Comparison Table

MSI GF63

Vs

MSI GL63

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

For the storage, it’s got a single M.2 slot with both NVMe and SATA support, as well as a single 2.5-inch drive bay. My unit has a 128GB M.2 SSD and 1TB hard drive, but storage options may vary.

For the graphics, there’s an Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q, but the lower specced 8RC model is available with the GTX 1050. This powers the 15.6” 1080p 60Hz IPS screen.

For network connectivity, there’s a gigabit ethernet port, 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth version 5.0.

For the storage, 2TB Certified PCIe NVMe SSD (Seq. Read 2000MB/s, Seq. Write 1750MB/s)

For the graphics, there is an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB GDDR6. This powers the 15.6” 1080p 120Hz IPS screen.

For network connectivity, there’s a gigabit ethernet port, 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth version 5.0.

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

The dimensions of the laptop are 35.9cm in width, 25.4cm in-depth, and 2.1cm in height, so a little smaller than many other 15-inch gaming laptops, and this smaller footprint is what makes the thin bezels possible.

The weight is listed as 1.86KG on the MSI website, a pretty spot on with my own measurements. With the 120-watt power brick and cables included the total weight increases to just under 2.5KG.

The thickness of the laptop is thicker than the Asus FX 504 504 as a laptop that has the exact same specs so the same process in the i7 8750 with an Nvidia 1050 Ti. So this one here comes in at 30 millimeters that’s excluding the feet and the Zeus is 26 millimeters thick. Also excluding the rubber feet.

So 2.26 kg isn’t too bad considering the spec and how much copper this has inside. When you add across the power brick and then the cable on top your total carry weight then comes up to 3 kilos exactly getting a little on the heavy side.

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

It’s got a 15.6” 1080p 60Hz IPS panel, no G-Sync here though and no response time listed. There were no issues with viewing angles, colors were still perfectly clear for me on any angle.

The bezels are also around 8mm thin based on my own measurements, it’s good to see this trend trickling down from higher-end laptops.

I’ve measured the current color gamut using the Spyder 5 Pro, and my results returned 64% of sRGB, 46% of NTSC and 48% of AdobeRGB, so not great results but realistically fine for a gaming laptop and common at this price point.

At 100% brightness I measured the panel at 256 nits in the center, and with a 920:1 contrast ratio, so about average brightness, maybe a little low, with pretty good contrast.

I’ve taken a long exposure photo in a dark room as a worst-case backlight bleed test, and there were just some minor imperfections from the top corners to my own eyes though it looked perfectly fine, this will vary between laptops.

There was an average amount of screen flex while intentionally moving it, but as a metal lid it did feel sturdy, and having the hinges out towards the far corners helped with stability. It can also be easily opened up with one finger, demonstrating a fairly even weight distribution as we’ve got the battery towards the front.

IPS panel: LGD0590

72% sRGB, 51% NTSC, 53% Adobe RGB.

Gamma: 2.3 Lux: 250 Max

My particular model has a 1080p anti-glare IPS panel. It is from LG. 250 Lux is what I’ve measured is the maximum output and because it’s anti-glare I find that the brightness output that’s sufficient for inducing it’s gonna be fine and even in direct sunlight you’ll still be able to make out what is on the screen.

Bezels, yes they are extra large and this is to be expected this is not a mid-range this is not a more premium MSI laptop so we’re not going to get those extra-slim bezels here. They have made a few little tweaks here to the design we still have the rubber pads as you can see the side to keep the screen from scratching up it’s not pressing against the palm rest.

It is a matte coated 1080p IPS panel you can also get I think it’s 120 Hertz or 144 Hertz a TN panel but you don’t get good for you vertical viewing angles with that one. And at the top of the same 720p webcam, it does have dual array mics and a little status LED in there.

The hinge here is quite stiff but you must open it up with two hands.

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

The keyboard worked fine, and MSI notes that it has red backlighting, but mine didn’t have any, just red plastic edges, I suspect that just might be because this is an engineering sample.

There was some keyboard flex while pushing down hard, but I never found this to be a problem during normal use and overall it seemed solid enough considering the plastic build.

The touchpad was smooth to the touch and worked well, it clicks down when you push, you can right-click anywhere with two fingers or otherwise single finger left and right-click down the bottom.

The keyboard still serious yet again MSI has been using steel chairs keyboards for quite some years now. It’s a good keyboard the keyboard flex is almost non-existent it’s very solid and these keys I do like them. This comes with a red-black light.

The touchpad is a typical MSI touchpad that it’s not actually using windows precision drivers unfortunately, I think it’s an e LAN one that they’re using or some nap decks and it’s not too bad so it has a soft feel to it. That is definitely not the best touchpad.

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

On the left, there’s an air exhaust vent, the power input, and a USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-A port.

On the right, there are 3.5mm microphone and headphone jacks, two more USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-A ports, a USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-C port, although no mention of Thunderbolt support, gigabit ethernet port, and Kensington lock.

The back, there’s an HDMI port, version 1.2 I think as it supports 4K at 30Hz, and air exhaust vent on the right, while the front is just smooth plastic with a little indent in the center to allow you to easily open it.

The two 2 watt speakers are found underneath the front corners, they sound alright for laptop speakers, still clear at higher volumes but no bass.

On the back of the black brushed metal lid, there’s a red MSI logo in the center. Underneath is pretty clean looking, and the rubber feet did a decent job of preventing movement while in use.

Now unlike the FX504, we get plenty of ports with this one here. So we’ve got a Kensington lock slot, then you have one on the exhaust fans there. So this is new there now got exhaust fans on the side to help improve the cooling. Gigabit LAN port there we have, HDMI 1.4, then we have a mini DisplayPort out, USB 3.1, USB 3 Type C, and then our mic and audio out Jack’s there.

On the right-hand side, we have an SD card reader – now this is not ultra high speed, 2 more USB 3.1 ports – type c of course, and then another fan there for the cooling. And note that the plug is actually wider this time around, now I don’t know why they changed this from the previous generation.

Then along the back, we get the two exit exhaust fans here. So just like the GL62 nothing has really changed in that regard there. Most of the hot air will come out of those two fans on the back.

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

Powering the laptop is a 3 cell 51 Watt-hour battery, and with a full charge and just watching YouTube videos, I was able to use it for 5 hours and 44 minutes.

A very nice result for a gaming laptop in this test. While playing the Witcher 3 with medium settings, the battery lasted for 59 minutes.

Overall the battery seemed quite good, it did much better than I expected based on its size.

Bad battery life is also very poor as expected 41-watt hours, you’re going to get three and a half – four hours only. And that is on the integrated GPU, so it is just that gaming you’re gonna really struggle to get, over about an hour and 20 minutes gaming on this.

So most people, I know most will have it connected up to the powers and that’s not going to be a big problem, it’s not a problem for me either.

Msi GF63

Msi GL63

While the i7-8750H is a great CPU, I did find it a bit strange that it’s only paired with GTX 1050 or 1050 Ti Max-Q graphics. A lower-tier CPU probably would have been fine for this gaming laptop and lowered prices.

As the temperatures out of the box weren’t great with some thermal throttling present when under heavy load. However, this did mean the laptop ran quieter compared to others, and it was possible to manually boost the fan speed to significantly improve the temperatures.

Big improvement over the GL62 speakers.

Fan noise is one of the best for this spec. GPU overclock really works well on my unit.

The touchpad has poor gesture recognition. SATA3 SSD and not NVMe like other brands.

The plastic finish is a fingerprint magnet. Small 41Wh battery is good for only 3 -4 hours on iGPU.

BUY MSI GF63

BUY MSI GL63