When deciding between the Lenovo Flex 5 14 and the MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio, consider that the Lenovo is more budget-friendly and offers good everyday performance with the flexibility of a 2-in-1 design that's easy to carry around. On the other hand, the MSI, while more expensive, provides much higher performance suitable for demanding tasks like 3D design, machine learning, and gaming, but it is less portable due to its larger size and often shorter battery life. Choose the Lenovo for general use and portability, or the MSI for intensive applications where high performance is a priority. 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 14
Very good portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio
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
Very good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.7/10
8.4/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
277.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
11.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
8.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.0/10
The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio is very good for general use, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 is good.
The Lenovo Flex 5 14 offers a balance of CPU performance and RAM for everyday tasks, with the added versatility of a touchscreen for convenience, and it maintains a focus on portability and battery life for on-the-go users. Meanwhile, the MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio, with a more powerful CPU and larger RAM, excels in demanding applications and boasts a higher screen quality for detailed work, though it may be less portable and have a shorter battery life due to its more robust hardware.
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
8.9/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio is very good for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 is only fair.
The Lenovo Flex 5 14 has modest gaming capabilities with its integrated graphics and standard screen refresh rate, making it suitable for casual gaming and light 3D work. The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio, with its dedicated high-end graphics card and higher refresh rate display, excels in demanding gaming scenarios and complex 3D tasks, offering a smoother and more visually detailed experience.
Engineering and Design
7.0/10
9.1/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio is excellent for engineering and design, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 is good.
The Lenovo Flex 5 14, with a capable CPU and sufficient RAM, offers a satisfactory performance for engineering tasks and a good screen for design work, balanced by its affordability and 2-in-1 portability which compromises slightly on high-end graphics capabilities. Meanwhile, the MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio, despite being less portable due to its larger size, provides exceptional power with a top-tier CPU, abundant RAM, advanced GPU, and superior screen quality, dramatically enhancing performance for engineering software and graphical tasks at a higher price point.
Content Creation
7.6/10
8.5/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio is very good for content creation, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 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
7.4/10
8.2/10
6.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio is very good for software development, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 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
6.4/10
8.4/10
14.0in
SIZE
18.0in
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
277.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio has a better screen than the Lenovo Flex 5 14 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Lenovo Flex 5 14 offers adequate resolution and brightness, but for engineering and design, its color range is limited, not covering the wider color gamuts like Adobe RGB. The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio, with its higher resolution and brightness, excels in color accuracy and range, important for professional design work, but it falls short for gaming due to a less optimal refresh rate. For general use and productivity, both laptops will serve well, but the MSI offers a clearer and more vibrant display experience at a higher price point.
Battery
11.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Lenovo Flex 5 14 has 11.5 hours of battery life. The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio 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
Very Good
Fair
14.0in
SIZE
18.0in
3.4 lbs
WEIGHT
6.1 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Lenovo Flex 5 14 has very good portability, while the MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.0/10
8.0/10
The MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio has very good build quality, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$950
$2,900
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Lenovo Flex 5 14 has a price of $950 and the MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio costs $2,900.
"The highlight of the latest IdeaPad Flex 5 14 is clearly its AMD CPU. The octa-core Ryzen 7 5700U is insanely fast even when compared to the best Tiger Lake Ultrabooks in the market or even Core H CPUs in many gaming laptops. It's a lot of raw processing power for what is supposed to be a budget 14-inch convertible. If your daily workloads can benefit from extra multi-thread CPU performance, then look no further than the inexpensive AMD-powered Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 14. For regular on-the-road browsing or video streaming, however, a slimmer and lighter 10th gen Core Yoga, Spectre, or XPS would be a more balanced option."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo Flex 5 14 or the MSI Stealth 18 AI Studio
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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