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Hands on: I tried the new MSI Claw A8 at Gamescom 2025 and AMD’s Z2 Extreme chip was nothing but an extreme let down

by admin August 25, 2025

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The MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme is yet another gaming PC handheld to hit the market. Taking all of the positives of the previous iteration of the MSI Claw, the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme seems promising on paper, being the first gaming handheld to pack the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme chip, potentially giving gamers a whole new level of performance right in the palm of their hands.

In terms of availability, the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme has been slowly released over the past few months as different regions start to stock the device. The UK is still waiting for its opportunity to purchase, as well as the US, and with the new Asus ROG Xbox Ally hitting the shelves soon, it may be a race to the finish line in terms of the first device featuring AMD’s new chip to be on the shelf.

However, using the device at Gamescom 2025 actually proved to be a rather mediocre experience, and this wasn’t the fault of the handheld but rather the processor itself. While the device looked snazzy and was comfortable to use, it didn’t quite deliver the performance boost I was expecting from AMD’s latest chip, and instead felt practically identical to the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme.

Not only are my expectations for the device tainted, but I’m worried about the progression of handhelds in general if this level of performance is meant to be seen as an upgrade. Oh dear.

(Image credit: Future)

MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme hands-on: Price and availability

The price of the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme varies from region to region and with no stock available in the US or UK just yet, we don’t have a confirmed price.

However, with sales already underway in Germany starting at €999, we can therefore assume it will be at a similar price point in both dollars and pounds, though exchange rates, local taxes and tariffs will likely have an impact.

This is particularly expensive when compared to alternative handheld gaming devices on the market. However, this is currently the only gaming handheld to feature the brand new AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme chip, which makes direct price comparison difficult. The previous MSI Claw was £899 / $899 on release, and other alternatives like the Asus ROG Ally X come in at around £799 / $799 with frequent sales and price cuts.

Right now, there’s no confirmed release date for the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme for most of the world, but with it being on shelves in some areas of Europe, we shouldn’t be waiting too long.

(Image credit: Future)

MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme hands-on: Design

In terms of design, the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme comes in a fancy new colorway, Neon Green.

Being honest, I found this new color absolutely repugnant, but this is more of a personal taste issue rather than it being a major problem. Despite not being a fan, I can be the bigger person and admit that this new color definitely sets the device apart from the monochrome sea of gaming handhelds which are on the market right now.

You get an 8-inch screen which is just slightly higher in resolution than your standard 1080p at 1920×1200. Pair this with the variable 120Hz refresh rate, and this screen is one of the best options on the gaming handheld market.

The only thing that would improve this display would be if it was OLED. It was gorgeous to look at and would make a great option for both casual and competitive gamers alike – if competitive gamers would ever dare to play ranked on a gaming handheld.

(Image credit: Future)

The chassis definitely feels more ‘gamery’ in style when compared to its predecessor, with a more aggressive shape and clear cut edges rather than that smooth and sleek finish which we’re familiar with. Despite this, it was still comfortable to hold.

Coming in at 765g, it’s one of the heavier devices on the market; the Asus ROG Ally X, for example, weighs less than 700g. This is to be expected given the difference in screens, but doesn’t detract from the fact that the handheld feels like it’s slightly weighing you down while you’re playing it, but it didn’t cause any major issues.

MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme hands-on: Specs

In terms of specifications, the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme looks fantastic on paper, however the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme does majorly let it down. While using the device, I found that I wasn’t really getting any better performance when compared to the Z1 Extreme chip found in other (cheaper) gaming handhelds.

It managed good quality graphics in the games I played on the handheld, with solid frame rates which didn’t look or feel choppy. However, since this was just a brief hands-on session I wasn’t able to actually monitor the frame rates while playing, and it really didn’t feel like the device was delivering any significant boost in performance on a surface level.

Swipe to scroll horizontallyMSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme specs

CPU

AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme

Display

8-inch FHD+ (1920×1200), 120Hz, VRR, Touchscreen

Memory

24GB LPDDR5x-8000

Wireless

Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4

Ports

2x Type-C, 1x Micro SD Card Reader

Battery

80Wh

Dimensions

299.5 x 126.2 x 24.0mm

Weight

765g

Aside from this, you also get 24GB of RAM, a major upgrade from some of the previous generation gaming handhelds. Lower RAM in previous handhelds has posed issues in the past, so it’s nice to see MSI learning from the mistakes of their competitors.

