We have been able to know first hand the MSI P65 Creator, a light and elegant laptop for professionals, but with all the power of a portable gaming. These are our first impressions about MSI P65 Creator.
MSI is well known for its portable gaming. Teams that tend to offer great performance, and in which the design and dimensions of the laptop play a decisive role for its users.
However, MSI also applies all this experience in the development of gaming notebooks in the design of computers for other areas where powerful and lightweight notebooks are also needed: laptops for creators and professionals in graphic design and multimedia content.
The Taiwanese brand already announced at IFA 2018 what was going to be the new Prestige series by MSI, where the sci-fi designs and the RGB LED lights of the gaming notebooks were aside, giving way to laptops for professionals with an aspect much more elegant and refined.
Now, MSI has called the specialized press to officially present in Europe the MSI P65 Creator in our review, a laptop with a more sober finish in terms of external design, but with the same claw and power inside, being able to face the tasks without complexes toughest in graphic design, video editing, 3D content rendering or photo editing. So, let’s see the main specs of the new MSI laptop.
MSI P65 Creator: Specifications
| MSI P65 Creator: | Specs |
|---|---|
| Display: | 15.6 inches with IPS 1920 x 1080 pixels |
| CPU: | Intel Core i7-8750H Hexa Core 4.1GHz |
| GPU: | NVIDIA GeForce GeForce GTX 1050Ti |
| RAM: | 16GB |
| Internal memory: | 512GB SSD |
| Camera: | 2.0MP front camera |
| Connectivity: | 802.11 B / G / N / (2.4Ghz/5Ghz) and Bluetooth 4.0 |
| Run Time (up to): | 4 hours video playing time |
| OS: | Windows 10 |
| Connections: | HDMI slot, TF card slot, 2x USB 3.0, USB 3.1, 2x 3.5mm headphone jack |
| Weight: | 1.8kg |
| Dimensions: | 35.70 x 24.70 x 1.80 cm |
| Price: | $1925 |
MSI P65 Creator: Design and Appearance
The design of MSI gaming laptops is rather unusual and distinctive, and the MSI P65 Creator is no exception.
This is demonstrated by a cute little dragon on a sticker under the silver MSI logo on a glossy, white, aluminum cover, and a plastic matte insert on the top edge of the cover, from which two curved projections diverge around the logo.
Also striking is the white plastic insert that runs along the perimeter of the side faces. The surface of the lid is pleasant to the touch, however, collects fingerprints.
The lid itself opens easily, about 134 degrees, as well fixed and only slightly shakes if you shake it or the base of the laptop.
The first thing we noticed when we opened the lid was a large number of stickers and a white aluminum matte wrist rest.
All surfaces, both inside and outside, except for the bottom, are textured.
Fewer stickers and a thin red bar above the keyboard, everything inside looks pretty normal until you turn on the laptop MSI P65 Creator in the test.
The keys have a backlight, in our opinion, it looks awesome and interesting.
Stereo speaker holes stretched out beneath the display, the power button is slightly flushed into the case and located right under the right hinge of the cover.
Under the left – the buttons for switching backlight modes and the Cooler Boost button, if you need to increase the fan speed to the stop.
The build quality is good: almost nothing bends and does not push through, the parts fit tightly, high-quality materials are used.
This is a very worthy assembly for a gaming laptop, although the bottom of inexpensive plastic spoils the impression, it is usually hidden from view.
By the standards of the MSI P65 Creator laptop looks quite compact and not so bulky. The thickness of the case reaches only 1.8 cm, without taking into account the legs of the laptop, which is more than the average thickness.
The weight of the MSI P65 Creator n our analisis is 1800 grams, it’s not so heavy, considering its purpose, but at the same time, the charger weighs heavily on the load.
MSI P65 Creator: Display
The display laptop MSI P65 Creator in our analisis pleases the eye in all respects. It has a good Full HD resolution – 1920 x 1080 pixels, which, with a diagonal of 15.6 inches, gives a ppi of 141.
Among the advantages, it is worth noting that the display is matte and bright. The color gamut is very good, the colors are saturated, the display almost does not “grab” with the color rendition.
Viewing angles are also very worthy by the standards of laptops. The maximum measured brightness was 397 cd / m2, the result is brighter than the average.
The brightness distribution is average – 85% and the contrast value is also at a good level – 772: 1. In short, a very nice display, not perfect, of course, but very good.
MSI P65 Creator: Hardware and Performance
MSI P65 Creator showed high results among the models we tested both in synthetic tests and in daily use. The results correspond to the class of the laptop – this is a gaming solution for demanding, modern games.
MSI P65 Creator is equipped with a modern, quite powerful hexacore Intel Core i7-8750H generation. The processor runs at 2.2 GHz, Turbo Boost technology allows you to overclock the operating frequency of up to 4.1 GHz.
As it should be, Hyper-Threading technology is supported, allowing each core to process 2 streams of information.
In the benchmarks (CPU) and Geekbench 4, MSI P65 Creator received an average of 4992 and 21656 points, respectively.
In the benchmark Cinebench R15, the laptop has an average of 162 points in the processor performance test. Overall, the results are slightly above average.
As usual, we asked the Windows system to evaluate the performance of the laptop, although in Windows 8.1 it is somewhat more difficult to do this since the corresponding graphical user interface is no longer available.
The results were obtained using the integrated video card, so you should not be surprised at the low estimate of the graphics:
The processor did not prove to be a performance giant, so why is it gaming? But the point is in the powerful discrete graphics card based on the Maxwell architecture – NVIDIA GeForce GeForce GTX 1050Ti, and in the GDDR 5 memory type, the narrowest bus width is 128 bits, the high frequency of the video memory is 7108 MHz.
