Verdict
The MSI Stealth 16 Studio is a sleek and lightweight auto that ’s one of the most attractive gaming laptops I ’ve had the pleasure of survey . But , with such a eminent monetary value and a dissatisfactory performance , its premium designing can only go so far .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
The MSI Stealth 16 Studio is a richly designed laptop computer that ’s packed with personality , but lacklustre when it comes to execution .
Unlike most of the behemoth back laptops out there , the MSI Stealth 16 Studio weighs in at a more than satisfactory 1.99 kg , with MSI encourage me to take it out on the go and have it double as a workplace equipment .
The thinner excogitation of the Stealth 16 Studio has n’t blockade it from have the mid - rangeRTX 4070GPU , as well as aRaptor LakeIntel i7processor . These specs ca n’t compare with the top - endAsus ROG Zephyrus G14 ( 2023 ) – which comes kitted out with theRTX 4090 – but it ’s a very fair combination for anyone desire to gage inQuad HD(1440p ) .
The $ 2549.99/£2399 price ticket has push it past the boundaries for thebest budget laptop , and the slaying may also keep it from making an appearance on our covetedbest gaming laptoproundup . Here ’s my revaluation .
Design and Keyboard
MSI ’s tagline for the Stealth 16 Studio is “ Slim , Sharp , Stylish ” . The accomplished beginning rhyme hits the nail mighty on the head , as the Studio 16 Stealth is one of the sleekest gaming laptop computer I ’ve had the pleasure of using .
The magnesium - aluminium alloy chassis is modern , polished and lightweight , with the gadget weigh 1.99 kilo . There ’s an understated lid – with no RGB inflammation in sight – and would utterly suit an office or university environment . My revaluation sample distribution came in the Star Blue colourway , but there is a more striking Pure White choice uncommitted , too .
The keyboard is very stylish , touting per - cardinal RGB lighting for intense customisation , accessible via the MSI Centre . The deep presses of the Florida key provided a satisfying click , which compound with the great amount of travel to make a very pleasant typing experience .
My only misgiving is that the keys are a little tumid . This ensue in some missteps while play and grammar mistake while typing , although I did acclimate to the size of it after using it for a few Day .
The large touchpad was antiphonal and smooth to the touch and was more than serviceable for Clarence Day - to - day work undertaking , although I would urge an extraneous computer mouse for gambling .
count the 19.95 mm slim form factor , MSI managed to grind away a lot of ports onto this laptop . It came with everything I needed to game comfortably : aHDMI 2.1input , USB - A3.2,USB - century , Thunderbolt 4 , a MicroSD Card Reader , anEthernet(RJ45 ) port wine and an audio shit .
MSI has not been vaunt the sustainability of this gimmick , so it ’s unlikely that it ’s been developed with the surroundings in thinker . However , the packaging was comprised entirely of composition board , with two small 4 LDPE charge card pouch to contain the wire . These pocket can be recycled in the UK , although you will need to contain with your local agency to find out where .
The laptop has a magnesium - atomic number 13 alloy chassis – which is one of the most eco - friendly metallic element it could be made of – with no listed materials for the ease of the gadget . TheHP Omen Transcend 16has a more transparent approach to sustainability , but it ’s exculpated that MSI has made some exertion in this section .
Display and Sound
There are three dissimilar screenland conformation when it comes to the Stealth 16 Studio ; Full HD+ ( 1920×1200 ) with 165Hzrefresh rate , Quad HD+ ( 2560×1600 ) at 240Hz and Ultra HD+ ( 3840×2400 ) at 120Hz . I examine the middle variation , which puts 4 kilobyte gaming out of the question but does tolerate me access to a high refresh rate .
sharpen on the manikin I test , the video display perform admirably . The QHD+ solvent allowed for crisp and sporting imagery in all scenarios and I did n’t regain myself yearning for a 4 kilobyte solving whilst binging through Lost .
I test the exhibit using a colourimeter and found that it had a unassailable peak luminance of 460nits . Creatives will also be interested to know that it score 98 % , 91 % and 98 % in thesRGB , Adobe RGBandDCI - P3gamuts , respectively , make it a reliable alternative for coloring material - sensitive work .
The high peak brightness and refresh pace meant that gameplay looked smooth and vivacious . My farm inStardew Valleywas packed with color and nuance and I did n’t remark any screen tearing or judder during my intensive bench mark inCyberpunk 2077 . My watch - through of Lost also see gorgeous ; the blues of the sea and greens of the jungle bolt down off the screen and a massive amount of detail in every snapshot , create a extremely immersive experience .
The audio was also fantabulous . The soundtrack of Lost felt impactful and balanced , with no torture on the high final stage and plenty of accent on the low end . Gaming was a interchangeable tale ; I could get word off - concealment cue in Batman Arkham Night and the phone of the urban center felt eery and enveloping .
Performance
I have tested a couple of gambling laptops in my fourth dimension and it ’s usually anticipate that laptop with similar internals will have a like carrying into action . In the case of the MSI Stealth 16 Studio , it falls behind its equal in a few key country , despite coming with an Intel Core i7 - 13620H and Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU .
My diligence benchmark resultant prove that the Stealth 16 Studio is lusterless in comparing to its peer ; it did get by to outpace theAsus TUF Gaming A15 ( 2023)and theLenovo Yoga Pro 9i 16on juncture , but it fell behind in most of my run .
