MSI GE76 Raider review: Alder Lake and RTX 3080 Ti dominate
MSI GE76 Raider
RRP $3,999.00
"The MSI GE76 Raider is an old-school gaming laptop with new-school PC parts."
benefits
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Fantastic gaming performance
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Super fast video editing
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Many ports
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1080p webcam
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MUX switch included
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Good thermals
disadvantage
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thick and heavy
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Bad touchpad
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Low battery life
The MSI GE76 Raider is a very conventional gaming laptop. It's bulky. it's fat It's not something you would take with you to work.
But beneath the surface, this gaming laptop offers a small taste of the next generation of gaming components, including the new Intel Core i9-12900HK and the Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti. These top-of-the-line PC parts show just how good PC gaming is in the year 2022 can be – despite some hurdles that this particular gaming laptop puts in their way.
draft
This gaming laptop has some high-end components inside, but you wouldn't recognize it from the outside. The latest version of the MSI GE76 Raider doesn't offer anything new on the outside. It's still a massive 17-inch laptop that weighs 6.4 pounds and is over an inch thick.
It's an old-school gaming laptop, even down to the aggressive vents and gamery design language. If you want something more modern and sleek, you'll have to go for the MSI GS66 Stealth, Razer Blade, or a number of other options.
My device comes in a toned down “Titanium Blue” color that is barely black. The screen is accented by angled edges on the lid and a beefy chin that sits beneath the 16:9 aspect ratio screen.
The soft glow of the light strip brings color to your desk.
But being fit and stylish isn't the motto of this laptop. Instead, it's all about practicality. Convenient ports, a big screen and, of course, unbridled power.
The only interesting thing, however, is the light bar on the front. Laying down on the keyboard deck and along the front, the soft glow of the light bar neatly splashes some color on your desk. It's fully customizable within the SteelSeries GG app, as is the per-key RGB keyboard. None of this is new in this year's model, but it's a nice touch nonetheless.
power
The MSI GE76 Raider has two brand new components inside: the Core i9-12900HK and the RTX 3080 Ti. Intel's latest flagship processor in particular brings a lot of expectations. With the recent rise of AMD, especially in the laptop space, even premium gaming laptops are offering the Ryzen 9 5900HX as an option.
We have a separate Alder Lake mobile review that details processor performance and even a breakdown of the new video editing improvements. Suffice it to say that Intel's new 14-core chip looks extremely impressive. As can be seen in the chart below, we see massive gains in both single-core and multi-core performance compared to the last-gen Ryzen 9 5900HX and Core i9-11950H. These are far better than a normal generation jump.
| MSI GE76 Raider (Core i9-12900HK) | Asus VivoBook Pro 16X (Ryzen 9 5900HX) | HP ZBook Studio G8 (Core i9-11950H) | MacBook Pro 16 (M1 Pro) | |
| Cinebench R23 (single / multi) | 1872 / 16388 | 1486 / 11478 | 1594 / 11788 | 1531/ 12343 |
| Geekbench 5 (single / multi) | 1855 / 13428 | 1544 / 8299 | 1637 / 9139 | 1773 / 12605 |
| PC Mark 10 | 7691 | 6287 | 6432 | n / A |
| Handbrake (lower is better) | 72 seconds | 90 seconds | 89 seconds | 95 seconds |
Synthetic benchmarks aside, the MSI GE76 Raider is a powerful video editing engine. It's the highest-scoring Windows laptop in Pugetbench's Adobe Premiere Pro benchmark, and it even comes remarkably close to the M1 Max MacBook Pro. However, performance alone doesn't necessarily make the MSI GE76 Raider a great video editing machine – more on the display later. In terms of raw performance, it's way ahead of the competition.
