Anirudh Regidistudio18Dec 21, 2022 19:11:09 IST
A new year dawns, and with it, hopefully, a much-needed computing upgrade! Offering you the best opportunity to do so is MSI’s year-end sale, which happens to offer great discounts on a wide range of gaming and productivity laptops for everyone from students to hardcore gamers and regular office goers. Whatever your needs, MSI has a laptop for you, and we’re here to help you choose the right one.
Gaming Laptops
MSI Pulse GL66 12UEK – Rs 1,25,990
For a premium gaming and content creation experience, i.e. one where you can play the latest games while streaming or editing footage, you’ll want the MSI Pulse GL66. Retailing at just Rs 1,25,990 after discount, this sub-2.5 kg laptop offers the performance that any hardcore gamer and content creator would want.
Featuring an Intel Core i9-12900H CPU and an RTX 3060 GPU, this powerful laptop will handle any games you throw at it with ease. It’s the CPU that stands out, though. Thanks to its high clock speed and 20 threads, this is a multitasking beast that lends the laptop capabilities beyond mere gaming. The GL66 is an all-rounder that can support video editors, livestreamers, and even professional use-cases like architectural drawings and 3D rendering. A great laptop for someone who needs as much power as they can get.
To top it off, you’re getting a beautiful 15.6” QHD display with a 165 Hz refresh rate and a creator-friendly DCI-P3 colour gamut.
MSI Crosshair 15 – Rs 1,12,600
If you want a no-compromise gaming machine and are willing to sacrifice some top-end CPU performance, saving 15k by picking up the Crosshair 15 is a no-brainer. It’s similarly specced to the MSI Pulse GL66, but thanks to a cheaper — but no less potent — Intel Core i7-12700H, this laptop is better value for someone more focused on gaming.
Gaming performance is uncompromised and you’re getting that same RTX 3060 GPU, not to mention 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of NVMe storage. The display is also the same 15.6” QHD 165 Hz DCI-P3 panel.
MSI Bravo 15 – Rs 47,990
For a student, or someone getting into gaming for the first time, the MSI Bravo 15 is perfect. At Rs 47,990, it’s an inexpensive machine, but given that it’s packing an AMD Ryzen 5 5600H CPU and Radeon RX 5500M GPU, it’s no slouch when it comes to gaming either. For the display, you’re getting an effective 15.6” FHD panel with a 144 Hz refresh rate and IPS-level viewing angles.
Given its specs, we’d say the MSI Bravo 15 is better suited for esports titles like CS: GO or Valorant, but that doesn’t mean it can’t handle the occasional AAA game at med-low settings either.
MSI Thin GF63 – Rs 52,990 (12th Gen); Rs 65,990 (11th Gen)
The MSI Thin GF63 is an interesting line. It’s a step up from the Bravo 15, and the 12th Gen variant — MSI Thin GF63 12HW — even comes with a rarely-sighted Intel Arc A370M graphics chip. As for the rest of the specs, you’re getting an Intel Core i5-12500H, 8 GB of DDR4 RAM, 512 GB of NVMe storage, and a 15.6” FHD display with a 144 Hz refresh rate and 45% NTSC coverage.
Arc graphics is new and especially useful if you’re someone who wants to stream or transcode a lot of video to YouTube.
For something more focused on gaming, you’ll need to drop another 13k for the MSI GF63 Thin UC variant. This model is similar to the MSI GF63 Thin 12HW, but offers an Intel Core i7-11800H and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 GPU instead. The CPU is excellent for gaming, and the GPUs RT cores support ray-traced games as well as Nvidia’s Broadcast suite for streaming more effectively.
MSI Katana GF66 12UE – Rs 84,990
At Rs 84,990, the MSI Katana GF66 12UE offers nearly the same level of gaming performance as the more expensive MSI Pulse GL66. It features the same RTX 3060 GPU and 16 GB of DDR4 RAM, but offers a smaller 512 GB SSD and a less powerful Intel Core i5-12450H CPU to cut down on the cost. The 15.6” FHD display is just as fast, but less colour accurate.
If you’re gaming, this isn’t a problem. The CPU is fast enough for the GPU, and the display has enough contrast to be well suited to even fast-paced games. The MSI Katana GF66 is a great buy for a focused gamer who needs a thin and light gaming machine.
MSI Katana GF76 11UE – Rs 92,990
This one’s for gamers and professionals looking for a true desktop replacement. The MSI Katana GF76 is one of those rare laptops that offers a large display under Rs 1 lakh, and it’s a powerful gaming machine to boot. Highlights include an Intel Core i7-11800H CPU and an Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU, not to mention 16 GB of RAM and a 512 GB PCIe SSD.
This config is great for gaming, but also well suited to 3D workloads for architects and engineers working in CAD software. The MSI Katana GF76 is a good hybrid gaming device for a serious gamer as well as a working professional.
Creator Laptops
MSI Creator Z16 – Rs 2,09,990
Powered by an Intel Core i9-11900H and an RTX 3060 GPU, this creator focussed laptop’s USP is its high-resolution display — a 16” QHD unit with 120 Hz and 100% DCI-P3 support — and support for stylus and touch input.
Interestingly, at 2.2 kgs, it’s extremely light, and comes with a 16:10 display that offers more vertical real-estate for content creators working in professional apps like Adobe’s suite. You also get a miniLED backlit keyboard, a quad-speaker array for audio, and a 90-Whr battery. And all this fits into a slim, 15.9 mm chassis.
MSI CreatorPro M16 – Rs 1,19,990
The MSI M16 CreatorPro is a more focused alternative to the MSI Creator Z16. It’s cheaper but is equipped with a true workstation GPU — the RTX A1000 — which is optimised for creator workflows and not gaming. You also get more CPU cores, thanks to an Intel Core i7-12700H CPU, making this laptop better suited for a variety of professional use-cases.
You get a similar 16” QHD display in a 16:10 aspect ratio and DCI-P3 support, but it’s a 60 Hz panel this time.
Work and Productivity
MSI Modern 14 – Rs 42,990
If you need a slick and sleek business laptop that looks as good as it performs, while still being friendly on the pocket, what you need is the MSI Modern 14. This AMD Ryzen 5 5500U-powered laptop features a 14” FHD display, 8 GB of RAM and 512 GB of NVMe storage, and comes with a design that will look great in any modern workplace.
It weighs just 1.3 kg, and if you work in an office environment, this is the laptop you want.
MSI Modern 15 – Rs 52,990
If you work with large documents or simply need more screen space for your work or studies, I’d recommend opting for the MSI Modern 15. It’s a little more expensive than the Modern 14, but offers a larger 15” FHD display and a more powerful AMD Ryzen 7 5700U CPU. The weight does go up, but only to a barely noticeable 1.6 kg.
The Modern line is a great choice for both students and working professionals.
MSI’s range of laptops cover the gamut of users and offers a balanced combination of hardware, design, and build quality to guarantee a great experience to you no matter you choose. We hope you found this buying guide useful and that you’ll soon be walking away with the laptop of your dreams!
This is a Partnered Post.