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What we think
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Updated January 10, 2024·
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15, while more expensive, has a higher-quality OLED touchscreen, more RAM for multitasking, and boasts a longer battery life, making it well-suited for general use and professional tasks. In contrast, the MSI GF65 Thin, slightly cheaper, offers a stronger GPU and a higher refresh rate screen, optimal for gaming and 3D work despite its shorter battery life. If your focus is portability and long battery life for productivity, choose the ASUS. However, if you prefer better performance in gaming and are willing to handle lower battery life and a non-touch screen, the MSI would be suitable. 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 Pro 15
- Good for general use
- Good for engineering and design
- Good for software development
- Good for content creation
- Good overall display quality
- Good overall build quality
- Excellent battery life
- Good speakers
Advantages of the MSI GF65 Thin
- The MSI GF65 Thin has no clear advantages over the ASUS Zenbook Pro 15.
Key differences
General Use
7.7
6.5
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
346.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
12.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.5 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.3/10
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 is good for general use, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 offers a higher RAM and a superior OLED screen which supports Touchscreen, contributing to its better performance and visual experience for general use compared to the MSI GF65 Thin, which has lower RAM and a standard IPS screen without Touchscreen. Despite the MSI having a more powerful GPU, this does not significantly impact general use; plus, it falls short with shorter battery life and lower overall screen quality, making the ASUS more favorable for everyday tasks.
Engineering and Design
7.5
6.7
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.6/10
4.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 is good for engineering and design, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Content Creation
7.7
6.8
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 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
7.5
6.3
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 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
7.6
6.8
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
346.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 has a better screen than the MSI GF65 Thin for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 boasts impressive resolution and brightness along with a diverse color range, making it well-suited for detailed engineering work and visually demanding general use. However, its lower refresh rate doesn't cater well to the needs of 3D applications or gaming, where fluid motion is critical. Conversely, the MSI GF65 Thin provides adequate resolution and suitable brightness for everyday tasks and some design work but falls short in both color accuracy and refresh rate, leading to a less optimal experience for professional design tasks and gaming pursuits.
Battery
12.5 Hours
4.5 Hours
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 has 12.5 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.
Build Quality
7.6
6.7
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 has 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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Key similarities
Gaming and AI
6.7
6.8
4.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI GF65 Thin and ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15, with its RTX 3050 Ti graphic card and a standard 60Hz OLED screen, may offer better color quality but less smoothness in gaming and 3D applications compared to the MSI GF65 Thin, which comes with a more powerful RTX 3060 graphic card and a higher 144Hz refresh rate IPS screen, providing a smoother gaming experience.
Portability
Good
Good
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
4.4 lbs
WEIGHT
4.1 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 and MSI GF65 Thin both have good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$1,109
$1,100
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 has a price of $1,109 and the MSI GF65 Thin costs $1,100.
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How the ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 and the MSI GF65 Thin compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 | MSI GF65 Thin |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,109 | $1,100 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | October 1, 2021 | January 1, 2021 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 13.9'' x 9.4'' x 0.7'' | 14.1'' x 10'' x 0.85'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 4.41 lbs | 4.1 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 13.94" | 14.13" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9.37" | 9.99" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 7 5800H | Intel i5-10500H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 12.5 Hours | 4.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 96 Wh | 51 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | OLED | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 144Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 346 nits | 262 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.6/10 | 6.8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.7/10 | 7.4/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 6.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 7/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 6.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 1 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | No | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 1 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Ports | |||
Thunderbolt Ports | 0 | 0 | |
Shopping
ASUS Zenbook Pro 15
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Allen Ngo | May 2022
"The ASUS Zenbook Pro 15 offers a strong CPU, chassis, and display. One of the most popular 15.6-inch prosumer or multimedia laptops out there is the Dell XPS 15. Thus, comparisons between it and the Asus Zenbook Pro 15 are inevitable. Asus has a couple of tricks up its sleeve that XPS users are still missing out on including 1080p OLED and an AMD Ryzen CPU which help separate the Zenbook Pro 15 from the XPS 15. It also integrates a numpad and a few more port options albeit at the cost of a larger chassis size."
MSI GF65 Thin
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Allen Ngo | March 2021
"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 Zenbook Pro 15 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.
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