The 15.6-inch primary display on the Omen X 2S features IPS technology for excellent viewing angles, Nvidia G-Sync for tear-free gaming and a 144Hz refresh rate for smooth, high-fps gaming. In other words, it’s a pretty feature-packed screen.It’s also fairly bright. We measured it at 306 nits, which is a bit above the category average as well as most of the competition. Only the Alienware m15 and its OLED screen scored better.
As for the color gamut, HP’s display managed 107% of sRGB, which is lower than the competition, as well as the category average (146%). But overall, the screen looks good and performs well, whether you’re watching Netflix or three hours into a dungeon crawl.
Both the keyboard and the touchpad on the Omen X 2S take a big backseat in terms of layout and execution to the presence of the second screen that sits above them. The reduced physical space means the touchpad is small and smushed to one side. And the keyboard has no wrist area, with the keys running right up to the front edge. HP does include a big rubber wrist rest in the box, but it’s heavy, gets dirty very easily, and has no way of attaching to the laptop.
The keyboard also has layout issues: The arrow keys sit right next to the touchpad’s mouse buttons, which are similarly sized in terms of height, so that it’s far too easy to trigger a mouse click when what you wanted to do was press the right arrow key, and often vice versa. You also lose dedicated Page Up/Down buttons, and the Insert and Delete keys live up above the Backspace button.
The keys are brightly RGB-backlit, and key travel doesn’t feel as shallow as some competitors (like Razer). But if you’re looking for mechanical switches, you won’t find them here. And if you plan on using your laptop to do a fair amount of work when you aren’t gaming, you’re probably going to want to plug in an external keyboard.
The same goes for a dedicated mouse. Gamers of course will want to use a mouse, but given the odd placement of the touchpad, and it’s small, square dimensions, I found myself missing my mouse even when doing basic things like navigating Windows.
Out of the box, the Omen X 2S’ speakers were a disappointment. Volume at max wasn’t as loud as I’m used to with premium gaming laptops, and there was little in the way of low end. Software is included to adjust the EQ, which may help a bit. But if you’re expecting to feel the thud of explosions around you or to fill the room with your favorite thumping tunes, you’ll either need to invest in a set of external speakers or opt for another laptop.
So what about the 6-inch 1080p touchscreen that’s the Omen X 2S’s primary differentiating feature? On the positive side, it’s pretty versatile, as Windows sees it as a second display, so you can put literally whatever you want down there. My personal default for RTS and other titles like They Are Billions is to drop the minimap down onto the second screen so it’s easier to see slow-moving zombies as they attempt to drag themselves into my developing settlement.
Chat apps are also a no-brainer if you’re a streamer or social gamer. Although it won’t be easy to respond via text while gaming, it’s a decent way to keep up on the in-game chatter and respond via voice if that’s how you roll.I also found looking down at the screen less of an issue than I thought I would. Thanks to good viewing angles, the image always looked crisp and clear, and so long as I was sitting up with my body just behind the keyboard, most text and on-screen items were easy to see, despite the six-inch size of the screen. That said, I’d still prefer a second, large screen off to one side.
HP’s Command Center software does an OK job of controlling what you put on the second screen as well, making selecting and mirroring a specific part of your primary screen about as intuitive as using the Windows Snipping Tool.But I couldn’t shake the feeling that, in most cases, chats and other use cases for the second screen are better handled by using a smartphone or, if you’re somewhere at a desk, a dedicated second monitor. Because text isn’t always easy to read on a six-inch display, and mirroring the minimap doesn’t really make it that much bigger than it is on the main screen.