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The first promotional image of the MSI CLAW — MSI’s very first handheld gaming PC — has leaked and, needless to say, it’s quite… underwhelming. Aesthetics-wise, it looks more like an ROG Ally knock-off rather than a unique product that’ll sell on its own merits.
The only immediately discernible difference, one could argue, is the slightly different speaker placement. Everything else — based on this singular image, at least — screams “copycat.” Granted, there’s not a million ways for one to design a handheld PC, but the point stands nonetheless. One could argue that MSI’s a bit late to the party, and the fact that it hasn’t even tried to come up with something more unique doesn’t really bode well for the future of this product — especially in the face of some pretty stiff competition from Valve, ASUS, and even Lenovo.
It will sport a vastly different processor, though, so at least we’ll get to find out whether Intel’s latest mobile CPUs have what it takes to compete with AMD’s own Z1 Extreme and, presumably, its forthcoming Hawk Point-based successor.
MSI CLAW Shows Up on Geekbench
The MSI CLAW will sport the novel Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU, with 16 cores and 22 threads (28W base TDP), alongside the ARC Xe-LPG iGPU (with 8 Xe cores clocked at 2.25Ghz). It will also, presumably, come in multiple different SKUs, with their RAM being the only differentiator. The one that was tested on Geekbench has a whopping 32GB of LPDDR5X RAM (speed/frequency still unknown).
All other mainstream handheld PCs only come with 16GB, so if MSI really does end up offering a 32GB variant (and all signs are pointing towards that being the case), its CLAW could deliver a slightly more impressive gaming experience. All of that is just a theory at this point and, needless to say, it still remains to be seen just how well this specific processor and its iGPU will perform at different TDPs.
Moreover, Intel’s recent track record leaves a fair bit to be desired, so the MSI CLAW will probably be plagued with numerous different driver and incompatibility issues upon release.
MSI CLAW × Intel — A Solid Showing
These results are rather respectable, but they’re not that much better than what AMD has to offer (Z1 Extreme). Or, to be more specific, they should not result in a tangible performance difference when it comes to gaming.
Intel is known for having better single-core performance which could, in both theory and practice, result in higher frame rates, but that’s just one piece of the equation. Synthetic benchmarks are great and all, but they don’t always paint the whole picture.
MSI CLAW — How Does It Stack Up Against the Competition?
Specs-wise it’s actually quite competitive, but there was never any doubt in regards to its performance chops. The real issue is its processor and its novel (and, by proxy, unoptimized) nature. According to The Phawx, Intel’s Meteor Lake CPUs — despite having a littany of different cores — are actually less performant at lower wattages when compared to AMD’s offerings.
And that, needless to say, is quite a problem. If that turns out to be true, the MSI CLAW will be slower than competing products while also, potentially, drawing more power in certain usage scenarios. Intel Meteor Lake CPUs are quite capable overall, but they might not be the best possible fit for a handheld PC at this point.
They’ll surely get better and better over the coming months, but whether they’ll ever be able to compete with AMD’s offerings on a per-watt basis still remains to be seen. It’s a huge question mark, in other words.
Regardless, we’re still pretty excited to see just how well MSI’s inaugural handheld PC will perform. If it ends up retailing for a reasonable sum of money, it might even be able to “upset” the status quo, although we wouldn’t hold our breath for it to happen.
And, in case you’re wondering how well this upcoming handheld PC stacks up against all other mainstream options, make sure to give the following table a look, courtesy of Videocardz: