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MSI is known for its gaming laptops but the business segment also has an affordable option in the market.
The Prestige series from MSI caters to workhorses and business users.
MSI is a brand that most of you know for its gaming notebooks in the market. But MSI also caters to other laptop verticals, including ones that are relatively easy on the pocket for under Rs 1 lakh. The MSI Prestige 14 AI EVO model is available in the market and is one of the few products that is not priced in the six-figure range in the country.
The company is catering to the business segment with this model that has AI features and is a reliable workhorse machine. It competes with brands like Lenovo and HP but can MSI carve out a place among these legacy names? We decided to give it a shot for a few weeks to find out.
Trade by trade
There is something special about a business laptop with a simple yet functional design. The durable plastic body on the MSI Prestige 14 AI EVO is a big tick on this front, and for a 14-inch form factor, it weighs less than 2kg, which you’d say is the other one. Relatively light compared to business laptops. Having said that, this laptop is not going to win any design awards and MSI needs to be fine with positioning this product in the market. should
You have a wide array of ports on the side and back. Heat management is handled by a fan on the back, which is an interesting way to use the space to include all the traditional connectivity ports.
A display that divides opinion.
MSI has made some interesting moves with the display on the Prestige 14 AI EVO. You get a 16:10 ratio display with thick bezels around it but you have an anti-glare panel with support for a 144Hz refresh rate screen. That’s where we got confused.
The panel isn’t the best out there but for the price you’re getting anti-glare support which is rare but a useful addition. Colors don’t have a lot of punch and in some cases we noticed that the material offered too much contrast which might not suit everyone. can
Lots of ports but keyboard needs work.
Some of the sleek laptops we’ve tested recently have come with a big caveat, missing ports. MSI is making sure that the Prestige 14 AI EVO has no complaints on this front, and you have all the bases covered on both sides.
You also have USB ports (also C), an HDMI port and even an Ethernet port which has become a rarity on premium laptops these days. People have to make that compromise when they want a lightweight laptop, and get an external hub to support those devices, but not with the Prestige 14 AI EVO.
Coming to the keyboard, the layout is fairly spread out but the size and travel feedback of the keys came with a learning curve that took us a few days to adjust to from other laptops we’ve been using.
We feel that MSI could have used the space a little better and increased the size of the keys. Even the trackpad could be more intuitive than resisting basic touch for control.
Does it work?
Now we come to the most important part of any PC i.e. performance. It has an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor with claims to support AI features (as given in the model name). We got the 16GB RAM variant which is ideally the unit people buy these days if they want a Windows 11 PC. The lack of a dedicated GPU was a simple letdown for the segment it targets and makes it less favorable for heavy gaming or editing purposes.
The AI aspect is still the same as we see from most AI laptops in the market. Overall performance for regular use is satisfactory and thermal management seems to be well controlled by the fan units. We tried to push the limits of the hardware but not by stretching it to maintain it.
The webcam gets a shutter for privacy which is a nice addition that other brands should definitely offer. There are other security features that are an integral part of a business laptop.
The built-in battery benefits from the use of an AI Intel processor and you can easily get the Prestige 14 AI EVO to last for a day with standby time in the equation. It charges quickly but nothing compared to premium laptops we’ve tested recently.
The MSI Prestige 14 AI EVO is a solid offering for regular users who want to run some basic AI tools rather than high-end ones for under Rs 1 lakh. In the package you get an anti-glare screen, a full suite of ports and reliable battery life.
