I ’ve apprize how HP has attempted to improve its Omen desktops over the past few year in hope of take in a stain among thebest play PC . The Omen 40L is a midrange choice , something you ’d be able to come up at your local Best Buy . Although it come with the right price and specs , it does n’t ace operation in the way it should .

All of the passementerie are veracious — the case not only looks great , but it also makes it signally easy to serve and upgrade the political machine . And the petite cooling system resolution is surprisingly stiff for the configuration I reviewed . Unfortunately , the Omen 40L drop the ball when it come to the software configuration and operation , meaning you ’ll often get less carrying out out of the parts inside than what they ’re capable of .

Specs and pricing

Typical for HP , you have a ton of customization option with the Omen 40L. At the abject end , you may get an Intel Core i5 - 13400 andNvidia RTX 4060for $ 1,000 , along with 16 GB of memory and a 512 GB SSD . you could go much higher , however . you could scale up to aCore i9 - 14900Kwith anRTX 4080 Super , for example , and drop upwards of $ 3,700 depending on your storage configuration .

I looked at a small constellation , something that palpate like an ideal balance between value and operation for those looking to get their first gaming PC . you could see the specs for the review unit below , with the auto packing an AMD Ryzen 7 7700 and an RTX 4060 Ti graphics card .

At retailers like Best Buy , HP asks $ 1,480 for this form , but it often hold up on sales agreement . At the time of this writing , the configuration is useable for $ 1,330 , and I ’ve seen it go under $ 1,100 before . Surprising as it sounds , HP is offering a lot of value here for that price .

Even choose the cheapest components possible , which I ’m indisputable HP has done here to a certain degree , you ’d spend around $ 1,100 to build your own version of this PC . A few hundred dollars for warrant , support , and the build itself is n’t unreasonable . And if you could find a stellar sale on the Omen 40L , it ’s a downright peck .

It ’s a decent cost compare to the competition , too . TheDell XPS Desktopwith a similar configuration come in at $ 1,450 , for model . As is always the causa , you ’ll get better smasher for your buck by building your own microcomputer , but the Omen 40L is a compelling midrange option for microcomputer gamers who do n’t want to get their hired hand muddy .

Build quality and design

HP knows how to design a gaming desktop . The Omen designing we see a few days back with theOmen 45Lremains today in the manakin of a sleek blackened outside , a tempered glass side panel and front , and RGB ring around the fans that wash the inside in white luminousness by nonpayment . It ’s a great proportionality of gaming flare and thoughtful execution . You ’ll never misidentify this for anything other than a gaming personal computer , but it ’s also never shoving a rainbow down your pharynx .

It ’s not just the exterior blueprint , either . start inside the Omen 40L , itfeelslike a custom - build up microcomputer , and sometimes even better . For starter , pay back into the case is completely instrument - less . button on the top of the event bulge out off the side panel , and you may snap off the front and top panels with ease . HP includes markings   on the case itself , so you do n’t have to fish out the manual to see how to remove the debris filter correctly .

Speaking of which , there ’s a removable detritus filter at the front of the slip , which is central for keeping the internals fresh . A second magnetic dust filter covers the ability supply fan on the bottom of the case . There ’s als room for extra fans . There ’s a plain slot for a 120 mm fan upfront , as well as two at the top of the case . Even better , the fan hub HP uses has spare connection available , so you’re able to reasonably make these upgrade .

Around the back , you also have four slots for additional drive , and HP include additional SATA power connective if you want to expand your storage in the future . The index supply is n’t modular , but at least you could make some little upgrades like storage without reconfiguring the entire machine .

Cable direction inside the compositor’s case is n’t the best . I do n’t care much about how things wait behind the motherboard tray , but the Omen 40L is a bit mussy in the principal chamber . Like a lot of prebuilt PCs , the Omen 40L does n’t have peachy cable routing options , leaving dangle cables in the main chamber where you’re able to see them . One peculiarly risky example is the exhaust fan , which has a cable television stretch out across the top of the motherboard .

Upon unboxing the personal computer , you ’ll find oneself that HP does n’t let in a ton of trade protection . The foam is fine , but there ’s nothing inside the example outside of a plastic GPU angle bracket to protect the components . My review sample get in without issues , but make certain to give your personal computer a through physical inspection before powering it on to see if anything was damage in transit .

Heating and cooling

As we see with the Omen 30L a few old age ago , HP has a good grip on cooling than other mainstream stigma . Even with it ’s retiring gentle wind cooler , the Omen 40L is coolheaded and mostly restrained under a full load .

Two 120 mm inlet fans at the front of the personal computer feed the CPU cooler , providing it fresh , cool breeze . enceinte intakes at the front provide clear air flow into the microcomputer , and a removable dust filter continue the interior of your personal computer blank . Everything flow out of a 120 millimeter exhaust fan at the back , though there are additional fan climb at the top of the case for optional liquid cooling .

temperature were right in my testing . At idle , the Ryzen 7 7700 ride between 40 and 45 degrees Celsius , which is right where I ’d expect a smaller air travel ice chest to descend . Under a full Cinebench R24 load , the central processor peaked at 70 degrees Celsius , which leaves plenty of external respiration room . The chip can operate up to 95 degrees before it starts throttling .

Noise is a different beast . For the most part , the Omen 40L is placid — shockingly so , in fact . Then , suddenly , it is n’t . After the heat accomplish a certain point , the fan rage up to maximal f number and slowly drop back down as everything cools down .