You also get a chunky 80Wh battery, the same as the previous iteration of the MSI Claw. While it would have been nice for this to have been improved upon, it seems like this is slowly becoming industry standard.

I wasn’t able to actually monitor the battery level during my hands-on time with the device, but the AMD Ryzen Z2 series of chips come with a promise of better efficiency so we’ll have to wait for a full review to see if this proves to be true.

MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme hands-on: Early verdict

All in all, I feel like I was somewhat underwhelmed with the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme, but that wasn’t down to the device itself but rather the processor from AMD.

The device was comfortable to hold, looked stunning (apart from the new neon green colorway, sorry) and has a promising battery capacity.

However, with a high price point and a processor which wasn’t delivering that boost in performance that I was expecting over its predecessor, it’s hard to recommend picking up the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme based on first impressions alone. Our full review, where we’ll put the MSI Claw A8 Z2 Extreme through our suite of benchmark and real-world tests, should determine if it deserves a place amongst the best gaming handhelds.

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August 25, 2025 0 comments

Gaming Gear

MSI MPG 322URX | PC Gamer

by admin June 10, 2025

If familiarity breeds perhaps not contempt but at least apathy, the MSI MPG 322URX has its work cut out. Along with the broader reality that OLED monitors are no longer exotic or even terribly novel—what with zillions of different models and countless panel sizes, shapes, specs, and resolutions—this particular monitor is more of a refresh than a genuinely new model.

Indeed, the basics are exactly the same as the MSI MPG 321URX I reviewed just over a year ago. Both that older monitor and the new 322URX are 32-inch 4K displays with Samsung QD-OLED panels. Indeed, they both use the same generation of Samsung QD-OLED technology.

Thus the 250 nit full screen SDR and 1,000 nit peak HDR brightness ratings are carried over untouched, as is the 240 Hz refresh rate and 0.03 ms response time. Both monitors sport DisplayHDR True Black 400 certification and glossy screen coatings, too.

MSI MPG 322URX specs

(Image credit: Future)

Screen size: 32-inch
Resolution: 3,840 x 2,160
Brightness: 250 nits full screen, 1,000 peak HDR
Response time: 0.03 ms
Refresh rate: 240 Hz
HDR: DisplayHDR True Black 400
Features: QD-OLED panel, HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 2.1a, USB Type-C with 98 W power delivery, USB Type-A hub
Price: $1,299 | £1,284

What’s more, the design is entirely unchanged. The all black chassis has a very thin casing for QD-OLED panel itself, and then a separate box on the rear for the electronics, integrated power supply and ports. As before, there’s a light smattering of RGB lighting on the rear. There’s a slight whiff of teenage gamer to the design on the rear, but it’s pretty subtle and the overall look is fairly slick.

At this point, you’ll be wondering what actually has changed, and the answer is an upgrade from DisplayPort 1.4 to DisplayPort 2.1 UHBR 20. That means increased bandwidth and the ability to hit the full 240 Hz refresh without the use of Display Stream Compression (DSC).

Of course, DSC does actually do what it says on the tin, namely reducing bandwidth requirements in a visually lossless manner while also adding little to no latency. The upshot is that, in practice, you can’t tell the difference between 4K at 240 Hz with and without DSC. What’s more, only the very latest Nvidia RTX 50 series GPUs, plus AMD’s last two GPU generations, support DisplayPort 2.1. So, for many graphics cards, the distinction is entirely academic.

(Image credit: Future)

DisplayPort aside, as before, you also get HDMI and USB Type-C. The latter has had a tiny upgrade from 90 W power delivery to 98 W, but the single-cable functionality, including KVM switch capability and a USB Type-A hub, remains and is extremely welcome.

When you factor in the large screen size and 4K desktop resolution, this is the perfect panel to share between a desktop gaming rig and a laptop, a setup that is thoroughly catered for by the connectivity.

If the specs are essentially a carbon copy of last year’s model, there’s scope for minor improvements courtesy of firmware enhancements, even if those could in most cases also be applied to the older 321URX model. So, what’s this new MSI actually like?

