According to the latest update, the HP Omnibook Ultra 14 is a luxurious portable laptop that provides solid portability alongside surprisingly excellent performance.
In a fresh development, this value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined.
According to the latest update, apple M-series chips are shockingly efficient, which tends to give MacBooks an edge in portability and performance in thin, light laptops. For a time, it seemed as though the Windows global stage was going to have to admit defeat at the hands of Apple’s almighty silicon.
Industry observers note that it’s portable, yet fast—and it looks great, too. However, fresh Windows laptops with Intel Core Ultra Series 3 chips are starting to claw back territory, and the HP OmniBook Ultra 14 represents the best the Windows global stage has to offer in this form factor.
According to the latest update, this includes Intel’s top-shelf Core Ultra X9 388H Series 3 processor, which includes Intel Arc B390 graphics. The laptop also had 64GB of speedy LPDDR5x-9600 memory and a 2TB solid state drive. As you might know, RAM and storage are expensive right now, so these additions drive the price up to $3,049.99. HP sent me an OmniBook Ultra 14 with serious devices inside.
According to the latest update, entry-level models with an Intel Core Ultra 7 356H start at $1,699.99, and a model with Core Ultra X9 388H, but just 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, is available at Best Buy for $2,199.99. While the model I reviewed rang up at $3,049.99, that’s largely due to the amount of RAM and storage it provides.
Industry observers note that the HP OmniBook Ultra 14 is a great laptop and an obvious go-to if you want a portable laptop that also delivers serious performance.
As part of the ongoing story, the laptop has a three-piece metal construction with forged stamped panels that give the laptop’s metal body a complicated and pleasing shape, particularly on the bottom panel. As the “Ultra” in the HP OmniBook Ultra 14’s name implies, this is a premium laptop that sits high in HP’s product stack, and the design conveys this well.
According to the latest update, the overall build quality is excellent with minimal flex across all surfaces. I particularly like the hinge, which is precisely tuned. The laptop is easy to open with one hand, or even one finger, yet the lid doesn’t hang open when the laptop is stored in a bag. Though the laptop is mostly metal, it includes rubber feet to keep it stable on slick surfaces and provide extra grip when you pick the laptop up.
As part of the ongoing story, it’s nice to have some choice, and all of the colorways look great. However, the colorways are tied to specific devices configurations. The Intel variant I reviewed can be purchased in Eclipse Gray and Silk Sand, while the Qualcomm model is only available in Stone Blue. So if you want Intel, but also like blue, you’re out of luck. HP offers the laptop in three colorways: Eclipse Gray, Stone Blue, and Silk Sand (which I received).
In a fresh development, this figure doesn’t measure the laptop’s full thickness but instead omits the feet. Placed on a desk, with the lid closed, the laptop’s profile is less impressive at about 0.65 inches (or roughly 16.5 millimeters). That’s thin, but not remarkably so, and I don’t think the laptop feels unusually thin when held. It’s indisputably light, though, at 2.82 pounds. The OmniBook Ultra 14’s specifications say the laptop is about 0.42 inches (or 10.7 millimeters) thick, though HP’s measurements are creative.
In a fresh development, it has a spacious layout with large keys and ample palm rests. Better still, the keys provide a lot of key travel and are well tuned. They have a springy and precise feel with a firm, definitive bottoming action. It’s definitely among the better laptop keyboards I’ve used in 2026. HP really nails the keyboard on the HP OmniBook Ultra 14.
Industry observers note that it offers just two brightness settings, and the highest setting isn’t that bright, which means you can’t see the keys lit up if you’re in a bright room. Some might argue that doesn’t matter but I think a keyboard backlight is both a functional and ornamental capability. To make matters worse, the backlight’s LEDs look splotchy and uneven. Unfortunately, the keyboard backlight is rather bad.
The report highlights that it offers a large, responsive surface that measures about 5.5 inches wide and 3.5 inches deep. The touchpad also benefits from a smooth, luxurious surface that provides the right amount of friction, as well as subtle haptic feedback. The haptic touchpad returns the HP OmniBook Ultra 14 to leadership.
