HP Omen 25i Review

Finding a 24-inch Full HD gaming monitor that manages to stand out from the competition is not easy. The choice is often difficult in this category as the references are numerous and display similar characteristics. At first glance, the Omen 25i already has a few assets to beat the pack! Enough to climb the peaks?

Finding a 24-inch Full HD gaming monitor that manages to stand out from the competition is not easy. The choice is often difficult in this category as the references are numerous and display similar characteristics. At first glance, the Omen 25i already has a few assets to beat the pack! Enough to climb the peaks?

Related Article: Asus Vg278H Review

Related Article: Asus Vg248Qe Review

Price And Availability

The arrival of the HP Omen 25i on the French market is imminent, it will be available from July 15.

HP has set its price at 289 euros, a price at which we now find some references whose refresh rate peaks at 240 Hz, but with which we cannot take advantage of HDR.

HP Omen 25i: The Technical Sheet

The Omen 25i is:

• Type of from: IPS
• Screen format, size and definition: 16:9 / 24.5″ (62 cm) / Full HD (1,920 × 1,080 pixels)
• Refresh rate: 165 Hz
• Technologie de synchronisation : AMD FreeSync Premium Pro / G-Sync compatible / Adaptive Sync
• HDR processing: yes, HDR10 (VESA Display HDR400)
• Connections: 1 x DisplayPort 1.4 / 1 x HDMI 2.0 / 2 x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 / 1 x USB-B / 1 x headphone jack
• Power supply: external block

As its technical data sheet shows, this monitor is much more attractive than its predecessor, the Omen 25, launched in 2020. The refresh rate goes from 144 to 165 Hz, but above all, we benefit from an IPS panel with increased potential compared to the TN panel which fitted the latter. Besides that, the screen is VESA Display HDR400 certified and HP announces a colorimetric coverage of the DCI-P3 space of 90%. Like the vast majority of gaming monitors on the market, HP mentions a response time of 1 ms for its 25i.

Related Article: Aoc C27G2Zu Review

Design And Ergonomics

Our first observation, once the Omen 25i was installed on our desk, was that in terms of ergonomics this screen is no better than the others, and even shows more limitations compared to certain models.

It’s simple, the only possible adjustments concern the inclination of the screen, at an angle ranging from – 5° to + 25°. The monitor cannot swivel, and there is no possible height adjustment. There is therefore a chance that the Omen 25i will ask you for a few concessions depending on your office configuration and your habits. In my case, the lack of height adjustment is impacting because the screen is positioned lower than my usual monitor, which ultimately forces me to tilt it slightly to find the correct viewing angle. Fortunately, the VESA mounting will allow those who have compatible support to greatly improve this position.

HP finally continues to emphasize minimalism with this new screen, a choice that is paid for on ergonomics. Apart from that, the aesthetics of the 25i are clearly recognizable, the support takes the shape of the rear frame where the connectors are located, and it must be recognized that this monitor does not occupy much space on the desk.

With the exception of its lower part, the screen has three relatively thin borders that leave all the room for the image. No eccentricity is to be noted here, and therefore no RGB lighting. The controls are placed on the back of the monitor, on the right, with a power button and a joystick that allows navigation within the OSD. The power LED is very discreet, again at the bottom right of the screen.

To finish on the appearance of this Omen 25i, note that the overall level of finishes is good, the plastics seem robust and we only perceive slight creaks when handling the monitor. The skeleton of the support is made of metal and weighs its weight, thus ensuring ideal maintenance of the screen despite its contained dimensions.

Related Article: Huawei Mateview Gt Reviews

Connectors

Easily accessible, the connectors are located on two sides of the rear projection of the monitor, which takes the shape of the Omen logo. Note that this is one of the few monitors tested by us this year, with the LG 27GN750-B, which allowed us to connect and disconnect cables without any hassle.

There is an HDMI 2.0 port and a DisplayPort 1.4, accompanied by a 3.5 mm mini-jack, two USB-A 3.2, and a USB-B port that can power the other two ports. The power supply is not integrated into the frame of the monitor, you have to make do with an external block that comes lying under the desk. Its dimensions are however thin enough for it to be forgotten.

Related Article: Huawei Mateview Review

Software Ergonomics Aand Settings

Like any respectfully dedicated gaming monitor, the Omen 25i packs quite a bit of functionality into its OSD. Everything is accessible via a joystick on which we have no complaints since it handles perfectly.

