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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated June 22, 2024·
The MSI Raider 18 HX is a powerhouse designed for the most demanding tasks, offering top-tier performance that excels in engineering applications and intensive gaming, thanks to its high-end processor and GPU. Its large, high-resolution Mini LED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and excellent color coverage makes it ideal for fast-paced motion and professional color grading. However, its portability is compromised due to its size, weight, and shorter battery life, making it less suitable for frequent travelers. In contrast, the Razer Blade 14 (2023) strikes a balance between performance and portability. It's equipped with a capable AMD Ryzen 9 processor and Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU, delivering solid performance for general use, gaming, and light engineering tasks. The 14-inch IPS display with a 240Hz refresh rate is great for gaming and everyday use, though it falls short in color accuracy compared to the MSI. Its compact design, longer battery life, and lower weight make it an excellent choice for users who need to work or play on the go. If your priority is raw power and you don't mind a bulkier device, the MSI Raider 18 HX is the way to go. However, if you value portability and still want a machine that can handle gaming and general tasks well, the Razer Blade 14 (2023) is the better 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 Raider 18 HX
- Best in class for engineering and design
- Excellent for gaming and AI
- Very good for software development
- Excellent for content creation
- Excellent overall display quality
- Very good speakers
Advantages of the Razer Blade 14 (2023)
- Very good overall build quality
- Very good portability
- Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
8.8
8.1
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
1000.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
560.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
5.0/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI Raider 18 HX and Razer Blade 14 (2023) are both very good for general use, though the MSI Raider 18 HX is somewhat better.
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
9.0
8.4
9.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI Raider 18 HX is excellent for gaming and AI, while the Razer Blade 14 (2023) is very 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
9.6
8.7
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.2/10
9.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.5/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Raider 18 HX is best in class for engineering and design, while the Razer Blade 14 (2023) is very 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
9.1
8.2
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.2/10
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Raider 18 HX is excellent for content creation, while the Razer Blade 14 (2023) is very 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
8.8
7.9
9.9/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.2/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The MSI Raider 18 HX is very good for software development, while the Razer Blade 14 (2023) 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
9.4
8.9
18.0in
SIZE
14.0in
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
1000.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
560.0 nits
The MSI Raider 18 HX has a better screen than the Razer Blade 14 for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation, while the Razer Blade 14 has a better screen for gaming and AI.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
9.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The MSI Raider 18 HX has 9 hours of battery life. The Razer Blade 14 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.
Portability
Poor
Very Good
18.0in
SIZE
14.0in
7.9 lbs
WEIGHT
4.0 lbs
1.2in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Razer Blade 14 (2023) has very good portability, while the MSI Raider 18 HX has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4
8.5
The Razer Blade 14 (2023) has very good build quality, while the MSI Raider 18 HX has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$3,999
$2,400
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The MSI Raider 18 HX has a price of $3,999 and the Razer Blade 14 (2023) costs $2,400.
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How the MSI Raider 18 HX and the Razer Blade 14 (2023) compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| MSI Raider 18 HX | Razer Blade 14 (2023) |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$3,999 | $2,400 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | March 1, 2024 | June 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.9'' x 12.1'' x 1.26'' | 12.2'' x 9'' x 0.7'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 7.94 lbs | 4.05 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.91" | 12.23" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 12.09" | 8.97" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i9-14900HX | AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 32 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 4 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9 Hours | 6 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 99.9 Wh | 68.1 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 18" | 14" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | Mini LED | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 3840 x 2400 | 2560 x 1600 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 120Hz | 240Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 1000 nits | 560 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.4/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 5.1/10 | 8/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 8/10 | 6.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 7/10 | 9/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 8/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 3 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | N/A | |
Shopping
Razer Blade 14 (2023)
See more
Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Allen Ngo | May 2022
"After making a huge splash with the original 2021 model, it's expected that the 2022 refresh would be more of a minor update to an already impressive machine. It adds a higher resolution webcam (720p to 1080p), faster CPU (Ryzen 9 5900HX to Ryzen 9 6900HX), faster GPU (RTX 3070/3080 to 3070/3080 Ti), faster RAM (DDR4-3200 to DDR5-4800), faster M.2 SSD support (PCIe3 x4 to PCIe4 x4), newer WLAN module (Killer AX1690i to Qualcomm WCN685x), and a MUX switch for the new integrated Radeon 680M GPU. It's indubitably an upgrade especially in terms of single-thread processor performance."
Get a great deal on the MSI Raider 18 HX or the Razer Blade 14 (2023)
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.
About Razer
Razer is an American-Singaporean technology company. Razer is best known for their Blade series laptops, well known for their strong performance and sleek design. Although Razer charges a premium price tag for their laptops, buyers can expect a stealthy laptop with clean fit and finish and strong performance. All of their models offer great portability and build quality compared to other gaming laptops.
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