In a fresh development, the sole exception is an entry-level Snapdragon model with a 1920×1200 OLED touchscreen. Most HP OmniBook Ultra 14 configurations, including the one I reviewed, ship with a 14-inch 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen.
As part of the ongoing story, it supports HDR, has an SDR brightness up to 500 nits, and provides a vivid color gamut with great color accuracy. The display boasts VESA Display HDR True Black 600 and Calman Verified certifications. Also, like virtually all OLED displays, it has outstanding contrast and deep, inky black levels. It’s even a high-refresh display with a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz. The 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen is a real treat.
In a fresh development, reflections can be an issue in bright rooms even at high levels of display brightness. However, most laptop OLED displays share this downside, so it doesn’t put the HP at a disadvantage against its competitors. I have just one nitpick: the display is very glossy.
The report highlights that i was pleasantly surprised, then, when the HP OmniBook Ultra 14 delivered punchy audio with a high maximum volume and clear presentation. There is a hint of oomph to bass, yet the high and mid-range aren’t overwhelmed. HP’s marketing doesn’t say that much about audio performance, which is usually a bad sign.
As part of the ongoing story, it looks sharp and captures good color, though the default field of view is too wide for my tastes. The laptop also provides an IR camera for use with Windows Hello facial recognition log-in, which is easy to set up and responsive. A physical privacy shutter rounds out the camera functions. HP ships the OmniBook Ultra 14 with a solid 5MP webcam that can provide resolutions up to 1440p at 30 frames per second.
The report highlights that audio capture is clear and loud but sounds hollow and thin, at least when compared to most stand-alone microphones. Still, the audio quality is fine for most video conferencing. A dual-microphone array is provided, too, and it’s fairly typical.
According to the latest update, the HP OmniBook Ultra 14 is all in on modern connectivity, for better and for worse.
Industry observers note that there are a few competitors, like high-end Dell XPS 14 configurations, which can match the HP OmniBook Ultra 14. However, most Windows laptops have just one or two Thunderbolt ports, if they have any at all. It has three Thunderbolt 4 ports, all of which support Power Delivery, DisplayPort, and up to 40Gbps of data.
Industry observers note that the OmniBook Ultra 14 doesn’t have USB-A, Ethernet, or an SD card reader. Most people will need a Thunderbolt or USB-C dock, or at least a few adapters, to connect all of their peripherals. The trio of Thunderbolt 4 ports are joined by just one other port—a 3.5mm audio jack.
As part of the ongoing story, many people have converted entirely to USB-C and Thunderbolt, in which case the OmniBook Ultra 14’s connectivity will be a perk. But if you still use some older devices, or need an SD card reader, this might not cut the mustard. Whether this is an advantage or disadvantage depends entirely on the devices you use.
Industry observers note that it supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.0. I would expect this, given the laptop’s price, but it’s good to see HP didn’t cut these corners. The laptop’s wireless connectivity is also modern.
Industry observers note that this is the best of Intel’s Core Ultra Series 3 line-up with 16 cores (four performance, eight efficient, and four low-power efficient cores) and a maximum Turbo frequency of 5.1 GHz. It also has Intel’s Arc B390 integrated graphics with 12 Xe cores and a maximum graphics frequency of 2.5 GHz. The HP OmniBook Ultra 14 I reviewed was configured with Intel’s Core Ultra X9 388H Series 3.
Industry observers note that as the graph shows, the OmniBook Ultra 14 is well equipped to deliver in this benchmark, as it has speedy devices across the range (for a thin-and-light 14-inch laptop, at least). While the fast CPU offers obvious grunt, I’d say the RAM configuration also lends some assistance here. The OmniBook Ultra 14 has a lot, and the RAM is speedy LPDDR5X-9600. PCMark 10 is a holistic benchmark that depends on CPU, GPU, memory, and storage performance.
