MSI GE76 Raider 11UH in review: High-end gaming laptop offers fast 360 Hz display

A detailed description of the case can be found in the review of the MSI GE76 Raider 10UH.

While the port selection has remained the same compared to the GE76 Raider 10UH, the rear USB-C port now features the Thunderbolt 4 standard.

The SD card reader in the GE76 Raider 11UH achieves 77 MB/s for copying and 88 MB/s for reading data with our reference memory card, the 128 GB AV Pro V60 microSD. Although these rates are passable, they are significantly lower than in the predecessor.

The MSI GE76 Raider 11UH can establish wireless connections via Bluetooth 5.2 and Wi-Fi 6E. With our Netgear Nighthawk AX12 reference router, very good speeds of 1,396 Mb/s are achieved for transmitting data and 1,343 Mb/s for receiving data. This makes the MSI gaming laptop slightly faster than the predecessor.

With a resolution of 2.1 MP, MSI has installed a slightly stronger webcam than most laptop manufacturers, but the image quality is rather mediocre even under good lighting conditions.

In addition to the laptop itself, the GE76 Raider 11UH comes with the appropriate power adapter. The manufacturer also provides a warranty period of 24 months.

With the GE76 Raider 11UH, MSI targets ambitious gamers who are looking for a powerful gaming laptop that's equipped with the best possible hardware at the moment. However, besides our test configuration, the Raider 11UH is also available with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 and varying memory configurations.

The following benchmarks were executed using the performance level setting "High" and the fan profile "Auto". Furthermore, our test device is a pre-production model, so we might see an increase in performance in the production version.

The Intel Core i9-11980HK used here is a processor with eight cores that can process up to 16 tasks simultaneously. The clock rates are between 2.6 and 5 GHz, with the actual performance depending on the cooling system and the predefined TDP. MSI configures the latter with a short-term value (PL2) of 200 watts and a long-term value (PL1) of 91.75 watts.

Using these parameters, the long-term performance in Cinebench R15 is on par with the GE76 Raider 10UH, and no drops in performance can be observed. However, it should be noted that the predecessor was tested using the "Extreme" performance setting in our review, and that the 11UH is still a pre-production device. Therefore, the performance in the production version can still be a bit better.

In the individual tests, the CPU of the GE76 Raider 11UH achieves very good single-core rates, which result in the device ranking in the upper range of the test field. On the other hand, the multi-core results are below average.

Update: MSI was able to increase the gaming laptop's multi-core performance considerably in some respects in the production model of the GE76 Raider 11UH. In the individual benchmarks of Cinebench R15, Cinebench R20, 7zip, x265, and Blender, results were improved by about 20%. In Geekbench 5.3, there's a 12% increase. In contrast, the single-core performance only changes within the usual tolerances. Performance under prolonged load is also significantly higher now as our Cinebench R15 continuous load graph shows.

As a result, the performance of the Intel Core i9-11980HK in the MSI GE76 Raider 11UH is now at an above-average level and can keep up with or surpass competitors like the Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR YD.

In the PCMark 10 test for evaluating system performance, the MSI GE76 Raider 11UH achieves a good result and the second place in our test field. The "Essentials" individual score in particular stands out here. The biggest competitor is the Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR YD.

The gaming laptop can be operated very smoothly in everyday use. Programs are launched quickly, and accessing files is possible without delays. How other laptops were able to perform in comparison can be found in our CPU Benchmarks article.

MSI installs a 2 TB SSD from Samsung in our test configuration of the GE76 Raider 11UH. It achieves very good write and read rates in the storage benchmarks, which are usually above the level of the rest of our test field.

The performance that can be expected from other mass storage devices can be found in our HDD/SSD Benchmarks article.

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 used here is currently the strongest mobile graphics card. Nevertheless, its performance depends on the TGP setting, which has been set by MSI to the maximum possible value of 165 watts. The performance results in the benchmarks are correspondingly good. Once again, it should be noted that the GE76 Raider 10UH was tested with the "Extreme" setting and the GE76 Raider 11UH with the "High Performance" setting.

Our GPU Benchmarks article shows how other graphics cards perform in comparison.

The MSI GE76 Raider 11UH is outstandingly well suited for gaming. The built-in Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 provides very high frame rates and even displays demanding titles smoothly at high resolutions and maximum detail levels. Compared to our chosen competition, MSI's gaming laptop performs at a similar level.

The performance that can be expected from the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 in other titles is listed in our GPU Games article.

Our continuous load test with The Witcher 3 using the "Ultra" graphics settings also shows that frame rates remain stable even over prolonged periods of time despite there being slight fluctuations. Consequently, performance limitations are not to be expected during long gaming sessions.

During our endurance stress test, the temperatures inside climbed up to 97 °C (~207 °F), but at around 2.6 GHz, the CPU clock rates didn't drop below the base clock speed. Temperatures of up to 96 °C (~205 °F) were reached during our The Witcher 3 endurance test, but the clock rates didn't fall below 3.3 GHz here. Consequently, performance limitations or throttling don't have to be expected even under prolonged load.