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MSI Stealth 16 AI+: Two-minute review
The MSI Stealth 16 AI+ is hard to identify as a red-blooded gaming laptop at first glance. The dark grey finish sets it apart from the mostly jet-black marketplace, while the rounded corners and lack of branding further distinguish it from others in the sector.
Its form factor also follows suit. It’s surprisingly thin and light for a 16-inch gaming machine, making it more portable than many of its rivals.
Despite this lithe form, though, the Stealth 16 AI+ doesn’t feel that flimsy. The materials feel smooth and premium, although there’s some flex to the base, so it’s not as solid as the best gaming laptop models.
Also impressive is the number of ports featured. There are two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports and two USB-A. There’s also an HDMI port and an RJ-45 for wired network connectivity. However, all of these are set further forward than usual, which may prove inconvenient in certain setups.
The gaming performance of the Stealth 16 AI+ is excellent. My review unit handled AAA titles with no issue, offering impressive frame rates even at full resolution. Some heat and noise was generated, but both of these aspects were far from troubling.
Games also looked great thanks to the brilliant display. The 1600p resolution and OLED tech meant content was super sharp and vibrant, without being blighted by reflections. The high 240Hz refresh rate will also please gamers who prize supreme smoothness.
The keyboard is tactile and easy to use, offering easy presses and just enough dampening to be satisfying. The touchpad is large and smooth, which makes for easy navigation, yet it rarely got in the way while I typed.
The Stealth 16 AI+ also has a very respectable battery life. It lasted over 14 hours when I ran a movie on a continuous loop, which surpasses many other gaming laptops. It’s also quite quick to charge, taking over two hours to fully replenish.
As you might expect for all its qualities, the Stealth 16 AI+ doesn’t come cheap. It might be hard justifying paying this much for such a powerful and versatile machine, but if you need a gaming laptop that does it all, there aren’t many better than the Stealth 16 AI+.
MSI Stealth 16 AI+ review: Price & availability
- Starts from $2,099.99 (about £1,540 / AU$2,900)
- Available from mid-to-late May
- Unsurprisingly expensive
The MSI Stealth 16 AI+ starts from $2,099.99 (about £1,540 / AU$2,900) and will be available from mid-to-late May. The base model is loaded with an RTX 5060, whereas the top model has a 5080 and costs $3,299.99 (about £2,420 / AU$4,550).
This is expensive, even for a gaming laptop. But when you consider the top-tier spec, it’s hardly surprising. It’s similarly priced to the A16 AI+, although that machine features 64GB of RAM and 2TB of storage across all of its models.
If you’re on a much tighter budget, but still want decent gaming performance, the Asus V16 is an option. It’s just as easy to carry around as the Stealth 16 AI+, but you’ll have to settle for a 40 series RTX rather than a 50 series, and the display is far less impressive. However, if you just want a decent machine for 1200p gaming, it’s worth considering.
MSI Stealth 16 AI+ review: Specs
| Row 0 – Cell 0 |
Base spec |
Review spec |
Max spec |
|
Price |
$2,099.99 (about £1,540 / AU$2,900) |
TBC |
$3,299.99 (about £2,420 / AU$4,550) |
|
CPU |
Intel Core Ultra 9 386H (up to 4.9GHz, 16 cores) |
Intel Core Ultra 9 386H (up to 4.9GHz, 16 cores) |
Intel Core Ultra 9 386H (up to 4.9GHz, 16 cores) |
|
Graphics |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 Laptop |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Laptop |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 Laptop |
|
RAM |
32GB DDR5 |
32GB DDR5 |
32GB DDR5 |
|
Display |
16-inch QHD+ (2560×1600), OLED, 240Hz |
16-inch QHD+ (2560×1600), OLED, 240Hz |
16-inch QHD+ (2560×1600), OLED, 240Hz |
|
Storage |
1TB NVMe SSD PCIe Gen4 |
1TB NVMe SSD PCIe Gen4 |
2TB NVMe SSD PCIe Gen4 |
|
Ports and Connectivity |
2x USB-A (3.2 Gen2), 2x USB-C (Thunderbolt 4 w/ DisplayPort/ Power Delivery 3.0), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x 3.5mm combo audio; Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0 |
2x USB-A (3.2 Gen2), 2x USB-C (Thunderbolt 4 w/ DisplayPort/ Power Delivery 3.0), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x 3.5mm combo audio; Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0 |
2x USB-A (3.2 Gen2), 2x USB-C (Thunderbolt 4 w/ DisplayPort/ Power Delivery 3.0), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x 3.5mm combo audio; Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0 |
|
Battery |
90Wh |
90Wh |
90Wh |
|
Weight |
4.4lbs / 2kg |
4.4lbs / 2kg |
4.4lbs / 2kg |
|
Dimensions |
14 x 9.7 x 0.8 inches / 354 x 246 x 20mm |
14 x 9.7 x 0.8 inches / 354 x 246 x 20mm |
14 x 9.7 x 0.8 inches / 354 x 246 x 20mm |
MSI Stealth 16 AI+ review: Design
- Thin and light for a large gaming laptop
- Smooth materials
- Plenty of ports
For a large gaming laptop, the Stealth 16 AI+ is quite restrained. It has a smart and minimalist body, lacking any odd angles or protrusions, which is always nice to see.
