Gaming laptop recommendation HP Omen 17-cm2012TX

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esawers

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#306970 8-Sep-2023 16:29

My nephew has some money burning a hole in his pocket from his supermarket job, and can’t be talked out of buying a gaming laptop.

Any pros and cons of this one? Is there a better deal out there (preferably cheaper)
https://www.hp.com/nz-en/shop/omen-by-hp-laptop-17-cm2012tx-8l254pa.html

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#3125049 8-Sep-2023 16:42

If you use PBTech's filtering features there are several models with very similar specs (RTX 4060 laptop GPU, 13th gen i7, etc.) in the $2500-$3000 range. So the HP you linked to seems expensive for what it is.

Personally I would spend my money on a desktop, but then again I am old™.

cddt

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#3125051 8-Sep-2023 16:43

E.g. if he wants to spend $3500 then this model has almost identical specs but the next level up GPU (RTX 4070 instead of RTX 4060). https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NBKGBM88309/Gigabyte-Aorus-17-BSF-RTX-4070-Gaming-Laptop-173-Q

Qazzy03

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#3125061 8-Sep-2023 17:03

Careful of gaming laptops, the GPU's are often power limited in the bios and what you think you are buying is no where near what you expect to get.

Aka a PC review of a 4060 is not equal to a laptop 4060, since each laptop manafacture sets their own bios, it can be tough to work out what you are really getting in terms of performance.

Case and Point, the laptop here has a 4070 8gb of Vram with a 140watt limit, desktop has 12gb of vram and 200watt limit.

https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NBKGBM88309/Gigabyte-Aorus-17-BSF-RTX-4070-Gaming-Laptop-173-Q

I couldn't see a review of HP Omen 17-cm2012TX and i couldnt even find the HP manual for the laptop to read up the power limit on the 4060....

which is a bit of a yikes for me when no reviews or even a manual.

.... i wouldn't pay $3.5k for a gaming laptop.

esawers

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#3125178 8-Sep-2023 23:16

Thanks all, open to other suggestions of gaming laptops cool enough for a teenager, have already mentioned desktops being a better option but it’s falling on deaf ears

eonsim

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#3125179 8-Sep-2023 23:33

Laptop GPUs are often a tier or to down from the desktop GPU with the same name. So a laptop 4090 will perform more like a desktop 4080 or 4070. As long as they are aware of that and what it means for performance then a gaming laptop is fine.

Handle9

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#3125183 9-Sep-2023 03:50

eonsim: Laptop GPUs are often a tier or to down from the desktop GPU with the same name.

But you get the benefit of being able to play Starfield for 27 minutes on battery….

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Batman

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#3125184 9-Sep-2023 05:41

If a teen wants to learn the hard way who am I to stop them.

Most gaming laptops are thermal limited, the CPU and gpu can't get cooled by the heatpipe resulting in one heating up the other (as the heatpipes connect both, you get this effect) and performance is capped.

But hey teens don't care. If my teens had their way they'd eat ice cream and drink soda five meals a day and never go to bed. In my house, the hand that controls the wifi router is the hand that rules the world.

For 3500 here are his options

https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NBKASU50322R/ASUS-Remanufactured-ROG-Zephyrus-G15-GA503RS-RTX-3

https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NBKGBM88309/Gigabyte-Aorus-17-BSF-RTX-4070-Gaming-Laptop-173-Q

https://www.dell.com/en-nz/shop/gaming-laptops-pcs-and-accessories/g16-gaming-laptop/spd/g-series-16-7630-laptop/gn76308tj60001omnz

https://www.dell.com/en-nz/shop/laptops/amd/spd/alienware-m16-r1-amd-laptop/anm16amd15grr001odnz

jonb

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#3125304 9-Sep-2023 13:22

That HP offer isn't very good, but appreciate he has that cash feeling like it needs to be spent. I would give a limit of $2000 and needs to find the best he can for less than that, is diminishing returns above that amount and can play anything you want, better putting $1500 towards the next one in a few years. Can't go wrong with a rtx 4050 card and a 1080p screen, get a 1TB external SSD if wants more game storage with the money saved.

Either of these two would be fine:

https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NBKLEN88439/Lenovo-LOQ-15IRH8-RTX-4050-Gaming-Laptop-156-FHD-1

https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NBKACN5155880/Acer-Nitro-5-AN515-58-72YA-RTX-4050-Gaming-Laptop

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#3125310 9-Sep-2023 14:11

jonb:

That HP offer isn't very good, but appreciate he has that cash feeling like it needs to be spent. I would give a limit of $2000 and needs to find the best he can for less than that, is diminishing returns above that amount and can play anything you want, better putting $1500 towards the next one in a few years. Can't go wrong with a rtx 4050 card and a 1080p screen,

agree. lower thermals and 1080p, assuming cooling is the same a well designed laptop, would give the best chance of steady performance.

desktop 13th gen intel is superior to 12th gen by some margin, i presume it's the same on laptop but one can never be too sure without looking at reviews.

SpartanVXL

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#3125416 9-Sep-2023 17:28

Yes anyone in this hobby quickly learns limitations of laptop form factor. At least in the teen years you’re meant to get roasted by your peers if you ever reveal you’re playing on something overpriced and tacky.

Not to mention these things generally only have 1 year warranty, so good luck if anything goes wrong.

esawers

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#3129449 19-Sep-2023 16:28

Update, he read all of the comments in this thread, acknowledged everyone’s responses but said his ‘friend at school knew about laptops’ so he bought the HP anyway
Expensive lesson everyone needs to learn I guess :)

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esawers

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#3372195 11-May-2025 14:38

So here we are 18 months later and he’s decided to sell said laptop

any idea what it would be worth secondhand?

heavenlywild

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#3372196 11-May-2025 14:48

I love how you've come back to update the story. It's great to hear back.

Another laptop to come or is he going with desktop?

Lias

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#3372253 11-May-2025 16:23

esawers:

So here we are 18 months later and he’s decided to sell said laptop

any idea what it would be worth secondhand?

Good rule of thumb is find the cheapest new one with equivalent or better specs and then 70% of the cost of that.

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esawers

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#3372255 11-May-2025 16:30

He is selling the laptop to buy a gaming pc..

Lias:

esawers:

So here we are 18 months later and he’s decided to sell said laptop

any idea what it would be worth secondhand?

Good rule of thumb is find the cheapest new one with equivalent or better specs and then 70% of the cost of that.

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