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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 12, 2024·
The Dell XPS 13 Plus, with its high price tag, offers a top-range processor, superior screen quality with OLED display technology, and a higher resolution, making it more suitable for tasks requiring sharp visuals and high performance, like professional media work. Its more compact size and lower weight also contribute to better portability. On the other hand, the MSI Thin GF63, which is significantly more affordable, has a powerful processor suitable for gaming and general productivity, paired with a dedicated graphics card that outperforms the integrated graphics found in the Dell. The MSI also has a larger screen with a faster refresh rate, which is ideal for gaming. However, it is bulkier and heavier, reducing its ease of transport. If budget is of less concern and you prioritize high-resolution work and portability, the Dell XPS 13 Plus may be the better choice. If you are looking for a cost-effective option that still provides ample performance for gaming and general use, and you can manage with a lower screen resolution, the MSI Thin GF63 would be a solid pick. 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 Dell XPS 13 Plus
- Very good for general use
- Very good for engineering and design
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Very good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Excellent portability
- Very good battery life
- Best in class speakers
- Excellent keyboard
Advantages of the MSI Thin GF63
- The MSI Thin GF63 has no clear advantages over the Dell XPS 13 Plus.
Key differences
General Use
8.4
7.4
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
374.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
10.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.5 Hours
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
9.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.3/10
The Dell XPS 13 Plus is very good for general use, while the MSI Thin GF63 is good.
The Dell XPS 13 Plus excels in general use due to its higher RAM, superior screen quality with an OLED display, and greater portability thanks to its lighter weight and smaller physical dimensions, combined with excellent battery life. Meanwhile, the MSI Thin GF63, while still good for general use, has less RAM, a lower quality IPS screen, is heavier and larger making it less portable, and has lower battery life, although it could be better suited for those who need a dedicated graphics card for certain tasks.
Engineering and Design
8.2
7.5
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
5.6/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Dell XPS 13 Plus is very good for engineering and design, while the MSI Thin GF63 is good.
The Dell XPS 13 Plus outshines the MSI Thin GF63 for engineering and design due to its higher RAM, which is crucial for multitasking and complex software, and its OLED screen providing superior color accuracy and resolution for detailed work. While the MSI has a dedicated graphics card which is advantageous for certain engineering applications requiring graphical processing power, it falls short in RAM and screen quality compared to the XPS 13 Plus, and although it offers better gaming capabilities, it is less portable and has a lower-quality display panel.
Content Creation
8.3
7.4
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Dell XPS 13 Plus is very good for content creation, while the MSI Thin GF63 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
8.3
7.2
7.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell XPS 13 Plus is very good for software development, while the MSI Thin GF63 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
8.4
6.8
13.4in
SIZE
15.6in
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
374.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
262.0 nits
The Dell XPS 13 Plus has a better screen than the MSI Thin GF63 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Dell XPS 13 Plus likely has a high resolution and bright display, making texts and images sharp and easy to read, which is ideal for general use, and offers wide color gamuts crucial for accuracy in engineering and design work. However, its lower refresh rate may not handle fast-paced action in gaming and 3D applications as smoothly. Conversely, the MSI Thin GF63 offers fair screen quality for everyday tasks and technical work, but the same factors that limit the Dell in gaming and 3D also apply to the MSI, restricting its performance in those areas due to an insufficient refresh rate.
Battery
10.0 Hours
4.5 Hours
The Dell XPS 13 Plus has 10 hours of battery life. The MSI Thin GF63 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.
Portability
Excellent
Good
13.4in
SIZE
15.6in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
4.1 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The Dell XPS 13 Plus has excellent portability, while the MSI Thin GF63 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.5
6.5
The Dell XPS 13 Plus has very good build quality, while the MSI Thin GF63 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,849
$1,150
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Dell XPS 13 Plus has a price of $1,849 and the MSI Thin GF63 costs $1,150.
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Key similarities
Gaming and AI
6.4
6.9
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
5.6/10
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI Thin GF63 and Dell XPS 13 Plus are both only fair for gaming and AI.
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.
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How the Dell XPS 13 Plus and the MSI Thin GF63 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Dell XPS 13 Plus | MSI Thin GF63 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,849 | $1,150 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | May 1, 2022 | May 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 11.6'' x 7.8'' x 0.6'' | 14.1'' x 10'' x 0.85'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 2.71 lbs | 4.1 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 11.63" | 14.13" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 7.84" | 9.99" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-1280P | Intel i7-12650H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 32 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 10 Hours | 4.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 55 Wh | 51 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 13.4" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | OLED | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 3840 x 2400 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 144Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 374 nits | 262 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 8.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 9.2/10 | 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 | 8.8/10 | 8/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 9/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 9.5/10 | 6.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 0 | 3 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 2 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | N/A | |
Shopping
Dell XPS 13 Plus
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | July 2022
"The XPS 13 Plus is powerful, but has its drawbacks. Dell did not only update the processor generation, but also decided to offer two completely different models from now on. The XPS 13 Plus gets the faster Intel Alder Lake-P chips, and the Core i7-1260P in our review unit offers good performance figures. However, the device once again shows the problems of the current Intel CPUs, because the high performance requires a lot of power. This affects the battery runtime as well as temperatures, so the new model (even with the Optimized power profile) is louder than the older model."
MSI Thin GF63
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Dig into reviews and images
Tom's Hardware
Charles Jeffries | November 2022
"The MSI GF63 Thin 11SC can be an admirable value for gamers and power users on a minimal budget. For just $599 as reviewed in its base model, its Intel Core i5 H-class processor and Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 graphics perform much better than low-wattage CPUs and integrated graphics. That said, this is a light-class gaming laptop. Low scores in our demanding gaming benchmarks indicate using lower visual-quality settings will be required for playable performance."
Get a great deal on the Dell XPS 13 Plus or the MSI Thin GF63
About Dell
Dell is a highly recognizable American technology company, and is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. Their laptops are very popular for both personal and professional use, and they also own the Alienware brand which makes mid to high end gaming laptops. Their premium XPS range of laptops offer great build quality and portability, while Latitude and Precision laptops are known for reliability, repairability and performance for business users.
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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Why trust us
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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