We then take advantage of a good number of customization and configuration options, first with the Games menu, under which we can notably activate and deactivate Adaptive-Sync, display an fps counter, apply an overdrive in view to reduce the response time, set timers, or even access the Dynamic Crosshair, which allows us to customize the reticle with a total of 248 possible combinations.

Note that the display of a crosshair is not something that I particularly need to play, but its customization may appeal to players who are used to using it. In addition to its personalization, the advantage here is to take advantage of a reticle that adapts to the image broadcast on the screen, changing color automatically to always remain clearly visible.

The MPRT option uses motion blur reduction technology, thanks to a strobe backlight that can be set on five levels. Enabling it can help in some cases, but there are two major constraints, namely that VRR technologies are not available when this option is enabled, and that the brightness of the panel decreases more or less sharply depending on the level chosen.

Finally, note that the Omen 25i has eight different image modes that can be adjusted by playing on the RGB colors. We also appreciate finding the PIP / PBP functionalities, which is not always the case on gaming screens, and various small dispensable settings, of course, but which lengthen the list of customization possibilities a little more. It is for example possible to configure a sleep mode or a power-off timer, to deactivate the power LED, modify the position, the transparency, the display timeout of the OSD, or to modify the shortcuts of the joystick.

Related Article: Lenovo Lt2452P Review

Omen Gaming Hub: Both Useful And Unwanted

The screen is accompanied by the in-house software dedicated to the brand’s peripherals: the Omen Gaming Hub. However, we hadn’t asked for anything before it installed itself, like a grown-up, on our machine. And why not scan our game library automatically, again without our permission? That’s what he does too!

The Omen Gaming Hub is thus somewhat invasive, not to mention that it displays advertisements, for brand products of course, but also for partner products such as ranges of drinks and other ” food supplements for players ” Rogue Energy, brief.

Is this software necessary for the proper functioning of the screen? No. If so, does it bring him anything useful? Actually yes, because it allows you to modify a large number of parameters without going through the OSD.

Note, however, that it does not provide any supplement, except for downloadable wallpapers. The Omen Gaming Hub, therefore, gives us the possibility to change the image mode, to play with the brightness and contrast settings, to activate the Adaptive-Sync, or even the timer or the fps counter. Customizing the reticle is also a bit more intuitive via software. Of course, all of this won’t work if you disable DCC/CI support in the OSD.

Related Article: Asus Rog Strix Xg43Uq Review

Image Quality

Here we are, in this phase of the test where the Omen 25i is supposed to show that it makes the difference! And it is clear, in use and thanks to our various measurements, that the monitor offers excellent things here.

First of all, it has several modes, which allow switching between sRGB and WCG color spaces, which is not always the case as we noticed with the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD.

Here we are, in this phase of the test where the Omen 25i is supposed to show that it makes the difference! And it is clear, in use and thanks to our various measurements, that the monitor offers excellent things here.

First of all, it has several modes, which allow switching between sRGB and WCG color spaces, which is not always the case as we noticed with the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD

The Standard and Game modes show roughly similar results, with a slightly too warm color temperature (6,216 K and 6,127 K) and some dropouts on the gamma curve.

On the other hand, and as we can see on the comparative images above, the “Native” image mode is calibrated to perfection for the DCI-P3 space. The average color temperature is ideal, with 6,578 K and an RGB curve suffering almost no complaints, with very good stability. The gamma curve is noticeably less exemplary but corrects the imperfections found in the other modes.

Fidelity is at the rendezvous under the sRGB space as DCI-P3. In the first case, we note an average Delta E of only 1.54, without major drift, while in the second the average Delta E drops to a value of 1.27. However, we note a slight drift on the color red, with a Delta E max of 4.44. Nothing alarming, but a calibration using a probe is not to be excluded.

Unsurprisingly, sRGB coverage is 100% under Native and Game modes but drops to 96.3% in Standard mode. HP’s promise is still respected with the DCI-P3 space, which is displayed at 90.9% in Native mode, a value slightly higher than that announced.

The uniformity of the panel is not bad, but there are noticeable drifts at the four corners of the screen. Our test copy, however, does not suffer from any IPS Glow and does not show any light leakage.

Related Article: Msi Optix Mag274Qrf Qd Review

HDR: promises kept?

