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Updated June 22, 2024·
For a balance of performance and portability with a high-quality display suited for engineering tasks, consider the MSI Raider GE66. It offers a powerful processor and dedicated graphics card, making it suitable for intensive applications, though it's heavier and has a shorter battery life compared to the Surface Laptop. On the other hand, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is ideal for general use with its excellent battery life, lightweight design, and a touchscreen with high color accuracy, but it may not handle demanding engineering or gaming tasks as well as the MSI. 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 GE66
- Very good for general use
- Very good for engineering and design
- Very good for gaming and AI
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Very good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Excellent keyboard
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
- Very good portability
- Very good speakers
Key differences
General Use
8.3
7.7
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
300.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
9.0 Hours
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
6.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.6/10
The MSI Raider GE66 is very good for general use, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" 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
8.5
6.6
8.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
240Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.2/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The MSI Raider GE66 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is only fair.
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
8.9
7.7
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
8.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The MSI Raider GE66 is very good for engineering and design, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" 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
7.7
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Raider GE66 is very good for content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" 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.
Screen Quality
8.4
7.8
15.6in
SIZE
13.5in
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
240Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
300.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
The MSI Raider GE66 has a better screen than the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" 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.
Battery
6.0 Hours
9.0 Hours
The MSI Raider GE66 has 6 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has 9 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
Fair
Very Good
15.6in
SIZE
13.5in
5.2 lbs
WEIGHT
3.0 lbs
0.9in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has very good portability, while the MSI Raider GE66 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.5
7.4
The MSI Raider GE66 has very good build quality, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$2,499
$1,200
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The MSI Raider GE66 has a price of $2,499 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" costs $1,200.
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Key similarities
Software Development
8.0
7.7
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers MSI Raider GE66 to be very good for software development, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" 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.
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We’re constantly working to improve.
How the MSI Raider GE66 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| MSI Raider GE66 | Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$2,499 | $1,200 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | January 1, 2022 | June 1, 2024 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14.1'' x 10.5'' x 0.92'' | 12.1'' x 8.8'' x 0.66'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 5.25 lbs | 3.04 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 14.09" | 12.13" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.51" | 8.78" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-12700H | Intel Core Ultra 7 135H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 32 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 6 Hours | 9 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 99.9 Wh | 47 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 15.6" | 13.5" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2560 x 1440 | 2256 x 1504 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 240Hz | 120Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 300 nits | 400 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 8.5/10 | 7.4/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 6.9/10 | 8.7/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | Yes | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 6.3/10 | 8/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 9/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7.5/10 | 8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 1 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | No | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 4 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 4 | |
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MSI Raider GE66
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Patrick Schüdzig | June 2022
"The MSI Raider GE66 12UHS notebook passes with flying colors. The GE66 is a high-end notebook with strong performance. The keyboard and trackpad are still very good and score well with precise inputs as well as high build quality. Thanks to a new liquid metal cooling solution, the Intel Core i9 12900HK brings a performance increase of around 50 percent over the predecessor's Intel Core i9 10980HK. The installed graphics card in our device delivers up to 30 percent higher frame rates than the RTX 2070 Super in the MSI GE66 10SFS."
Get a great deal on the MSI Raider GE66 or the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
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 Microsoft
Microsoft is an American technology corporation. Microsoft is best known for their Windows operating system and Surface laptop series. The Surface Laptop is their standard notebook offering, while their Surface Go, Surface Pro, and Surface Studio are their 2-in-1/tablet offerings in order of increasing capability. Although Microsoft charges a premium price tag for their laptops, buyers can expect a well integrated and packaged device since Microsoft develops the Windows operating system.
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