The Acer Swift X offers better portability, longer battery life, and comes at a more affordable price, making it suitable for general use and light engineering work. On the other hand, the MSI Stealth GS66, despite being heavier and having a shorter battery life, provides significantly better performance for gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning, and intensive engineering tasks. It also has a higher refresh rate display which is advantageous for fast-motion visuals. Therefore, choose the Acer Swift X if you prioritize portability and value, and the MSI Stealth GS66 if you need top performance for demanding tasks and gaming. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Acer Swift X (2022)
Very good portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Stealth GS66
Very good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.6/10
7.8/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Swift X (2022) is only fair.
The Acer Swift X (2022) has an RTX 3050 GPU which offers fair performance for gaming and 3D tasks, while the MSI Stealth GS66 is equipped with the more powerful RTX 3070 Ti, providing better performance in these areas. Additionally, the MSI laptop has a much higher screen refresh rate, enhancing the gaming experience by making action smoother, compared to the Acer's lower refresh rate which is less optimal for fast-paced games.
Engineering and Design
7.5/10
8.2/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Stealth GS66 is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Swift X (2022) is good.
The MSI Stealth GS66 stands out for engineering and design use due to its more powerful Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti GPU and higher performance Intel i7-12700H CPU compared to the Acer Swift X's RTX 3050 and i7-1260P, ensuring better handling of demanding software applications. However, the Acer Swift X offers better portability with its lighter weight and longer battery life, but it compromises on screen refresh rate and maximum display brightness, which are lower than the MSI Stealth GS66.
Screen Quality
7.0/10
8.1/10
14.0in
SIZE
15.6in
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
330.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
The Acer Swift X has a better screen than the MSI Stealth GS66 for software development, while the MSI Stealth GS66 has a better screen for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
When considering a laptop for general use, both the Acer Swift X and the MSI Stealth GS66 offer displays with sufficient resolution and brightness, providing users with clear and vivid visuals for everyday tasks. For engineering and design professionals who require accurate color reproduction, both laptops deliver on this front with good coverage of color gamuts, ensuring that designers see precise colors. However, for gaming and 3D applications where smooth motion is crucial, both laptops fall short due to their lower refresh rates, which can result in less fluid visuals during fast-paced scenes.
Battery
10.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Acer Swift X has 10 hours of battery life. The MSI Stealth GS66 has 5.5 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Very Good
Good
14.0in
SIZE
15.6in
3.0 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Acer Swift X (2022) has very good portability, while the MSI Stealth GS66 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$1,313
$1,799
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Acer Swift X (2022) has a price of $1,313 and the MSI Stealth GS66 costs $1,799.
The Acer Swift X (2022) and MSI Stealth GS66 are both good for general use.
The Acer Swift X (2022), with its lighter weight and longer battery life, is convenient for portability and offers a higher resolution screen for sharper visuals, which is beneficial for tasks that require clarity and detail. The MSI Stealth GS66, on the other hand, has a more powerful CPU and GPU combination that can handle more demanding tasks, but it compromises on battery life and is heavier, making it less ideal for frequent travel.
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.7/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Acer Swift X (2022) and MSI Stealth GS66 are both good for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.7/10
7.5/10
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2240 x 1400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Acer Swift X (2022) and MSI Stealth GS66 are both good for software development.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Build Quality
7.6/10
8.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers MSI Stealth GS66 to have very good build quality, while the Acer Swift X (2022) has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Acer Swift X (2022) and the MSI Stealth GS66 compare to other laptops
"The Swift X is an Acer for entry-level gaming. With the entry-level graphics chip, our Acer not only beats every single current AMD and Intel iGPU, but also Intel's dGPU Iris Xe Max. However, despite being a GDDR6 version, the GTX does not match the expectations set by its own counterparts from our database. This may be a result of the single fan, which only produces moderate noise levels under load. The performance level of the thin and light 1.4 kg (~3.09 lbs) 14-inch laptop is impressive nonetheless."
"The MSI Stealth GS66 is powerful enough for QHD. The Core i7-12700H and the GeForce RTX 3070 Ti found in the 12UGS model that we tested run all modern games smoothly in the native QHD resolution. The 15-inch display is very fast with its 240 Hz refresh rate, and it also offers a great color space (almost 100% DCI-P3) on top of that, which should please gamers as well as content creators, although we would have still wished for a higher brightness. Case, input devices, and connectivity (Thunderbolt 4) are at a good level. However, among other things, the GS66 loses points due to the high temperature development in 3D mode and its poor webcam."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift X (2022) or the MSI Stealth GS66
About Acer
Acer is a prominent Taiwanese electronics brand which makes a wide range of laptops, with multiple product lines catering to personal use, gaming, and business use. They are renowned for having exceptional value for money, as they frequently offer good specifications at a lower price than other manufacturers.
About MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
132,495
Recommendations made
28,708
Consumer hours saved
About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.