one that fits your budget and doesn’t compromise on most of the points as mentioned above. Since there are many options in the market, and your budget or preferences may be different, we’re here to help. We’ve chosen our top picks for every budget to help you find the best HP gaming laptop.
1. HP Victus 15-fa0073TX
The HP Victus Gaming series from the company has been one of the most successful in terms of “budget” gaming. While most enthusiast gamers shell out exorbitant amounts for gaming laptops, you can get this product for a reasonable price, especially considering its internal components. This HP Victus 15 laptop comes with some of the latest technologies, such as an Intel Core i7 12th Gen processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. However, what sets it apart from the competition are the 144Hz screen refresh rate and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 4GB graphics card.
With these specifications, you should have no problem playing the latest games at the highest settings. However, you might have to upgrade the storage and RAM later on!
- CPU – Intel Core i7 – 12650H
- GPU – Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050
- RAM – 8GB DDR4
- Storage – 512GB SSD
- Screen size – 15.6-inch
- Screen resolution – 1920 x 1080
- Refresh rate – 144Hz
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2. HP Omen 15-ek1016TX
We now move on to the cream of the crop; the most premium HP gaming laptop. HP’s Omen gaming laptop lineup has always targetted the enthusiast and hardcore gamer. One look at this laptop, and you’ll understand why. Even though you don’t get the latest Intel CPU with this laptop, you get one of the most powerful in its generation. The CPU is paired with a high-end Nvidia GeForce GPU for maximum performance. You could easily play graphically intensive games such as Red Dead Redemption 2 on this laptop at the highest settings and even have a smooth 4K experience. The only downside is, of course, the price tag.
- CPU – Intel Core i7-10870H
- GPU – Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070
- RAM – 16GB DDR4
- Storage – 1TB SSD
- Screen size – 15.6inch
- Screen resolution – 1920 x 1080
3. HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec2146AX
Moving on to the next product on our list of the best HP gaming laptop, we’ve got this HP Pavilion Gaming laptop. If your budget is under Rs. 80,000, this is an excellent choice in the long run. The laptop comes with a full HD 15.6-inch screen, with an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor. Moreover, Ryzen processors in the lower budgets outperform their Intel competition by quite a margin. So, you won’t have to worry about processing power. Apart from this, the laptop already has a very generous 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD. In terms of graphical power, the laptop works with the excellent Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 GPU, offering Ray-Tracing capabilities for the latest AAA titles.
Considering these specifications, there’s not much that you’ll need to sustain your gaming fever. As a bonus, you’ll also have full access to the Microsoft Office Home and Student 2019 suite for all your professional needs!
- CPU – AMD Ryzen 7 5800H
- GPU – Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050
- RAM – 16GB DDR4
- Storage – 512GB SSD
- Screen size – 15.6inch
- Screen resolution – 1920 x 1080
- Refresh rate – 144Hz
4. HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec2004AX
Coming to entry-level gaming, this product is the best HP gaming laptop if you’re a newbie gamer and don’t want to spend too much on a gaming laptop just yet. Moreover, if you’re into casual and online gaming, this is a decent choice. This particular HP laptop is powered by the AMD Ryzen 5 5600H processor, 8GB RAM, and 512GB SSD. In terms of the graphics card, you’ll get the always reliable Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 with 4GB of VRAM. While this won’t provide you with the best gaming capability for the latest games, it will get the job done at 30FPS and Low to Medium Settings for most games. Additionally, a 15.6-inch FHD IPS micro-edge display with a 144Hz refresh rate will ensure that you get crisp and clear visuals at all times!
Basically, if you’re on a tight budget but want a new gaming laptop, this HP gaming laptop will more than suffice!
- CPU – AMD Ryzen 5 5600H
- GPU – Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650
- RAM – 8GB
- Storage – 512GB SSD
- Screen size – 15.6inch
- Screen resolution – 1920 x 1080
- Refresh rate – 144Hz
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5. HP Victus 16-e0162AX
Finally, we come to the laptop meant entirely for beginners and gamers severely restricted with their budget. This HP gaming laptop combines hardware from AMD to create a powerful CPU and GPU combination. You shouldn’t expect this laptop to run resource-intensive games at the highest settings. However, all the modern games will work perfectly on this laptop. However, you will have to compromise with all the latest technology, such as DLSS and Ray Tracing. This laptop is meant for the budget-conscious gamer or if you want a secondary laptop for some light gaming.
- CPU – AMD Ryzen 5 5600H
- GPU – AMD Radeon RX 5500M
- RAM – 8GB DDR4
- Storage – 512GB SSD
- Screen size – 16.1inch
- Screen resolution – 1920 x 1080
Summing up
With this, we come to the end of our list of the best HP gaming laptop. We’ve tried our best to cover all the price segments and preferences of the current, new generation gamer. These lists are bound to change sooner rather than later, thanks to the significant number of gaming laptops released every year. For now, though, these are our top picks!
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Anirban Dutta Choudhury
Writer, researcher, and avid gamer. Geeks out over postmodern novels and the latest PC games. Usually intends all his puns.