Cons
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Poor construction
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Only 1080p resolution
The Origin EON14-S gives top-shelf performance for a mid-tier price.
About the Origin EON14-S
Credit:
Reviewed / David Murphy
The sound quality on the EON14-S can be easily improved with a gaming headset but by itself, it falls flat.
Here are the specs on the model we tested:
- Price as configured: $1,800
- Processor: Intel Core i9-13900H
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070
- Memory: 16GB DDR5 4800MHz
- Storage: 500GB NVMe M.2 SSD
- Display: 14-inch, 1920 x 1080, 144Hz, IPS, 314 nits (as measured)
- Ports: 1 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 1, 2 x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1, 1 x Thunderbolt 4, HDMI, Gigabit Ethernet, 3.5mm dual mic/headphone
- Connectivity: Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX211, Bluetooth 5.2
- Battery: 3-cell, 73Wh
- Weight: 3.86 pounds
- Dimensions: 12.79 x 8.85 x 0.84 inches
- Warranty: 1-year limited warranty
Origin’s EON14-S can be configured with two different CPU/GPU combinations (an Intel i7 13700H and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 or an Intel i9 13900H and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070), up to 64GB of memory, and ten different SSDs ranging from 500GB to 8TB. Its price ranges from nearly $1,500 at its lowest, default configuration to $2,800 for a completely decked-out system.
What we like
Great gaming and app performance
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the EON14-S is loud on its “Entertainment” performance setting, which is the default preset within Origin’s Control Center app. A good headset or pair of headphones is a must if you’ll be playing graphically demanding games. That, or you can switch to the “Quiet” preset, which did a great job keeping the noise down even when we were running Cyberpunk 2077 with ray-tracing enabled. You’ll take a performance hit (we lost around 25 fps on our benchmark, roughly one-third of the total), but if you’re not playing very graphically demanding games, your ears may thank you for the trade-off.
The best part of the EON14-S is that its CPU/GPU combination is more than adequate for its 1080p display. Better yet, the laptop performs nearly as well as competing gaming laptops that cost much more.
Credit:
Reviewed / Joanna Nelius
The Far Cry 6 benchmark is best-suited to measure in-game performance from mid-range graphics cards.
Take the Razer Blade 14, for example, which will set you back nearly an extra $1,000 for around 4–8 more frames per second (fps) than the EON14-S across most of our gaming benchmarks. Though the Razer Blade 14 is working with a higher default resolution (1440p), it was still around 12% slower in Far Cry 6 and 25% slower on our 3DMark tests.
Credit:
Reviewed / Joanna Nelius
The 3DMark Time Spy benchmark measures the performance of discrete graphics cards, which corresponds to the average frames per second (fps) the GPU can generate based on the in-game rendered resolution.
Though the EON14-S didn’t outperform any of the other RTX 4070-based gaming laptops we’ve reviewed in every in-game benchmark test, it was close enough to the pack to make its lower price all the more compelling. We were never able to max out the laptop display’s 144Hz refresh rate at the highest quality settings on any of our benchmarks, but we were well north of 60 fps on every single one (save for Fortnite, at 58 fps, and our demanding ray-tracing Cyberpunk 2077 test, at 34 fps).
Credit:
Reviewed / Joanna Nelius
Cyberpunk 2077 is the most graphically-demanding game we test.
Enabling DLSS and/or FidelityFX got us closer on some benchmarks (Far Cry 6), but not others (Cyberpunk 2077). This can be a useful way to get close to that precious 144 fps limit, and it makes us feel as if the EON14-S could have bumped up to a 1440p display without issue.
Thanks to its combination of an Intel Core i9-13900H processor and 16GB of memory, the EON14-S also performed well on most of our general-purpose benchmarks. Its single core performance on Geekbench 6 and Cinebench R23 was close to (but didn’t beat) some of the faster gaming laptops we’ve recently reviewed. As with its gaming capabilities, the laptop’s lower price than its peers makes its performance all the more enticing, even when it doesn’t top the charts.
Credit:
Reviewed / Joanna Nelius
The Cinebench R23 Single Core benchmark measures the same thing as Geekbench 6, but it stresses the CPU much longer and runs a 3D rendering test, which is not included in Geekbench 6.
The laptop was less-impressive for multicore tasks, however. It fell a little behind faster, competing laptops (that cost more) in Geekbench 6. In Cinebench R23, Origin’s laptop was only able to squeak out a decidedly average score when compared to every other gaming laptop we’ve reviewed. It’s generally more important to have great single core performance over multicore performance when gaming, so this isn’t a fatal flaw.
Decent display for dark scenes
We measured the laptop’s maximum brightness at 314 nits, which was a little under the average of the most recent gaming laptops we tested. This didn’t bother us during gameplay, since you’re likely to run the screen much lower for everyday use, but it could limit the laptop’s ability to be seen in brighter environments. You won’t have a great time if you’re trying to game or get work done outdoors (possibly even a home office with lots of windows).
At full brightness, the darkest measured black levels of the EON14-S reached 0.15 nits, giving the laptop a great contrast ratio of right around 1,850:1. That’s better than most gaming laptops we’ve tested, and it means you’ll have more of a chance to appreciate the subtle details of darker scenes in your games.
