The ASUS Vivobook S 15 is less expensive and has longer battery life, making it suitable for general use with fair portability. It offers a solid performance for everyday tasks but is not designed for intensive gaming or high-end graphics work, as it lacks a dedicated powerful graphics card. On the other hand, the MSI Pulse GL66 is pricier, contains a high-performing graphics card, and is better suited for 3D rendering, machine learning, and gaming, though it has a shorter battery life and is heavier, which may affect its portability. Consider the ASUS if price and battery are priorities or the MSI if performance and gaming are more crucial. 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 S 15
Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Pulse GL66
Good for gaming and AI
Very good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.3/10
7.2/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI Pulse GL66 is good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 is only fair.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 has a less powerful integrated Vega 8 GPU and a lower screen refresh rate of 60Hz, which makes it less suitable for gaming and 3D applications. In contrast, the MSI Pulse GL66 is equipped with a superior Nvidia RTX 3070 GPU and a higher refresh rate of 144Hz, providing a smoother and more immersive gaming experience.
Screen Quality
6.3/10
6.8/10
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
267.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
245.0 nits
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 has a better screen than the MSI Pulse GL66 for software development, and content creation, while the MSI Pulse GL66 has a better screen for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
Both the ASUS Vivobook S 15 and MSI Pulse GL66 have screens that provide adequate clarity and detail for everyday tasks due to their resolution and brightness, which are important for activities like browsing the web and document editing. However, for engineering and design work, the screens may not display colors as accurately or vividly as professionals might need because they don't cover a wide range of color gamuts, which are crucial for precise color work. When it comes to gaming and 3D applications, the less than ideal refresh rates of these laptops can lead to less smooth visuals and might not match the high frame rates required by fast-paced, visually intensive games and animations.
Battery
9.0 Hours
4.0 Hours
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 has 9 hours of battery life. The MSI Pulse GL66 has 4 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
Good
Good
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
3.9 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 and MSI Pulse GL66 both have good portability, though the ASUS Vivobook S 15 has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$908
$1,399
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 has a price of $908 and the MSI Pulse GL66 costs $1,399.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 and MSI Pulse GL66 are both good for general use.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15, with its good portability score and satisfactory keyboard, speaker, and screen quality, is well-suited for general use, balancing performance and ease of carrying around. In contrast, the MSI Pulse GL66, while offering very good speaker and keyboard quality with higher screen refresh capabilities, is slightly less portable and has a shorter battery life, making it better suited for stationary use or where high performance is needed for tasks like gaming or heavy multitasking.
Engineering and Design
7.1/10
7.5/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Pulse GL66 and ASUS Vivobook S 15 are both good for engineering and design.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 is well-suited for engineering and design due to its strong AMD Ryzen processor, ample RAM, and high-quality screen, but its integrated graphics may limit performance in GPU-intensive tasks. In contrast, the MSI Pulse GL66 combines a powerful Intel processor, plenty of RAM, and a high-performance Nvidia graphics card, making it more capable for engineering and design tasks that require significant graphical processing power.
Content Creation
7.6/10
7.2/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 and MSI Pulse GL66 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
7.4/10
7.0/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 and MSI Pulse GL66 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
7.0/10
7.4/10
The MSI Pulse GL66 and ASUS Vivobook S 15 both have 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 Vivobook S 15 and the MSI Pulse GL66 compare to other laptops
"Internals make Asus VivoBook S15 laptop a compelling option. The Asus multimedia laptop may look rather below-average with its modest black chassis, lack of a dedicated GPU, limited RAM and meagre port selection without Thunderbolt support. But your impression of the device will start changing once you set your eyes on its high-contrast OLED capable of producing deep blacks and highly accurate colours. And your opinion will change completely when the VivoBook is switched on. The AMD CPU can effortlessly keep up with powerful rivals from Intel. The integrated Radeon graphics blows away Intel's iGPU when it comes to graphics workloads such as rendering and simpler games."
"The MSI Pulse GL66 has a lot of potential for improvement. Although the RTX 3060 is only able to use 105 watts, we still liked the gaming performance, particularly since this also makes the Pulse comfortably efficient but not slow by any means. Neither the dark display with its lame response times, nor USB 2.0 or the lack of Thunderbolt will please real gamers. The use of a sticker factory seal, which is at least questionable, also won't inspire any enthusiasm. It is obvious that the laptop is really designed for price-conscious gamers."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Vivobook S 15 or the MSI Pulse GL66
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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