In a fresh development, that is good news for the HP OmniBook Ultra 14 and Intel Core Ultra X9 388H Series 3, as the CPU has 16 cores in total, made up of three different core types. The OmniBook Ultra 14 ends up ahead of all the tested alternatives in this benchmark. Cinebench is a long-running industry standard benchmark that is heavily multi-threaded and tends to make good use of all cores.
According to the latest update, though it’s a multi-core benchmark, it tends to be less efficient in how it uses cores than Cinebench. However, that isn’t a problem for the Core Ultra X9 388H, which powers the OmniBook Ultra 14 to another leading result. This appears to show the strength of Intel’s performance cores. Handbrake 0.9.9 is an older version of the benchmark.
In a fresh development, hP’s OmniBook Ultra 14 relies on Intel integrated graphics—the Arc B390, to be specific. Now we move on to 3D performance.
In a fresh development, not today. As the graph shows, the OmniBook Ultra 14 with Arc B390 delivers stunning performance for integrated graphics. It outpaces other systems with integrated graphics and even comes close to the GeForce RTX 5060—though Arc B390 is still 15 percent to 25 percent slower, which is a meaningful difference. A few years ago that would’ve been bad news.
In a fresh development, the Core Ultra X9 388H clearly has the goods, both in CPU and GPU tests, and the OmniBook Ultra 14 provides enough power and cooling to allow the chip to strut its stuff. Ultimately, performance is a victory for the HP OmniBook Ultra 14.
Industry observers note that it’s audible, to be sure, and may still be annoying if you’re sensitive to fan noise. But it’s quieter than a typical thin-and-light with Nvidia GeForce RTX 5050 or RTX 5060 graphics. On that note, I’ll add that despite its performance the OmniBook Ultra 14’s cooling system isn’t particularly loud.
In a fresh development, that is a typical size for a battery in a 14-inch laptop, and it leads to typical, though perhaps slightly above average, battery life results. The HP OmniBook Ultra 14 ships with a 70-watt-hour battery.
Industry observers note that as the graph shows, there are some laptops that can endure longer, such as the MSI Prestige Flip 14 AI+. However, the OmniBook Ultra 14 still provides quite a bit of endurance, and it lasted longer than some key alternatives, such as the Dell XPS 14. I saw over 18 hours of battery life in the standard battery test, which loops a 4K file of the short film Tears of Steel.
As part of the ongoing story, it’s about an inch wide and tall and two inches deep—nearly half the size of the already small adapters that ship with most Asus, Dell, and Lenovo laptops. As an added bonus, HP ships the OmniBook Ultra 14 with a tiny 65-watt GaN power adapter.
In a fresh development, relative to its competitors, such as the Dell XPS 14, Prestige Flip 14 AI+, and the Acer Swift X 14 AI, the OmniBook Ultra takes a clear lead (though I will note the Dell XPS 14 is also now available with the Core Ultra X9 388H, which may upgrade its performance to compete with the OmniBook Ultra). The HP OmniBook Ultra 14 is a great laptop and an obvious go-to if you want a portable laptop that also delivers serious performance.
According to the latest update, remember, this machine has 64GB of RAM and 2TB of solid state storage. A glance at Newegg or Best Buy will quickly reveal that an MSRP of $3,049.99 is towards the low end of what laptops with this much RAM and storage sell for today. I also think the OmniBook Ultra 14 is competitively priced given the devices on offer.
Industry observers note that what more could you want? In short, the OmniBook Ultra 14 is luxurious, performs well, and delivers good value for money.
According to the latest update, smith is a freelance technology journalist with 15 years of experience reviewing consumer electronics. In addition to PCWorld, his work can be found on Wired, Ars Technica, Digital Trends, Reviewed, IGN, and Lifewire. Matthew also covers AI and the metaverse for IEEE Spectrum and runs Computer Tech industry Yesterday, a YouTube channel devoted to PC tech industry history. Matthew S.