(Image credit: Future)

Initial impressions are very familiar, both for better and for worse. The pros and cons of this generation of 4K QD-OLED panel are immediately apparent. On the upside, that means super-sharp pixel density that’s good enough to make the non-standard RGB subpixel arrangement compared to LCD monitors a non-issue for font rendering, super vibrant and punchy colours, mostly excellent contrast and crazy-fast response performance.

The pros and cons of this generation of 4K QD-OLED panel are immediately apparent.

Less welcome but also carried over is the QD-OLED panel’s propensity to reflect ambient light. In really bright ambient conditions, it makes the panel itself look a slightly purplish grey (shown below), detracting from black levels and perceived contrast.

The colour temperature is also a touch warm, as is the norm for QD-OLED panels. Both of those issues may relate to the quantum dot material in the panel itself being unintentionally activated by ambient light. But whatever the cause, if it’s something you really don’t like, LG’s competing WOLED tech completely sidesteps the issue.

Image 1 of 5

(Image credit: Future)(Image credit: Future)(Image credit: Future)(Image credit: Future)(Image credit: Future)

This monitor also offers a stellar HDR experience unless you’re in a very bright room. Without the old model on hand as a reference, it’s hard to be absolutely sure. But it seems like MSI has slightly improved the HDR 1000 mode. Certainly, HDR highlights in both video and games absolutely rip in that mode.

The downside is slightly attenuated overall brightness compared with the alternative DisplayHDR 400 True Black mode, which reduces the brightness of small details but gives a punchier overall appearance.

However, in either HDR mode, brighter outdoor game scenes do lack a bit of pop. That goes with the territory with this generation of HDR panel, and it’s my main reservation with this monitor.

(Image credit: Future)

Pretty soon, a new generation of OLED tech from both Samsung and LG is going to hit PC monitors. Very likely, it’s going to push full-screen brightness up to the 350 to 400 nit range, at which point it’s probably a solved problem. If that happens, monitors like this are going to feel a teensy bit obsolete, as good as they are in so many ways.

For the record, in SDR mode, full screen brightness is subjectively reasonable and suffers only very slightly from the noticeable intervention of an ABL or Automatic Brightness Limiter Algorithm. In other words, the brightness doesn’t change much depending on what’s being displayed. And that’s a good thing.

(Image credit: Future)

If you’ve only ever gamed on an LCD monitor, this thing will slightly blow your mind.

In HDR mode, SDR content is actually a lot brighter, for the most part, though the ABL intervention is a bit more apparent. But the overall calibration in both SDR and HDR modes is pretty nice, barring the aforementioned minor colour temp issue.

If that all sounds like damning with faint praise, I do feel something of a sourpuss picking holes in this mostly amazing monitor. The HDR experience can be absolutely stunning, it looks mostly fab on the desktop, the response is impeccable, as is the latency, provided you have a GPU that can do decent frame rates at 4K.

Buy if…

✅ You want OLED HDR goodness with 4K pixel density: In many ways, this is the ultimate gaming experience thanks to the combination of perfect-per-pixel lighting, incredible speed and 4K precision.

Don’t buy if…

❌ You’re expecting a big upgrade: For the most part, this monitor is exactly the same as the 4K MSI QD-OLED we reviewed a year ago.

Just to re-emphasise all that, if you’ve only ever gamed on an LCD monitor, this thing will slightly blow your mind. The problem is that I’ve seen countless different OLED monitors at this point, and I also have a fair inkling of what’s going to be available in the coming six to 12 months. So, I have to view this monitor in context.

That context currently includes a real-world price of around $1,300, and at that elevated level, it’s very, very hard to get genuinely excited. Just a few weeks ago, I spotted a 32-inch QD-OLED 4K monitor for barely more than $700. Sure, it was only a 165 Hz model. But 240 Hz alternatives can be had for sub $1,000, so it’s awfully hard to get behind something priced this high, especially when superior technology is coming down the track fairly soon.

All of which means I like this monitor, I really do. In many ways, it’s fantastic. I just can’t get my head around actually recommending it.

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June 10, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

MSI Titan 18 HX AI Review: The Ultimate Gaming Laptop

by admin June 2, 2025

The MSI Titan is not for the faint of heart—it never has been. It’s an 18-inch behemoth, fitting into that “desktop replacement” class of gaming laptop. This one in particular is meant for PC gamers who don’t just want top performance, but also some bling.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a gaming laptop with this many high-end features. With a Mini-LED display, a mechanical keyboard, and an invisible haptic touchpad, there’s no other 18-inch gaming laptop like it, and that means a flashy price, too.