I find that this laptop computer did bunk very loudly and got relatively raging when stressed , which could be attributed to some underlying strangulation issues . Interestingly , leaving a game on intermission for around 10 minutes caused the laptop computer to massively overheat , to the point where I felt like I needed to work it off , so I would n’t recommend leaving it out of work for too long .
The gaming - focused benchmarks were a similar story , but they came with a caveat . intelligibly , the Stealth 16 Studio could n’t liken to the RTX 4090 buried inside theAsus ROG Zephyrus G14 ( 2023 ) , but it struggle to keep up with the RTX 4060 and RTX 4070 laptops , too .
The RTX 4070 GPU inside the Stealth 16 Studio has a maximum TGP of 105W , which may explicate why the gaming performance is not on equivalence with other laptop computer in its range . The Alienware M16 comes with the same poster at 140W and the Razer Blade 14 – which comes with an RTX 4060 – can also reach up to 140W TGP . This low wattage understandably does n’t play into the Stealth 16 Studio ’s helping hand , as you may see from the FPS results below .
Interestingly , the Stealth 16 Studio does have a illusion up its sleeve , come in the form of Nvidia ’s DLSS . In my hacker 2077 tryout with DLSS enabled , it powered past every laptop computer other than the Lenovo Yoga Pro i9 16 , even beating out the RTX 4090 laptop computer by 15fps . This wo n’t be a benefit that impacts all secret plan , but it ’s skillful to acknowledge that the Stealth 16 Studio can take on irradiation tracing , provided DLSS is enabled .
During my playthrough of Stardew Valley , I did find some lagging and browsing the web felt slow than I would gestate for such potent internals . compare to similar play laptops that I ’ve tested , the Stealth 16 Studio did feel slightly deadening in comparison and I would say that its main strengths lie in in its screen and aesthetics rather than its raw big businessman .
The functioning of the SSD was more telling , but I do n’t believe it can make up for the aforementioned benchmarking upshot . My tests come up out at 7108.92MB / s understand and 5266.79MB / s write , which is on par , if not above , many of its key competitor . Due to my specific workload , these overconfident SSD oodles did not impact my experience with this laptop , but it would be handy for anyone who regularly transfers a lot of files .
Software
In terms of software , the main attraction of the Stealth 16 Studio is the MSI Centre . It can be used to monitor hardware , agree on the GPU usage and see how much memory is left over on the machine .
I was a slight disappointed by the customisation setting ; per - key keyboard customisation was n’t too extensive and navigating the app was more inept than I expected . There is a circle of extra software that can be download here that is related to gaming , subject matter creation , work , education and more , which I did take account .
Battery Life
In terms of endurance , the Stealth 16 Studio was a reliable machine , especially since it comes with a dedicated GPU . My tests showed that this laptop computer is capable of endure for 6 hours and 1 moment for a productivity work load .
This puts it almost wholly on equation with the 1 hour and 3 minute of arc of theHP Omen Transcent 16 , but it does fall well below the 10 hours and 18 minutes of theRazer Blade 14 ( 2023 ) . During a playthrough of Stardew Valley , the shelling send away from 89 % to 10 % in just under two hour , although it did automatically enable battery saver mode at 40 % .
The endurance of the Stealth 16 Studio will depend on some other gene , like what game you ’re trifle , the luminousness of the screen and if the RGB keyboard is enabled , but it should be more than serviceable for most gamers .
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Should you buy it?
The MSI Stealth 16 Studio ( 2023 ) is lightweight for a gaming political machine and very sleek . The per - key RGB keyboard is very stylish and feels great to type on , and its stamp battery will get you through an hour or two of gaming without demand a bearing .
Looking past the aesthetics , the Stealth 16 Studio is a very expensive car and comes with a couple of brabble performance issues . It run very hot and feel slower to habituate than some of its peers .
Final Thoughts
The MSI Stealth 16 Studio ( 2023 ) is a premix of heights and lows ; the QHD display is fantastically immersive , offer me with clear and crisp visuals while streaming medium content and playing games . The vast regalia of ports entail I never had to reach for a dongle and the loud and punchy speakers allowed me to forgo any gambling headset or outside utterer .
However , the performance of the Stealth 16 Studio did forget something to be want . Lagging and slow load times while graze the web made this laptop computer feel much slower than it should , especially when you consider the above £ 2000/$2000 asking price . That ’s not to say that it ca n’t run three-fold - A secret plan at a reliable frame rate , but you ’re likely to incur some stuttering along the fashion .
If you ’re wait for something that strikes a not bad balance between portability and carrying into action then theAsus ROG Zephyrus G14 ( 2023)is one of the best options out there , and theAsus TUF Gaming A15is a wild selection if you require to save some money . For even more options , take a look at ourbest gaming laptoproundup .
Trusted Score
How we test
Every laptop we look back go through a series of uniform checks designed to approximate key things , including build quality , carrying into action , screen quality and battery life .
These include formal synthetical benchmarks and scripted tests , plus a serial of real - existence substantiation , such as how well it runs pop apps .
FAQs
Yes , the MSI Stealth 16 Studio does have a per - key RGB keyboard that can be adjusted in the companion software .
The MSI Stealth 16 Studio depleted by 80 % in two hours during a gameplay session .
During my test period , the MSI Stealth 16 Studio get very loud and red-hot during benchmarking , but this job was not as apparent during gameplay sessions .
Test Data
Full Specs
