The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i offers top-tier performance with its high-end processor and graphics card, making it ideal for demanding tasks like gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning. It has a higher resolution and refresh rate display, superior color accuracy, and a more robust build quality, which is great for professionals and enthusiasts. However, it's heavier, more expensive, and its battery life is shorter, which might not be ideal if you need a laptop for general use on the go.
On the other hand, the MSI Katana 15 is more budget-friendly and portable, with a decent battery life that's better suited for everyday tasks and moderate gaming. It still provides good performance for general use and some gaming, but it won't handle intensive engineering tasks as smoothly as the Legion Pro 7i. The display is less impressive, but it's still suitable for general use.
In summary, if you prioritize performance and display quality for specialized tasks and are willing to compromise on portability and price, the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i is the way to go. If you're looking for a more affordable and portable option for general use with some gaming capabilities, the MSI Katana 15 would be a better fit. 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 7i (2024)
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Excellent for gaming and AI
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Best in class speakers
Excellent keyboard
Advantages of the MSI Katana 15
The MSI Katana 15 has no clear advantages over the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024).
Key differences
General Use
8.1/10
7.5/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
469.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
258.0 nits
5.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.0 Hours
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
6.4/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.9/10
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) is very good for general use, while the MSI Katana 15 is good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Gaming and AI
9.1/10
7.6/10
9.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
240Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) is excellent for gaming and AI, while the MSI Katana 15 is good.
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
9.0/10
7.7/10
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
9.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) is excellent for engineering and design, while the MSI Katana 15 is good.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Content Creation
8.3/10
7.4/10
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) is very good for content creation, while the MSI Katana 15 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
7.9/10
7.0/10
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) and MSI Katana 15 are both good for software development, though the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) is somewhat better.
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
8.7/10
6.8/10
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
240Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
469.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
258.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i has a better screen than the MSI Katana 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Portability
Fair
Fair
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
5.7 lbs
WEIGHT
4.9 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The MSI Katana 15 and Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) both have only fair portability, though the MSI Katana 15 has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.5/10
7.2/10
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) has very good build quality, while the MSI Katana 15 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$2,100
$949
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) has a price of $2,100 and the MSI Katana 15 costs $949.
"Passionate gamers who want to play demanding modern titles with maximum details and don't mind spending the moolah will find the Lenovo Legion 7 Pro to be the right choice. The bright, sharp, and color-accurate 16:10 QHD 240 Hz display makes for an immersive viewing experience. The hardware is housed in a stylish chassis that feels premium and scores well in terms of workmanship and stability. Other aspects such as sound quality, input devices, and connectivity also seem to be near-perfect."
"The MSI Katana 15 B12 combines a Gen12 CPU with an RTX 4050, which is actually not a bad idea for a budget gamer. The CPU is anything but bad and the GPU in the Katana 15 proves to be significantly more efficient than last year's models. However, our main point of criticism for budget gamers is the price: while you can get budget laptops with RTX 3060 from around US$800, you pay a whole US$1,499.99 here! The efficiency advantages of the RTX 4050 do not justify this price premium."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i (2024) or the MSI Katana 15
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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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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