Big and Beautiful

The MSI Titan is massive. It’s 1.26 inches thick at its largest point and weighs nearly eight pounds. You read that right. Eight whole pounds. Gaming laptops aren’t known for being particularly portable, especially ones with 18-inch screens, but the MSI Titan HX is almost a full pound heavier than the Razer Blade 18.

It’s hefty and well-crafted, though, as you’d hope for in a laptop north of $5,000. It’s not a single piece of machined aluminum like the Razer Blade 18, but the magnesium-aluminum alloy chassis feels sturdy. The MSI Titan HX uses a thermal shelf on the back, making the laptop larger, but providing a protrusion for extra ventilation and ports. MSI keeps it fairly minimalist with the all-black interior and silver trim, especially compared to older versions of this laptop. The invisible touchpad makes this feel even more modern. And yet, both the Razer Blade 18 and Alienware 18 Area-51 are more savvy designs in my book.

Photograph: Luke Larsen

In the rear, you’ll find the power jack, the HDMI 2.1 port, and the Ethernet. Next to some massive vents, you’ll find three USB-A 3.2. Gen2 ports on the side, along with the two Thunderbolt 5 ports, the SD card slot, and a headphone jack. That’s just about every port you can imagine, but the Thunderbolt 5 ports are the interesting part.

Intel sent me several Thunderbolt 5 accessories to demonstrate just how much bandwidth the new spec provides. I set up two 32-inch 4K 240-Hz OLED gaming monitors, all powered through a single USB-C cable. It’s magical seeing those two high-refresh-rate monitors being daisy-chained together, despite their 240-Hz refresh rates. In the past, Thunderbolt 4 ports were limited to two 4K monitors at 60 Hz.

Even if you don’t have two expensive gaming monitors to connect to, the MSI Titan 18 HX has a really solid Mini-LED display onboard. It can hit 414 nits of brightness in SDR and around double that in HDR. That’s not quite as good as the OLED gaming monitors out there, but it’s certainly bright enough to notice the difference in HDR. The color saturation is great too.

You want that 4K resolution when it’s spread across 18 inches of screen, even if you may not always want to play games at that native resolution. It’s incredibly sharp. This really is the best screen you can get on an 18-inch laptop right now, as OLED isn’t common in this larger screen size yet. MSI also offers an IPS version of this panel, as well as a lower-resolution 2560 x 1600 240-Hz IPS option.

Unfortunately, the speakers and webcam aren’t as premium. The 1080p camera is noisy, and the six-speaker audio system is mediocre. The speakers are almost irrelevant given how loud the fan noise is, at least when it comes to gaming.

Tricks Up Its Sleeve

Photograph: Luke Larsen

The keyboard is unique and an absolute joy to type and game on. It’s a Cherry MX low-profile mechanical keyboard that feels chunky and tactile. It’s unlike any laptop I’ve ever typed on in that sense, capturing the feel of a mechanical keyboard right on your laptop. My only complaint is that the many keys are not mechanical, such as the arrow keys, the number pad, and the function row. Once you notice, it’s a little jarring.

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June 2, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W Review: A powerhouse gaming laptop that will eat your desktop rig for breakfast

by admin June 1, 2025

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We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W: Two-Minute Review

This thing is heavy, seriously… (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams)

It’s simple. If you’re out for a powerful gaming laptop, capable of reaching high and smooth frame rates with minimal performance issues, the MSI Vector A18 HX A9W is your answer. Using Nvidia’s RTX 5080 laptop GPU and AMD’s Ryzen 9 9955HX processor, gaming is a breeze at its native 2560×1600 resolution without using Team Green’s DLSS upscaling technology; however, when it is used, achieving high frame rates is a cakewalk.

It shines best in games like Cyberpunk 2077, Indiana Jones: The Great Circle, and Resident Evil 4 remake. It can struggle when attempting to use ray tracing at maximum graphics settings and at a 4K resolution without enabling DLSS, but that’s exactly what Nvidia’s tools are there for.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 had very little trouble reaching over 100fps, and edged close to the 100fps mark when running on ECO-Silent mode (which is incredible as I’ll dive into later), helping reduce the workload and high temperatures, thanks to MSI Center’s user scenario options.

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W: Price & Availability

How much does it cost? Starting at $2,999.99 / £3,199 / AU$6,599 (for RTX 5080 configuration)
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? In the US, UK, and Australia

There’s no denying that the MSI Vector A18 HX A9W is a very expensive piece of hardware, instantly locking most gamers out of a potential purchase. However, for those who can afford it, you’re getting the bang for your buck with a system that is capable of matching a variety of desktop builds.

With both a powerful AMD processor and Nvidia GPU, it’s more than enough to satisfy most gamers’ performance needs; the Ryzen 9 9955HX excels at single-core and multi-core processes, which you’ll see later below.

With this configuration (A9WIG-006UK), there is no OLED or mini-LED display available, which would’ve slightly softened the blow of the high price, with an immersive and brighter screen – but that shouldn’t hinder the gaming experience here.

The issue is that it’s more or just as expensive as some pre-built gaming PCs, which is somewhat reasonable since it’s using a CPU as powerful as those in high-end desktops – but the RTX 5080 discrete desktop version is the stronger GPU.

Regardless, this is a gaming laptop that packs plenty of processing power in a beefy and sturdy chassis, cooled very well with its Cooler Boost 5 tech using a ‘Dedicated Cooling Pipe’, so it’s not very surprising to see it cost so much.

Still, the point remains; unless you’re adamant on travelling with the Vector A18 HX A9W and using it on the go (which I wouldn’t recommend because portability isn’t that great here), or just want a PC you can move around your home easily, it might be a better choice to buy a desktop rig.

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W: Specs

You knew you’d see Resident Evil 4 at some point in this review… I’m obsessed with it (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams)Swipe to scroll horizontallyHeader Cell – Column 0

MSI Vector A18 HX A9WIG-006UK (Review model UK)

MSI Vector A18 HX A9WIG-223US (Base model US)

MSI Vector A18 HX A9WIG-076US (Highest config)

Price

£3,199

$2,999.99

$3,959

CPU

AMD Ryzen 9955 HX

GPU

Nvidia RTX 5080

RAM

32GB DDR5

64GB DDR5

Storage

2TB NVMe Gen 4×4

1TB NVMe Gen 4×4

2TB NVMe Gen 4×4

Display

18″ QHD+(2560×1600), 240Hz Refresh Rate, IPS-Level, 100% DCI-P3(Typical)

18″ 16:10 QHD+(2560 x 1600), 240Hz, 100% DCI-P3 IPS-Level Panel

18″ 16:10 QHD+(2560 x 1600) 240Hz 100% DCI-P3 IPS-Level Panel

Battery

4-Cell,99.9 Whrs

Ports

2x Type-A USB3.2 Gen1, 1x Type-A USB3.2 Gen2, 2x USB 4/DP&PD 3.1 (Thunderbolt 4 Compatible), HDMI 2.1

Dimensions

15.91″ x 12.09″ x 1.26″

Weight

3.6 kg / 7.9lbs

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W: Design

(Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams)

I absolutely love the chassis of the Vector A18 HX A9W as it has a sturdy build, and perhaps most importantly, a great cooling pipe design. Even when gaming on Extreme Performance, temperatures were never too high, often hitting a maximum of 77 degrees Celsius.

Its speakers aren’t particularly a standout, but are serviceable and get the job done, especially with an equalizer and 3D surround sound available to improve audio immersion. It’s also always easier to use Bluetooth speakers or headphones that have much better bass and clarity.

The two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports present are ideal for fast file transfers and for those who aren’t keen on expanding internal storage with a new SSD, who would rather use an external one. It also features an HDMI 2.1 port on its rear, right next to its power adapter port – and one particular aspect I don’t like is the slightly short length of the wire, which often forced me to place the chunky adapter on the desk.

Cool design, right? (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams)

With an 18-inch screen, you’re getting the best you could possibly ask for when it comes to portable gaming – and if you’ve got a spacious desktop setup, it’s a great experience.

However, the screen size and the weight are the only two main issues I have in this region, as you’re going to have trouble fitting this in most backpacks for travel, and it’s very heavy to carry around.

