The ASUS Vivobook 15 is more budget-friendly, lighter, and offers longer battery life, ideal for general use like browsing and office tasks. In contrast, the MSI Stealth GS66 is pricier and slightly heavier but provides superior performance, a high refresh rate display, and advanced graphics suitable for gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering applications. The MSI also has a more robust build, better keyboard, and more ports, including Thunderbolt and Ethernet, making it a versatile choice for professionals and gamers. However, it sacrifices some battery life and portability due to its powerful hardware. Decide based on whether you prioritize cost and portability or high-end performance and features. 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 Vivobook 15
Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Stealth GS66
Good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Good for software development
Good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Very good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.5/10
7.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
250.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
7.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 is good for general use, while the ASUS Vivobook 15 is only fair.
The ASUS Vivobook 15 provides adequate performance for general tasks with its i3 processor and 8GB RAM, but the MSI Stealth GS66, with its superior i7 processor and 16GB RAM, offers a more fluid experience, especially with demanding applications. Although both have similar screen sizes and types, the MSI's higher screen quality and larger battery capacity contribute to a better overall general-use experience, even though it is slightly less portable and has a shorter battery life than the ASUS laptop due to its more powerful components.
Gaming and AI
5.9/10
7.8/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
1920 x 1080
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 Vivobook 15 is poor.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
6.1/10
8.2/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Stealth GS66 is very good for engineering and design, while the ASUS Vivobook 15 is only fair.
The MSI Stealth GS66 offers higher performance for engineering and design due to its more powerful Intel i7 processor, double the RAM, and superior Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti graphics compared to the ASUS Vivobook 15's Intel i3 processor and its integrated graphics. Also, the Stealth GS66's screen has better color coverage, which is important for design, but it is slightly heavier and has a shorter battery life, which could affect portability.
Content Creation
6.4/10
7.7/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth GS66 is good for content creation, while the ASUS Vivobook 15 is only fair.
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
6.5/10
7.5/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 is good for software development, while the ASUS Vivobook 15 is only fair.
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
6.3/10
8.1/10
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
250.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
The MSI Stealth GS66 has a better screen than the ASUS Vivobook 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, the ASUS Vivobook 15 may offer acceptable clarity and visibility with decent resolution and brightness, but might fall short for users looking for more vibrant displays. The MSI Stealth GS66, with its higher resolution and brighter screen, can provide a more immersive and sharp experience for both general users and professionals in engineering and design, due to its wider range of colors. However, for gaming and 3D work, both laptops would disappoint, as their screens lack the high refresh rates required for smooth motion, which is critical in these contexts.
Build Quality
7.0/10
8.0/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 has very good build quality, while the ASUS Vivobook 15 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$530
$1,718
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The ASUS Vivobook 15 has a price of $530 and the MSI Stealth GS66 costs $1,718.
"The Asus VivoBook 15 is a quiet office notebook with a strong screen. However, the VivoBook 15 still has room for improvement. Office and internet applications as well as simple games do not pose any major challenges for the VivoBook - this is ensured by the built-in combination of Ryzen 7 5700U APU and 16 GB of RAM. Heat and noise emissions are acceptable. But, the laptop has weaknesses that should not be present at this level: lack of keyboard lighting, a slow memory card reader, no fast USB-C port (USB 3.2 Gen 2 or Thunderbolt 4) with Power Delivery and DisplayPort. Battery runtimes can only be described as average."
"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 Vivobook 15 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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