The HP Omen Transcend 14 laptop is specially designed for gamers and creators who want to play and create anywhere with an emphasis on portability. The laptop was unveiled at CES 2024 and labelled as the world’s coolest and lightest 14-inch gaming laptop. Like all gaming laptops, the HP Omen Transcend 14 is available in various customisable configurations. The machine we received for the review comes at a retail price of ₹1,74,999 and had an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 graphics, 16GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD.
Design and Display
The HP Omen Transcend 14 boasts a sleek metal design with vibrant colours and a sturdy build. It lacks glowing logos but features an attractive RGB-lit keyboard. While the screen’s hinge doesn’t open to 180 degrees, efficient cooling ensures optimal performance. Connectivity options include Thunderbolt 4, USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports, and HDMI 2.1, though they are limited. Its touchpad offers smooth navigation and decent sensitivity for everyday tasks and light gaming, though the pre-installed software may be overwhelming.
The Transcend 14 is a remarkable machine that stands out from the crowd thanks to its blend of style, performance, and immersion. However, its true magic lies in its OLED screen, which is mesmerising when turned on. The display has a luminance of 398.3 nits in SDR, producing vivid and vibrant colours that bring images to life. With a resolution of 2880 x 1800, the display is a masterful canvas that can render text, images, and videos with exquisite detail and clarity.
The Transcend 14 also supports HDR and can shine with a brightness of up to 500 nits, which creates a realm of breathtaking realism. It may not be the brightest display out there, but it delivers a well-balanced performance that elevates your gaming and multimedia experiences to new heights of immersion. The cinematic wonder of the display brings your favourite movies and games to life with unparalleled clarity and depth, drawing you into the heart of the action.
Webcam, Biometrics and Speakers
The webcam of the Transcend 14, while boasting 1080p resolution, falls short on sharpness and vibrancy, even in well-lit environments. Regarding the microphone, it’s functional enough for clear communication, though not remarkable. Biometric features like the IR camera for Windows Hello login perform reliably across diverse lighting scenarios. The laptop offers decent audio quality along with spacious sound with high-end detail and low-end bass, but it can become shrill and lose clarity at higher volumes.
Performance
We got our hands on the Omen Transcend 16/22 Core Ultra 7 155H, equipped with 16GB DDR5 RAM, a 1TB SSD, and an RTX 4060 laptop GPU. Despite opting for a slightly lower spec than its counterparts, it’s a sensible choice given the laptop’s slim profile and cooling capabilities, minimising throttling issues. In productivity and creative tasks, it competes closely with models like the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED and Acer Swift Go 14, slightly lagging in some benchmarks but excelling in others.
While gaming, it offers playable frame rates in AAA titles, albeit not at maximum settings or resolutions. For instance, in Returnal, it achieves 72fps at 1080p Epic settings but drops to 40fps at QHD and lower at higher resolutions. Despite its power, the Transcend 14 remains surprisingly quiet, with its fans emitting a mere whisper even under heavy load. Whether for work or play, it’s a versatile and efficient option, seamlessly balancing performance with portability.
Verdict
The HP Omen Transcend 14 is a fantastic gaming laptop that is also suitable for non-gamers. It boasts impressive gaming performance and features a stunning OLED display. The laptop is lightweight and portable, making it perfect for people who want a powerful yet easily transportable machine, but gamers who want maximum performance should look elsewhere.