This is complemented by the lack of branding or any other gaming-oriented flourishes. All it features is a small logo and an S pattern on the lid, but both are so discreet and close to the same base color that you’ll barely notice them.
The dark grey colorway is smart and a little more interesting than the total black finishes of many in this class. The tasteful RGB backlighting of the keyboard, along with the rounded corners of the chassis, help to soften its appearance, too.
It also seems quite well made. The main material feels very smooth and premium, although it’s not especially solid. For example, the base can be flexed if you push a little too hard, or hit the keys a little too enthusiastically.
This is the price paid for its lightweight construction. For a large gaming laptop, the Stealth 16 AI+ is remarkably unobtrusive, especially when you consider it’s loaded with an RTX 50 series GPU. This makes it a more realistic option for on-the-go gaming than many of its rivals.
However, this portability is somewhat undermined by the feet underneath, which are quite thick. At least the ventilation area, also underneath, doesn’t have any bulk to it. It’s merely a large but completely flat honeycomb pattern, which also has its own aesthetic qualities.
Oddly, the most solid aspect of the Stealth 16 AI+ is the lid. There’s far less flex here, which is all the more impressive given just how thin it is. What’s more, the hinge provides plenty of stability while gaming, but puts up little resistance when opening up the display.
I was also surprised by the number of ports onboard the Stealth 16 AI+. There are two USB-C connections, both of which utilize the Thunderbolt 4 standard that supports DisplayPort and Power Delivery. There’s also a dedicated DC-in port for powering your laptop using the included adapter.
Two USB-A ports are also featured, which are split across both sides of the unit for added convenience. An HDMI 2.1 port, an RJ-45 port, and a headset jack round out the rest of the interfaces.
All ports on both sides are set further forward than you might expect, no doubt to give room to the GPU at the rear. I found this a little inconvenient, especially when connecting a power cable, since it protruded from near the middle of the unit. This can eat into desk space and lead to tangling if you have other wired connections to make.
MSI Stealth 16 AI+ review: Performance
- Smooth AAA gaming
- Sharp and vibrant display
- Easy and tactile keys
MSI Stealth 16 AI+ benchmarks
3DMark: Night Raid: 59,981; Fire Strike: 31,492; Steel Nomad: 3,739; Solar Bay: 70,455; Solar Bay Unlimited: 82,013; Solar Bay Extreme: 15,127; Solar Bay Extreme Unlimited: 16,121
Geekbench 6.5: Multicore: 15,618; Single-core: 2.829
Cinebench R23: Multi Core: 20,811; Cinebench R24: Single Core: 123; Multi Core: 1,190
Crossmark: Overall: 1,888; Productivity: 1,725; Creativity: 2,148; Responsiveness: 1,680
Passmark Overall: 12,696.8; CPU: 40,282.6; 2D Graphics: 793.1; 3D Graphics: 23,604.6; Memory: 3,461.1; Disk: 46,483.3
BlackMagicDisk: Read: 4,793MB/s; Write: 3,325MB/s
HandBrake 4K to 1080p: 99.52fps
Civilization VII: (Max resolution, AMD FSR 3, High): 122fps; (1080p, High): 181fps
Shadow of the Tomb Raider: (Max resolution, Highest, Balanced upscaling): 164fps; 1080p, Highest, SMAA x4): 156fps
Total War: Warhammer III: Mirrors of Madness (1080p, Ultra): 54fps; (Max Resolution, Ultra): 52fps
Cyberpunk 2077: (Max resolution, Ultra, Balanced upscaling): 94fps; (1440p, Ray Tracing: Ultra, Balanced upscaling): 60fps; (1440p, Ultra): 74fps
Marvel Rivals: (Max resolution, Balanced upscaling, Ultra): 73fps; (1200p, Low): 132fps
Battery Life (TechRadar movie test): 14 hours and 15 minutes
I was impressed by the gaming performance of the Stealth 16 AI+. I got around 50fps when playing Cyberpunk 2077 with the Ray Tracing: Ultra preset selected. This shot up to around 90fps when Frame Generation was enabled on top. I only experienced occasional drops in frame rate during busier scenes, but these weren’t steep enough to adversely affect gameplay.