Of course, gaming performance is what this laptop is designed for. The fantastic single-core performance also helps with gaming, which is fantastic. These are easily the best frame rates we've seen in our gaming tests on laptops. Of course, most of this improvement can be attributed to the new RTX 3080 Ti, but CPU-heavy games like Assassin's Creed Valhalla and Civilization VI will certainly benefit from the Core i9-12900HK as well.
| MSI GE76 Raider (RTX 3080 Ti) | Lenovo Legion 5 Pro (RTX 3070) | MSI GS66 Stealth (RTX 3080) | Asus ROG Strix G15 (RX6800M) | |
| 3DMark Time Spy | 12421 | 9175 | 9097 | 10504 |
| Fourteen days | 143 fps | 101 fps | 140 fps | 108 fps |
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 93 fps | 61 fps | 70 fps | 77 fps |
| Civilization VI | 169 fps | 114 fps | 149 fps | 150 fps |
| Battlefield V | 152 fps | 73 fps | 117 fps | 109 fps |
MSI says it can deliver a total of 220 watts of power to the CPU and GPU, which is 25 watts ahead of other similar competitors.
As always, it's difficult to compare apples to apples to laptops. Interestingly, the GE76 Raider with the RTX 3080 Ti doesn't have that much of an advantage over the RTX 3080 machine in the more GPU-dependent games. Frame rates in Fortnite were quite similar to what was the case in Battlefield V. This could indicate that the CPU is wielding some weight.
I also tested the MSI GE76 Raider in Rise of the Tomb Raider to compare it directly to the MacBook Pro. In the game's built-in benchmark, it averaged 142 fps at the highest settings of 1080p. That's pretty good compared to the 84 fps (frames per second) I got while testing the M1 Max MacBook Pro.
All of these tests were run at 1080p with maximum graphics settings and Balanced performance settings. Confusingly, MSI comes with "Gaming Mode" turned on by default, which automatically switches to the very loud "Extreme Performance" setting when a game boots up. This maximizes fan speeds, but in the games I tested, switching between these performance profiles only impacts frame rates by a percentage point or two.
MSI also offers a discrete-only mode. The laptop ships in hybrid mode, also known as Nvidia Optimus, which activates the MUX switch. Discrete-only mode offers even better frame rates in GPU-bound games. For example, in Battlefield V, switching to Discrete Only mode resulted in a 9% increase in framerate. However, it shortens battery life drastically.
During the tests, the game mastered its thermals excellently. Both surface and internal temperatures remained cool throughout, and that's thanks to the "phase-changing" Liquid Metal Pad, which prevents crystallization of the thermal conductor. MSI says this delivers 10% better performance than its competitors. I can't prove that until I test other 12th Gen Intel laptops with the RTX 3080 Ti.
specifications and price
The exact model I checked is not currently for sale. According to MSI, it's worth around $4,000 and comes with the highest-end GPU and CPU, 32GB of DDR5 RAM, and 2TB of storage.
However, the MSI GE76 Raider starts at just $1,599 for its base configuration. You still get one of Intel's new 12th Gen processors, the Core i7-12700H, but only an RTX 3060 for graphics. It also features a 1080p 144Hz screen, 16GB of DDR4 RAM and a TB SSD.
Prices increase dramatically from there, topping it off with the $4,199 4K 120Hz model.
In a way, that means the MSI GE76 chassis is built with mid-range design sensibilities, despite its ability to be configured up to $4,000+.
display
The MSI GE76 Raider uses a 1920 x 1080p resolution panel paired with a 360Hz refresh rate. These have become the go-to choice for super-fast 1080p gaming lately, but it's still not a great choice for the average gamer . Only in the lightest games can you achieve frame rates that exceed 300 fps. If you are not a professional CS:GO or Rocket League player, you may not be able to tell the difference.
So if you're spending thousands of dollars on a premium gaming laptop, I usually recommend a device with a 1440p resolution or QHD+, both of which are upgrade options for the MSI GE76 Raider. That's especially true for larger displays like this 17.3-inch panel. In fact, MSI charges the same price of $2,999 for a 1440p 240Hz model as for a 1080p 360Hz model.
It remains one of the few gaming laptops that gets the bump in to a 1080p webcam.
