I'm constantly confounded by people who game. How do they find the time?

Don't get me wrong, I love gaming. But it's not really something you can do for half-an-hour during your lunch break. For most games, if you're going to make it past the first training level, you'll need to invest hours, not minutes.

So it stands to reason you should be prepared to invest in the best gear to play the game with too.

Given we still haven't achieved the Tron-like ability to literally become part of the game, what are the tools currently available to get us as close to that as possible?

Pairing the HP Omen Max 16 with the HyperX Cloud Alpha 2 might be a good place to start.

If you've ever wondered what eight or nine-thousand dollars buys you in terms of a gaming laptop, you could do a lot worse than the HP Omen Max 16. Obviously, there are few different configurations around but my review unit features an Intel Core Ultra 9 processor, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 dedicated GPU, 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD hard drive.

If you know anything about the latest standards of PC tech, you'll know all that sounds like a pretty solid base to build something fairly special around, and that's certainly what HP has done here.

This is perhaps the most specced-out laptop I've ever reviewed. Yes, it's big and yes, it's fairly heavy but it's actually not as brutishly ugly as I was expecting. The large, 16-inch display is set into a surprisingly slim lid, which closes to a stylishly tapered front edge, giving the impression of a much thinner device - from the user's end anyway.

Around the back, things are a bit chunkier - plenty of ventilation and some useful ports; 10/100/1000/2500 GbE LAN for ultra-fast, hardwired connectivity, an HDMI socket for an external display and a USB Type-A port. There's another USB-A on the right side and two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C options on the left.

The power supply IS a brute; a 330W brick that might even be heavier than an actual brick. You'll need to lug it around with you if you're planning on taking the Omen Max 16 anywhere - nothing else is really going to keep it charged when you start gaming, despite HP's rather optimistic claims of extended battery life.

I'm sure you'll manage many hours on battery alone if all you're doing is browsing and checking a few emails - but if that's what you're planning, this is not the computer you require.

Fire this puppy up and as usual for an HP device, you'll be confronted with the standard double-up (or even triple-up) of configuration and settings apps. Between HP Support Assistant, HP Hardware Diagnostics and HP Smart, there's no excuse for not keeping any of your drivers up to date. In fact, because this is an Omen, you have the even more comprehensive Omen Gaming Hub pre-installed, which essentially blows all those other apps out of the water.

This is where you can customise absolutely everything, from the keyboard backlighting to the speed of the fans. You can even get those fans to clean themselves by running them backwards. If you're an experienced gaming uber-nerd, you can literally tweak every component. If, like me, you just want the games to look good and keep running with no drop in performance, you can click a button labelled "Unleashed Mode."

At that point, you'll definitely start to hear those fans but your game will load nice and fast and that immersive experience we were dreaming of in the intro kicks into high gear.

The illusion of being inside the game is enhanced by that big, 2.5K OLED display - complete with 240Hz refresh rate, which I didn't even realise was a thing. My one criticism of the screen is it's very glossy - so reflections can be an issue. That clever anti-reflection tech everyone's using on TVs and monitors these days seems to be taking a while to make it onto laptop screens.

The keyboard is rewardingly tactile, with RGB backlighting you can control with the Omen Gaming Hub app. The keys are nicely spaced out - for the most part - and as nice as it is to have a full number pad on the right-hand side, that's where things get a bit cramped and I keep pushing NumberLock instead of BackSpace as I type.

The HyperX dual speaker setup is powerful enough, although I might have expected a quad-system on a device in this price bracket. The Windows Hello camera does a nice job too, as you'll see me demonstrate in the video below.

Speaking of HyperX, let's plug in the Cloud Alpha 2 headset and see how that stacks up.

Wait, did I say, "Plug in?" Why would I plug in a wireless headset? Because this one comes with its own RGB base station, with a big, friendly dial for easy, no-look access to volume controls and six big, reprogrammable buttons.

Essentially, the base station replaces the 2.4GHz dongle other headsets use and saves you the bother of having to memorise exactly which controls do what on the earcups themselves. The buttons can be set to act as media controls, they can swap what the dial controls between mic, headphone and chat levels and there are several totally new features on the way.

That's right; Cloud Alpha 2 is so new, HyperX hasn't finished yet. To adjust the settings, you'll need to download the new NGENUITY Beta app. There you'll see functions like app launches and programmable macros are still "Works In Progress." Ultimately, what that means is you should be able to create your own macros of certain key combinations you use all the time and add those to the buttons on the base station.

To be honest, I'm not sure I really need yet another console on my desk - especially one that doesn't yet have all the functionality it was designed for. But I get how convenient it is to have those controls sitting right there in front of you, rather than having to fiddle about with buttons on the headset you can't actually see while you're playing.

As I expected, from my previous experience with HyperX headsets, the Cloud Alpha 2 is extremely well built - both durable and comfortable.

And its performance when gaming has been stellar so far - accurate reproduction of music, effects and dialogue, with plenty of space for each element. Indeed, although Spatial Audio is another feature still in development, the surround sound effects are already top notch. I've found this multi-directional soundscape to be very useful when it comes to avoiding attacks from behind and finding contacts lurking down dark alleyways.

The mic quality is exceptional - definitely up to podcast standard. What's more, if you find the boom mic too intrusive, you can simply unplug it and rely on the built-in mics instead. One other interesting feature is the Cloud Alpha 2 can pair to a bluetooth source, even while connected via the 2.4GHz base station. This means you can turn off the music on your game and listen to your preferred playlist from your phone instead. Not a bad option when you consider some of the rubbish game designers like to assault you with - especially in racing games.

I'm starting to regret my decision to combine these two excellent devices into one review - I could go on and on about either of them. But the fact is, they truly are the ideal combination to bring your gaming library to life. Between the comfort, desktop control and 3D soundscape of the Cloud Alpha2 and the fantastic 16-inch display of the Omen Max - not to mention the raw power of its high-spec chip and GPU - you could be well on the way to that fully immersive gaming experience you know you deserve.

Click here for more information and pricing on the HyperX Cloud Alpha 2. 

Click here for more information and pricing on the HP Omen Max 16.