Review MSI GX60 Notebook

The Taiwanese company continues to use flashy gamer looks although the current design trend is going toward elegance and simplicity. While the metal wrist rest makes a fairly high-end impression, the other surfaces look quite cheap. Glossy plastic elements might look chic on press pictures, but their high smudge susceptibility soon becomes annoying in practice.

Fingerprints and dust particles accumulate on the display bezel, the keyboard area and the useful function bar. However, the biggest shortcoming is the sensitive lid that clearly affects the quality impression. We would have appreciated a matte, aluminum finish like that on the more expensive GT60 model. If you generally like it less obtrusive, you should prefer Clevo's W350ET barebone (Schenker XMG A522) or the P150EM (Schenker XMG P502).

The GX 60 has to also accept criticism for its large size. The gaming laptop towers over most of the 15-inch competition with dimensions of 395 x 267 x 55 millimeters. For example, the previously mentioned Schenker XMG P502 has a size of 376 x 255 x 51 millimeters “only”. The GX60 also weighs more (3.4 vs. 3.2 kg). At least, the chassis features good stability. It is just the vents on the bottom that yield noticeably under higher force.

We would say that the build quality is good. Apart from minor details (display bezel / lid transition), MSI has done a good job. Unfortunately, the GX60 cannot compete with the quality standard of Asus' G75 or Alienware's M17x R4, but the latter devices are also much more expensive.

Processor

The A10-4600M is a mobile quad-core processor from AMD's low-cost Trinity range. In contrast to the latest Intel generation, the quad-core is still based on the older 32 nm process node. With a TDP of 35 watts, the power consumption is within the range of Core i5 dual-core processors.

Like Intel's Ivy Bridge CPUs, the Trinity models can overclock dynamically. The A10-4600M's Turbo ranges from 2.3 to a maximum of 3.2 GHz. If we only look at the clock rate, its speed should roughly be on a par with the Core i7-3610QM (2.3 - 3.3 GHz). Regrettably, the Trinity CPUs are not quite as efficient, i.e. the performance per MHz is much lower. Overall, the performance is only adequate for an entry-level processor.

AMD is miles ahead of the competitor with its integrated graphics chip. Intel's HD Graphics 4000 doesn't stand a chance against the Radeon HD 7660G. However, the chip is rather insignificant since a dedicated graphics card is installed in the GX60.

The Radeon HD 7970M is currently AMD's fastest laptop graphics card. Like its desktop counterpart, the high-end model is based on the GCN architecture manufactured in the 28 nm process. AMD tries to justify its high power consumption (100 watt TDP) with 2.8 billion transistors, 1280 Unified Shaders and 2GB of GDDR5 VRAM (256 bit interface). The manufacturer clocks the card at 850 MHz (core) and 1200 MHz (memory).

Among others, the review of Alienware's M17x R4 underlines that the Radeon HD 7970M is a very good option for gamers. Alongside a strong Intel CPU, the graphics card can compete with the competition from Nvidia. The GeForce GTX 680M only wins in some games.

Back to topic, MSI installs a cutting edge driver with the Catalyst 12.11. That is also very necessary because AMD's graphics switching (codename: Enduro) caused a lot of problems in the past. Lousy identification rates, modest performance in low settings, black screens after driver installation: The problems were multifarious particularly in the Clevo P150EM and P170EM barebones.

Although Nvidia's Optimus technology still performs better (lower performance loss, higher reliability, more visible support), AMD has taken a big step forward with the Catalyst 12.11. Gamers no longer have to get annoyed about incorrectly assigned 3D programs since the driver features a global setting option (see right screenshot). Games are reliably started with the Radeon HD 7970M when the option is set to "Maximize Performance".

The menus is now perfect with the "Switchable Graphics Application Settings" now storing all installed and executed programs. The user can create and modify profiles similar to Nvidia. "*.exe" files can be easily assigned to a specific graphics card. The menus of the first few drivers were still quite unsatisfactory. However, Enduro still lacks a convenient update function and an indicator for GPU activity (Nvidia has already had this for years). The GX 60 can be connected to as many as three monitors owing to Eyefinity technology.

Last but not least, MSI touts the GX60 with a promising RAID 0 array. Both the small 64 GB mSATA SSDs from SanDisk easily defeat the competition. Looking at the sequential read rate, which is over 600 MB/s in the AS SSD benchmark is out of reach for most SATA III models. Even the 512 GB version of the extremely swift Corsair Neutron GTX (Schenker's XMG P722 PRO) has to be satisfied with results of about 514 MB/s.

However, as soon as focus is put on smaller files, the exultation quickly vanishes. 8 MB/s in the 4K test and 57 MB/s in the 4K-64Thrd test are rather moderate for SSD conditions. The 128 GB model of Samsung's successful SSD 830 is 2.5 times better in 4K with 21 MB/s and 5 times better in 4K-64Thrd with 291 MB/s. The big shock comes first in the write rates though. With a sequential rate of not even 44 MB/s, the RAID 0 array drops below the average HDD level (CrystalDiskMark still recorded 88 MB/s). For comparison: Both mSATA members accomplished a 9x better 391 MB/s in the GT70.

