And while Origin didn’t necessarily bring anything new to the table this year, the company continues to stand out from the pack by offering a ton of customizable configuration options, ranging from components to crazy paint jobs. Reviews (33/40) Both machines we tested from Origin PC were winners, each earning 4-star reviews and our coveted Editors’ Choice award. Both the Eon15-S and the Eon17-X wowed us with strong performance and lots of customization options. The only noticeable con (besides high price) was that the 15-inch machine has muted audio (although the 17-inch option offered loud, booming sound). Design (15/20) The king of PC customization isn’t afraid to deliver a stunning look or two. Origin PC’s Eon17-X was a vision in crimson with stylish gray aluminum accents and is a welcome departure from the whole black with red accents color scheme. We just wish the company would let consumers take things one step closer and customize the color of the keyboard deck. Origin PC also joined the thin-and-light arena with the Eon15-S. And while it’s not the thinnest or the lightest in the land, it’s still pretty sleek with its black plastic lid with strategically-placed lines that taper down to its sports-car like vents at the rear. Display (11/15) Despite only having two entries, Origin made a solid effort with its displays. The highlight is the Eon17-X: Its 17.3-inch, 2560 x 1440 G-Sync panel is dazzling, covering 104 percent of the sRGB gamut and pumping out 325 nits of brightness. Origin’s 15-inch laptop, the Eon15-S, was a little dimmer but retained sharp and colorful imagery. Its 1920 x 1080 panel covers 118 percent of the sRGB gamut and averages 276 nits of brightness. Innovation (5/10) While this is nothing new for Origin PC, the boutique computer maker deserves a shout-out for continuing to offer some of the most customizable notebooks out there, with tons of options for different paint jobs and hardware configurations. We also appreciate that Origin’s laptops are among the few gaming machines we’ve tested that offer fingerprint readers. But beyond those perks, Origin’s laptops stand out more with their sheer power than they do with their exclusive features. Software (6/10) Even when you pay a premium for Origin’s laptops, you might not notice the premium quality in the included software. The $1,878 Origin PC Eon17-X includes Nvidia’s G-Sync technology, which can keep the machine’s screen tuned to gameplay, eliminating lag and tearing. But beyond that, things feel rote. The Eon17-X also includes the GameFeet app (also found in the $999 Origin PC Eon15-S) for keyboard customization, such as macros, but limits you to three zones of keyboard lighting. That’s well-short of the individual key lighting in MSI’s SteelSeries Engine and Razer’s Synapse software. Origin also throws in Nvidia GeForce Experience (though that’s also free to download online) and a utility kit of gaming tools, with battery-boosting and gameplay-optimizing features. Configurations and Warranty (2/5) Although we’d like to see a small-and-light 13-inch option from Origin, the company’s 15-inch Eon15-S and 17-inch Eon17-X can be outfitted with a variety of display options, graphics cards, processors, storage solutions and exterior designs. Whether you’re looking for a less-expensive GTX 1050-powered machine built to run the latest games at modest frame rates, or an all-out GTX 1080 powerhouse fitted with a full-scale desktop CPU, Origin lets gamers choose their own destiny when it comes to building their rig. MORE: The Best Gaming Laptops However, Origin’s warranty could use a little work. Not in terms of length — the company backs its laptops with the typical year-long commitment — but rather, in the way it deals with shipping. If you need to send your machine in for service, Origin will only pay to ship it back and forth for the first 45 days after purchase. That’s not a terribly long amount of time at all, and the fact that the company allows you to purchase free shipping for the rest of the year for $69 only adds insult to injury. At least Origin’s warranty doesn’t prevent users from swapping RAM and storage at their leisure.
Scorecard & WinnersAcerAlienwareAorus / GigabyteAsusDellHPLenovoMSIOriginRazer
