MSI GT83VR laptop review: a gamer's last resort

Ever since Nvidia announced the GTX-10 series graphics card, gamers had only one question “When will we get the new MSI Titan”. Just like its predecessor GT80S 6QF Titan, the new GT83VR is a gaming monster. It comes loaded with a dual GTX 980 GPUs in SLI along with a Core i7, a mechanical keyboard and a massive 18.4-inch screen. The laptop sure comes with a hefty price of Rs 3,37,900, but offers the best gaming experience you’ll have on a laptop.

The laptop is powered by 6th gen Intel Core i7 6700HQ processor clocked at 2.6 GHz and features a huge 18.4 inch Full HD LED-backlit display 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution. It supports 8GB GDDR5X Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 GPU that is built with ultra-fast FinFET that provides up to three times the performance of previous-generation GPUs.

The GT83VR has 1TB SATA) 7200rpm + Super Raid 4-256GB SSD (NVMe M.2 SSD by PCIe Gen3 x4) and 32 GB DDR4 RAM. The device also supports MSI Matrix Display technology with Surround View Mode that creates an ideal environment for extreme gaming experience.

MSI GT83VR Titan SLI specifications:

• Display 18.4″ FHD (1,920×1,080), 60Hz, IPS-Level
• CPU Intel Core i7-6920HQ 2.9GHz/3.8GHz
• Graphics Dual GeForce GTX 1080 with 8GB GDDR5X in SLI
• Memory 64GB DDR4-2400MHz
• SSD 2x 256GB Samsung SM951 M.2 SSD in RAID 0 (NVMe PCIe Gen3 x4 / SATA)
• HDD 1x 1TB Hitachi 2.5″ SATA HDD
• Optical Drive BD Writer DVD Super Multi
• Webcam FHD type (30fps@1080p)
• Keyboard Mechanical Backlit Keyboard (Single-Colour, Red)
• LAN Killer GB LAN
• Wireless LAN & Bluetooth Killer ac + Bluetooth v4.1
• Operating System Windows 10
• Battery 8-Cell Li-Ion 75Whr
• AC Adapter 2x 330W adapter
• Dimension 458mm W x 339mm D x 42~69mm H
• Weight 5.5kg (w/Battery)

The 18.4 inch FHD (1,920×1,080) display on the laptop is impressive and offers great colour reproduction. The panel has the ability to reproduce 111 per cent of the sRGB gamut. The Predator 17 X and G752VS performed slightly better at 112 and 114 percent, respectively.

Paired with its bottom-mounted subwoofer, the Titan's four Dynaudio speakers are loud and offer fairly clear audio. Similar to most current MSI laptops, it comes with Nahemic 2 audio software which comprises several preconfigured settings for gaming and multimedia. The HD Audio Recorder allows gamers to record and map audio samples for use while streaming.  

 

MSI managed to get everything right by outfitting the laptop with an overclockable 2.7-GHz Intel Core i7-6820HK processor with a whopping 64GB of RAM. Thanks to its configuration, the performance of the laptop is excellent.

The only area where the laptop disappoints is the battery life. It hardly lasted for two hours while moderate use and surfing the internet over WiFi. It’s well below the desktop replacement average. MSI has also completely overhauled its cooling system by using a 15-pipe configuration with dual exhausts that cools both the CPU and GPU. 

The latest MSI Titan SLI is deeply impressive. However, it is clear the dual GTX 1080 GPUs have pushed the air cooling system to its limits. As a gaming experience the GT83VR proved to be an absolute beast. Since the MSI GT83VR is equipped with ultra-fast PCIe NVMe storage and up to 64GB RAM so chances are users won’t be able to surprise it with any task it won’t be able to do.

Pros

• A great desktop replacement
• Dual GeForce GTX 1080 GPUs
• Quad-core Intel Skylake CPU
• Ultra-fast NVMe storage array
• Lots of connectivity options
• Backlit mechanical keyboard

Cons

• Fan noise is upsetting
• Big and bulky form factor
• Requires two power supplies
• Wallet-busting price tag