If you are more budget-conscious and desire a lighter, more portable laptop with a higher resolution OLED screen, excellent color accuracy, and ample storage, the ASUS Zenbook S 13 is a solid choice, especially for general use and it offers great battery life. However, if you need a high-performing machine for 3D rendering, machine learning, or gaming, the MSI Stealth GS66 with its powerful dedicated graphics card might justify its higher price and extra weight. The MSI also offers a faster refresh rate for smoother visuals in fast-paced games but has less battery life. Consider the ASUS if portability and display quality are critical, or the MSI for intense graphical 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 ASUS Zenbook S 13
Very good for general use
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Best in class portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Stealth GS66
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall build quality
Key differences
General Use
8.6/10
7.7/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
365.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
11.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
9.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for general use, while the MSI Stealth GS66 is good.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 offers a high-quality OLED screen, longer battery life, and is more portable due to its lighter weight and smaller size, making it better for general use. The MSI Stealth GS66, while good for general use, is heavier and has a lower battery life, but offers substantial storage and a more powerful dedicated GPU, catering more to users with gaming or intensive graphics needs.
Gaming and AI
6.5/10
7.8/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 is good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Zenbook S 13 is only fair.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13, while it has an efficient GPU for light gaming, it lacks a high refresh rate, making the MSI Stealth GS66 with its powerful RTX GPU and significantly higher screen refresh rate a superior choice for intensive gaming and 3D applications.
Content Creation
8.5/10
7.7/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for content creation, while the MSI Stealth GS66 is good.
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
8.3/10
7.5/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for software development, while the MSI Stealth GS66 is good.
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.
Screen Quality
8.1/10
8.1/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
365.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a better screen than the MSI Stealth GS66 for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation, while the MSI Stealth GS66 has a better screen for gaming and AI.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 likely boasts a higher resolution and superior panel technology, resulting in sharper and more vibrant images for day-to-day tasks and detail-oriented work like engineering; it however, falls short for gaming due to a lower refresh rate, which makes fast-paced visuals less smooth. The MSI Stealth GS66, while also providing clear and bright imagery for general applications and precise color representation for creative professions, may offer a less impressive color range, proving adequate but not exceptional. For gaming and 3D applications both laptops may not deliver the fluid motion desired by enthusiasts, as their screens likely don't refresh quickly enough to keep up with high-speed content.
Battery
11.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has 11 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
Best in Class
Good
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2.2 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has best in class portability, while the MSI Stealth GS66 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$1,400
$1,799
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a price of $1,400 and the MSI Stealth GS66 costs $1,799.
The MSI Stealth GS66 and ASUS Zenbook S 13 are both very good for engineering and design.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is well-suited for engineering and design due to its ample RAM, powerful CPU, and high-quality OLED screen that delivers exceptional color accuracy, which is crucial for design work. The MSI Stealth GS66, on the other hand, offers a dedicated GPU in the form of the Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti which can handle more graphically-intensive engineering tasks, albeit at the cost of greater weight and lower battery life compared to the Zenbook.
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 ASUS Zenbook S 13 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
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How the ASUS Zenbook S 13 and the MSI Stealth GS66 compare to other laptops
"The Asus Zenbook S 13 is the slimmest OLED ultrabook worldwide struggles with annoying fans. The new Zenbook S 13 leaves us with mixed feelings, particularly since last year's model was so good. Asus has completely reworked the device, making the laptop noticeably slimmer. The result also looks good and the case makes a great impression, particularly also in terms of the stability. The new plasma ceramic surface feels great, and there are no problems with fingerprints. In addition, it now includes some of the known connections such as an HDMI port and a regular USB-A connection, which is a good achievement in such a slim device."
"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 ASUS Zenbook S 13 or the MSI Stealth GS66
About ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
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.
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