Call me old-fashioned, but I like gaming gear that doesn't feel like it was designed by a teenager. I prefer technology and hardware that looks as though it belongs both in a gaming setup but also in an office or when being used at a coffee shop. A more subtle design, a more elegant and classy approach, these are design philosophies that resonate with me, assuming there's still capable hardware under the hood and used across the device to ensure it can deliver stunning and smooth gameplay.
For HP's Omen Transcend 14, this is without question what we find once more. We're talking about a laptop that is built on a foundation of powerful and versatile components and yet still has an appearance that doesn't scream 'gamerfied' and can actually trade blows with the undeniable sophistication of MacBooks. In short, the Omen Transcend 14 is a gaming laptop for functioning adults, perfect for the demographic of aging gamers.
Again, immediately upon unpacking this laptop, you'll be drawn in by the amazing design philosophy. It's sleek and compact but with a considerable heft that gives an undeniably premium feeling. The aluminium metal and the sandblasted anodised finish used on the chassis also never betray the build quality of this laptop. If we were talking in terms of cars, the HP Omen Transcend 14 feels like a Bentley, with all the class and elegance that comes with that name.
Sticking with the body for a moment, at this point we do find the first point of criticism, as the limited number of ports comes to attention. There are two USB Type-A, a single USB Type-C that also acts as the power input, an audio jack port, a HDMI 2.1, and a Thunderbolt USB Type-C too. It's a decent amount of ports, but would it be beneficial to have one or two more USB ports, perhaps an SD card slot, maybe even an Ethernet port? Without question.
Also, the cooling solution for this laptop is a bit of a strange affair because there's no denying that the Tempest Cooling system works and keeps the device fresh under stress, but by forcing all of the superheated air out of the same rear vents can mean that the back of this laptop gets rather hot, a somewhat problematic vice when resting the gadget on your legs. It shouldn't cause any damage to you, but it's certainly not comfortable, likely even less so during warmer months.
Moving on, when you open the laptop up, you're greeted by a 14" 2.8K OLED screen that is frankly gorgeous. The visual clarity and depth is exceptional and more than you could ever really require to enjoy video games or other entertainment in spell-binding detail. The colour range is broad, there's HDR support, 500 nits of brightness that makes operating the laptop in most lighting conditions a breeze, and this is all without discussing the more gamer-specific elements of this brilliant display panel.
We'll touch on the components in a moment and what you should reasonably expect from them, but what I can say is that there's no bottleneck from a display standpoint. If you prefer visual clarity from your games, then this 2.8K display will deliver and then some. Similarly, if performance is king to you, then being able to run titles at 120 Hz with a 0.2 ms response time should hold your attention. Will you be able to get games performing at 120 Hz at 2.8K quality? This is where you will start facing challenges, as the components, while capable, are more designed to deliver quality or performance, leaving this dual-attack setup for the pure performance powerhouses like in the Omen Max range.
As per the components, for this model we're talking an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 8GB, 16 GB of LPDDR5X SDRAM, plus with a 1 TB SSD. These are a decent combination of components that can run the latest and most demanding games, but typically, especially as this is a laptop, you're either going to have to prioritise quality or performance, as the data we've gathered shows below.
Borderlands 4
- Low ≈38 FPS
- Badass ≈15 FPS
The Last of Us: Part II Remastered
- Low ≈19 FPS
- Very High ≈41 FPS
Ghostrunner 2
- Low - barely playable without DLSS and Frame Generation at around ≈17 FPS, with DLSS and Frame Generation ≈103 FPS
- Very High - barely playable without DLSS and Frame Generation at around ≈8 FPS, with DLSS and Frame Generation ≈76 FPS
Overwatch
- Low ≈64 FPS
- Very High ≈28 FPS
In each case, there was a major GPU bottleneck where there was space to squeeze out a tad more performance from the CPU and RAM, but which became impossible due to the GPU hitting its ceiling.
It's also worth noting that we tested the HP Omen Transcend 14 on both GeekBench and Cinebench and registered multi-core scores of 12,558 and 3,277, respectively. For reference, the data is quite strong, even if you do have to take it with a degree of caution and recognise that compared to more powerful hardware it will struggle to run the latest games as well.
Also, the OMEN Gaming Hub software and its AI optimiser do help considerably in reducing additional RAM strain, saving space by closing or suspending applications not required during a gaming session. On this front, the software also works well and is simple to use, especially when it comes to adjusting customisable elements like the backlighting of the keyboard.
Speaking about the keyboard, HP has included an excellent full-size option with rollover and anti-ghosting technology, which simply makes typing a delight. The keys are responsive to the touch, snap back when pressure is removed, and have a lovely glossy feeling. It's a brilliant keyboard. However, the trackpad leaves a bit to be desired... Perhaps this review unit was slightly worn out, but I did face more occasions than I ever would like when the trackpad simply didn't register my movements. And I'm not talking about forcing the trackpad into action in actual games, rather just simple browsing and for word processing, making me frustrated that my inputs weren't being registered.
Long story short, the HP Omen Transcend 14 is a laptop that has excellent strengths and somewhat key weaknesses. It's a beautiful and elegant piece of technology that will draw the attention of onlookers when used in public and the build quality only takes this a step further, creating a piece of equipment that is frankly enviable. For all of these reasons, it's a laptop worthy of your attention and money. Yet, and this is a rather big yet, it's not the most capable when it comes to running video games, with some titles being entirely reliant on Frame Generation and AI technology to make them playable even at the lowest or lower graphical settings. Essentially, the HP Omen Transcend 14, at least this model that I've been testing, is an excellent laptop but a simply good gaming laptop.
