MSI’s new GS65 Stealth-006 is a gaming laptop that is priced lower than its past models and adds some great features.
On modern titles, frame rates won’t hit the heights of the pricey Razer Blade 15 but our review unit still delivers greater-than-60fps in triple-A games and a 144Hz refresh rate is more than enough. And, we find the Stealth-006 is worthy of a coveted place on our list of best midrange gaming laptops.
Pros
- +Attractive, subtle design
- +Gorgeous, fast display
- +Excellent performance
- +Effective thermal management
Cons
- –Underside gets burning hot
- –Forthcoming biometric login
- –Poor native audio
Key Specification
| CPU | Intel i7-8750H | |||
| CPU | Cores 6 | |||
| RAM Size | 16GB | |||
| GPU | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 | |||
| SSD Capacity | 512GB | |||
| Screen Size | 15.6″ | |||
| Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | |||
| Panel Type | IPS | |||
| Refresh Rate | 144Hz |
Design
What makes this computer different is the attractive matte black frame, with a gold accent around the touchpad. It has ventilation on the hinge, and the MSI logo on the lid. MSI created an ultra-portable laptop with a wide focus on gaming, making it more attractive to consumers.
It’s not as flashy as our other laptops. It has subtle curves and red LEDs across the chassis, which you can use in a variety of ways.
The MSI GS65 Stealth has a premium, lightweight design. It weighs only 4.14 pounds and is 17 percent thinner than the Asus ROG Zephyrus GX501, which weighs 4.97 pounds and is 0.7 inches thick – until the MSI GF65 Thin happened to change that.
The bike messenger bag is designed to fit easily into any backpack which makes it a safe and convenient option for long commutes. MSI decided to use a thin and lightweight design because it didn’t want to sacrifice the eight hours of battery life and Ethernet port.
Display
The Stealth’s screen has a 1920 x 1080 resolution and only a refresh rate of 144 Hz. While I was still wishing for more, I appreciated the quality of this monitor. I marveled over the rainbow of colors in the short, like the pink and green neon holographic controls.
Keyboard and Touchpad
MSI managed to pack plenty of ports and a SteelSeries keyboard with good travel and very comfortable feedback into its thin profile, making it perfect for people who enjoy PC gaming.
The keyboard is below the glass-coated touchpad, which prevents accidental touches. The three-fan Cooler Boost Trinity adds to the attention to detail that went into crafting the Stealth.
MSI added space between the base and the speaker grill, which provides room for bigger speakers.
Features And Configurations
The MSI Stealth Thin laptop is available in many configurations. It has the same resolution, but some have a Geforce GTX 1060 or GeForce GTX 1660 Ti and differ with RAM and storage amounts. It delivers powerful gaming performance without breaking your wallet.
For gamers looking for an ultra-thin gaming laptop, the Stealth series offers a wide selection to match your needs. Our review model, the -006 is outfitted with a full HD (1920 x 1080) 144Hz screen, 16GB RAM, RTX 2060 GPU, and 512GB SSD NVMe storage.
Though it has a thin footprint, the Mac Pro’s I/O ports provide excellent functionality. The Mac Pro features an Ethernet jack, two USB 3.1 ports, one USB-C port with Thunderbolt 3, and an HDMI port as well as a Mini DisplayPort on the right and left panel respectively. Killer E2500 Chipset gives gamers the priority it deserves along with Dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0 for lag-free gaming.
Performance
The increase in performance of the GS65 is due to the Intel “Coffee Lake” processor. If you are interested in machines with this new processor, you will want to check out the Acer Predator Triton 500 or the newer Intel Core i7-9750H.
The Intel Core i7 chip used here is an eighth-generation processor that gets better scores than its predecessor with the addition of two more cores.
By adding two more cores, it will render files without lagging. The tests use synthetic benchmarks that only measure general 3D aptitude. Games, however, will have the most accurate scores for testing the gaming performance of a laptop. Both of these games are available in the higher presets on new-generation consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One.
The popular games, Far Cry 5 and Rise of the Tomb Raider, can be run at 1080p with moderate and maximum graphics-quality presets. Rise of the Tomb Raider can be fired to DirectX 12, which isn’t always possible when Far Cry 5 is fired to DirectX 11.
With its 1080p capabilities, the MSI GS65 delivers smooth gameplay in normal settings. On the other hand, in ultra settings, the game performance deteriorates to 82 fps. The Tomb Raider franchise game is capable of delivering smooth gameplay even in medium settings and high levels.
The Acer Predator Helios 500 has better graphics than the MSI with the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660Ti graphic card. The RTX 2060 has some technical advantages, but it may not justify an additional cost given the lower performance of GTX 1660 Ti-based computers.
The RTX 2060 can’t make use of ray tracing like the top-end RTX 2070, while the RTX 2080 variants are still much smoother.
The performance of the RTX cards is about equal to the non-RTX cards, so the added cost isn’t really worth it. It’s not worth spending the extra money on this laptop.
Battery Life
If you’re new to gaming, you might not be aware of the lack of battery life in high-end laptops. The MSI Stealth-006 breaks that paradigm, and other models like the MSI GS75 Stealth, Asus Zephyrus and Alienware 15 do as well.
The new battery life is more than 4 hours and it has a single charge that can last up to 8 hours. This allows for a better gaming laptop than the vast majority of them on the market, but there is still room to grow.
Final Thoughts
The MSI Stealth-006 has a modern design, decent processing power and modest GPU power, promising 60+ fps on modern AAA titles. It’s alternatives around this price are either better or similar in terms of performance and features, but battery life varies among solutions.
You can find the MSI Stealth Thin configuration for less than the MSI GS65 Stealth-006. But be aware, some configurations may not suit your preferences.
