MSI GS63 Stealth-010 Review: A Powerful Gaming Laptop

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MSI GS63 Stealth-010: At First Glance

Micro-Star International (MSI) is a Taiwanese company that is known for making powerful gaming laptops. The company does not only make gaming laptops but also sponsors eSport events and makes smart robotic appliances.

So, in 2018, MSI launched the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 to add to its gaming laptop collection. Impressively, this laptop is a powerful gaming laptop that features a long list of awesome specs.

However, from the look of things, MSI is not ready to cut down on the quality of its gaming laptops to make them cheaper. In line with that, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s price is quite high, starting from $1,499.77 (as of May 2022).

Even at that, the performance you will get from this MSI GS63 Stealth-010 will make you overlook its high price. To learn about this performance, read the remaining sections below.

MSI GS63 Stealth-010: Design, Display, Ports, and Connectivity

MSI laptops, in general, usually have an attractive look. Thankfully, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 isn’t an exception.

Agreeably, MSI selects high-quality materials for constructing many of its laptops. Regarding the build material, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 has a lithium-magnesium case with a brushed metallic finish.

Indeed, this laptop’s case looks smooth and feels pleasant to touch. As for color, the entire laptop’s body is black except for some red linings that give it a striking appearance.

Looking at the lid, you’ll see two vertical trims on the left and right sides and little curves around the edges. Besides these trims, there is also a red MSI logo at the center of the lid.

As with most gaming laptops, this logo glows continuously as long as the laptop’s screen is on. Besides, there is also a white “MSi” inscription that is finely placed above this logo.

Moving on, the two small hinges holding the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s lid in place are at the edges of the laptop’s base. These hinges are not too tight and flexible, allowing users to open the lid with one hand.

Moreover, the hinges allow the lid to open up to 180 degrees. Thus, you will be able to lay the laptop flat on a surface if you prefer to do so.

On opening the laptop’s lid, you will see a 15.6-inch FHD (1920 x 1080) resolution display. This display has plenty of features that should give you an immersive gaming experience.

To begin with, the display has an IPS (In-Plane Switching) panel that allows it to deliver wide viewing angles of up to 178 degrees. Hence, even when you’re sitting adjacent to the display (close to 180°), the contents of the display will still look sharp and clear.

In addition to its IPS panel, this display also has a 120 Hz refresh rate and a response time of 3 ms. For clarity, the refresh rate of a computer display is the rate at which it draws new images per second.

Moreover, the display’s refresh rate can be as important as the GPU’s clock speed. This is because, even if your laptop’s GPU can render many frames per second, it is how many of them the display can draw that you’ll see.

Thus, the 120 Hz refresh rate of this laptop’s display should make images smoother and sharper. Thereby improving the overall gaming experience of the laptop.

Response time, on the other hand, is how long it takes each display pixel to change from one color to the other. Therefore, with a response time as fast as 3 milliseconds, fast-motion content like racing games will be very smooth and appealing on the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s display.

On the downside, this laptop’s display is surrounded by thick bezels that may cause some distraction while gaming. At the bottom bezel, there is a white “MSi” inscription at the center.

Likewise, you’ll see an HD webcam at the center of the top bezel. This webcam is good for Skype and zoom video chats but may not do well for selfies.

This is due to the fact that the webcam generates blurry images. Nevertheless, the webcam might capture good images as long as the environment is well-lit.

Moving on to the base, MSI did some marvelous designs on the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s keyboard. It’s a full-sized keyboard powered by SteelSeries Engine 3.

This keyboard is fully backlit and supports 3-zone RGB color customization. This implies that you can set each zone to glow in any color of your choice – very impressive.

Moreover, the key travel of the keyboard is 2.2 mm. By key travel, I mean the distance between a key’s resting point to when it hits rock bottom.

Hence, with a key travel of 2.2 mm, typing on this laptop’s keyboard should be comfortable and pleasant. Also, the keyboard should offer an adequate gaming experience.

Something that makes this laptop’s keyboard a bit different from others is the position of its Windows key. Usually, the Windows key is on the left end among the bottom row keys on the keyboard.

However, on the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s keyboard, it is on the right end among the bottom row keys. Nevertheless, this awkward placement of the Windows key is common among MSI laptops and may not be a big deal.

That said, there is a wide smooth-looking touchpad at the bottom of the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s keyboard. This touchpad has integrated click buttons that are very responsive.

Also, the touchpad is accurate and sensitive. Hence, navigation and cursor control should be very easy with the touchpad.

