The Gateway 11.6" is a budget-friendly, highly portable choice that's best suited for basic tasks like web browsing and document editing. In contrast, the MSI Stealth 17 is a premium laptop designed for performance-intensive tasks such as 3D rendering, machine learning, and gaming, with a high-end processor and graphics card. It offers significantly more power but is heavier and less portable. You'll spend more on the MSI Stealth 17, but if you need the power for demanding applications or gaming, it may be worth the investment. Conversely, if portability and price are your main concerns, the Gateway 11.6" might be more 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 Gateway 11.6"
Excellent portability
Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Stealth 17
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Excellent for gaming and AI
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Best in class speakers
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
5.6/10
8.7/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
200.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
8.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
5.3/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
9.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.4/10
The MSI Stealth 17 is very good for general use, while the Gateway 11.6" is poor.
The Gateway 11.6" offers basic functionality with limited RAM and a lower-end CPU, which might not handle multitasking well, has a lower resolution screen, and lacks power for resource-intensive tasks, making it less suitable for general use. On the other hand, the MSI Stealth 17 is equipped with a high-end CPU and abundant RAM, supports intricate multitasking, features high-quality screen resolution and color representation, and is built to efficiently manage heat and noise—these attributes contribute to its very good suitability for a wide range of general use cases, though it is less portable and has shorter battery life.
Gaming and AI
5.4/10
9.1/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI Stealth 17 is excellent for gaming and AI, while the Gateway 11.6" is poor.
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
5.4/10
9.4/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
4.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
The MSI Stealth 17 is excellent for engineering and design, while the Gateway 11.6" is poor.
The Gateway 11.6" has a basic Intel Celeron processor, limited RAM, and a lower quality screen, rendering it poor for intensive tasks like engineering and design, whereas the MSI Stealth 17 offers a high-end Intel i9 processor, substantially more RAM, advanced GPU capabilities, and a higher resolution screen, ensuring excellent performance for such demanding applications. Additionally, while the Gateway might be more portable due to its smaller size and weight, the MSI's superior keyboard, speaker quality, and quieter operation make it a more suitable environment for prolonged engineering work.
Content Creation
5.7/10
8.8/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
4.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth 17 is very good for content creation, while the Gateway 11.6" is poor.
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
5.7/10
8.5/10
3.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
4.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
5.3/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI Stealth 17 is very good for software development, while the Gateway 11.6" is poor.
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
5.7/10
8.6/10
11.6in
SIZE
17.3in
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
200.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
The MSI Stealth 17 has a better screen than the Gateway 11.6" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Gateway 11.6" likely has a lower resolution and brightness, making it less suitable for tasks that require clear visual details, such as browsing or document work, hence its poor screen quality across the board. The MSI Stealth 17 probably offers a high-resolution display with good brightness and solid color gamuts, ensuring sharp and accurate visuals crucial for engineering and design work but may lack a high refresh rate required for the smooth visuals desired in 3D applications and gaming. Therefore, while the MSI excels in providing clarity and color for detailed projects, it falls short for gaming where smooth motion is key.
Battery
8.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Gateway 11.6" has 8 hours of battery life. The MSI Stealth 17 has 5.5 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
Fair
11.6in
SIZE
17.3in
2.6 lbs
WEIGHT
6.1 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Gateway 11.6" has excellent portability, while the MSI Stealth 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
5.1/10
7.8/10
The MSI Stealth 17 has good build quality, while the Gateway 11.6" has poor build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$89
$3,899
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Gateway 11.6" has a price of $89 and the MSI Stealth 17 costs $3,899.
"The MSI Stealth 17 Studio is a laptop with a quiet RTX 4080 for almost every occasion. The MSI Stealth 17 Studio is equally capable of high-level media processing and playing current games. It remains pleasantly quiet, even if a few percentage points of power have had to be sacrificed in the process. But, it is not quite perfect: To some extent, the Stealth 17 is well thought out. It packs tons of graphics power and high-end components in a slim case. The laptop's cooling system can be set such that, noise-wise, it doesn't even reach low volume. However, small flaws cloud otherwise exceptionally positive impressions."
Get a great deal on the Gateway 11.6" or the MSI Stealth 17
About Gateway
Gateway is a laptop and tablet brand owned by Acer which sells budget-friendly laptops exclusively through Walmart. It was previously an American computer company until its acquisition by Acer in 2007, who then revived the brand in 2020. Gateway laptops are manufactured by Chinese company Shenzhen Bmorn Technology, which also makes EVOO-branded models.
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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