At 7.9 lbs, it had me paranoid that it would make my mini desk meet its demise, and while it’s understandable considering all the powerful components, you should be aware that this laptop isn’t built for portability (especially while carrying the adapter around, too).

Regardless, this is a beefy gaming laptop power-wise, and these gripes weren’t too significant to spoil my experience overall.

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W: Display

(Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams)

My review model of the Vector A18 doesn’t exactly have the best display available, as it’s neither OLED nor mini-LED – both of which offer greater contrast and brightness. However, that doesn’t stop it from being an immersive display that I found ideal for intense and competitive multiplayer gaming sessions.

It’s thanks to the 240Hz refresh rate and 2560×1600 resolution, which matches up well with the horsepower of the RTX 5080. There aren’t many games that are going to run at 240fps (unless you significantly lower graphics settings or resolution), but the ones that do, look absolutely incredible.

I must admit, coming from the consistent use of an OLED ultrawide, it took a little bit of an adjustment to become accustomed to an IPS LCD panel again – but that’s to be expected when scaling down from one of the best display types (and it would be unfair to knock points off here because of that).

It’s worth noting that HDR isn’t present either, which often goes a long way at providing better color accuracy and detail in both brighter and darker images.

Regardless, the Vector A18 HX A9W has a 100% DCI-P3 coverage, so I never once felt dissatisfied or urged to calibrate or adjust color profiles. It also helps that you’re getting a full 18-inch screen, which I believe is the sweet spot for portable laptop gaming (besides it probably being why it’s so heavy).

The one downside I ran into is playing games that don’t have 16:10 aspect ratio support. To put it simply, if you dislike black bars filling out portions of your screen while gaming, you’re not going to like it here. So, it’s definitely worth considering before committing to a purchase, but there are no other gripes from me.

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W: Performance

Sweaty Call of Duty lobbies… we love to see it (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams)

RTX 5080 is a beast of a laptop GPU
The combo with AMD’s Ryzen 9955HX processor is fantastic
The CPU’s performance is incredible, matching desktop processors

The biggest highlight of the MSI Vector A18 HX A9W is its performance, almost across the board. It shouldn’t come as a surprise for me to say that the RTX 5080 laptop GPU is an absolute powerhouse, and crushes the 2560×1600 resolution in most triple-A games – and DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation is a game changer when used where necessary (essentially anything as demanding as Cyberpunk 2077).

In CPU-bound games, AMD’s Ryzen 9955HX processor shines bright with 16 cores and 32 threads, ensuring the Blackwell GPU can do its job without any major bottleneck. In synthetic tests, both single-core and multi-core scores soared above chips like Apple’s M1 Max in Cinebench 2024, and in real-world gaming tests, the results were consistent, as I didn’t notice anything ominous regarding performance frame rates and frame pacing.

Most importantly, MSI Center features three different user scenario modes: ECO-Silent, Balanced, and Extreme Performance, which can all be used in any of the three Discrete, MSHybrid, or Integrated Graphics modes.

For the best results, I stuck with Discrete Graphics mode, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised at how great ECO-Silent was, in particular. Using a lower TDP (power consumption), temperatures are significantly decreased, and the fans are silent, hence the name ECO-Silent – but I came away shocked at the frame rates I was hitting using this mode.

At 1600p on ECO-Silent, Cyberpunk 2077 at maximum graphics settings without ray tracing and DLSS Quality, it ran at a solid 77fps, sometimes reaching the low 80fps mark, with a 1% low of 66fps.

In Assassin’s Creed Shadows – a game that is arguably nearly as demanding on PC hardware as Cyberpunk 2077, and frankly, needs Frame Generation for higher FPS – ran at an average of 40fps on maximum graphics settings at 1600p, using DLSS Quality on ECO-Silent.

With the same graphics settings applied to Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, it hit an average of 62fps; if that doesn’t indicate how impressive ECO-Silent mode is, then I don’t know what will. It’s the best option for gamers who are bothered by fan noise and higher temperatures, while you still get very impressive performance results.

Call of Duty Black Ops 6: MSI Vector A18 HX A9W – YouTube

Watch On

It gets even better with Balanced and Extreme Performance; the former has fans only a little louder than ECO-Silent, and is the way you should use the Vector A18 HX A9W for gaming (it’s also MSI’s recommended option), as it gives you a true reflection of what this machine is capable of, evident in the performance charts above.

