CES 2022 | MSI Raider GE76 and GE66 upgraded with a GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, 4K 120Hz screen and a Core i9-12900HK

MSI hs hopped on board the Alder Lake-H hype train by refreshing several of its laptops with the silicon. The high-end MSI Raider GE76 and GE66 are some of the first laptops to get new hardware from Intel and Nvidia. We reviewed last year's Comet Lake-H-powered Raider GE76 and found it to be one of the better gaming notebooks out there. The Raider GE66 and GE76 are part of an emerging crop of laptops that use liquid metal for cooling. Several other significant QoL upgrades include 32GB of 4,800MT/s DDR5 RAM and a 1TB PCI-E Gen 4 NCMe SSD.

The MSI Raider GE66 and GE76 have only two processor choices: the Intel Core i9-12900HK and the Core i7-12800H. One can pair it with various Nvidia graphics cards, including the newly-launched GeForce RTX 3080 Ti and RTX 3070 Ti. Other options include the GeForce RTX 3070 and RTX 3060 for the lower end models. MSI hasn't specified the power overhead of any individual model but says that the laptops' total TDP is up to 230W. If we assume the CPU to draw 45 watts, we're left with 185W for the graphics card, which happens to be the alleged TGP of the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti. However, the power-hungry i9-12900HK will likely draw more power. It would be an excellent opportunity to push Nvidia's fourth-generation Max-Q tech to its limits.

One can configure the MSI Raider GE76 and GE66 with several display configurations. The former's 17.3-inch screen is available in three flavours: 4K UHD (3,480 x 2,160) 120Hz, QHD (2,560 x 1,440) 240Hz, FHD (1,920 x 1,080) 360Hz and FHD 144Hz. The 4K model covers 100% of the Adobe RGB spectrum. Similarly, the QHD variant encompasses 100% of the DCI-P3 gamut and has a response time of 3ms. The 16-inch Raider GE66 variant offers identical configurations, except for FHD 144Hz. Lastly, all models come with a 1080p webcam and a microphone with AI noise cancellation.

Connectivity options on the MSI Raider GE66 and GE76 include a Thunderbolt 4.0 port, one USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C port, two USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A port, an HDMI 2.1 port, a DP 1.4 port, an SD card reader, a combo 3.5mm audio jack, Wi-Fi 6E (only Wi-Fi 6 on the RTX 3060 model) and Bluetooth 5.2. MSI throws in a beefy 99.9Wh battery to keep the laptop topped up. Depending on the model, the charger's wattage can range between 330W and 240W.

The MSI Raider GE76's price starts at US$1,599 for the RTX 3060 version and goes all the way up to US$4,199 for the 12900HK + 3080 Ti +4K 120Hz model. Similarly, the Raider GE 66 retails between US$2,249 (12800H + RTX 3070 Ti + FHD 360Hz) and US$3,999 (12900HK + 3080 Ti +4K 120Hz). Its availability will be announced at a later date.