Gaming: Upcoming Msi Vector A18 Hx Review
This kind of gaming (or engineering) laptop deserves a solid place to stand, from where it can move the Earth. The combination of CPU and GPU power means there's nothing it can’t do, except run on battery for more than about an hour.
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This review is, if I can read a spreadsheet correctly, the first time this site has assessed a laptop containing the Ryzen 9 9955HX. So if you’ve ever wanted one of AMD’s thundering 16-core Zen 5 chips in your portable(ish) PC, this is your chance. It’s fast, though not 9950X3D fast. An unfair comparison considering the desktop chip doesn’t have to deal with the constrained thermal envelope and limited power draw of a laptop, and the 3D V-Cache really does make a difference.
Despite the rainbow keyboard and presence of an RTX 5080 GPU, you’ll be surprised to hear this this isn’t a gaming laptop. MSI positions it as “engineered for the demands of STEM professionals,” which probably doesn’t mean gardeners, and then takes a puff on some burning leaves to huskily exhale the phrase “it operates like a high-tech brain”.
The Vector A18 HX may well “deliver the performance and reliability engineers need to excel in every challenge,” but luckily for us it also delivers the kind of frame rates that make PC gamers very happy, and is so obviously a gaming laptop in an unconvincing disguise with its 240 Hz display, seven heat pipes, and two fans to keep it all cool. We’d be amazed if any actual work gets done if someone pulls it out at a meeting about building a bridge or some other towering concrete structure.
CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 9955HXGPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080RAM: 32 GB DDR5-5600Storage: 2 TB SSDScreen: 18-inch IPS, 2560 x 1600Networking: Wi-Fi 7Connectivity: 2x USB 4, 1x USB 3.2 Type-A, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x EthernetDimensions: 404 x 307.5 x 32 mmWeight: 3.6 kgPrice: $3,000/£3,199
Being an 18-inch laptop, the Vector A18 HX is a bit of a towering concrete structure itself. You’re not going to want to pass it one-handed to your engineering colleague, even if it is their turn to play Kerbal Space Program. At 3.6 kg it weighs the same as an adult sloth or about a dozen mangoes, and if you’ve ever tried lugging either of those around with you you’ll know how heavy they can get.
The enormous 400 W power brick only adds to the burden, though luck
Source: PC Gamer