Sticking with Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Balanced mode was 41% faster than ECO-Silent, with an average of 94fps and 1% low at 77fps.

In the case of Extreme Performance, expect a whole lot of fan noise and higher temperatures, in favor of the best possible performance. In most cases of casual play, I hardly needed to use this mode, as the FPS boost wasn’t significant enough coming from Balanced mode. However, it’s absolutely essential for gaming at 4K, especially if you’re using ray tracing.

It mustn’t go without mention that DLSS Multi Frame Generation (when you have a decent base frame rate) is an absolute treat. It makes Cyberpunk 2077‘s Overdrive path tracing preset playable without needing to adjust graphics settings; yes, increased latency is worth noting, but I honestly didn’t think it was too impactful in this case.

MSI Vector A18 HX A9W: Battery

This heavy adapter is your best friend… forget about the battery (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams)

As it is with most gaming laptops I’ve used, the battery life isn’t terrible, but it’s also not great either – so, decent at best. We’re still seemingly a long way off from battery tech improving, especially for gaming laptops and handheld gaming PCs, but I give the Vector A18 HX A9W its plaudits for being at least average here.

It has a 99.9WHr battery, and switching MSI Center’s user scenarios, battery life can vary. While playing Resident Evil 4 remake on Hybrid mode and Extreme Performance, the laptop lasted a full hour, starting at 85% before draining. Knocking the scenario settings down to Discrete mode and Balanced (with 50% brightness) allowed it to last another 10 minutes from the same battery percentage.

If you ask me, I wouldn’t even bother gaming without the power adapter because, as expected, performance is significantly worse. Bear in mind, there’s a 400W power adapter ready to handle the combined 260W of power from the RTX 5080 and the Ryzen 9 9955HX.

On the other hand, while web surfing in Balanced mode and Integrated Graphics, results were a little bit more impressive; at 59% battery, it took exactly 51 minutes to fall to 6%. When at 100%, it lasted 3 hours and 25 minutes during YouTube playback, so it’s decent enough for those who want to use this laptop for work or multitasking.

However, the biggest downside is the charging time, as it takes a total of 2 hours to fully charge. It’s already not great that the battery drains within 3 hours outside of gaming, but the addition of a long charge time isn’t beneficial if you’re looking to use it while on the go.

Portability isn’t a strong suit, and these battery results are one of the main reasons why, especially when paired with the hefty design.

Should you buy the MSI Vector A18 HX A9W?

Buy it if…

Don’t buy if…

How I tested the MSI Vector A18 HX A9W

I tested the MSI Vector A18 HX A9W for three weeks, running multiple games and synthetic benchmarks. It kept me away from my main desktop gaming PC for a while, with Multi Frame Generation being a significant reason in why, and while I don’t want game developers to become over-reliant on Nvidia’s DLSS tech, it’s great when implemented properly.

Navigation and web browsing was a breeze too, with 32GB of RAM and a powerhouse CPU giving me all I needed to acknowledge that this was a gaming laptop that enthusiasts won’t want to miss out on.

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June 1, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

MSI China is so confident in its power supplies, its warranties now cover all your PC’s components

by admin May 30, 2025

MSI China has announced an extension of its warranty services, now offering full coverage of every component in a PC connected to a high-end MSI power supply. If an MSI 80+ Gold, Platinum, or Titanium power supply fails in mainland China and harms other PC components, MSI will now cover up to 100% of the replacement price of matching hardware.

In its original Bilibili post, MSI shares its commitment to “perfect after-sales support” in the Chinese mainland. If a malfunctioning MSI power supply results in damage to itself or other components in a client PC, MSI will provide a complete third-party inspection. On the receipt of all proof of purchase for each damaged component and the sign-off of the third-party inspection team, MSI will offer compensation to customers.

If a damaged PC component is a commercially available MSI product, a matching replacement will be offered. If the damaged component is a non-MSI product, a similar MSI product will be selected as an alternative. And if the component is no longer sold, MSI will offer cash compensation based on the remaining warranty time on the power supply. Within the first year of PSU purchase, customers will receive 100% compensation on unavailable parts, down to 90% in the second and third years of PSU operation, and 75% compensation until the end of the warranty period.