The ASUS Vivobook 16 is more budget-friendly, offers double the storage, and better battery life, making it suitable for general use and multitasking with its higher RAM capacity. However, its integrated graphics are less powerful compared to the MSI GF65 Thin's dedicated RTX 3060 GPU, which excels in gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning tasks. The MSI laptop boasts a higher refresh rate screen for smoother visuals, useful in fast-paced games, but has a shorter battery life, less RAM, and storage than the ASUS, impacting its multitasking ability and general use performance. If portability and gaming are priorities, consider the MSI. For cost-efficiency and general productivity work, the ASUS is a strong choice. 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 16
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Good for software development
Good for content creation
Good overall build quality
Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI GF65 Thin
Good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.6/10
6.5/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
295.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
8.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.5 Hours
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
7.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.3/10
The ASUS Vivobook 16 is good for general use, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Content Creation
7.5/10
6.8/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.6/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Vivobook 16 is good for content creation, while the MSI GF65 Thin 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
7.3/10
6.3/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The ASUS Vivobook 16 is good for software development, while the MSI GF65 Thin 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
6.4/10
6.8/10
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
295.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
The ASUS Vivobook 16 has a better screen than the MSI GF65 Thin for software development, and content creation, while the MSI GF65 Thin has a better screen for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
For general use, a laptop like the ASUS Vivobook 16 with fair screen quality indicates that its panel type, resolution, and brightness are sufficient for everyday tasks like browsing and video streaming but lacking for more vibrant displays. The fair screen quality for engineering and design on both the ASUS Vivobook 16 and MSI GF65 Thin suggests that the color accuracy is acceptable for some professional work; however, the limited color gamut coverage may not satisfy those needing precise color representation for high-level graphics work. In terms of gaming and 3D applications, the poor screen quality indicated for both laptops is due to their lower refresh rates, which can lead to less fluid visual performance, and only moderate resolution and panel quality, which can affect the visual detail and overall immersion in fast-paced visual environments.
Battery
8.0 Hours
4.5 Hours
The ASUS Vivobook 16 has 8 hours of battery life. The MSI GF65 Thin has 4.5 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.
Cost
$669
$1,100
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The ASUS Vivobook 16 has a price of $669 and the MSI GF65 Thin costs $1,100.
The MSI GF65 Thin and ASUS Vivobook 16 are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The ASUS Vivobook 16, while suitable for moderate 3D tasks and gaming, may not offer the smoothest experience due to its average graphics card and screen refresh rate; however, it is equipped with a good CPU and screen quality for general use. On the other hand, the MSI GF65 Thin, with a more powerful graphics card and higher refresh rate, provides a better experience for gaming and 3D applications, although the stronger focus on gaming performance could come at the expense of battery life when compared to the Vivobook.
Engineering and Design
7.0/10
6.7/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.6/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS Vivobook 16 to be good for engineering and design, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
The ASUS Vivobook 16, with its AMD Ryzen 7 CPU and integrated Vega 8 GPU, is better for engineering and design due to its larger display with higher resolution, which enhances screen quality, paired with more RAM for multitasking. On the other hand, the MSI GF65 Thin, although less RAM, includes a dedicated Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU which provides robust graphics handling that benefits design applications, also featuring a higher refresh rate screen that may be preferred by some users for smoother visuals.
Portability
Good
Good
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
4.1 lbs
WEIGHT
4.1 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The ASUS Vivobook 16 and MSI GF65 Thin both have good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.0/10
6.7/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS Vivobook 16 to have good build quality, while the MSI GF65 Thin has only fair 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 Vivobook 16 and the MSI GF65 Thin compare to other laptops
Olivier Martin, Ryan Lim, Yannick Khong | May 2023
"The ASUS Vivobook 16 M1605 (2023) is a budget Windows laptop. It's available with various AMD Ryzen 5000 and 7000 U-series CPUs and integrated graphics. You can only get 8GB of RAM; however, there's an empty SO-DIMM slot if you want to upgrade it. It has an FHD+ (1920 x 1200) 16:10 IPS display, a full-size keyboard with a Numpad, a 720p webcam, and Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity. Ports include three USB-As, one USB-C, an HDMI, and a headphone jack. The USB-C supports charging but no video output."
"The MSI GF65 Thin offers a GeForce RTX 3060 on a budget. The MSI GF65 is a relatively inexpensive RTX 3060 laptop and, perhaps not coincidentally, it also comes with a slower-than-average RTX 3060 GPU. Other laptops we've tested thus far with the same GPU are about 10 to 15 percent faster. CPU performance is also slightly slower than average unless if users decide to enable Cooler Boost mode. Colors, black-white response times, Thunderbolt, and DisplayPort are either average or completely omitted. Gamers who want to maximize performance-per-dollar without sacrificing RAM or SSD upgradeability will find the lightweight MSI GF65 attractive."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Vivobook 16 or the MSI GF65 Thin
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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