MSI Cyborg 15 Review: Translucent Gaming Laptop With Equally Cloudy Performance

Execs

• Playable framerates for low value
• Comparatively light-weight
• Funky design with translucent accents

Cons

• Restricted efficiency from 45-watt RTX 4050
• Boring show
• No RGB lighting
• Grainy 720p webcam
• No Thunderbolt 4 ports

The MSI Cyborg 15 is among the most inexpensive methods to get an Nvidia GeForce RTX 40-series gaming laptop computer. It is an entry-level mannequin with a primary, 15.6-inch, 1080p, 144Hz show powered by a Thirteenth-gen Core H-series CPU with RTX 4050 graphics. The Cyborg 15 affords few frills and a stage of efficiency that lags behind different price range gaming laptops with higher-wattage RTX 4050 GPUs, nevertheless it supplies playable body charges for anybody in search of a gaming laptop computer on the tightest of budgets.

It is not unusual to search out an RTX 4050 gaming laptop computer for lower than $1,000, however such a machine not often dips as little as $800. And that is almost what the MSI Cyborg 15 is from Amazon. On the time of this overview, it was obtainable for $869 however was as little as $812 a month in the past. The Cyborg 15 is not a superb purchase at its listing value of $1,000 however turns into extra enticing as the worth inches nearer to $800. The factor is, higher price range gaming fashions additionally go on sale. As an illustration, an RTX 4050-based Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 is a greater deal at its frequent sale value of $850 or $900 at Greatest Purchase. And an RTX 4060-based MSI Cyborg 15 mannequin at Greatest Purchase can generally be had for less than $750.

MSI sells a wide range of configurations of the Cyborg 15, providing a mixture of Twelfth- and Thirteenth-gen Intel Core i5 and i7 processors and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 and 4060 graphics however just one show possibility: a 15.6-inch, 16:9 show with a 1,920×1,080-pixel decision and a 144Hz refresh fee. Our check system is accessible for $1,000 at Costco and $869 at Amazon and contains a Core i7-13620H processor, 16GB of RAM, RTX 4050 graphics and a 512GB SSD. 

That is a high-quality lineup for the cash, however the RTX 4050 has decrease whole graphics energy than competing laptops with the identical GPU. It has a TGP of solely 45 watts, which is only a fraction of the 140-watt RTX 4050 you get with the Acer Nitro 16 or Acer Predator Helios Neo 16. The HP Victus 16 has an RTX 4050 at 120 watts, and the Lenovo LOQ 82XT has an RTX 4050 at 95 watts. As you will see within the subsequent part, the Cyborg 15’s lower-wattage GPU landed it close to or behind the pack on our lab assessments.

The MSI Cyborg 15 begins at £1,249 within the UK and AU$2,199 in Australia.

RTX 4050 at 45W

We examined the Cyborg 15 alongside 4 different price range gaming laptops with RTX 4050 graphics. As talked about above, its GPU is ready to run at a a lot decrease energy restrict than the others. The TGP of the RTX 4050 GPU might be configured between 35 and 115 watts, and an extra 10 to 25 watts might be added by way of Dynamic Enhance from the CPU. So, setting it to a most of 45 watts is nicely beneath its full capability.

Thermal issues are one motive a producer may set a GPU to a decrease TGP. Should you put an RTX 4050 right into a compact and skinny enclosure, a decrease TGP will end in much less warmth output and assist stop the laptop computer from overheating. The Cyborg 15 is not notably compact or skinny, nevertheless it does have solely a single cooling fan. This association is likely to be a cost-saving measure to permit MSI to cost the Cyborg 15 on the decrease finish of the worth scale for RTX 4050 laptops.

And whereas the Cyborg 15 is among the least expensive RTX 4050 laptops, it is also one of many slowest. On our software and graphics assessments, it completed both final or subsequent to final, excluding Geekbench 6, the place it positioned third. (Scroll to the tip of the overview to see the outcomes of our efficiency assessments.)

It managed to squeak previous the Lenovo LOQ 82XT on our Guardians of the Galaxy benchmark, averaging 100 frames per second at 1080p with high quality settings on Excessive. And it could actually’t be ignored that it completed lifeless final on The Riftbreaker GPU and Shadow of the Tomb Raider assessments — and by a substantial margin on every check. Nevertheless it’s not all unhealthy information: v-pre Even in final place, it nonetheless averaged a playable 75 fps on Shadow of the Tomb Raider at 1080p on the Highest settings.

You may suppose its lower-wattage GPU may enable for an extended battery life, however that wasn’t the case. The Cyborg 15 barely cleared the five-hour mark on our on-line streaming battery drain check, which was the shortest runtime of this group by greater than an hour. The whir from the Cyborg 15’s single fan by no means acquired too loud, and the rear half of the laptop computer grew to become heat after enjoying for some time however by no means acquired so sizzling that it was uncomfortable.

Icy blue translucence

The defining attribute of the Cyborg 15’s design is its translucent accents. Ten keys on the keyboard, the show hinges and the underside panel are made out of translucent plastic. On the keyboard, the WASD keys, 4 arrow keys, spacebar and energy button enable an icy blue to shine by means of. The whole keys for the WASD keys and energy button are translucent, and parts of the arrow keys and spacebar get this remedy. Mixed with the funky font on the keys, the translucent keys give the Cyborg 15’s look a little bit of an edge.