When I first booted up the game, there was a lot of fan noise. Once I started playing, this quietened down, but it was still noticeable. Heat was noticeable, too, but this remained at the very back of the unit, and temperatures weren’t extreme.
The display in the Stealth 16 AI+ is excellent. The 2.5K resolution is more than sharp enough for a display this large, while the OLED technology provides a vivid color palette. It’s also very bright, which makes all kinds of content shine. I never had any problem with reflections showing up on the screen, either. And for those who value ultra-smooth gameplay, it’s capable of delivering a 240Hz refresh rate, which is more than enough for most gamers.
The keyboard is a joy to use. The keys are light yet offer a pleasing amount of travel, which increases their feedback. They’re more damped than those on your average laptop keyboard, which makes them more satisfying to hit, but they’re still harsher than those on the best gaming keyboards.
I also welcomed the generous spacing between the keys. This made them comfortable to use and made typing easier. However, this spacing comes at the expense of a number pad and navigation keys, which is a shame for a 16-inch laptop.
The touchpad is very large and has a very smooth surface — aspects that make it great for navigation. And although my thumb palms frequently made contact with it while typing, this rarely triggered cursor movement or clicks.
MSI Stealth 16 AI+ review: Battery life
- Excellent for a gaming laptop
- Outlasts many rivals
- Quick to charge
By gaming laptop standards, the battery life of the Stealth 16 AI+ is very impressive. During our movie playback test, it lasted over 14 hours. This means it has better longevity than many of its rivals, including MSI’s other Stealth model, the A16 AI+, which didn’t even make it past five hours.
It also outlasted the Asus V16, which only managed 12 and a half hours. It’s also quite quick to charge, taking about two and a half hours to reach 100% from total depletion.
Should I buy the MSI Stealth 16 AI+?
Scorecard
|
Attributes |
Notes |
Rating |
|
Value |
Very expensive, but you do get a great all-round package. |
3.5 / 5 |
|
Design |
I can’t think of a more portable 16-inch gaming laptop, but it doesn’t have the strongest build. There are plenty of ports, but their placement is impractical. |
4 / 5 |
|
Performance |
AAA games are buttery smooth and look great on the fantastic display. Some heat and noise are apparent, but neither is disruptive. |
4 / 5 |
|
Battery life |
Impressive compared to other gaming laptops. It’ll outlast many of them, even more premium examples. |
4.5 / 5 |
|
Total Score |
The Stealth 16 AI+ excels at gaming and beyond, making it a very capable and versatile machine. However, it commands a premium price tag. |
4 / 5 |
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
MSI Stealth 16 AI+ review: Also consider
How I tested the MSI Stealth 16 AI+
- Tested for several days
- Used for gaming and other tasks
- Gaming laptop experience
I tested the Stealth 16 AI+ for several days. As well as gaming with AAA titles, I also used the laptop for general browsing and streaming video.
I also ran our series of benchmark tests for gaming laptops. This included a battery test, where I ran a movie on a continuous loop until it shut down.
I’ve been PC gaming for decades, and have experienced many systems in that time. I’ve also reviewed plenty of gaming laptops before, as well as other gaming hardware.
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lewis.maddison@futurenet.com (Lewis Maddison)
