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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is less expensive and offers a larger screen for comfortable viewing, making it suitable for general use and less demanding tasks. However, it has moderate performance and a less powerful integrated graphics unit, which is not ideal for intensive gaming or demanding engineering and 3D/machine learning applications. On the other hand, the MSI Stealth GS66 comes at a premium price but delivers high performance, a powerful dedicated graphics card for gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning tasks, and engineering software. It's also more portable and has a higher-quality build, but it has a smaller screen and may be less easy on the eyes for extended use. 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 17"
- Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Stealth GS66
- Very good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Very good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Very good speakers
- Very good keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.1
7.8
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
9.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 is good for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has an integrated AMD GPU and a screen refresh rate of 60Hz, which are fair for gaming and 3D tasks but may not handle the most demanding games at high settings. In contrast, the MSI Stealth GS66 comes with a much more powerful Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti graphics card and a higher screen refresh rate of 360Hz, providing a smoother and more immersive gaming and 3D experience.
Engineering and Design
6.6
8.2
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Stealth GS66 is very good for engineering and design, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is only fair.
The MSI Stealth GS66 is considered very good for engineering and design use because it possesses a more powerful Intel i7 processor, double the RAM, and a high-end Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti graphics card, which provide better performance for demanding tasks. On the other hand, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 with its AMD Ryzen 5 processor and integrated Vega graphics is suitable for lighter tasks, it falls short in screen quality and computing power for more intense engineering and design applications.
Screen Quality
6.7
8.1
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
307.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
The MSI Stealth GS66 has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, both the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 and the MSI Stealth GS66 offer panels with crisp resolutions and adequate brightness, making them suitable for tasks like web browsing, video streaming, and document editing. In engineering and design, the need for color accuracy is met by both laptops, as they cover a wide range of color gamuts, ensuring that colors are represented faithfully for tasks such as graphic design and CAD work. However, for gaming and 3D applications, both laptops fall short due to their lower refresh rates, which could result in less fluid motion and slower response times compared to laptops with higher refresh rates.
Battery
9.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has 9 hours of battery life. The MSI Stealth GS66 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.
Build Quality
6.5
8.0
The MSI Stealth GS66 has very good build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$784
$1,799
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has a price of $784 and the MSI Stealth GS66 costs $1,799.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.3
7.7
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
307.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
7.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" are both good for general use.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is appreciated for general use because of its comfortable screen size and long battery life, making it suitable for everyday tasks; however, its less powerful processor and graphics are significant tradeoffs when compared with the MSI Stealth GS66. The MSI exhibits high performance with a robust processor and GPU for demanding applications, a solid build, and a quality keyboard, but its battery life is shorter, and it's less portable due to its heavier weight and compact size, leaning more towards users with gaming or intensive workload requirements.
Content Creation
7.4
7.7
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth GS66 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" 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
7.2
7.5
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The MSI Stealth GS66 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" 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.
Portability
Good
Good
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
4.4 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The MSI Stealth GS66 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" both have good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
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How the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" and the MSI Stealth GS66 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" | MSI Stealth GS66 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$784 | $1,799 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | April 1, 2022 | April 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.7'' x 10.8'' x 0.78'' | 14.2'' x 9.7'' x 0.71'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 4.49 lbs | 4.63 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.71" | 14.17" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.79" | 9.65" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 5 5625U | Intel i7-12700H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 1 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9 Hours | 5.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 45 Wh | 99.9 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 360Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 307 nits | 280 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.2/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 9.5/10 | 7.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6/10 | 8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | No | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 3 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 4 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | N/A | 4 | |
Shopping
Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17"
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LaptopMedia
Alex Iliev | December 2022
"The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" defies expectations. Indeed, it is just a minor upgrade over last year. However, this doesn’t make the laptop any less terrific. It’s got a great performance, courtesy of the Ryzen 5x25U processors. In addition, you get a pretty good battery life. Perhaps, the 2-hour decrease in video playback, compared to last year is not great, but still, 10 hours of Web browsing and 7 hours of video playback is okay for 17-inch notebooks."
MSI Stealth GS66
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NotebookCheck
Florian Glaser | February 2022
"The MSI Stealth GS66 is powerful enough for QHD. The Core i7-12700H and the GeForce RTX 3070 Ti found in the 12UGS model that we tested run all modern games smoothly in the native QHD resolution. The 15-inch display is very fast with its 240 Hz refresh rate, and it also offers a great color space (almost 100% DCI-P3) on top of that, which should please gamers as well as content creators, although we would have still wished for a higher brightness. Case, input devices, and connectivity (Thunderbolt 4) are at a good level. However, among other things, the GS66 loses points due to the high temperature development in 3D mode and its poor webcam."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" or the MSI Stealth GS66
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.
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