While the CPU and dGPU offer excellent value for this price, do not expect too much from the build quality and the display, as this is still a budget-oriented system after all. Also worth mentioning are the DDR5-5200 speeds on the 16 GB RAM and the 1 TB PCIe 4.0 SSD.
Just when we thought RTX 4070 laptops cannot slip under ~$1,200 after Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Best Buy comes to the rescue with an absolute steal of a deal for the MSI Crosshair that is now down to $1,099.99. Since this is one of MSI’s budget-oriented lineups, the screen and build quality are lacking as per usual, but the actual hardware components still offer the best value right now.
The 16-inch display is not terrible by any means as it offers an IPS panel with 1080p resolution, 144 Hz refresh rate and 350 nit max brightness, plus it gets a MUX switch. The only downside is the limited color gamut of 55% sRGB, which does not recommend it for content creation.
Under the hood, we find a decent Intel i7-13620H complemented by 16 GB of DDR5-5200 RAM and 1 TB PCIe 4.0 SSD storage. The dGPU side features an RTX 4070 with 8 GB VRAM and 115 W TGP, which should be enough to unlock the full graphics potential of this SKU.
At this price point, Thunderbolt 4 is out of the question. The port selection is not particularly exciting, as it features only 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen1 with DP mode, 2x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1, 1x USB 2.0, HDMI 2.1 video out, 1 GbE jack and audio combo jack. Wireless connectivity is offered through an Intel Wi-Fi 6 +BT 5.2 card.
The system is a bit heavier at over 5 lbs, but that is because MSI included a hefty 90 Wh battery for longer uptimes even when the dGPU is firing full power.
Disclaimer: Notebookcheck is not responsible for price changes carried out by retailers. The discounted price or deal mentioned in this item was available at the time of writing and may be subject to time restrictions and/or limited unit availability.
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Bogdan Solca – Senior Tech Writer – 2195 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2017
I first stepped into the wondrous IT&C world when I was around seven years old. I was instantly fascinated by computerized graphics, whether they were from games or 3D applications like 3D Max. I’m also an avid reader of science fiction, an astrophysics aficionado, and a crypto geek. I started writing PC-related articles for Softpedia and a few blogs back in 2006. I joined the Notebookcheck team in the summer of 2017 and am currently a senior tech writer mostly covering processor, GPU, and laptop news.
Bogdan Solca, 2023-12- 6 (Update: 2023-12- 6)
