Each time CES rolls around, it's fair to say that big laptop makers like HP don't exactly hold back – this is the perfect opportunity to throw a whole heap of laptops out into the world. It can also be a little challenging to sift through for devices that haven't actually been mentioned before, which is exactly what I've been doing.
Diving into the depths of HP's long list of announcements has thrown up some rare treasure, though, in the form of the extremely enticing HP Omen Max 16, a new gaming laptop with a refreshingly simple name and some incredibly beefy specs. It's a continuation of the long-running Omen lineup, obviously, but has a new refined design that has me salivating – it looks like one of the best gaming laptops ever.
HP says that it's redesigned the internals of the Max 16 to allow it to draw on more power than ever before, in literal wattage, which is good since it'll be available with Nvidia's next-generation laptop graphics cards. Those are power-hungry but also should ensure that it can crank out ridiculous performance.
With up to 64GB of RAM available, too, you'll be able to pair that GPU with up to an AMD AI 9-series processor for more bleeding-fast potential. HP's also going to load it up with an "Unleashed" mode that you can activate to basically overclock the whole system slightly. That'll be accessed through the newly-redesigned Omen Gaming Hub, which promises to make it easier than it was previously to edit your system's output.
That redesign of the laptop's internals should also make for better thermal management thanks to a bigger vapour chamber, and a new fan-cleaning setting will let your fans power up in reverse to actively expel dust, which sounds handy.
What I'm really loving is the new metal design of the exterior, though, which is still chunky enough to make it clear that there's some sort of power under the hood, but again moves quite far from the typical gamer stylings of old. The lighter silver option, rather than the stealthy black, is the one that's caught my eye.
HP hasn't yet confirmed a launch date or indeed a base price for the Omen Max 16, though, and those are two pretty massive variables. Hopefully, it comes along sooner rather than later, and pleasantly surprises on the pricing front.