Picture mode and all related settings are automatically locked when the Omen 25i detects an HDR10 signal.

We do not find the excellent calibration that we see in SDR with the Native mode, here we have to be satisfied with an HDR calibration which turns out to be correct but not without some drifts and inaccuracies with an average Delta E of 3.75 and a maximum value that rises to 6.15 on the Cyan color.

The EOTF signal is quite consistent with the reference curve, the bright peak in HDR rises to 451 cd/m², proof that activating HDR brings added value to this monitor whose bright peak peaks at 334 cd/m² in SDR. The difference is also made at the level of the dynamic contrast which shows good potential, despite an Edge-type backlight. The contrast ratio is displayed with a value of 5175:1.

To sum up, we are not dealing with a stunning HDR mode, but it does allow some notable differences when activated, which is a good thing considering the price asked for this monitor.

Performances

Detected as being G-Sync compatible and supporting FreeSync Premium Pro, the Omen 25i displays fluid images in all circumstances with its refresh rate of 165 Hz. The difference between a 144 Hz screen and this one is clearly imperceptible to the eye, but it is certain that competitive players will prefer a panel capable of displaying 240 fps even if it means doing without HDR and the potential of this monitor in terms of calorimetry.

In terms of response time and input lag, we see that this screen does not usurp its gaming name and shows good overall performance. Evaluated using Lagom’s test, pixel transitions are only noticeable on the darkest grayscales, indicating good responsiveness even without applying overdrive.

In this regard, it should be noted that overdrive does not seem to us to bring much to this monitor: we have not noticed any significant difference between the default setting and the fastest option. Good news finally, since it spares us the phenomenon of reverse ghosting.

Finally, if we sometimes noticed slight ghosting on the fastest movements, we did not feel the need to use the MPRT option.
The monitor’s input lag is average, the measured latency is only 9 ms with this Omen 25i, again an average value compared to other screens that we have been able to test recently.

In terms of response time and input lag, we see that this screen does not usurp its gaming name and shows good overall performance. Evaluated using Lagom’s test, pixel transitions are only noticeable on the darkest grayscales, indicating good responsiveness even without applying overdrive.

In this regard, it should be noted that overdrive does not seem to us to bring much to this monitor: we have not noticed any significant difference between the default setting and the fastest option. Good news finally, since it spares us the phenomenon of reverse ghosting.

Finally, if we sometimes noticed slight ghosting on the fastest movements, we did not feel the need to use the MPRT option.
The monitor’s input lag is average, the measured latency is only 9 ms with this Omen 25i, again an average value compared to other screens that we have been able to test recently.

Finally, note that the Game Remaster Mode is only dedicated to games that run in a definition lower than Full HD. Its activation is therefore useless in most cases, except for retro games. This mode also degrades the image if you use it under normal conditions, under Windows: the text loses sharpness, just like the image. We finally ran several recent games to see the differences in runtime between lower definition (1280 x 720, 1024 x 768, and even 640 x 480 pixels) and FHD.

In the first two cases, there is indeed an improvement in the image, colors which are more vivid at first, but above all a smoother rendering with better contours. Obviously, this is not scaling, but a simple filter, so we notice the differences when we return to FHD and Games mode. In the last case (640 x 480 pixels), the improvements made to the image are much less discernible and the differences minimal, with or without Game Remaster mode, but sufficient to give a little facelift to the image.

Power consumption

The Omen 25i consumes 14.2 W according to our test, which consists of broadcasting a white target adjusted to 150 cd/m² over a 10% window. The result is a relative consumption of 86 W/m², a value that remains average for a gaming monitor of this type.

Related Article: Philips Brilliance 241P4 Review

HP Omen 25i: The Opinion Of Acotizer

The Omen 25i manages to stand out in a price range where the references are numerous. It does this not only thanks to new features, which weren’t necessarily expected, such as Game Remaster mode and Dynamic Crosshair, and stands out above all for good colorimetric coverage, which turns out to be one of the calibrations of the most faithful factory we have tested in recent times. The HDR mode also brings a little something extra, even if we are still very far from a faultless rendering.

However, all of this is not without concessions. You actually have to settle for far too limited ergonomics, software with invasive behavior, and count on performance slightly lower than that of other monitors marketed at a similar price or only a few tens of euros more.