If you prioritize a higher-quality screen and longer battery life for tasks like watching videos or general browsing, the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i, being slightly more expensive, offers a better display and longer use between charges. However, it's less suited for intensive gaming despite its decent performance. In contrast, the MSI Pulse GL66, while usually less expensive, is more focused on performance, particularly for gaming or resource-heavy applications thanks to its powerful graphics card but at the expense of screen quality and battery life, and it's a bit heavier, making it less convenient to carry around. Both come with a modern processor and a solid amount of RAM for multitasking, but the Lenovo has more storage out of the box. 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 Slim Pro 9i
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Best in class overall display quality
Very good overall build quality
Good battery life
Advantages of the MSI Pulse GL66
The MSI Pulse GL66 has no clear advantages over the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i.
Key differences
General Use
8.5/10
7.3/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
618.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
245.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is very good for general use, while the MSI Pulse GL66 is good.
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i excels in general use with its higher-resolution Mini LED screen offering better color accuracy and brightness, a more powerful CPU, double the RAM, and a robust battery, which contribute to its suitability for a range of tasks while also being lighter and thinner, enhancing its portability. The MSI Pulse GL66, although heavier with a lower battery life and an IPS screen with standard resolution, is equipped with a strong CPU and a capable GPU, making it a competent choice for general use and a good fit for gaming, but it might not match the Lenovo’s prowess in screen quality and portability.
Engineering and Design
8.9/10
7.5/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
6.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.1/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is very good for engineering and design, while the MSI Pulse GL66 is good.
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i stands out with a higher resolution and brighter Mini LED display, more RAM, and a newer CPU and GPU, making it excellent for demanding engineering and design tasks. While the MSI Pulse GL66 provides a powerful RTX 3070 GPU and a competent CPU for good performance, its lower screen resolution and lower RAM capacity may limit it in more intensive workloads.
Content Creation
8.5/10
7.2/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is very good for content creation, while the MSI Pulse GL66 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
8.3/10
7.0/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is very good for software development, while the MSI Pulse GL66 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
9.6/10
6.8/10
14.5in
SIZE
15.6in
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
618.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
245.0 nits
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has a better screen than the MSI Pulse GL66 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
For general use, the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i's superior resolution and brightness make it ideal for browsing and video streaming, delivering crisp and vibrant visuals, while the MSI Pulse GL66's more modest display provides adequate clarity and brightness at a potentially lower price point. When it comes to engineering and design, the Lenovo's wider color gamuts ensure that professionals see accurate colors necessary for their work, a feature that may not be as finely tuned on the MSI. However, for gaming and 3D applications, the MSI might offer a better experience as refresh rates are crucial for smooth gameplay and the Lenovo's focus on screen quality may not translate to the high refresh rates gamers need.
Battery
6.0 Hours
4.0 Hours
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has 6 hours of battery life. The MSI Pulse GL66 has 4 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
Good
Good
14.5in
SIZE
15.6in
3.7 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.8in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i and MSI Pulse GL66 both have good portability, though the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.0/10
7.4/10
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has very good build quality, while the MSI Pulse GL66 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,600
$1,399
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has a price of $1,600 and the MSI Pulse GL66 costs $1,399.
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i and MSI Pulse GL66 are both good for gaming and AI.
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i, with its Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU and a high-refresh-rate Mini LED screen, offers fluid visuals for gaming and 3D applications, complemented by a sharp display resolution. In comparison, the MSI Pulse GL66 boasts a more robust Nvidia RTX 3070 GPU, ideal for demanding gaming and 3D tasks, though it has a lower refresh rate IPS screen which still ensures smooth gameplay.
Give feedback
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How the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i and the MSI Pulse GL66 compare to other laptops
"The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is an impressive laptop with a brilliant Mini-LED display, a powerful 100-watt version of Nvidia RTX 4050 graphics, and excellent connectivity. Having run the Cinebench benchmark again, we were impressed with the CPU performance. That makes the Slim Pro 9i is an easy recommendation, especially for those who care about GPU and CPU performance. It’s also a fantastic choice if you frequently view HDR movies and games on your laptop."
"The MSI Pulse GL66 has a lot of potential for improvement. Although the RTX 3060 is only able to use 105 watts, we still liked the gaming performance, particularly since this also makes the Pulse comfortably efficient but not slow by any means. Neither the dark display with its lame response times, nor USB 2.0 or the lack of Thunderbolt will please real gamers. The use of a sticker factory seal, which is at least questionable, also won't inspire any enthusiasm. It is obvious that the laptop is really designed for price-conscious gamers."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i or the MSI Pulse GL66
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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