Super-speedy SSD
The 500GB Samsung 970 Evo Plus NVMe M.2 SSD that shipped with our version of the EON14-S performed well, turning in the second-highest read and write speeds we’ve ever measured for a gaming laptop on our CrystalDiskMark tests.
We also think it’s great that Origin gives you a ton of flexibility to select different SSDs based on your budget or storage needs when you’re customizing the laptop. You get ten different models from Corsair and Samsung to pick from, including a whopping 8TB Corsair SSD that’ll bump the price up $800, if you’re so inclined.
Good connectivity
Credit:
Reviewed / David Murphy
The connectivity ports on this laptop are standard, but you won’t be left disappointed.
Origin’s laptop comes with a basic, but solid port loadout: two USB-A 3.2 Gen1 ports, one USB-C 3.2 Gen2 port, a Thunderbolt 4 port (USB-C), a single HDMI port, and Gigabit Ethernet. You also get support for Wi-Fi 6E thanks to an included Intel AX211 chip, as well as Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity.
The wireless capabilities are an unexpected delight, as you’ll now be able to tap into your home’s 6.0GHz Wi-Fi network if your wireless router supports it. That means faster theoretical speeds if you’re working or gaming in the same room as your router (less so if you have a bunch of walls between you and said router).
What we don’t like
Poor construction
Credit:
Reviewed / David Murphy
The EON14-S lacks the bells and whistles of its competitors and sports a plastic shell.
One of the biggest problems with the EON14-S is that it feels cheap. Its all-plastic body doesn’t give the appearance or feel that a customizable, high-end gaming laptop generally should, though it undoubtedly helps Origin lower the laptop’s price. The “deep blue” artwork on the laptop’s cover looks neat, and you can swap it out for some other preselected pretty artwork for an extra $30, but you can’t just opt for a standard black design if you don’t want any flashy designs.
Elsewhere, the laptop’s tiny power switch is stuffed into the side of the laptop’s chassis, right next to where the power cable plugs in. It was generally fussy to operate, as it sometimes took a few taps for the laptop to power on. Regardless if that’s a feature or a “bug,” it was annoying.
We could also push the laptop’s trackpad into its chassis with a slight touch (not tap), which made us feel as if the trackpad wasn’t security fastened as much as it should be. It didn’t impede our ability to use the trackpad, but it did contribute to the laptop’s “cheaper” feel.
The laptop’s two speakers are stuffed on the side corners of its front half. We don’t expect wonders from most laptop speakers nowadays, but this placement doesn’t do the sound any favors. The balance felt off, often giving us the impression that sound was only coming out of one speaker. You can adjust the speaker balance in Windows to make the two sound more equal, but a good laptop shouldn’t require that.
Finally, there’s the laptop’s gigantic display bezel: a 1.25-inch hunk of black that sits below the laptop’s 14-inch screen. It’s ugly, whether it was a concession made as a result of sticking with 1080p, a way to save on costs a bit, or both. We think a different aspect ratio that helps cut down on this wasted space could lead to a better-looking laptop.
Why 1080p?
We appreciated that the laptop’s 144Hz display performed well on our tests, but we couldn’t shake the fact that its native 1080p resolution felt too small. Most of the games we tested were able to easily push past 60 fps at their highest quality settings. Dial more-demanding settings like anti-aliasing back a bit, and you could easily hit triple-digits.
It’s a matter of personal preference whether you want to inch closer to the laptop’s maximum refresh rate of 144Hz or whether you want a higher resolution that costs you some frames. I’d take the latter or, at least, it would be great to have the option to upgrade to a 1440p display when configuring the system.
You could then have crisper visuals and still get at least 60 fps using the highest quality settings of most modern games, pushing 70-90 fps versus, say, 110+ fps on a 1080p.
Should you buy the Origin EON14-S?
Credit:
Reviewed / David Murphy
You’re sure to get a bang for your buck with the EON14-S gaming laptop.
Yes, it’s a big bargain
The Origin EON14-S gaming laptop’s build quality is so-so, we wish its screen had a larger resolution or, at least, as a configuration option, and its multicore performance is only average. But for gaming, exclusively, this laptop screams—top-shelf performance for a mid-tier price, saving you hundreds of dollars compared to some of its competition.
The EON14-S gets other essentials right, too: plenty of USB-A and USB-C ports, support for Gigabit Ethernet and Wi-Fi 6E (the current, fastest Wi-Fi standard), and an RTX 4070 GPU, the exact last-gen graphics card we’d recommend if you’re serious about gaming on your laptop and saving money. The storage capacity options are robust, too, which is great if you need a large SSD because you want to play a ton of beefy games, like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
Those who don’t have the budget for a better system, like Razer’s Blade 14 or Blade 16 laptops, or our current pick for best gaming laptop, the Asus ROG Strix G18, would be well-served by Origin’s EON14-S. And if that resolution truly bothers you, you can always use the cash you saved to pick up a secondary monitor.
Origin EON14-S
Although the Origin EON14-S lacks in screen resolution and offers a subpar design, the price is a major selling point for those looking for an exclusive gaming laptop.
Meet the tester
David Murphy reviews a lot of things for a lot of places.
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Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you’re confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we’ll compare notes.
