The ASUS Zenbook 13 is more affordable, lightweight, and has a long battery life, making it ideal for general use and portability. Its OLED display offers vivid colors and it's suitable for everyday tasks and light computing needs. On the other hand, the MSI GE66 Raider is considerably more expensive but offers top-notch performance for 3D rendering, machine learning, and gaming due to its powerful Intel i9 processor and RTX 3080 Ti GPU. It has a larger screen with a high resolution and refresh rate, more storage, and substantial RAM, but this also makes it heavier and less portable. Consequently, the MSI is better suited for heavy-duty applications and gaming, albeit with a shorter battery life. Choose the ASUS for portability and general use or the MSI for high performance in specialized tasks. 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 13
Excellent portability
Advantages of the MSI GE66 Raider
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.4/10
8.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
378.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
9.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for general use, while the ASUS Zenbook 13 is good.
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.
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
8.6/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.3/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.2/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Zenbook 13 is only fair.
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
7.1/10
9.1/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.2/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The MSI GE66 Raider is excellent for engineering and design, while the ASUS Zenbook 13 is good.
The ASUS Zenbook 13, with its lower-tier CPU and integrated GPU, is less capable in handling the demanding tasks of engineering and design compared to the MSI GE66 Raider, which boasts a high-tier CPU and a powerful dedicated GPU. Furthermore, the MSI has considerably more RAM, which is crucial for multitasking and complex software prevalent in engineering challenges, and a higher quality screen, enhancing detailing in design work, though it sacrifices some portability and operates louder due to more robust hardware.
Content Creation
7.6/10
8.4/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for content creation, while the ASUS Zenbook 13 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
7.3/10
8.4/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for software development, while the ASUS Zenbook 13 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
7.8/10
8.2/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
378.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
The MSI GE66 Raider has a better screen than the ASUS Zenbook 13 for gaming and AI, content creation, and software development.
For general use, where reading text and watching videos are common, both the ASUS Zenbook 13 and the MSI GE66 Raider offer high-resolution displays with ample brightness and panel types that provide clear and crisp visuals. In engineering and design, the importance of accurate color reproduction means both laptops' ability to cover a wide range of color gamuts ensures that professionals can trust the colors they see on their screens. However, for gaming and 3D applications where fast-moving images are frequent, the lower refresh rates on both models mean that they may not provide as smooth an experience as laptops specifically tailored with higher refresh rates for such tasks.
Battery
9.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The ASUS Zenbook 13 has 9 hours of battery life. The MSI GE66 Raider has 6 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
Excellent
Fair
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2.5 lbs
WEIGHT
5.2 lbs
0.5in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The ASUS Zenbook 13 has excellent portability, while the MSI GE66 Raider has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4/10
8.5/10
The MSI GE66 Raider has very good build quality, while the ASUS Zenbook 13 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$890
$3,199
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The ASUS Zenbook 13 has a price of $890 and the MSI GE66 Raider costs $3,199.
"The Asus ZenBook 13 is a compact 13-inch laptop with a fast Ryzen 7 5800U and OLED display. The subnotebook is also light and the modern design is convincing. The selection of high-quality materials make the device not only light, but also very stable. In addition, the visuals and haptics of the device offers a high-quality impression. The AMD Ryzen 7 5800U is a very good fit for the ZenBook 13, ensuring a high performance in the test. However, in terms of the 3D performance, we also notice that the Vega architecture is beginning to hit its limits."
"The MSI Raider GE66 12UHS notebook passes with flying colors. The GE66 is a high-end notebook with strong performance. The keyboard and trackpad are still very good and score well with precise inputs as well as high build quality. Thanks to a new liquid metal cooling solution, the Intel Core i9 12900HK brings a performance increase of around 50 percent over the predecessor's Intel Core i9 10980HK. The installed graphics card in our device delivers up to 30 percent higher frame rates than the RTX 2070 Super in the MSI GE66 10SFS."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Zenbook 13 or the MSI GE66 Raider
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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