HP introduces a budget-friendly Victus 16, an entry-level gaming laptop

It's been almost 10 years since OMEN started representing HP's gaming line. But this year will be a little different; joining the new OMEN 16 is its spiritual sibling, the Victus 16, which is essentially the entry-level gaming laptop in HP's stable.

Victus by HP is a new range of laptops that have the essentials necessary to provide a 'core' gaming experience. Aside from the Victus 16, there's an even cheaper 15-inch model along with a desktop machine (15L Gaming Desktop) in the lineup.

Victus by HP 16

This means that we can expect the typical range of gaming-level options under the hood, such as up to Intel Core i7-11800H or AMD Ryzen 7 6800H CPU, up to 32GB DDR4 3200 MHz RAM, and up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 laptop GPU 6GB or AMD Radeon RX 5500M graphics. Storage comes in the form of a single SSD (up to 1TB PCIe) or Dual SSDs supporting RAID storage options or optional Intel Optane memory.

The design of the Victus is somewhat similar to its more expensive stablemate and is available in three colours: mica silver, performance blue, and ceramic white. Despite the 16-inch display (QHD, low blue light tech and 165Hz refresh rate), the Victus bears a more compact footprint akin to a 15-inch laptop. The relatively slim chassis still manages to fit a cooling system with four heat pipes and five-way airflow, revealing themselves through wide rear vents that contribute to the laptop's visual flair.

OMEN 16

As a more advanced machine, the OMEN 16 naturally gets the more capable internals: AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX Mobile Processors, up to NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU or AMD Ryzen RX 6650M, up to 32GB DDR5 4800 MHz RAM and up to 2TB PCIe Gen4x4 SSD storage.

HP's premium gaming machine also gets a more robust cooling system. It gets a fifth heat pipe and a fourth outflow vent, which HP says helps reduce the temperature of the GPU by around three per cent at the hinge and SSD temperature by 14 per cent at the bottom. Overall noise has been reduced by five per cent compared to the last generation. A built-in IR thermopile sensor allows the OMEN 16 to "precisely detect" real-time CPU and GPU capacity and dynamically allocate power between them. HP says that the end result is a CPU performance is 36 per cent better than last year's model.

The display is a QHD 165Hz IPS panel with 3ms response time and 100 per cent coverage of sRGB colour gamut; it's also Eyesafe certified (low blue light).

Both laptops feature OMEN Gaming Hub as the primary software that handles all the performance management tools. A new Optimiser feature lets you free up system resources and tweak low-level OS settings to maximise FPS (Undervolting, Performance Mode, Network Booster, and System Vitals) along with experiential apps like Gallery, Rewards, Oasis Live to enhance the 'gaming lifestyle'. The software is usable on all Windows 10 and 11 PCs, though not all features are available.

ALSO READ: October games roundup: Blockbuster titles releasing back to back

Both laptops will be available at a promotional price for the month of October: the Victus 16 starts from $1,599 and the OMEN 16 starts from $2,199.

This article was first published in Potions.sg.