In the 3Dmark11 test, she received a high score of 15996 points. In the 3dmark Time Sky Extreme, we saw an average result of 2210 points, and the benchmark recognized it as a gaming laptop; in CloudGate and Ice Storm – 33758 and 10137 points, respectively.
In games, MSI P65 Creator performed well. Crysis 3 with a native resolution braked only at ultra-high settings, all the rest were on his shoulder.
Skyrim defined the graphics quality settings as ultra-high and was not mistaken – everything goes without problems.
Thief IV also works smoothly with any settings, like an online RPG, such as World of Warcraft and Lord of the Rings Online.
As it could not be otherwise in a laptop-oriented to the professional field of high performance, the storage of the P65 Creator range is provided by a system that allows up to 2 units SSD PCIe NMVe and SATA, although originally come with a single unit of SSD M.2 of 512GB.
The laptop is not for nothing considered gaming and is a relatively inexpensive solution for fans to play demanding games: everything will go on most of the possible settings.
MSI P65 Creator: Keyboard and Touchpad
MSI P65 Creator laptop in the review is equipped with a large, spacious keyboard. The keys are quite large and spaced a comfortable distance, there is also a digital block, with two rows of keys above it.
The key travel is quite long, and pressing, in our opinion, could be recorded better. We also noted that the keyboard underlay is pressed when typing, and the keys make not very loud sounds during operation.
The arrow keys are not reduced, but they are not separated from the rest of the keys in any way, which may prevent you from playing dynamic games.
There are also small features in the form of a button for adjusting the backlight and a Cooler Boost button for enhanced cooling of the system.
In addition, the Windows key is moved to the right of the spacebar, it will be convenient for gamers since the key will not interfere during the game. In general, the keyboard is quite comfortable, just get used to it.
The touchpad of MSI P65 Creator is generally good, but it could be a little larger, sometimes it is not enough. The touchpad has a textured surface – it is pleasant to the touch, and the finger easily slides over it, its advantages can be attributed to the pluses, even along the very edges. However, it was not without flaws.
The touch panel is shifted to the left from the center of the case, but not under the space. Corner keys quite loudly click when pressed, and even press them is not convenient.
The touchpad area is about 73.5 cm2, which is more than the average for laptops, but it is still sometimes not enough to manipulate the display. The touchpad is pressed all over its surface.
In general, when working with him, we have a mixed impression, mainly because of the keys.
However, it should be said that in the case of an MSI P65 Creator laptop it is assumed that there is a good gaming mouse, which will be used instead of the touchpad. By the way, if you connect a mouse, the touchpad is automatically turned off.
MSI P65 Creator: Ports and Interfaces
A set of ports MSI P65 Creator is good enough, although, in our opinion, not all ports are well located.
The left side is slightly overloaded with ports: here there is a Kensington lock, air vents, the network port, two USB 3.0 port, and two separate 3.5 mm audio jacks for headphones and a microphone, which is not often seen today in laptops.
On the right are the USB 3.1, Type-C (Thunderbolt 3), mDP, an HDMI connector, and a power connector. Fans of memory cards are not deprived, the card reader is on the front edge. Frequently used connectors on the left side are located directly under the hands, which is not very convenient, since you may occasionally touch cable wires and connectors. As always, the MSI P65 Creator laptop has a Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi adapter (b / g / n).
MSI P65 Creator: Noise and temperature
MSI P65 Creator is noisy and hot in our tests. At rest, the noise level does not exceed the background, and when the load on the system is heard and quite loud, up to 50 dB in a quiet room.
If you do nothing and keep the laptop turned on, the case barely heats up, only the touchpad area heats up to 28.5 degrees, and the bottom of the display to 38.5 degrees.
The bottom, in the center on the left, heats up to 30 degrees. In the load state, the laptop temperature reaches 47 degrees, as usual, near the air vents, which, of course, will be noticeable for the body, but far from hot records.
For example, the same MacBooks – Apple MacBook Pro 15 Retina (Late 2013) and Apple MacBook Pro 15 Retina – heat up to about the same values.
It should be noted that the device is noisy and loud, but this is compensated for by the fact that a very noisy fan copes well with its task, not allowing the device to overheat much.
MSI P65 Creator: Battery
In tests for battery life, the MSI P65 Creator battery showed predictably low results: 59 minutes in load mode and 5 hours and 12 minutes in minimum load mode.
The laptop allowed to watch colorful Full HD video a little less than 3 hours, the results are not impressive, by the way, they are one of the worst among all tested models.
However, this is not surprising for gaming laptops: it always has been, it is, and, probably, it will be, at least for some time, for sure.
The charger charges the laptop completely in just over 2 hours, which is quite a long time, considering how quickly it sits down without mains power.
MSI P65 Creator: Conclusions and Reviews
In this review, we looked at all aspects of an MSI P65 Creator laptop and can draw conclusions.
The first is a modern and stylish MSI P65 Creator laptop with a good appearance and design.
White color characterizes cleanliness and minimalism, although the laptop is not gaming, it shows good results in performance tests.
Yes, there are drawbacks such as autonomous work and noise of work, but it is present in all heavy equipment, as the performance and cooling should be too.
In general, it is a good and reliable laptop from MSI with a good potential for programmers and designers.
MSI P65 Creator: Price and Where to buy cheaper?
The last thing I wanted to talk about is the price since this is also an important factor when buying expensive equipment.
Currently, we can buy an MSI P65 Creator laptop for only $1925.99 at a 14% OFF discount, and indeed it is a good offer.
For this money, you get a good one, almost like a gaming laptop with a beautifully minimalist look.