The MSI Katana 17 has no clear advantages over the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i.
Key differences
General Use
8.5/10
7.9/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
618.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
256.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
3.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.2/10
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is very good for general use, while the MSI Katana 17 is good.
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i boasts a high-resolution Mini LED display, favorable portability with its lighter weight and smaller size, and a longer battery life, making it very good for users needing a balanced mix of performance and mobility for general use. In contrast, the MSI Katana 17 offers a larger screen and stronger graphics performance with its superior GPU, suited to users who prefer a bigger display and can compromise on bulkiness and reduced battery life for everyday tasks.
Content Creation
8.5/10
7.8/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.9/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is very good for content creation, while the MSI Katana 17 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
7.5/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.9/10
32.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i is very good for software development, while the MSI Katana 17 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
6.9/10
14.5in
SIZE
17.3in
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
618.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
256.0 nits
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has a better screen than the MSI Katana 17 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i excels in screen quality for general use and engineering with a panel that offers sharp images, high brightness, and broad color coverage, enhancing visual detail and color accuracy essential for design work. On the other hand, the MSI Katana 17 provides a satisfactory display for everyday tasks but lacks the color precision critical for professional design applications. Neither laptop is ideal for gaming and 3D applications due to lower refresh rates, which are key for smooth motion rendering in fast-paced visuals.
Battery
6.0 Hours
3.0 Hours
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has 6 hours of battery life. The MSI Katana 17 has 3 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
Fair
14.5in
SIZE
17.3in
3.7 lbs
WEIGHT
5.7 lbs
0.8in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has good portability, while the MSI Katana 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.0/10
7.2/10
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has very good build quality, while the MSI Katana 17 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,600
$1,367
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i has a price of $1,600 and the MSI Katana 17 costs $1,367.
The MSI Katana 17 and Lenovo Slim Pro 9i are both good for gaming and AI.
The MSI Katana 17 is very good for gaming and 3D because it has a more powerful Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU and a higher refresh rate of 144Hz, which makes for smoother visuals than the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i that has an Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU and a 165Hz refresh rate. However, the Lenovo offers a higher screen pixel density and coverage of color spaces, which could lead to better screen quality, although its CPU and GPU are somewhat less powerful for gaming compared to the MSI Katana.
Engineering and Design
8.9/10
8.4/10
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.9/10
6.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
32.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i and MSI Katana 17 are both very good for engineering and design.
The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i excels in engineering and design tasks with higher screen resolution and superior color accuracy, making it ideal for detailed work, whereas the MSI Katana 17, although slightly less suited for color-critical tasks, offers a larger screen and a more powerful GPU which might be beneficial for certain engineering applications.
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How the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i and the MSI Katana 17 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 Katana 17 B13V laptop impressed us in its main area of competency - gaming. The Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 ensures high-performance levels which can compete with the previous generation's RTX 3070 Ti. In addition to the speedy GPU, the MSI comes with a 144 Hz display as well as an RGB keyboard and provides a very good typing experience. Despite the power at hand, the laptop remains comparatively cool."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i or the MSI Katana 17
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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