The higher resolution would also make sense outside of gaming, considering how fast the MSI GE76 Raider is in video and photo editing. But the low resolution and matte finish aren't ideal outside of gaming, and neither is the color saturation. 100% sRGB and 79% AdobeRGB is good for a gaming laptop but doesn't do justice to professional content creators.
As for the rest of the panel, the GE76 Raider gets the job done. Contrast is solid at 1000:1 and the screen is well calibrated with a Delta-E of 1.09. It tops out at 273 nits, which is a bit under the 300 mark that we like to see. It's not a big deal as the matte finish eliminates reflections and glare. Still, this is a laptop and you can move it from place to place in your house.
cam
There is also a 1080p webcam above the display. The GE76 Raider remains one of the few gaming laptops to make the jump from 720p to 1080p, and the quality is noticeably better.
Unfortunately, the GE76 Raider does not include biometric security. No IR camera or fingerprint reader.
ports and connectivity
The MSI GS76 Raider has ports on both sides of the chassis and along the back – and the options are pretty much anything you can think of. On the left side you have USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, USB-C 3.2 / DisplayPort and a headphone jack. On the right side you get two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 for accessories and a full-size SD card slot.
On the back you'll find USB-C Thunderbolt 4, Mini-DisplayPort (haven't seen one of those in a while), HDMI 2.1, Ethernet jack and power plug.
It also comes with a Killer Wi-Fi 6E card and Bluetooth 5.2 for wireless connectivity.
keyboard and touchpad
Both the keyboard and the touchpad were a disappointment. Being a gaming laptop is no excuse for feeling cheap. Let's not forget: this laptop costs well over $2,000 in most configurations.
The keyboard is full-size, which means it includes a number pad and full-size arrow keys. The layout is pleasant, but I found the keystrokes to be a bit too soft. They're squishy and feel imprecise, but I got used to them over a couple of days.
The per-key RGB backlighting is decent, though, and customization is done via the SteelSeries GG app.
The touchpad is where I have a bigger problem. It's not as big as that of the MSI GS66 Stealth and feels choppy. The click mechanism also feels too loose. With this laptop, you'll want to use a mouse most of the time. That's an obvious statement in gaming, but it's a nuisance in other work.
battery life
This laptop struggles with battery life. But that doesn't surprise anyone. Between the 17-inch screen and the power-hungry RTX 3080 Ti, I didn't expect to get much out of it.
Despite my lowered expectations, the MSI GE76 Raider still managed to disappoint in this regard. But three hours and 40 minutes? That's a shame. And that's just for simple web surfing. You can't safely spend much time away from the wall, and that limits this laptop's ability to serve as a work laptop.
It has a 99.9 watt-hour battery, which is the largest you can legally take on a plane. Unfortunately, even with the Nvidia Optimus turned on, you won't get more than a few hours. To be fair, other great gaming laptops like the HP Victus 16. For a gaming laptop with better battery life, check out the Lenovo Legion 5 Pro, Razer Blade 15, or the MSI GS66 Stealth.
Our opinion
On the outside, the MSI GE76 Raider is a blast from the past. Inside, it's a glimpse into the future. These are some powerful components, and the result is incredibly good performance. While the MSI GE76 Raider isn't my favorite gaming laptop with this CPU and GPU duo, I can't deny how well it performs.
Are there alternatives?
Many of the latest gaming laptops in 2022 will use the same combination of graphics cards and processors. However, I haven't tested many of them. Laptops similar to the GE76 Raider include the Alienware m17, ROG Strix G17, Razer Blade 17, and many more.
How long it will take?
Gaming laptops typically last around four or five years. It may last longer if your usage is not that heavy. The MSI GE76 Raider should future-proof you for some generations of processors and graphics cards. Even the heaviest games play well on it and the build quality is solid.
MSI offers a one-year limited warranty on its laptops as standard, although that depends on the retailer you're picking it up from.
should you buy this
Yes, but be aware of what you're getting yourself into. This is a laptop that puts performance first and doesn't care about the subtleties.
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