The distance to the SSD competition is also gigantic with smaller files. Most solid state drives can only smile wearily at a 4K rate of 12 MB/s and a 4K-64Thrd rate of 5 MB/s. The somewhat older but still popular Crucial Read SSD M4, for example, settles to 50 and 158 MB/s respectively (128 version @ Gigabyte's U2442N). Basically, we do not deem the RAID 0 array a good idea. A "conventional" 2.5 model would make a subjectively better impression in practice.

But the GX60 also sports a 750 GB HDD besides the solid state drives. MSI relies on a product from Western Digital dubbed the WC75000BPKT-22PK4. CrystalDiskMark certifies the SATA II drive to have very good performance. Only few HDDs surpass 114-115 MB/s in the sequential benchmark. The drawback of a 7200 rpm drive is the fairly loud operating noise.

When looking at the gaming results, we wonder whether MSI tested the hardware combination thoroughly in advance.

Although the GX60 could sometimes outperform Intel devices equipped with a GeForce GTX 670MX or GTX 675MX, in extreme conditions (1920 x1080, maximum details), the Radeon HD 7970M often dropped to the level of the weaker GeForce GT 650M or GTX 660M in medium settings (1366 x 768, high details). In the worst case, the refresh rate was only just above the processor-integrated Radeon HD 7660G chip.

CPU-heavy tracks, such as Guild Wars 2, Need for Speed: Most Wanted, Hitman Absolution and Assassin's Creed III can only be played with restrictions if at all. It is surprising to what extent the slow Trinity CPU affects the Radeon HD 7970M performance. The GX60 would likely score much higher with a low-end dual-core processor from Intel's Core i3 or Core i5 range. The HD 7970M is normally comparable with a GeForce GTX 680M.

After extensively studying the benchmarks, the retail price no longer seems particularly attractive. Less expensive laptops, such as Schenker's XMG A522 often accomplish a comparable gaming performance. MSI should have invested its budget in a faster CPU. The Radeon HD 7970M can only rarely exploit its true potential. A detailed benchmark list can be found below this article.

System Noise

Although the GX60 only sports one fan, the cooling system can easily compete with the Clevo P150EM and P170EM barebones. An average of 42 dB in the first 3DMark 06 scenario and 52 dB during full load are absolutely normal for a gaming laptop. Schenker's XMG P702 reaches 46 - 54 dB when using the Radeon HD 7970M.

The noise level did not quite convince us during idle use. On the one hand, the base noise of ~35 dB was already very audible. On the other, the fan's speed occasionally increased to a somewhat disconcerting 38 dB. Our meter only recorded 33 - 35 dB in Schenker's XMG P702. We again recommend Asus' G75 for noise-sensitive gamers.

One of the GX60's biggest strengths is its moderate temperature development. Owing to the casing's clever build, the wrist rest never exceeds a temperature of 30°C even during demanding 3D programs. The chassis settled to decent 26°C in idle mode. The temperatures were also absolutely reasonable during load. The laptop only reached just below 40°C at the vent.

The user does not have to worry about the hardware, either. The graphics card "only" reached 80°C after one hour of stress testing. The processor climbed to an acceptable 70°C according to Core Temp, but the clock rate occasionally dropped below two GHz (throttling). Note: Our first test device crashed repeatedly in the stress test.

The strong, 87 Wh lithium ion battery accomplishes good to very good runtimes. The 15-inch laptop lasts for around seven hours without the power outlet in ideal conditions (minimum screen brightness, low load).

We always perform our Wi-Fi test with a brightness of approximately 150 cd/m². This resulted in almost five hours of wireless Internet entertainment. A DVD ran for roughly 3.25 hours in maximum brightness. We ascertained a minimum runtime of around one hour.

All said, we regrettably cannot recommend the GX60 as a gaming machine for the enthusiast (on a budget). As our benchmark course illustrates, the lame AMD CPU affects the performance of the Radeon HD 7970M greatly in some gaming tests. The performance loss is so high in some areas that the frame rate drops to a that of a middle-level GPU.

We would have expected a more sensible hardware setup from an alleged gaming expert. The surprisingly low price is no argument. The 15-inch Clevo P150EM barebone is available for approximately 1300 Euros ( $1700) with an Intel quad-core and a Radeon HD 7970M. Its advantage is more consistent performance without nasty outliers.

Both mSATA SSDs are also a double-edged sword. The excellent sequential read rate contrasts the poor performance in small files. In addition to that, there is the unusual keyboard layout and casing's sensitive surfaces.

But that is enough complaining because the GX60 also has its good sides. Besides the generous connectivity and low temperature development, we have to mention the excellent TN screen. MSI has put particular focus on the sound. The built-in 2.1 system clearly excels over most other laptops.

Nevertheless, it is not easy to come to a final verdict. The GX60 is designed for casual gamers considering the CPU issue. Enthusiasts will have to look elsewhere with something containing ‘Intel’.