HP has a very aggressive curve ball on the fans , so either you ’ll hear the Omen 40L at full blast , or barely hear it at all . A more gradual curve would ’ve been far better , and unfortunately , you ca n’t tweak the curve in the Omen Gaming Hub .

Bloatware and configuration

One of the downsides of going with a large PC brand like HP is bloatware , and the Omen 40L certainly is n’t above that job . You get a mess of HP utility — HP Smart , HP Support Assist , HP Hardware Diagnostics , ans on and on — along with the Omen Gaming Hub . You ’ll probably never see the other HP utilities , as only the Omen Gaming Hub is immobilize to the taskbar .

The Omen Gaming Hub is n’t great . It ’s littered and stuffed with ads for other HP products and plot . There are some configuration options , such as AMD ’s Precision Boost Overdrive ( PBO ) , but HP buries the selection under many other irrelevant menus . I would n’t be surprised if you opened the Omen Gaming Hub once and cut it off before ever seeing the options useable .

Some of those options are very relevant , too . Out of the box , HP does n’t have the overclocking profile enable on the retention , for example . you’re able to turn this on in the Omen Gaming Hub , but it reallyshould be enabled out of the box seat when HP is advertise the overclocked amphetamine on its production page .

The bane of all prebuilts is antivirus software program , and the Omen 40L is no different . It come with McAfee preinstalled , and it was the first thing that pop up when I boot the microcomputer . It ’s even pinned to the taskbar , with constant annoyance to install McAfee ’s internet browser extensions . This is distinctive of most mainstream gaming PCs , but it ’s frustrating how in your brass McAfee is while so many other vital tools are bury .

Out of the box , you ’re not really set up to get critical update like artwork drivers and access code critical configurations like your memory visibility . None of this is hard to do if you ’ve set up a PC before , but as the saying goes , you do n’t know what you do n’t know . HP could do a lot more to help on that front .

This is n’t a problem exclusive to HP , in fairness . The Alienware Aurora R16 descend with its own retinue of bloatware , and you ’ll find similar software on Lenovo ’s Tower series . NichePC builders like Starforge Systemsand Origin microcomputer are better on the bloatware front , offering a relatively clean install of Windows out of the box .

Performance

With a Ryzen 7 7700 and an RTX 4060 Ti , this microcomputer is mostly targeting high - final stage 1080p gaming , or 1440p gaming with a few compromises . The C.P.U. is a bit more powerful than what you take for a pure gambling focus , but you ’ll value having access code to eight core if you want to go out of doors of biz for other apps .

you could see that in legal action in Cinebench R24 . Single - core speed are a bit below what we see with theStarforge Navigatorand its Ryzen 5 7600X — this is a non - ten part , after all — but the multi - core score is far ahead . It ’s approximately equivalent to what you receive with the Core i7 - 13700F inside the Alienware Aurora R16 , which is importantly more expensive .

Geekbench 6 shows a slenderly unlike side of the account , with the Core i7 - 13700F come out forrader with its array of efficient cores . The Omen 40L is ahead in individual - core public presentation , however .

I ’ve included result for Premiere Pro , Photoshop , and PCMark 10 , all of which maintain public databases of consequence online . regrettably , I do n’t have data for the other PC here , but the Omen 40L is arrange up decent results . It has enough oink for productivity apps like Premiere Pro and Photoshop , but the substantial focal point here is gaming .

Here , I ’m comparing execution to what you ’d get with an off - the - shelf RTX 4060 Ti , presume you build your own personal computer . This is n’t a heavy GPU for 4 thousand , and my results above show why . Without upscaling , you ’re not going to bump off 60 frame per second ( Federal Protective Service ) in most game . More importantly , the Omen 40L is behind a customs duty RTX 4060 Ti gaming microcomputer , namely inCyberpunk 2077 .

you’re able to see how much operation open up at 1440p , where you ’re on a regular basis hitting over 60 Federal Protective Service , and sometimes even going into the triple digits . disregarding , across title , the Omen 40L is a few frames behind . This is n’t due to warmth , but rather some combination of GPU clock speeding and the memory running at its nonpayment specification out of the box .

Down at 1080p , the gaps stay on , with some title , such asHorizon Zero Dawn , showing a spread of 10 frames .

I ran these benchmarks with the default , out of the box configuration , as I mistrust that ’s how most user will use the Omen 40L. However , if you turn on the right read/write memory visibility and overclock the central processor with PBO , you could shut the gaps . The trouble is that HP should have already done this . The Omen 40L feel like a custom personal computer , but it is n’t configured like one .

Part of that could have to do with the usage motherboard HP is using here , which is rather restrictive in its great power management compared to off - the - ledge options . A true impost PC , like the Starforge Systems Horizon II , does n’t have these restriction on the motherboard , allowing the components to reach their full potentiality .

Should you buy the HP Omen 40L?

The Omen 40L is significantly better than what you ’ll find with a lot of mainstream options . The price is fairish , and the casing lead plenty of elbow room for upgrades . functioning consider a hit due to an wrong configuration , and that ’s what really stings the most .

It ride among some stiff contender as well . The aforementioned Starforge Horizon II Pro is uncommitted with an RTX 4060 Ti for a bit less than the Omen 40L. Theis available for even less , and with more storage space .

HP collar some aspects of the Omen 40L , but carrying out is where it descend behind . alas , that ’s a reasonably big deal and makes the Omen 40L hard to recommend than I care it was .