If you value portability and longer battery life for general use like web browsing, streaming, or standard office tasks, and you're looking at a more budget-friendly option, the Lenovo Flex 5 16 is ideal, as it also has a touch screen and a versatile 2-in-1 design. However, if you need top-tier performance for demanding engineering applications, 3D rendering, machine learning, or gaming, the MSI GE66 Raider offers a powerful processor, high-end graphics card, and considerable storage, but it comes at a higher cost and with reduced battery life and portability. 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 Lenovo Flex 5 16
Good portability
Very good battery life
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 speakers
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.6/10
8.4/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
400.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
11.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
7.4/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for general use, while the Lenovo Flex 5 16 is good.
The Lenovo Flex 5 16, being a 2-in-1 convertible with considerable battery life, suits those who value flexibility and longer use on a single charge, while the MSI GE66 Raider, offering excellent screen quality and higher performance components like CPU and RAM, is more suitable for users needing a powerful device for more intensive tasks despite being less portable and having a shorter battery life. Both are capable for general use, but each excels in different scenarios: the Lenovo for everyday portability and versatility, and the MSI for demanding software and media consumption.
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
8.6/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.2/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.2/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo Flex 5 16 is only fair.
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
7.2/10
9.1/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.2/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The MSI GE66 Raider is excellent for engineering and design, while the Lenovo Flex 5 16 is good.
The MSI GE66 Raider offers a more powerful CPU, double the RAM, and a superior GPU compared to the Lenovo Flex 5 16, making it excellent for demanding engineering and design tasks that require intensive computational power and graphics rendering. While the Lenovo has commendable screen quality and sufficient resources for good performance in engineering applications, the MSI edges out with sharper display resolution and higher color accuracy, though it sacrifices some portability due to a heavier build and louder operating noise.
Content Creation
7.6/10
8.4/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for content creation, while the Lenovo Flex 5 16 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
7.5/10
8.4/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for software development, while the Lenovo Flex 5 16 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
7.3/10
8.2/10
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
400.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
The MSI GE66 Raider has a better screen than the Lenovo Flex 5 16 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, the Lenovo Flex 5 16 has a suitable display with adequate resolution and brightness, making text and images sharp and easy to view. In engineering and design contexts, the Lenovo Flex 5 16's color accuracy is decent, but it may fall short for professionals needing the most accurate color representation due to limited coverage of professional color gamuts. The MSI GE66 Raider, while offering excellent brightness and resolution for both general use and detailed engineering work, lacks a high refresh rate needed for optimal 3D applications, which can make fast-paced content less smooth and immersive for gaming or 3D modeling.
Battery
11.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Lenovo Flex 5 16 has 11.5 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.
Portability
Good
Fair
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
4.6 lbs
WEIGHT
5.2 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Lenovo Flex 5 16 has good portability, while the MSI GE66 Raider has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.0/10
8.5/10
The MSI GE66 Raider has very good build quality, while the Lenovo Flex 5 16 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$779
$3,199
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Lenovo Flex 5 16 has a price of $779 and the MSI GE66 Raider costs $3,199.
"The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 is a solidly equipped, 2-in-1 in the lower price segment. Performance is definitely sufficient for everyday tasks and in tests the battery proved itself to be very economical. That aside, there is a lot of standard fare on show and a search for real highlights ends in vain. The low color coverage and reflective display can be avoided by going for an optional 2.5K display but this also presumably results in poorer battery life. The cooling uses only one fan and leads to a raised temperature on one side of the device under load. Additionally, there is very loud fan noise, also under load or when gaming. On top of that, we also occasionally noticed electronic noises."
"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 Lenovo Flex 5 16 or the MSI GE66 Raider
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
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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