The underside panel is translucent, however the impact is muted as a result of, nicely, how typically are you wanting on the backside of your laptop computer? It might be extra enjoyable to see the interior elements, however your view is blocked by a skinny coating of silver paint on the within of the underside panel. As an alternative of getting a view of the motherboard or cooling system, you’re greeted on the underside panel with massive lettering that spells out MSI TRUE GAMING within the venting. And thru the vents, you’ll be able to see a number of the copper warmth pipes and motherboard circuitry. The underside panel does wrap across the aspect edges of the Cyborg 15, and there you’ll be able to see a number of the laptop computer’s inside workings. 

Like the opposite price range fashions talked about earlier, the Cyborg 15 contains a plastic keyboard deck and backside panel however provides some sturdiness to the general bundle with an aluminum high cowl to guard the show. There is not any lighting on the highest panel, only a delicate MSI dragon emblem. The perimeters of the highest panel are additionally made out of the identical translucent plastic as the underside panel and wrap round some parts of the lid so as to add some distinction to the matte-black aluminum — specifically, the underside edge between the hinges, a bump in the course of the highest edge close to the webcam and one of many high corners.

The Cyborg 15 is likely to be a little bit of a light-weight by way of efficiency when considered towards competing RTX 4050 laptops, nevertheless it’s additionally actually light-weight. It weighs simply 4.5 kilos, which is almost a full pound lighter than the 15.6-inch Lenovo LOQ 82XT that weighs 5.4 kilos. The Acer Nitro 16 or Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 function bigger 16-inch, 16:10 shows, and every weighs 5.7 kilos. Impressively, the 16-inch, 16:10 HP Victus 16 weighs solely 5.2 kilos.

Apart from the translucent keys, the keyboard is the usual fare. The keys really feel fast with shallow journey, however some avid gamers may desire deeper journey with a extra satisfying response. The 4 arrow keys are all full-size, which is all the time preferable to half-height keys. The keyboard affords three-level backlighting, however you had higher just like the icy blue colour as a result of there isn’t any possibility to alter to a different colour. To be truthful, whereas you will discover one- or four-zone RGB lighting on price range gaming laptops, a single colour at this value is not uncommon. The touchpad feels a bit undersized however suffices for navigating Home windows with a clean, matte floor and agency click on response.

Boring show, weak audio system, grainy webcam

The Cyborg 15’s show marks the system as decidedly entry-level. The perfect factor it has going for it’s the 144Hz refresh fee, which is quicker than the usual 60Hz fee. The quickest panel you will get on a price range gaming laptop computer is 165Hz, and the distinction between 144Hz and 165Hz is slight to imperceptible. Video games regarded sharp and clean at 1080p, however colours regarded uninteresting due to the panel’s lack of brightness. I measured peak brightness with a Spyder X Elite colorimeter at solely 266 nits. Competing fashions I examined boast noticeably brighter and extra vibrant shows, together with the Lenovo LOQ 82XT (343 nits), Acer Nitro 16 (424 nits) and Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 (442 nits).

The webcam is one other clue to the Cyborg 15’s price range standing. It is a grainy, 720p digital camera that struggles to show a balanced picture, even in first rate mild. MSI outfits the Cyborg 15 with a pair of 2-watt audio system, which is the minimal providing on any laptop computer. Not surprisingly, they provide tinny sound with nothing in the best way of bass response. In different phrases, hold your headphones useful.

The laptop computer affords all kinds of ports, with one notable omission. You get one USB-C port, a pair of USB-A ports, an HDMI port, an Ethernet port and a headphone jack. What’s lacking is Thunderbolt 4 help; the lone USB-C port is of the USB 3.2 Gen 1 selection that gives solely 5Gbps switch speeds. That is a tiny fraction of the 40Gbps you’d get with Thunderbolt 4. Once more, this is not unusual to lose at its value, however going as much as Gen 2 can be good as a result of it at the least doubles the switch pace. 

The uninteresting show and underpowered RTX 4050 GPU are the most important drawbacks to the MSI Cyborg 15. There are higher choices that, when on sale, are too near the Cyborg 15’s bargain-basement value to cross up. If the Cyborg 15 saved you $200 in contrast with better-performing RTX 4050 laptops, then a superb argument could possibly be made for it. The Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 PHN16-71 is regularly obtainable at Greatest Purchase for $850 or $900. At that value, it is a no-brainer to go for it over the Cyborg 15 as a result of it affords an even bigger and brighter show and superior 3D efficiency because of its RTX 4050 working at a full 140 watts. 

As with every price range laptop computer, corners get reduce to lower the worth. For us, there is a bit an excessive amount of lacking right here. However, in case your price range does not stretch past $800 and also you just like the look of the Cyborg 15, then the RTX 4060-based mannequin at Greatest Purchase is the higher purchase when you will discover it on sale. I’ve seen it as little as $750 with an enormous $350 low cost.