The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED offers a balance of performance, battery life, and portability, making it ideal for general use and multitasking, whereas the MSI Katana 15, with its powerful graphics, is more tailored toward intensive gaming and performance-heavy tasks like 3D rendering or machine learning. If your priority is gaming or performance-intensive work, the MSI might serve you better despite being less portable and having shorter battery life; otherwise, for everyday tasks with better battery life and easier portability, the ASUS is a solid 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 S 15 OLED
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Good portability
Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Katana 15
Good for gaming and AI
Good keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.7/10
7.6/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The MSI Katana 15 is good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is only fair.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED includes an OLED screen with a high refresh rate, which is good for visual quality in gaming and 3D applications, but its integrated GPU may limit performance in demanding graphical tasks compared to dedicated gaming GPUs. Conversely, the MSI Katana 15, while also having a high refresh rate, possesses a powerful Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU that better handles intensive gaming and 3D rendering, although its screen quality may not match the OLED display of the ASUS.
Content Creation
8.2/10
7.4/10
9.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is very good for content creation, while the MSI Katana 15 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
7.9/10
7.0/10
9.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED and MSI Katana 15 are both good for software development, though the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED is somewhat better.
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
8.9/10
6.8/10
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
2880 x 1620
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
600.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
258.0 nits
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has a better screen than the MSI Katana 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED boasts an OLED panel with high resolution and brightness, providing vivid colors and sharp details, making it ideal for general use and engineering tasks where color accuracy is crucial. However, its lower refresh rate could hinder the smoothness desired in fast-paced 3D games. In contrast, the MSI Katana 15's display offers satisfactory brightness and resolution for day-to-day tasks and some level of design work, though it won't be as vibrant or precise in color representation as the ASUS, and it also lacks a high refresh rate for optimal gaming performance.
Battery
7.0 Hours
4.0 Hours
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has 7 hours of battery life. The MSI Katana 15 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
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
3.7 lbs
WEIGHT
4.9 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has good portability, while the MSI Katana 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED and MSI Katana 15 are both good for general use.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED excels in general use due to its superior screen quality with higher resolution and OLED panel, offering vivid colors and deep contrasts, alongside a powerful CPU and sufficient RAM for smooth multitasking, while maintaining reasonable portability and battery life. On the other hand, the MSI Katana 15, with a quality IPS screen and a dedicated graphics unit, caters well to general use and casual gaming, but trades off screen resolution and color quality for better gaming performance, though it falls short in battery life and is less portable.
Engineering and Design
8.2/10
7.7/10
9.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED to be very good for engineering and design, while the MSI Katana 15 is good.
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED, with its high-performing Intel i9 processor, superior integrated GPU, and exceptional OLED screen, excels in tasks that demand strong processing power and color accuracy, making it ideal for engineering and creative design work.
Build Quality
7.2/10
7.2/10
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED and MSI Katana 15 both have good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$990
$949
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
The ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED has a price of $990 and the MSI Katana 15 costs $949.
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How the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED and the MSI Katana 15 compare to other laptops
"The Asus Vivobook S 15 OLED excels as a capable work machine at an affordable price. It offers commendable performance, thanks to its 12th Gen Intel chip, delivers quality on-screen entertainment with its 15.6-inch OLED display, and can (kind of) get you through a full day of work. Oh, and its special Asus Antibacterial Guard is a nice touch for those who like a clean laptop."
"The MSI Katana 15 B12 combines a Gen12 CPU with an RTX 4050, which is actually not a bad idea for a budget gamer. The CPU is anything but bad and the GPU in the Katana 15 proves to be significantly more efficient than last year's models. However, our main point of criticism for budget gamers is the price: while you can get budget laptops with RTX 3060 from around US$800, you pay a whole US$1,499.99 here! The efficiency advantages of the RTX 4050 do not justify this price premium."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Vivobook S 15 OLED or the MSI Katana 15
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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