The Gigabyte G5 comes with a lower midrange price and is often significantly less expensive, making it suitable for budget-conscious customers looking for a laptop that can handle general use and possibly some gaming. On the other hand, the MSI GE66 Raider is priced at the high end and can be significantly more expensive; however, it offers superior performance for intensive tasks like gaming, 3D rendering, and engineering programs. It also has a larger storage capacity and more RAM. While the Raider has better screen resolution and quality, it’s also heavier, which may impact its portability compared to the lighter G5. 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 Gigabyte G5
Good portability
Very good speakers
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
Good battery life
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.1/10
8.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
248.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
3.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
7.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
7.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for general use, while the Gigabyte G5 is good.
The MSI GE66 Raider outperforms the Gigabyte G5 in general use due to its superior main processor and higher RAM, which contribute to faster and smoother performance, along with a high-resolution screen that enhances visual clarity and color fidelity. However, despite its heavier weight and slight reduction in battery life, the MSI GE66 Raider offers a more premium experience reflected in its exceptional speaker and keyboard quality compared to the satisfactory performance and build of the Gigabyte G5.
Gaming and AI
7.3/10
8.6/10
7.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.2/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for gaming and AI, while the Gigabyte G5 is good.
The Gigabyte G5 is deemed good for gaming and 3D due to its decent Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU and high screen refresh rate of 144Hz. In contrast, the MSI GE66 Raider excels with a superior Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti GPU and a screen that, despite a slightly lower refresh rate of 120Hz, offers higher resolution, leading to an overall better gaming and 3D experience.
Engineering and Design
7.6/10
9.1/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
7.5/10
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 Gigabyte G5 is good.
The Gigabyte G5, with its Intel i5 CPU and Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU, offers commendable performance for engineering tasks, but the MSI GE66 Raider surpasses it with a more powerful Intel i9 CPU and Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti GPU, coupled with a higher-resolution screen, making it excellent for detail-oriented design work. While both have quality IPS displays, the more robust hardware and screen of the Raider result in higher overall performance, though this also makes it heavier and less portable than the G5.
Content Creation
7.2/10
8.4/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for content creation, while the Gigabyte G5 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
6.8/10
8.4/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
7.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for software development, while the Gigabyte G5 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
6.8/10
8.2/10
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
248.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
The MSI GE66 Raider has a better screen than the Gigabyte G5 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
When considering screen quality for general use, the MSI GE66 Raider offers very good clarity and brightness, thanks to its high resolution and capable panel type, while the Gigabyte G5's display, although adequate, does not match the sharpness and luminosity the Raider provides. For engineering and design tasks where color accuracy is crucial, the Raider once again stands out with a wider color gamut that covers more of the DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB spectrum, contributing to a more vivid and precise color representation compared to the G5. However, for gaming and 3D applications where refresh rate is the priority, neither laptop excels; they both have screens that may not deliver the ultra-smooth motion desirable for those fields, even though they have suitable resolutions and panel types for most users' demands.
Battery
3.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Gigabyte G5 has 3.5 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.
Build Quality
7.2/10
8.5/10
The MSI GE66 Raider has very good build quality, while the Gigabyte G5 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$868
$3,199
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Gigabyte G5 has a price of $868 and the MSI GE66 Raider costs $3,199.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Gigabyte G5 to have good portability, while the MSI GE66 Raider has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Gigabyte G5 and the MSI GE66 Raider compare to other laptops
"The Gigabyte G5 KE is a midrange gaming laptop that checks most boxes. Gigabyte makes good use of the Core i5-12500H and RTX 3060 Laptop GPU combo, and we find no untoward issues with overall performance. The dual-fan quad-heatpipe cooling arrangement does well to ensure that the underlying hardware doesn't throttle under load. That being said, the display is below par when compared to 2023 standards, especially when competing devices."
"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 Gigabyte G5 or the MSI GE66 Raider
About Gigabyte
Gigabyte is a Taiwanese computer hardware manufacturer. While Gigabyte mainly focuses its business on desktop hardware, Gigabyte is known for its value-oriented G series laptops, thin and light Aero series, and performance-oriented Aorus series. Gigabyte laptops offer a strong value proposition to compete with mainstream alternatives.
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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