MSI Raider GE68 HX (2023) Review - Worth Buying?

MSI’s new GE68 HX is a decent gaming laptop, but it’s got a problem.. Last year’s version was a great option, and it’s much cheaper, so is the new 2023 model worth it?

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MSI Raider GE68 HX (2023) Review Timestamps:
0:00 The GE68 Has a Problem…
0:16 Design & Build Quality
1:06 Size & Weight
1:23 Laptop Specs
1:38 Camera & Microphone Test
1:42 Keyboard, RGB Lighting & Touchpad Problem
3:12 Ports - Something Important is Missing
4:45 Getting Inside & Internals
5:20 SSD & SD Card Speed
5:36 Wi-Fi Speed
5:46 Upgrade Options
5:55 Speakers & Latencymon
6:20 Battery Saving Features
6:46 Battery Life
7:03 New Cooling Design & Thermal Modes
8:06 Temperatures / Clock Speed / TDP
9:08 Game Performance in Different Modes
9:15 Cinebench CPU Performance (On & Off Battery)
10:11 Keyboard Temperatures
10:42 Fan Noise
11:20 New Screen
11:33 Screen Color Gamut, Brightness & Contrast
11:55 Swap Between 4K 120Hz & 1080p 240Hz
12:12 Screen Response Time & Latency
13:16 MUX Switch, But Missing Features
13:35 Screen Bleed & Weird Resolution Issue
14:26 3 Game Comparison (1080p & 1440p)
16:13 3DMark & Content Creation
17:10 BIOS - Lots of Customization!
17:23 Linux Support
17:41 Pricing, Availability & Laptop Deals
18:00 The Biggest Problem With The GE68…
18:59 GE68 vs Older GE67 - Is GE68 Worth More $?
20:03 DLSS, Frame Generation & RT Performance

Disclosure: Purchases made through store links above may provide some compensation to Jarrod'sTech.

[SonicDestiny]

I just got myself INSANE Deal for new Asus zephyrus G15 with 4k 120hz, 6800HS and 3080 only for only 1 226, 79 $ from normal 2 584, 27 $ price. Most luckiest purchase in my life.

[antalpoti]

Lmao every Jarrod video is titled "this laptop has a problem" this year.

[teddym]

Those temps and CB scores for a 16" are INSANELY good. There was headroom to let the clock speeds be higher when GPU loaded, say another 20W to bump those speeds to around 3.7ghz but they must have been closer to 4.4 in Cinebench. I am not sure why when a CPU in 70's it is being limited so harshly though.
This one is close, if it had G-Sync and at least a 4080 I'd get it. Even the top model maxes out at 4070 unfortunately. I think that's a miss for sure.

[kimlyrics]

Oh, it's amazing to see laptop like this for Gaming and 3D Rendering. In fact, Asus and MSI are really competing for the best gaming laptop in the world and for me these two brands are really powerful for gaming.

[TomMarvan]

0:19 “But of course that’s subjective, and I’m an old man.” Classic. And, relatable. Thank you for a great review. Of course, that’s subjective.

[TheGtoXed]

I got the version with 32gb ram, 4060 and 13950hx. My god this cpu is a beast. Far cry 6 at high settings 1080p 144hz gets around 100-120fps. It's big, and heavy, but on silent mode it still perfoms spectacular without making noise. I am so happy i bought this laptop. No issues with screenbleeding, i feel like i got a prime product.

[darkwing]

The arrow keys are awesome for looking like DDR arrows!

[kmorton]

Great review. I would definitely consider the 3070 ti models considering the similar performance

[primereflections]

Got one at Costco with the refresh i9 14900HX, 32gb Ram, RTX 4070 on sale for 1299.99. The trade off however was the screen. The costco version has a 1080p 144hz with terrible color accuracy and light bleed.

[assetinvestco]

You failed to mention that the right side usb-c is also a DP, and can be used for power, or fast charge devices like your phone or tablet and supports xfer speeds up to 10gb (I use it to power my gl.inet travel routers directly from my laptop instead of plugging the travel router separately into another outlet), the usb-c on the back also supports DP and 10gb speeds, and the usb-c on the left side is a thunderbolt usb-c that supports speeds up to 40gb.

[woodysmith]

Costco is advertising $1400. For basic gaming with Starfield and AC as my targets, this looks good. Was considering Asus Scar 17 but the reviews had concerns about the motherboard burning out.

[jeremymatthew]

The 4080 laptops are such a massive leap over these in performance. I have a gt77 titan with one and its great with great temps, but if I had a lower budget I would still get a cheaper 4080 model over this

[yedawg]

typing this on my GE68 with an I9 13980HX and 4070, 2tb 16GB of RAM. Have been using it for a couple of months and I`m just so glad I bought it. the big centre placed touch pad + the numlock was a gamechanger for me as well has having the 16:10 screen. Was looking for a laptop with a centre placed macbook like touchpad + numlock, which is also able to run 99% games at good settings along with a lasting CPU for other purposes. This thing will definitely last me some years of quality computing :). A lenovo Legion would be my second choice, would probably be the best bang for your buck laptop for everyone else as well but I just had some personal preferences the GE68 Raider was more suited for.

[MrEstarion]

Is this the funeral of the QHD 240 Hz OLED panel? Damn, I just want a 4k 120 Hz OLED for perfect 1080p scaling or at least the last year's 240 Hz panel with an RTX 4000. Paying $2k for GE67HX with 3070Ti and no G-Sync (no adaptive sync either) just stings.

[Luka_Nogalo]

The 4070 being slower than the 3070ti from last year @1440p in almost every game is kinda hilarious ngl 😂

[AdamDexter-]

This model seems to be part of Costco's gaming pc sale for $1599 - at that price does it become a no brainer over the Legion Pro i7 4080 (2023) at $2, 299? But what about the GE68 4060 at $1, 599 vs the Legion Pro 5i 16IRX8 4070 at $1, 699?

[andreszhoutsang]

its a pity they removed the huge trackpad from the CES prototypes... As Matt Moniz would say, the sticker industry is too strong

[eclipsemantis]

Love the review as usual. Ever considered making a video on laptop maintenance and care?

[spacemanonearth]

Well three weeks ago July 01, 2023 got the 17.3" version QHD+ 240Hz Laptop, i9-13950HX, RTX 4070 (8GB), 32GB DDR5 (only 4000), 2TB NVMe SSD, Thunderbolt 4, USB-C, Win 11 Pro was the MSI 13VG-020US for $2099 with no taxes delivered. Is for Digital Audio could have used more ram but is all good. Witcher 3 and a few games still hold my interest. But saved $450 from above price and got an extra inch in screen size. The 4080 with 12GB was far more costly, and their highest end was nearly $2000 more with a 4090 with 16GB and 64GB RAM or go with a Titan.

[cameronbosch]

The fact that this laptop can't even get 4080 or 4090 GPUs in this thick chassis is ridiculous...