The MSI GF65 Thin is more affordable and offers good performance with decent battery life and portability. It's suitable for general use and can handle less demanding gaming. On the other hand, the MSI Stealth 17 is pricier, but this premium laptop includes top-tier components, making it better suited for intensive 3D tasks, machine learning, gaming, and engineering work. It boasts a larger, higher-resolution display and longer battery life but is also bulkier, which could affect portability. Essentially, if budget is a concern and you're looking at everyday tasks and moderate gaming, the GF65 Thin could suffice. For professional-grade power, superior display quality, and no budget constraints, the Stealth 17 is the superior choice. 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 MSI GF65 Thin
Good portability
Advantages of the MSI Stealth 17
Very good for general use
Excellent for engineering and design
Excellent for gaming and AI
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Best in class speakers
Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.5/10
8.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
262.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
4.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
7.3/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.4/10
The MSI Stealth 17 is very good for general use, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
The MSI Stealth 17 offers a better experience for general use due to its more powerful CPU, larger RAM capacity, and superior screen quality, which are very important factors. It also has a more efficient battery and greater portability despite its larger size, but this comes at a higher price point compared to the fair general use performance of the MSI GF65 Thin, which has a less powerful CPU, less RAM, and a lower screen quality.
Gaming and AI
6.8/10
9.1/10
6.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI Stealth 17 is excellent for gaming and AI, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
The MSI GF65 Thin is equipped with an Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU and a screen refresh rate of 144Hz, which provides fair gaming and 3D performance; on the other hand, the MSI Stealth 17 boasts a far more powerful Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU and a higher screen refresh rate of 240Hz, making it excellent for more demanding gaming and 3D experiences.
Engineering and Design
6.7/10
9.4/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
6.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
The MSI Stealth 17 is excellent for engineering and design, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
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
6.8/10
8.8/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Stealth 17 is very good for content creation, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
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
6.3/10
8.5/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
64.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI Stealth 17 is very good for software development, while the MSI GF65 Thin is only fair.
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
6.8/10
8.6/10
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
262.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
384.0 nits
The MSI Stealth 17 has a better screen than the MSI GF65 Thin for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, the MSI Stealth 17's superior panel type, higher resolution, and greater brightness make for a crisp, vibrant display that enhances everyday tasks like browsing, video streaming, and document editing. In engineering and design, the Stealth 17's wider color gamuts provide more accurate color representation which is crucial for tasks such as photo editing, graphic design, and CAD work. However, for Gaming and 3D applications, despite the quality resolutions and panel types, both laptops' lower refresh rates lead to less fluid motion, which can be a disadvantage for fast-paced games and creating smooth 3D animations.
Battery
4.5 Hours
5.5 Hours
The MSI GF65 Thin has 4.5 hours of battery life. The MSI Stealth 17 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.
Portability
Good
Fair
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
4.1 lbs
WEIGHT
6.1 lbs
0.8in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The MSI GF65 Thin has good portability, while the MSI Stealth 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.7/10
7.8/10
The MSI Stealth 17 has good build quality, while the MSI GF65 Thin has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,100
$3,899
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The MSI GF65 Thin has a price of $1,100 and the MSI Stealth 17 costs $3,899.
"The MSI GF65 Thin offers a GeForce RTX 3060 on a budget. The MSI GF65 is a relatively inexpensive RTX 3060 laptop and, perhaps not coincidentally, it also comes with a slower-than-average RTX 3060 GPU. Other laptops we've tested thus far with the same GPU are about 10 to 15 percent faster. CPU performance is also slightly slower than average unless if users decide to enable Cooler Boost mode. Colors, black-white response times, Thunderbolt, and DisplayPort are either average or completely omitted. Gamers who want to maximize performance-per-dollar without sacrificing RAM or SSD upgradeability will find the lightweight MSI GF65 attractive."
"The MSI Stealth 17 Studio is a laptop with a quiet RTX 4080 for almost every occasion. The MSI Stealth 17 Studio is equally capable of high-level media processing and playing current games. It remains pleasantly quiet, even if a few percentage points of power have had to be sacrificed in the process. But, it is not quite perfect: To some extent, the Stealth 17 is well thought out. It packs tons of graphics power and high-end components in a slim case. The laptop's cooling system can be set such that, noise-wise, it doesn't even reach low volume. However, small flaws cloud otherwise exceptionally positive impressions."
Get a great deal on the MSI GF65 Thin or the MSI Stealth 17
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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