The MSI GE63 Raider RGB 8RE may not win many design awards – despite its RGB additions – but it is a perfectly decent option for those seeking a powerful 15-inch gaming laptop.
It’ll happily romp through any day to day computing tasks and provides reliable gaming performance at its native 1080p resolution.
The use of a 120Hz screen also significantly raises its gaming chops, making this an excellent machine for those seeking a portable competitive gaming rig.
As well as good gaming performance you get a nice range of connectivity, decent speakers, good upgradability and a reasonable typing and trackpad experience.
The main area of concern as regards performance is the storage. Upgrading both the M.2 SSD and the 1TB HDD (to an SSD) would be tempting options, warranty concerns not withstanding, as the SSD is not very fast compared to the drives found in some rival laptops.
Battery life is also nothing to write home about. Few gaming laptops excel in this regard so it’s not a surprise but having just two hours of time away from a socket is going to feel limiting for some users.
Meanwhile, the styling and build quality is okay but the addition of RGB certainly isn’t a deal maker. In fact, the use of keys with an open side that lets more of the backlighting shine out is particularly distracting. An altogether more subtle approach would get our vote – but then again, you may love RGB lighting, in which case the MSI GE63 Raider RGB 8RE will almost certainly appeal.
You can buy one for £1379.99 from eBuyer HERE.
Pros
- 120Hz screen great for gaming.
- Good all round performance.
- Good value.
- Decent speakers.
- Good connectivity options.
Cons
- Overall styling slightly underwhelming.
- Not for ‘RGB heathens'.
- US-style key layout.
KitGuru says: RGB may be the headline selling point of this laptop but in reality it’s the core basics it gets right that make it.