Moving on, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 comes with a decent amount of ports. Precisely, on the right side of the gaming laptop, there is one USB 2.0 port and one USB Type-C port that serves as a Thunderbolt port.

Also, on the right, you will find one HDMI port, a Mini-Display port, and a charging port. Turning to the left side, you’ll see an Ethernet port, a 3-in-1 card reader, a microphone jack, a headphone jack, and three USB 3.2 ports.

As for wireless connectivity, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 features Bluetooth 5.0 and a WiFi 5 card (802.11ac).

Impressively, these two wireless modules are among the recent wireless technologies for data sharing. Therefore, even though they’ve got successors, you won’t feel the need for a newer version any time soon.

Coming to the bottom of the MSI GS63 Stealth-010, there is a number of air vents for exiting hot air. The hot air is blown out by the laptop’s single CPU cooling fan and two GPU cooling fans.

Hence, this laptop should keep its cool even under intensive gaming sessions. Having said that, let us talk about the dimension and weight of the laptop.

On that note, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 measures 379.9 x 248.9 x 17.5 mm (W x D x H) and weighs 1986.7 g. Although this laptop is quite heavy, it isn’t as heavy as most of its competitors.

For example, the ASUS ROG GL502VM measures 390 x 266 x 23.50 mm (W x D x H) and weighs 2240 g. Also, the Lenovo Legion Y720 measures 380 x 280 x 30 mm (W x D x H) and weighs a massive 3061.8 g.

All things considered, I will rate the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 a nine out of ten in this design review section.

MSI GS63 Stealth-010: Processor (CPU) Performance

The MSI GS63 Stealth-010 comes with a 6-core Intel Core i7-8750H processor that features a cache memory of 9 MB.

For your information, the cores are just different central locations on the CPU for executing separate tasks. Meanwhile, the cache memory is a storage component of the processor that stores data temporarily for quicker execution of tasks.

Usually, a CPU with more cores and cache memory should process tasks faster. Hence, this laptop’s processor should offer better performance than processors that have a lesser amount of cores and cache memory.

That aside, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s CPU runs at a base frequency of 2.20 GHz and a boost frequency of 4.10 GHz. Performance-wise, with this CPU, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 should be able to handle most high-end games and intensive tasks like video editing.

For a better analysis of the laptop’s performance, let us discuss its Cinebench R15 test result. In case you don’t know, Cinebench R15 is an app-based benchmark test that is used to measure a CPU’s performance when handling demanding workloads.

Moreover, this test works by using the CPU’s cores to process the workloads. While doing that, the test still checks how fast the CPU is able to complete the workloads.

In the end, two numerical values are assigned to the CPU – the higher the values, the better the CPU performance. These values include the single-core score and the multi-core score.

For clarity, the single-core score is gotten when one of the CPU’s cores is used to process the workloads. Meanwhile, the multi-core score is achieved when all the CPU’s cores are used to process the workloads.

So, at the end of the Cinebench R15 test, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 delivered a single-core score of 115 points. Also, it delivered a multi-core score of 667 points.

In comparison, the ASUS ROG GL502VM with an Intel Core i7-7700HQ performed better than this MSI gaming laptop. Specifically, this ASUS laptop achieved a 148 points single-core score and 680 points multi-core score.

Due to this, I will rate the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 an eight out of ten in this processor review section.

MSI GS63 Stealth-010: Memory (RAM) Performance

The MSI GS63 Stealth-010 has two RAM slots and comes with a standard memory of 16 GB in one slot. Its RAM type is DDR4.

Furthermore, the maximum memory size that the laptop supports is 32 GB. Thus, you can upgrade the standard memory up to 32 GB.

Certainly, such an upgrade will enhance the performance of the laptop. However, I believe the standard 16 GB memory of the laptop is enough for it to effectively play most high-end games.

Also, with the standard memory, the laptop will be able to multitask seamlessly. Speaking of which, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 should be able to simultaneously run 40 Chrome tabs without lagging.

Having said that, I will now be sharing the laptop’s result on a PCMark 8 test to further verify its performance. In brief, the PCMark 8 test is used to evaluate the overall performance of a computer when handling productivity tasks like web browsing.

As expected, a high score on this test indicates good performance. So, according to the benchmark test result, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 scored 3999 points.

In comparison, the ASUS ROG GL502VM performed better, scoring 4741 points on the same test.

All in all, I will rate the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 an eight out of ten in this memory review section.

