This laptop is an amazing deal (I got mine for $620 after tax at officedepot) if you're looking for high performance and speed at a really low price. But there are sacrifices for that low price. I was looking for a cheap laptop that would be able to play games such as StarCraft 2, World of Warcraft, Counter-strike, etc. as well as watch movies and multi-process like a monster. I was basically trying to find the best possible laptop that didn't have a dedicated graphics card and was around $600. I wasn't too concerned with the laptop specific features because I plan on setting it up on a desk with external mouse/keyboard when doing a lot of gaming. So for me, this is the perfect machine!Pros: Very fast i5! (And for such a low price!). 500gb HDD, 4gb ddr3 ram, good graphics (even though it's intel HD), great at multi-tasking, playing games, etc. It has a beautiful HD screen, decent weight, great sound volume/quality. And did I mention how fast this things is?!
Cons: My cons are only cons if you plan on using this latptop on your actual lap. If you're going to put it on a desk, hook up a mouse and keyboard, then there really aren't any cons! With that said, the cons are heat (most noticeable on your lap, and also on your wrist if you're playing a game using the WASD keys), battery life (I can play WoW for about an hour before I have to plug it in), noise (you can definitely hear the powerfulness of this machine), the mousepad is a bit unusual (it's studded? and no scrollbar, but instead it has a "multi-touch feature" which is also unusual and doesn't work too well).
All-in-all, I got exactly what I was looking for and I've been very happy with it.
A sound app is included and my iPod sounds great. I don't know about battery life as of yet. The chiclet key board is far too sensitive however I'll put up with it. We're traveling and it connected well with the condos weak WiFi. My wifes 3 year old acer laptop will NOT connect unless it's moved to the main office. Not too sure about the e-Sata input, would have liked a fire wire instead for my ext. HD, The USB-2 however works fine. I'll report back as I learn this laptop.
Update Nov 06:
I loaded up Photoshop CS5 and so far it is a good performer. A core monitor "Gadget" indicates that the dual core,(4 threads)i5 processor is loafing and waiting for the hard drive. Most likely file swapping with the slow 5200 rpm hard drive. I'm wondering if a 7200 HD would help with the >30Mb image files I toss around in Photoshop. Although with Win 7 64 bit and 4 gig of ram it should be a screamer.
update July 15, 2011
I've upgraded the ram from 4 to 6 gig by adding a Crucial 4 gig stick, 4+2=6 gig. There is a huge improvement in responce with Adobe PS CS5 and Explorer 8 is more responsive as well. So not all of the lag was with the slow HD afterall.
Update August 10, 2011
Continuing with the RAM upgrade I went for the max, and now have two sticks of Crucial 4 gig with a total of 8 gig. I really can't say it's made any improvement in performance over the 4 gig. Most likely I'm up against the 5400 rpm HD.
Buy MSI Core i5 4GB 15.6" Refurbished Notebook PC Now
Well, I bought this computer from Frys, $704.26. It will cost $50 less after rebate. However, it's 1 month now since the day I sent out my rebate form, and still nothing comes. It seems like MSI won't honer their rebate.Despite that, it's still a good laptop. Light weight, slim, ok sound quality, i5-quad-core, and a lot more.
The only con are the keyboard and the look. Sometime it just miss some letter when typing. The outlook just too simple.
MSI isn't a well know brand for laptop user, but for desktop user, its mother-board are very well know, as well as graph card. So I hope this laptop will last for long.
Update: I got my $50 rebate just forget to update in a long time; the pc still work well. The screen had to be replace since it got broken by ?someone?
Read Best Reviews of MSI Core i5 4GB 15.6" Refurbished Notebook PC Here
I have had this laptop for enough time to be able to make a review. This computer is amazing for the price, the finish is kind of fancy and it is very compact. I consider a plus it has the numeric pad at the right side of the keyboard because it makes easier for me to type numbers (I work configuring routers and servers so typing IP addresses, codes, etc with this keyboard is faster). The graphic card is just fine, provides good quality images and I can watch movies with no glitches or f r a m e t o f r a m e annoying stops. This laptop is quiet and doesn't go very hot even if I work with it for hours, and actually I have never had to use a cooler base with it. The screen is good enough for most of the purposes. The only thing I'd wish this computer to have is a backlighted keyboard but for what I need it, that is a minor issue. I'd also wish it had more USB ports (only has 2) and Mini SD card port.Hope this helps other buyers.
Want MSI Core i5 4GB 15.6" Refurbished Notebook PC Discount?
While being a huge acer fan myself, i needed to get my father a new laptop, which wasn't easy considering he's picky. Also he really needs no more than a regular Pentium Dual Core, but most of those models are cheaply made and cost almost the same. So after a bit of browsing around at Office Depot, from Toshiba to Hp, i finally took notice of the MSI's beautiful screen which can be a good selling point because its right there in front of you, and by comparison blew the other screens away. It was very vibrant and straight up close looking to the screen itself, and not blurred or washed out looking. Also MSI have been making motherboards, graphics card and the like for many years. Particularly for Acer Desktops. Why do i say the computer is in between. Well upon start up it installs a few programs that should already be pre-installed, and it already has them selected, so why even bother asking if you want to install it or not? Odd. Also its very very slow and quirky on boot up, especially boasting its I5 processor. On the system windows rating it only gets a 6.8, when it should be around 7.1 being that i use to have a computer with and I3 that had that rating. Here are some pro's and cons also.1. Solid build, the exterior on the top looks a lot like a Toshiba, laptop itself is black, made well and has a strange touch pad with small bumps on it.
2. Great Sound Quality, although i have an Acer Aspire laptop that sounds far superior, just less power in the processor, also a much larger screen, all for 599$.
3. Screen still looks good, but not as good as the cheaper MSI's that were next to it in O.D.
4. Has an eject button above the keyboard for the dvd tray(that didn't work on first boot up)it wasn't until i rebooted the computer that it worked, a defect? Perhaps.
5. Keyboard feel is nice, but i have felt better. Solid build though.
6. There is an annoying little start up widget sort of menu that pops up on the bottom of your screen allowing you to have quick buttons, making it faster to view IE, Calculator, Notepad, etc. Cute, with bouncing icons, but seems to slow down the computer, and is VERY pointless.
7. As i said for an I5 its pretty sluggish in some areas.
So in ending this review i may actually encourage dad to take it back and get the HP, since he's a fan of them. I myself hate HP, but oh well. For some reason the lack of sales, reviews, and information on reliability of MSI, makes it feel uncomfortable as an investment. And with some of the things i mentioned, i just don't see it outlasting the other computers i've had. All the Acers i've owned have been awesome, and i was about to give him this one and take the MSI, but something just said nope, stick with what you know. So for those or you who want something different that does have good quality, and potential don't let me stop you from purchasing it. It seems nice, but is quirky, and i'm just not sure of a brand that never advertises and no one buys. So even though its nice, i think i'll get him the HP, with the I3 and a larger screen.
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