The Lenovo Legion 5 Pro is less expensive than the MSI GE66 Raider, which might be important if your budget is tight. It has ample storage and is a solid choice for most gaming needs, with a high refresh rate display. However, the MSI GE66 Raider offers more memory, a more powerful CPU, and a higher resolution display, which are advantages for intense gaming, detailed creative work, and engineering tasks. The Raider also has a slightly longer battery life. Both are similar in weight and size, meaning portability is comparable, but the MSI may have a slight edge in build quality and screen color accuracy. Choose the Legion 5 Pro for a balance of cost and capability or the Raider if high-end 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 Legion Pro 5
The Lenovo Legion Pro 5 has no clear advantages over the MSI GE66 Raider.
Advantages of the MSI GE66 Raider
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall build quality
Good battery life
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.8/10
8.4/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
340.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
3.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
6.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for general use, while the Lenovo Legion Pro 5 is good.
The Lenovo Legion Pro 5, with a strong CPU and ample RAM, ensures smooth performance for everyday tasks, while screen quality provides clear visuals; however, it might not be the easiest to carry around, and battery life may limit its mobility. In contrast, the MSI GE66 Raider also boasts excellent performance capabilities and better portability despite likely similar battery constraints, but it comes at a premium, providing enhanced features like storage capacity, a more responsive keyboard, and superior speakers, which may justify the extra expense for users who value those aspects highly.
Engineering and Design
8.5/10
9.1/10
9.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
8.9/10
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 Legion Pro 5 is very good.
The Lenovo Legion Pro 5 is very good for engineering and design due to its robust AMD Ryzen processor and Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU; it also has a high-resolution IPS screen with good color coverage, making it suitable for detailed work. Meanwhile, the MSI GE66 Raider excels with a higher-end Intel i9 processor and Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti GPU, providing superior computational power and graphics performance, while its screen has an even higher resolution and color accuracy for the most demanding design tasks.
Content Creation
7.8/10
8.4/10
9.3/10
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 Legion Pro 5 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
7.6/10
8.4/10
9.3/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI GE66 Raider is very good for software development, while the Lenovo Legion Pro 5 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
8.0/10
8.2/10
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
340.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
347.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion Pro 5 has a better screen than the MSI GE66 Raider for gaming and AI, while the MSI GE66 Raider has a better screen for general use, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
When considering screen quality for general use, the Lenovo Legion Pro 5 and MSI GE66 Raider both boast panels with high resolutions and brightness levels, ensuring sharp, vivid displays for everyday tasks and media consumption. For engineering and design, these laptops offer wide color gamuts, providing the color accuracy and range required for professional creative work. However, for gaming and 3D applications, their lower refresh rates might detract from the experience, as smoother motion and quicker response times are crucial for these activities.
Battery
3.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Lenovo Legion Pro 5 has 3.5 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.
Build Quality
7.4/10
8.5/10
The MSI GE66 Raider has very good build quality, while the Lenovo Legion Pro 5 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,320
$3,199
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The Lenovo Legion Pro 5 has a price of $1,320 and the MSI GE66 Raider costs $3,199.
The MSI GE66 Raider and Lenovo Legion Pro 5 are both very good for gaming and AI.
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.
Portability
Fair
Fair
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
5.6 lbs
WEIGHT
5.2 lbs
0.9in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The MSI GE66 Raider and Lenovo Legion Pro 5 both have only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Lenovo Legion Pro 5 and the MSI GE66 Raider compare to other laptops
"It doesn't quite match its Legion Pro 7i sibling as an Editors' Choice winner, but Lenovo's AMD-powered Legion Pro 5 Gen 8 is a stylish, well-built gaming laptop with solid performance at both 1080p and its sharper native resolution. It's cheaper than some comparably equipped machines and better than some similarly priced ones. That's a recipe for success, even without its frequent availability of discounts or sales. A brighter screen and longer battery life would be nice, but even as is the Legion Pro 5 earns a solid recommendation."
"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 Legion Pro 5 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.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
131,595
Recommendations made
28,513
Consumer hours saved
About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.