MSI Prestige PS42 review: A performance to price champion

Performance & Conclusion

How does it perform?

As you might expect, the Prestige PS42 was a strong performer thanks to its powerful Core i7 processor and discrete graphics chip. Amongst the other ultraportables, it was easily the fastest especially in graphics intensive workloads and in gaming. On 3DMark’s intensive Fire Strike workload, the Prestige PS42’s score over other ultraportables relying on Intel’s integrated GPUs can be as much as over 300% greater. On Far Cry 2 and Tomb Raider, its frame rates were easily double, making it the only ultraportable that we've tested that's capable of comfortably running these games at Full-HD resolution.

Test Notebooks Compared

	MSI Prestige PS42	Dell XPS 13 (2018)	LG gram 14 (2018)	Apple MacBook Air (2018)	Apple 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar	Apple 15-inch MacBook Pro (2018)
Launch SRP	—	—	—	—	From S$	—
Processor and Chipset	Intel Core i7-8550U	Intel Core i7-8550U (1.8GHz, 8MB cache)	Intel Core i7-8550U	Intel Core i5-8210Y (1.6GHz, 4MB cache)	Intel Core i5-6267U (2.9GHz, 4MB L3 cache)	Intel Core i9-8950HK processor
Operating System	Windows 10	Windows 10 Home	Windows 10 Home	macOS Mojave	macOS Sierra	macOS High Sierra
System Memory	16GB DDR2-2400	16GB LPDDR3 2133MHz	8GB DDR4 2400MHz	8GB 2133MHz LPDDR3 RAM	8GB LPDDR3 2133MHz	32GB DDR4
Video & Display	14-inch Full-HD IPS display NVIDIA GeForce MX150	13.3-inch 4K InfinityEdge touch display Intel UHD Graphics 620	14-inch Full-HD IPS 1920 x 1080 pixels	13.3-inch Retina display 2560 x 1600 pixels Intel UHD Graphics 617	13.3-inch Retina display (2560 x 1600 pixels) Intel Iris Graphics 550	15-inch Retina display (2,880 x 1,800 pixels) AMD Radeon Pro 560X 4GB GDDR5 Intel UHD Graphics 630
Storage	256GB PCIe NVMe SSD	256GB PCIe SSD	512GB SATA 6Gbps SSD	256GB PCIe SSD	256GB PCIe SSD	4TB PCIe SSD
Optical Drive	None	None	None	None	None	None
Connectivity	802.11ac/b/g/n/a Bluetooth 4.2	Killer 1435 (802.11ac, 2x2) Bluetooth	802.11ac/b/g/n/a (2x2) Bluetooth 4.1	802.11ac/b/g/n/a Bluetooth 4.2	802.11ac/b/g/n/a (Up to 1.3Gbps) Bluetooth 4.0	Bluetooth 5.0 802.11ac/b/g/n/a
Audio	2 x 2W speakers	Stereo speakers tuned by Waves MaxxAudio, 1W x 2 4 x digital array microphones	1.5W x 2 built-in speakers Internal mic	Stereo speakers 3 microphones	Built-in stereo speakers	Stereo speakers with high dynamic range
I/O Ports	2 x USB-C (USB 3.1 Gen 1) 2 x USB-A (USB 3.1 Gen 1) 1 x SD card reader 1 x HDMI 1 x headphone/microphone jack	2 x Thunderbolt 3 USB-C 1 x USB 3.1 USB-C 1 x microSD card reader 1 x headphone jack	3 x USB 3.0 ports 1 x HDMI port 1 x USB-C (USB 3.1)	2 x USB-C Thunderbolt 3	4 x Thunderbolt 3 via USB Type-C	4 x USB-C ports (Thunderbolt 3) 3.5mm headphone jack
Battery Type	50Wh lithium-ion battery	52Wh	72Wh	50.3Wh lithium-ion battery	Lithium-ion, 49.2Wh	83.6wH
Dimensions	322 x 222 x 15.9mm	302 x 199 x 11.6mm	323 x 212 x 16.5mm	304.1 x 212.4 x 15.6mm	304.1 x 212.4 x 14.9mm	349.3 x 240.7 x 15.5mm
Weight	1.19kg	1.21kg	995g	1.25kg	1.37kg	1.83kg
Miscellaneous	—	—	—	—	—	720p FaceTime camera

Show me the charts!

Here they are, pay attention to the Prestige PS42’s advantage over its rivals who are powered by Intel’s integrated GPU. The difference is startling and clearly demonstrates the NVIDIA GeForce MX150’s superiority over Intel’s integrated graphics solutions.

How's the battery life?

Despite boasting a discrete graphics chip, the Prestige PS42’s battery life is actually quite good. On our intensive battery which consists of productivity workloads, video conferencing, and light gaming, the Prestige PS42 managed to last 212 minutes or 3 hours and 32 minutes - that’s half an hour shorter than the XPS 13 but nearly an hour longer than the Spectre. Bearing in mind its performance, I would say its commendable.

Using our Portability Index which takes into account dimensions and weight, the Prestige PS42 recorded a ratio of 2.61. It's a decent outcome but behind rivals like the XPS 13 and Spectre which are thinner and more compact. Still, it's a good ratio when you factor in its class-leading performance.

So how does it compare to the competition?

Very well, actually. If you look at its performance and price, it is easily the class-leader. Because it is the only ultraportable that we've tested with discrete graphics, its performance - especially in graphics-intensive workloads - is untouchable. For anyone who is into gaming and wants an ultraportable, the Prestige PS42 is a very attractive proposition.

It is priced very competitively too. For well under two grand - S$1,799 if you haven't been paying attention - you get a Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM, 512GB SSD, and discrete graphics. Few notebooks come close. The entry-level gram 14 from LG is S$1,999 but it has a Core i5 processor and no discrete graphics. The Swift 3 from Acer is probably the Prestige PS42’s keenest competitor on the performance/price front. For $1,698, you get specs that are identical to the Prestige PS42 including discrete graphics, but it is slightly heavier. Another close competitor is the ASUS UX430UN. For a dollar less, you get the same Core i7 processor but with 16GB of RAM instead of 8GB, a 512GB SSD and the same GeForce MX150 discrete graphics. But, the ASUS is slightly heavier and it uses a slower SATA-based SSD. The Prestige PS42, therefore, still has the upper hand when it comes to portability.

Final Thoughts?

While the MSI Prestige PS42 represents excellent value from a performance and price standpoint, there are some concerns worth highlighting. To begin, build quality is clearly not on the same level as some of its peers and that detracts from the overall user experience. For a company that has so much experience building notebooks, it's quite surprising that the Prestige PS42 feels the way it does. Additionally, the display also isn’t quite up to scratch in my opinion - a bit too dim and too grainy. The trackpad is also tiny by today's standards and makes me want to use a mouse. Finally, while the notebook does have USB-C ports, they don’t support Thunderbolt 3. Granted, Thunderbolt 3 devices are pricey and still pretty rare, but one always wants to know that his/her investment is ready for the future.

Still, when you take into account the performance it offers and its price, it’s easy to overlook the Prestige PS42’s shortcomings. In short, the Prestige PS42 isn't perfect but it does have redeeming qualities that can make you overlook its flaws.