The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is a budget-friendly option and is lighter, making it more portable and better suited for general use with decent performance and battery life. On the other hand, the MSI GP66 Leopard, while more expensive, offers a significant step up in performance, particularly for 3D tasks, machine learning, gaming, and engineering, thanks to its more powerful CPU and high-end GPU. The MSI also has a higher refresh rate display for smoother visuals but at the expense of reduced battery life and increased weight. So, if you need a laptop for more demanding applications and can handle a heavier device with less battery life, the MSI GP66 Leopard is the better choice; otherwise, for everyday tasks and better portability, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is sufficient. 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 IdeaPad 3 14"
Very good portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the MSI GP66 Leopard
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.9/10
7.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
313.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
362.0 nits
10.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
8.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The MSI GP66 Leopard is good for general use, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has modest specifications with less RAM and a less powerful processor than the MSI GP66 Leopard, making it more suited for lighter tasks and longer battery life, ideal for users prioritizing portability and longevity on a single charge.
Gaming and AI
6.0/10
7.8/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
9.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI GP66 Leopard is good for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has a less powerful GPU and a lower screen refresh rate, which makes it fair for gaming and 3D tasks, while the MSI GP66 Leopard is equipped with a high-end GPU and a high refresh rate screen, making it better suited for such applications.
Engineering and Design
6.1/10
7.9/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI GP66 Leopard is good for engineering and design, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3, with its AMD Ryzen 5 processor, integrated Vega 7 graphics, and a decent display is fine suited for lighter engineering and design tasks, whereas the MSI GP66 Leopard, powered by a more robust Intel i7 processor and high-end Nvidia RTX 3080 graphics card, excels due to its higher performance capabilities and better screen quality for more demanding engineering simulations and detailed design work. Although the MSI offers superior performance and screen, it is also heavier and bulkier, which affects its portability compared to the more lightweight Lenovo, and it tends to have higher operating noise due to its powerful hardware.
Screen Quality
6.4/10
7.5/10
14.0in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
313.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
362.0 nits
The MSI GP66 Leopard has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, and software development.
For general use, both the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 and the MSI GP66 Leopard have suitable screen brightness and resolution, with the Lenovo offering satisfactory visuals at a typically more accessible price point and the MSI enhancing those visuals with a sharper display. The MSI GP66 Leopard stands out for engineering and design due to its wider color gamut coverage, allowing for more accurate color representation which is critical in professional design work, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 provides basic color accuracy that might suffice for casual design tasks. However, for gaming and 3D applications, both laptops fall short due to lower refresh rates, meaning neither can deliver the smooth motion sought by those applications, though the MSI might have a slight edge with a higher base refresh rate compared to the Lenovo, resulting in less fluid gameplay and possibly less enjoyable rendering of fast-paced graphics.
Battery
10.0 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has 10 hours of battery life. The MSI GP66 Leopard has 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
Very Good
Fair
14.0in
SIZE
15.6in
3.1 lbs
WEIGHT
5.2 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has very good portability, while the MSI GP66 Leopard has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.5/10
8.0/10
The MSI GP66 Leopard has very good build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$490
$1,400
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has a price of $490 and the MSI GP66 Leopard costs $1,400.
The MSI GP66 Leopard and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" are both good for content creation.
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
7.1/10
7.2/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI GP66 Leopard and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" are both 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 Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" and the MSI GP66 Leopard compare to other laptops
"The low-priced IdeaPad 3 14 delivers on core functionality. Lenovo's IdeaPad 3 14 meets all the basic requirements for an inexpensive office laptop. The matte IPS display is bright enough, the performance is high for the class, and the input devices are rock solid. In addition, the mostly quiet operation including the useful performance modes, cool surface temperatures, easy maintainability as well as expandable working and mass storage all contribute to the IdeaPad 3 14's value proposition."
"The MSI GP66 Leopard is a good budget high-performance gamer. The MSI also does a lot right outside of the pure performance despite it's low price. For example, the adaptive cooling system really surprised us positively, even in Extreme Performance Mode. And the display is not a budget panel either, but at least outshines the competition in terms of brightness. Of course, you also have to accept a few compromises in this price category. These include the Leopard's poor battery runtimes and the less than optimal build quality, which is also noticeable in the more complicated maintenance."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" or the MSI GP66 Leopard
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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