I would select this Windows gaming PC over different professional laptops for work – here is why

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The MSI Katana 15 HX B14W is on sale for $999.
• It’s a powerful midrange laptop computer housing the most recent GPU from Nvidia.
• However, the gaming expertise is hampered by the unimpressive show.

extra shopping for decisions

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15-inch laptops occupy that candy spot within the laptop computer world: they are not as compact as 14-inch laptops, however they are not as cumbersome as 16-inch machines, both. Still, shoppers are inclined to gravitate towards the opposite two sizes, which is a disgrace as a result of 15-inch laptops ship a really balanced expertise for my part. 

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This is the place the MSI Katana 15 HX B14W is available in. At a look, the Katana appears like a run-of-the-mill gaming laptop computer. But it is distinctive in quite a lot of methods, specifically that it’s a 15-inch midrange gaming laptop computer housing next-gen {hardware}.

Blocky design

The very first thing you may discover with MSI’s Katana 15 HX is its heft. It measures 14.13 x 10.21 x 1 inches and weighs 5.3 kilos. Much of its thick body is accentuated with geometric shapes that make the laptop computer seem cumbersome. I do not suppose the machine can deal with plenty of roughhousing, however it’s powerful sufficient to resist the bumps that include touring.

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On the underside half of the laptop computer is a 4-Zone RGB full-size keyboard with translucent WASD keys. Each cap has a journey distance of 1.7mm, permitting for lighter key presses and good analog suggestions. Below is a touchpad that MSI says is 31% bigger than the earlier technology. Together, the Katana 15’s keyboard and touchpad make for a good pair. Nothing groundbreaking, however they handle to ship an enticing expertise.

I used to be given the low-end configuration for testing. I do know this as a result of, in response to an organization consultant, there are two variations of the laptop computer, one in every of which has a Full HD (1920 x 1080), 144Hz show that helps simply 45% of the NTSC colour gamut. As a end result, colours had been tremendous boring. It made video games like “Spyro Reignited Trilogy”, a title identified for its pastel array, look washed out. The saving grace is that 144Hz is a stable refresh fee. It ensured Spyro’s animations ran easily.

The different configuration has a significantly better Quad HD (2560 x 1440), 165Hz show that helps your entire PCI-P3 colour area, so outputs are extra vibrant. I’m admittedly conflicted on how one can really feel concerning the bezels across the glass. On one hand, I’m not a fan of the thick body encroaching on the display. But on the similar time, I notice that they defend the show, and thinner bezels would give the display a bizarre facet ratio.

What we’re right here for

Gaming is the place the MSI Katana 15 actually shines. Under the hood is an Intel Core i7-14650HX processor, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5050 graphics card with 8GB of GDDR7 VRAM, plus 16GB of RAM. Compared to different up to date fashions, it is a fairly light-weight configuration, so it might battle to run sure video games at their highest graphical settings. 

For instance, I had some bother enjoying Monster Hunter Wilds with high-resolution textures enabled. But should you’re keen to decrease the settings a bit, you will not have any bother enjoying your favorites.

I additionally had a terrific expertise enjoying Hollow Knight: Silksong. The 144Hz refresh fee let me see enemy assaults as they rolled in. And should you’ve paid consideration to current complaints, having body fee is a should as a result of Silksong would not pull any punches. 

As a lot enjoyable as I had, I could not recover from the boring show. I used to be capable of get my combos out in model in King of Fighters 15, however the sheer lack of colour actually dampened the expertise. 

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Inside the MSI Katana 15 is the corporate’s Cooler Boost 5, which retains inside temperatures low and expels warmth by means of the vents situated on the left, rear, and backside sides. If you peek by means of the underside vent, you possibly can even see the copper pipes. Cooler Boost 5 does a terrific job preserving the laptop computer’s floor cool even when inside temperatures attain 120 levels Celsius. However, this does imply the followers are actually loud — loud sufficient to roll over the sport’s audio. 

For a gaming laptop computer, its battery life is respectable. Using the MSI Center app, I adjusted the laptop computer’s output to concentrate on longevity, and I used to be capable of recover from 5 hours out of the Katana 15 earlier than tapping out.

Cutting by means of work

Outside of gaming, the Katana 15HX is a stable laptop computer for inventive work, as modifying software program particularly advantages tremendously from the {hardware}. For testing, I edited a number of high-resolution photographs in Photoshop. The course of went clean as could be with the laptop computer dealing with a number of layers, results, filters, and file exports with none slowdown.

I then hopped over to Figma to see how properly it may deal with creating posters. Again, it did nice for the reason that {hardware} allowed me to regulate wonderful particulars like typography in addition to draw on my initiatives with out lag, making certain that the ultimate design got here collectively seamlessly.

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If you propose to make use of MSI’s laptop computer for work, I strongly advocate paying additional for the Quad HD model. The boring show on the bottom mannequin holds it again a lot that I am unable to actually see the Katana 15 excel in different areas exterior of gaming and informal utilization. That being mentioned, you could possibly all the time join it to a high-quality exterior monitor. 

Above is a desk showcasing the MSI Katana 15’s benchmark outcomes in opposition to related fashions. You’ll discover that it boasts spectacular numbers, acting at an analogous stage to the others and even outperforming them in sure areas. What’s notably notable is that it is considerably cheaper.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

The MSI Katana 15 HX B14W usually retails for $1,200; nonetheless, on the time of this writing, it is at present on sale at Walmart for $999. The retailer can be offering three free provide offers with buy, together with a free four-month subscription to Apple Music.

At $1,000, I can wholeheartedly advocate this laptop computer, regardless of the problems I had with it. It excels at being a well-performing, midrange gaming machine that makes some trade-offs for its approachable worth, however efficiency is correct the place it must be.