The HP Spectre x360 is more affordable and offers a balance of performance and portability, making it suitable for general use and mobile productivity with a long battery life. The MSI Stealth 17 is more expensive with top-end performance, ideal for 3D rendering, gaming, or intensive engineering tasks, but it's heavier, affecting its portability, and has shorter battery life. 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 HP Spectre x360
Very good overall build quality
Good portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Stealth 17
Excellent for engineering and design
Excellent for gaming and AI
Very good overall display quality
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
8.2/10
8.7/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
406.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
11.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
7.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.4/10
The MSI Stealth 17 and HP Spectre x360 are both very good for general use, though the MSI Stealth 17 is somewhat better.
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
6.6/10
9.1/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI Stealth 17 is excellent for gaming and AI, while the HP Spectre x360 is only fair.
The HP Spectre x360's gaming capabilities are decent because it comes with integrated graphics that are good for general use but may not handle intensive 3D tasks as well as dedicated GPUs; it also has a standard screen refresh rate which is suitable for casual gaming.
Engineering and Design
8.0/10
9.4/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
The MSI Stealth 17 is excellent for engineering and design, while the HP Spectre x360 is very good.
The HP Spectre x360 is equipped with a competent CPU and integrated graphics, suitable for engineering and design, with a high-quality IPS screen and good portability. In contrast, the MSI Stealth 17 offers a more powerful CPU, top-tier dedicated graphics, and a larger, faster-refreshing screen, which are excellent for engineering and design, but it's heavier and less portable.
Content Creation
8.2/10
8.8/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
16.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth 17 and HP Spectre x360 are both very good for content creation, though the MSI Stealth 17 is somewhat better.
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.
Screen Quality
7.6/10
8.6/10
16.0in
SIZE
17.3in
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
406.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
The MSI Stealth 17 has a better screen than the HP Spectre x360 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use where tasks typically involve browsing, watching videos, and office applications, both the HP Spectre x360 and MSI Stealth 17 offer vibrant displays with high resolution and brightness, providing clear and sharp images that make everyday activities pleasant. In engineering and design, where accurate color representation is crucial, these laptops deliver a wide color gamut, ensuring that professionals can see true-to-life colors which are essential for detailed work. However, for gaming and 3D applications which benefit from swift on-screen movements, the lower refresh rates on these laptops can result in less fluid motion and a less immersive experience.
Battery
11.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The HP Spectre x360 has 11 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
Good
Fair
16.0in
SIZE
17.3in
4.7 lbs
WEIGHT
6.1 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The HP Spectre x360 has good portability, while the MSI Stealth 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.5/10
7.8/10
The HP Spectre x360 has very good build quality, while the MSI Stealth 17 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,000
$3,899
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The HP Spectre x360 has a price of $1,000 and the MSI Stealth 17 costs $3,899.
The MSI Stealth 17 and HP Spectre x360 are both very good for software development.
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.
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How the HP Spectre x360 and the MSI Stealth 17 compare to other laptops
"As we said, Lenovo's Yoga 9i is a tough competitor to the Spectre with an equally admirable OLED display. We're sad that neither of them has an HDMI port nor a niche or slot to hold the stylus, though the HP wins points for its bundled mini docking station and magnetically attached pen. Your choice will come down to screen shape—and in our eyes, just as seeing an OLED screen spoils you for an IPS panel, enjoying a tall 3:2 display spoils you for a more conventional view. The HP Spectre x360 13.5 is our new favorite 2-in-1."
"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 HP Spectre x360 or the MSI Stealth 17
About HP
HP, also known as Hewlett-Packard, is an American technology company that develops personal computers and computer peripherals. In the laptop industry, HP is known for its entry level Essential series laptops, its mid-range Pavilion, Envy, and Victus series, and high-end Omen and Spectre series, in addition to its business-oriented EliteBook, ProBook, and Dragonfly series laptops. HP laptops generally undercut other mainstream competitors in terms of price, placing itself as the value-oriented mainstream brand.
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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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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