ORIGIN EON 16SL: TWO-MINUTE REVIEW
The Origin EON 16SL is one of the few recent gaming laptops that combines solid gaming performance with a thin chassis to compete with the best thin and light gaming laptops currently available. In addition, the chassis can be customized with a variety of interesting artwork and hues, addressing the aesthetic issue I have with the majority of gaming PCs and accessories.
The chassis is lightweight but feels sturdy enough to withstand at least one impact without shattering. However, the 16-inch display is no joke, as its girth alone makes it challenging to squeeze into luggage, despite its reasonable weight and thickness. The display is a beautiful QHD+ IPS (2560 x 1600) screen with an astoundingly high refresh rate of 240Hz, so you should never experience any latency or dithering.
It is also equipped with an impressive array of connectors, including two USB Type-A ports, two USB Type-C ports (one of which is Thunderbolt 4), one HDMI 2.1 port, one 2-in-1 audio input, one SD Card Reader, and one Kensington Lock. However, the lack of an Ethernet interface is regrettable; however, with the advent of Wi-Fi, this is no longer a deal-breaker for gaming laptops. I also appreciate the number of USB ports, particularly on the Type-A side, which seems to become more scarce with each new laptop generation.
The webcam is of the standard quality typical of a 1080p camera on a gaming laptop, the type that requires excellent illumination to project a clear image of you during a conference call, but the image quality is still a bit fuzzy. The speakers are located at the bottom of the laptop, so their volume is somewhat diminished.
For such a thin and lightweight laptop, its performance is quite excellent. Its RTX 4070 GPU achieves conventional benchmark results, placing it between the 4060-equipped Lenovo Legion Pro 5i and the 4090-equipped Asus ROG Zephyrus M16. Night Raid was the only exception, where it received a lower score than the Legion Pro 5i. However, outside of benchmarks, it is capable of running some of the finest PC titles at the highest settings while still providing excellent performance.
Despite this minor glitch, its excellent performance in other metrics correlates well to some of the finest PC games, such as Cyberpunk 2077 and Dirt 5. Spider-Man's web-swinging is lag-free with no discernible delay, a feat made possible by the absurdly high refresh rate. Ventilation is also adequate, but on rare occasions, the laptop can become excessively heated during intense gaming sessions. This is without question one of the finest laptops I've reviewed in a long time.
ORIGIN EON 16SL: PRICE & AVAILABILITY
- How much does it cost? Starting at $1,949 / £1,763.64 (around AU$3,050)
- When is it available? Available now
- Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia
One of the most refreshing aspects of the Origin EON 16SL is its initial price of $1,949, £1,763.64, or AU$3,050, which is significantly lower than that of the majority of gaming laptops currently available. At the time of writing, the price for the review unit I received is $2,154 or £1,949.15 (approximately AU$3,370), although there is a discount of slightly more than $100. And if you maximize your RAM to 6GB, your storage to 8TB, and get Windows 11 Pro, you'll pay $3,093 or £2799.04 (approximately AU$4,500).
These prices imply you're going with the standard black chassis, but if you want to customize it with preset designs from Origin, you'll have to pay an additional $39.99. And using a custom design will cost an additional $100 for the first laptop and $39.99 per additional laptop.
The Lenovo Legion Pro 5i is a less expensive laptop with inferior specifications, whereas the Asus ROG Zephyrus M16 (2023) is prohibitively more expensive for virtually identical specifications (with the exception of the GPU and RAM). Additionally, Origin includes a free T-shirt and mousepad with your laptop purchase, which is quite generous.
The EON 16SL is currently available for shipment to the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, amongst other regions. However, the Origin storefront does not translate prices from USD to AUD, so you will need to have your merchant convert after purchase or convert yourself for a ballpark estimate. In any case, for your convenience, I've converted the estimated prices listed above.
ORIGIN EON 16SL: SPECS
I received a review unit of the Origin EON 16SL with the following specifications: 16-inch 240Hz QHD+ IPS (2560 x 1600) display, Intel Core i9-13900H processor, Nvidia GeForce 4070 Laptop GPU, 32GB RAM, and 2TB of storage.
The lowest configuration includes 32GB of RAM and 2TB of storage, with all other specifications remaining unchanged. The highest configuration has 64GB of RAM and 8TB of storage, with the remaining specifications remaining unchanged.
Other than RAM, storage, and Windows 11 Home or Pro, the CPU, GPU, and display cannot be modified in any configuration. However, distinctive designs can be applied to any configuration.
