MSI GE66 RAIDER
Raiders of the lost laptop
LET’S NOT BEAT about the bush here: for us, MSI’s laptops are sometimes hit and miss. Performance is always solid, with all the latest tech crammed inside the chassis, but the chassis is often the problem; chunky, ugly plastic casings and poor display choices mar what would otherwise have been excellent laptops.
The Raider GE66 is the successor to the GE65, a laptop that essentially reviewed everywhere as “really good, but looks a bit terrible.” The GE66 doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from its predecessors in that arena, but it does make several key improvements elsewhere.
The big pull here is a shiny new 10thgeneration Intel processor, specifically the i9-10980HK in our review model (other configurations are available). That’s bringing eight high-speed cores to the party, which combined with the RTX 2080 Super Max-Q GPU and 32GB of memory makes for one seriously competitive gaming laptop. It’s not the most powerful on the market, but for $2,700 it’s a reasonable proposition that can handle 1440p and even 4K gaming. The GPU also gives us access to raytracing in selected games, but it’s not really worth the hit to frame rates and will make this Raider noisy as hell.
Let’s talk about noise, actually. With its 15.6-inch screen and flat SteelSeriesbrand keyboard, the GE66 is surprisingly compact. Unfortunately, this means that heat buildup can be an issue—you won’t be able to game with this laptop on your lap. The twin fans on the underside go hard when the system is under load, screaming at full speed the whole way through our benchmarking process.
So it’s powerful, but loud; not much different to most high-end gaming laptops we look at, then. But don’t worry, MSI has other ways to make the GE66 stand out from the crowd. The 300Hz display is a good starting point, guaranteeing the crisp frame rates that are a must-have for serious esports gamers. A highspeed 1TB M.2 SSD means that lengthy load times are a thing of the past, while the upgraded 1080p webcam is great for impromptu streaming or Zoom calls.
IT’S THE MILEAGE
One of the most-touted upgrades to the Raider is the new battery, which is a whopping 99.9Whr unit. This battery can handle two entire movies or a good few hours of gaming between charges, which combined with the new (slightly) lighter design makes the GE66 a fair bit more portable than previous Raiders. Performance is obviously a bit better when plugged in, but it’s still impressive. Why 99.9Whr, you ask? Well, a 100Whr battery can’t legally be transported as checked luggage on international flights, so that acts as a sort of soft limit for what laptop manufacturers can sensibly produce and roll out.
The trackpad is a tad smaller than we’d like, but that’s not a deal-breaker. The keyboard benefits from SteelSeries’s RGB lighting software, which also links to the funky lightbar spread along the base of the chassis. We were apprehensive about the latter addition, but the lighting is actually quite subtle, creating a soft glow that appears to spill out from under the laptop. The keys themselves have a reasonable amount of travel and good physical response.
Despite its improved portability, the Raider GE66 retains a desktopreplacement port layout. USB ports and the 3.5mm headphone jack are easily accessible at the sides, but charging, Ethernet, and display ports are all situated on the rear for easy cable management at your desk. Unfortunately, this doesn’t look great; the GE66 keeps the chunky rear segment seen on other powerful MSI laptops, rather than positioning the screen hinge all the way at the end of the chassis base.
Besides the outdated plastic chassis, though, the GE66 is a strong choice of gaming laptop. Our only other criticism would be the underpowered speakers, but given the price point we can’t complain too much. They’re lackluster but perfectly functional. Beyond that, it’s easy enough to recommend this Raider.
8 VERDICT
INDIANA JONES Solid all-round performance; bright 300Hz display; powerful battery.
MSI Raider GE66 10SGS
RENE BELLOQ Fans are noisy; runs hot; chassis is still ugly.
$2,700, msi.comm