MSI GS63 Stealth-010: Storage Options and Performance

MSI sells the GS63 Stealth-010 with either a SATA HDD or an M.2 SSD (Solid State Drive).

However, choosing which storage option to go for will depend on two factors – speed and storage space. Basically, SSDs are faster than HDDs, while HDDs offer more storage space.

Speaking of storage space, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010’s SSD supports a maximum storage capacity of just 256 GB. The HDD, on the other hand, supports a maximum storage capacity of 1 TB.

Clearly, the HDD option offers a larger storage space than the SSD option. However, the laptop with SSD will surely be way faster in loading files and saving files compared to the laptop with HDD.

To prove this, we will discuss the performance of the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 with M.2 SSD on a CrystalDiskMark test. This test is a benchmark test that estimates the read and write speed of a computer’s storage drive.

In case you’re not aware, read speed is how fast the storage drive of a computer is able to open a file. On the other hand, write speed is how fast the computer’s storage drive can save a file.

Besides, the higher the “MB/s” value on the CrystalDiskMark test, the faster the read and write speed of the computer’s storage drive. Hence, at the end of the benchmark test, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 delivered a read speed of 2141 MB/s and a write speed of 1621 MB/s

In comparison, the Lenovo Legion Y720 (which also uses SSD) delivered a read speed of 2196 MB/s and a write speed of 1144 MB/s. Hence, this Lenovo laptop will open files faster than the MSI GS63 Stealth-010.

However, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 will save files faster than it.

Before concluding this storage review section, it is worth mentioning that the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 features a 3-in-1 media card reader. This card reader allows for storage expansion.

Therefore, I will rate the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 an eight out of ten.

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MSI GS63 Stealth-010: Graphics Card Performance

As expected from a gaming laptop, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 comes with a dedicated graphics card. The name of this graphics card is NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060.

This GPU has a base frequency of 1404 MHz and a maximum frequency of 1670 MHz. Moreover, as a dedicated graphics card, this laptop’s GPU features a dedicated VRAM of 6 GB GDDR5.

Thanks to this dedicated VRAM, the graphics card should be able to effectively handle graphics-demanding apps. Also, it should be able to seamlessly play title AAA games.

For example, with the GPU, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 delivered 65 fps while playing The Witcher 3 at high graphics settings. That’s not all, while playing Dragon Age: Inquisition at high graphics settings, the laptop delivered a frame rate of 88 fps.

In order to further prove this laptop’s graphics performance, I will now consider its result on a 3DMark 13 Fire Strike test. In brief, 3DMark 13 Fire Strike test is a benchmark test that measures a computer’s ability to draw and fill 3D shapes in 3D games.

Furthermore, achieving a high score on this test indicates good graphics performance. Thankfully, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 scored a massive 9648 points on the 3DMark 13 Fire Strike test.

In comparison, the Lenovo Legion Y720 performed less than the MSI GS63 Stealth-010, scoring 9263 points on the same test. By the way, these laptops use the same graphics card.

Hence, I will rate the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 a nine out of ten in this graphics card review section.

MSI GS63 Stealth-010: Battery Life and Performance

The MSI GS63 Stealth-010 features a 3-cell 65 WHr Li-Po battery. However, MSI didn’t mention how long the laptop can last with this battery.

Hence, to provide the battery life of the laptop, I will highlight the laptop’s result on a battery rundown test. This test involves continuously streaming an HD video on YouTube until the laptop shuts down.

Moreover, during the test, the laptop is set to “Balanced Mode” and at a 40% brightness level. Thus, at the conclusion of the test, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 delivered a battery life of just 4 hours and 36 minutes.

This laptop’s battery life is almost the same as the Lenovo Legion Y720’s battery life. Specifically, on the same battery rundown test, the Lenovo Legion Y720 delivered a battery life of 4 hours and 36 minutes.

All in all, I will rate the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 a seven out of ten in this battery section due to its average battery life.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

MSI is one of the big names in the gaming laptop market. Hence, it is no surprise that the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 offers excellent specs and performance.

To mention a few of its specs, this laptop features a powerful Intel Core i7 processor as well as a dedicated NVIDIA GPU. Besides that, the laptop comes with a sleek design and a nice keyboard.

However, as with most gaming laptops in the market, the MSI GS63 Stealth-010 offers an average battery life. Also, the laptop is somewhat expensive.

Nevertheless, if you are in need of a powerful gaming laptop from a respected brand, you need to consider the MSI GS63 Stealth-010.

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