HP Omen X 65 Emperium Monitor Review: 65 Inches of Gaming Greatness

Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

Conclusion

We’ve seen many reader comments extolling the virtues of gaming on a TV versus a dedicated computer monitor--and our own managing editor uses a 49-inch HDR TV as his primary gaming and productivity screen at home. Obviously, flat panel TVs have a tremendous advantage when it comes to dollars per square inch. With 65-inch UHD displays selling for $1,500, they make for a compelling option. But once you’ve been bitten by the adaptive refresh bug, it’s almost impossible to go back to 60Hz.

During our time with the HP Omen X 65 Emperium, we enjoyed the best gameplay we’ve experienced to date. We watched UHD Blu-rays that looked fantastic and spent hours exploring the impressive Nvidia Shield interface’s games, movies and TV. All of these things were delivered looking amazing and sounding even better, thanks to the best built-in sound in the business.

This truly is a display that can do everything. High-end gaming? Check. Premium TV? Check. Lots of streaming choices built-in? Check. Audiophile sound quality? Check. You could even use this panel as a reference display in a video post-production studio. Or well-heeled photographers might employ it as the ultimate Photoshop palette. We can’t think of anything display-related that this monitor cannot do.

I assure you our impressions aren’t overstated. There is simply nothing else like this screen available in early 2019. There is no question that gaming on the Omen X 65 Emperium is the equal of the finest gaming monitors I’ve experienced and every bit as enjoyable as playing on the Asus ROG Swift PG27U and Acer Predator X27. While HP's BFGD sells for a very premium price, it delivers everything promised and then some. It defines state-of-the-art defining gaming and display technology. 

The only real question we're left with is if and when Asus and Acer will offer up their competing big-format displays and how they'll stack up in terms of price and performance. But at least for now, if you're after the best and biggest gaming screen on the planet, the HP Omen X 65 Emperium is unquestionably it.

Want to comment on this story? Let us know what you think in the Tom's Hardware Forums.

MORE: Best Gaming Monitors

MORE: How We Test Monitors

MORE: All Monitor Content

Christian Eberle
Contributing Editor

Christian Eberle is a Contributing Editor for Tom's Hardware US. He's a veteran reviewer of A/V equipment, specializing in monitors. Christian began his obsession with tech when he built his first PC in 1991, a 286 running DOS 3.0 at a blazing 12MHz. In 2006, he undertook training from the Imaging Science Foundation in video calibration and testing and thus started a passion for precise imaging that persists to this day. He is also a professional musician with a degree from the New England Conservatory as a classical bassoonist which he used to good effect as a performer with the West Point Army Band from 1987 to 2013. He enjoys watching movies and listening to high-end audio in his custom-built home theater and can be seen riding trails near his home on a race-ready ICE VTX recumbent trike. Christian enjoys the endless summer in Florida where he lives with his wife and Chihuahua and plays with orchestras around the state.