ORIGIN EON 16SL: DESIGN
- Excellent display and refresh rate
- Amazing customization options
- Thin and light for a 16-inch gaming laptop
At first impression, the Origin EON 16SL stands out for how svelte and slender it is for such a powerful gaming laptop. Even though it has a 16-inch screen, it fits quite well in medium-sized bags due to its light weight and small footprint, which surprised me when I stuffed it into my already-stuffed laptop knapsack.
Though it initially comes in standard black, you can customize the top plate on the Origin storefront with some really interesting pre-set designs or contribute your own unique design. The pre-set designs are also quite affordable, costing approximately $40, while the custom design costs $100. It's a fantastic method to give your laptop a unique appearance without Origin having to invest in manufacturing various colors in advance, which benefits both the customer and the company.
The keyboard and touchpad are sturdy, with the former featuring well-sized and responsive keys and the latter exhibiting excellent responsiveness. You can also configure the touchpad to use either half as a left and right mouse button or the entire surface as a standard touchpad.
Two USB Type-A ports, two USB Type-C interfaces (one of which is Thunderbolt 4), one HDMI 2.1 port, one 2-in-1 audio connector, one SD Card Reader, and one Kensington Lock are provided. Unfortunately, like many other gaming laptops, this one lacks an Ethernet interface, leaving those who require a stable internet connection with no wired options.
The webcam is unremarkable, falling squarely within the same category of laptop cameras that require excellent illumination to produce images that are at least passable. It's adequate for work-related or casual duties, but if you want to stream and need something better, purchase a 1080p webcam of higher quality.
Surprisingly, given that the speakers are located on the underside of the laptop, the sound quality is surprisingly much improved. Whether you're listening to classical violins, an emotive voice, or the music and sound effects from a AAA video game, everything sounds crystal clear at high decibels with very little muddying.
ORIGIN EON 16SL: PERFORMANCE
- Great performance all around
- Handles AAA titles on maxed settings well
- Ventilation isn't bad
For such a lightweight and thin laptop, the Origin EON 16SL's performance is exceptional. In terms of benchmark scores, it compares favorably to other gaming laptops, falling between those outfitted with an RTX 4060 and an RTX 4090. Its scores in benchmarks such as 3DMark, PCMark10, Cinebench, Geekbench, and others are comparable to those of much more expensive gaming machines.
It also performed competitively in editing benchmarks such as the 25GB File Copy, Handbrake, and Crossmark, making it an excellent choice for creative and video editing professionals.
Even at maximum settings with ray tracing, its performance translates well outside of benchmark tests. For example, in Cyberpunk 2077's 'Ray Tracing Overdrive' mode, which was added in the most recent patch, the game ran at an average of 67 frames per second (fps). For such a demanding and inadequately optimized game, anything above 60 frames per second at maximum settings is astounding.
With maximum settings and ray tracing enabled, Dirt 5, another demanding and inadequately optimized game, managed an average of 39 frames per second (fps) with maximum settings. Other games, such as Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered, achieved over 100 frames per second in any gameplay section with the highest settings and ray tracing enabled.
Ventilation is decent for a thin and lightweight gaming laptop, with the majority of gaming sessions remaining between tepid and extremely warm. If you play particularly lengthy and intensive gaming sessions, however, you should be aware that the undercarriage of the machine can become extremely heated.
ORIGIN EON 16SL: BATTERY
- Solid battery life for a gaming laptop
- Charge time is pretty good
General speaking, the Origin EON 16SL's battery is quite excellent for a gaming laptop. It can operate for approximately six hours on average, which is significantly longer than the majority of other gaming laptops, including the more expensive Razer Blade 14 (2023). The TechRadar movie battery test and the Web surfing battery informant test both lasted longer than six hours.
During my own assessment of the battery life under normal conditions, I determined that it lasted approximately six hours. Additionally, it has a fairly quick charge time of roughly an hour.
HOW I TESTED THE ORIGIN EON 16SL
- I tested this laptop for about two weeks
- I tested the gaming performance as well as productivity work
- I used a variety of benchmark tests as well as high-end PC games to test this laptop.
To evaluate the Origin EON 16SL, I employed a comprehensive suite of benchmarks that ranked both CPU and GPU performance, with a greater emphasis on the latter. I also examined frame rate performance at maximum settings with a variety of high-end PC titles, including Cyberpunk 2077, Dirt 5, Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered, and others.
This laptop would be utilized predominantly for gaming, particularly extreme gaming. Due to its GPU and wide color gamut, it can also be utilized for creative and editing projects, and its CPU makes productivity tasks a pleasure.
I've tested numerous laptops, particularly gaming laptops, which has provided me with ample experience benchmarking them. In addition, I have extensive experience testing general performance, including framerate and graphics.