MSI GT 627 Review

The MSI GT 627 is the latest gaming notebook to hit the market. IT is priced very competitively like most of MSI’s notebooks and should create a sensation in the budget portable gaming market. It has superb, top of the line specs and is priced much lower than most other notebooks with similar specs. It also has a superb design which should appeal to the young gamers and the build quality is also pretty good. It is portable enough to be carried to a LAN gaming fest and has relatively nice battery life compared to other notebooks. In this review, we check out whether the MSI GT 627 really has it in itself, to become the favored notebook for budget gaming.

MSI GT 627 Specs:

• Dimensions: 14.1 x 10.3 x 1.2 inches
• Weight: 2.7 KG, 5.96 lbs
• Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 at 2.26 GHz, 1066 MHz, 3 MB L2 Cache
• RAM: 4 GB DDR2 RAM, 800 MHz
• Chipset: Intel PM 45
• Discrete Graphics: Nvidia GeForce 9800M GS with 1 GB GDDR3 VRAM
• Display: 15.4 WXGA Glossy Display, 1280 x 800 pixels
• Optical Drive: DVD RW +/-
• Hard Drive: 320GB hard drive, 7200 RPM
• OS: Windows Vista Home Premium with SP1
• Wireless: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth v2.0
• Battery: 6 Cell Battery
• Ports: VGA Output, 2 USB 2.0 Ports, Mic-in Port, Headphone Output, Modem Port, LAN Port, PCI Express Card, eSATA (USB Combo), HDMI, 4-in-1 Card Reader – SD / MMC / MS / MS Pro.
• Price: $1200

Design and Build Quality:

Design is one of the most important aspects of gaming notebooks as it caters to a fashion conscious young audience. The MSI GT 627 completely floors us on that front, it sports a superb stylish design which should appeal not only to the gaming fraternity but also to office going users. It is composed of black and red and has a brushed metal lid with a great feel. It is composed mostly of metal and plastic and has superb build quality. The chassis is very solid and sturdy. The MSI GT 627 has dimensions of 14.1 x 10.3 x 1.2 inches which are less than the category average. Gaming notebooks are generally quite fat, but the MSI GT 627 is a great exception. It also weighs just about 2.7 kg which is quite portable considering the power underneath its hood. Overall, the build quality is very sturdy and the notebook should last for a couple of years easily with moderate usage.

Display and Speakers:

The MSI GT 627 sports a nice 15.4 WXGA Glossy Display with a native resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. The display brightness is nice and the contrast levels are superb. The display quality is also very good. The viewing angles are not much to speak of, both horizontal and vertical, with the horizontal ones marginally better. The display is perfectly suited for gaming and movies. It is one of the best displays in this range. As it is a glossy one, the visibility under direct light is not very good but on the other hand, the display is much more attractive than regular matte ones.

The MSI GT 627 sports a decent set of speakers which have average sound output. The volume level is pretty good but the sound quality isn’t much to speak of. The volume is enough for about 3-4 people to hear properly in a closed room. It should suffice for casual videos and movies but if you take your music any seriously, you should use headphones with the built in headphone port.

Keyboard and Touchpad:

The MSI GT 627 has a nice full sized keyboard with the standard key layout with a few great optimisations. It also has a numberpad on the right which is quite a good addition. The keys have a nice feel and the key spacing and travel is almost perfect. The keys also offer nice feedback. The W, A, S, D keys are highlighted which reaffirms the GT 627’s gamer centric positioning. The keyboard is a blessing for touch typists. There is a bit of flex in the keyboard but it doesn’t affect the typing experience much.

Just below the keyboard, there is the huge Synaptics touchpad slightly tilted to the left. The touchpad is very spacious and can easily span the whole display in a single swipe, atleast on the default resolution. The touchpad surface is nice and allows easy navigation. It is very sensitive and responsive which should help a lot during gaming. The touchpad also supports multitouch gestures with the latest driver update. The touchpad buttons are also nice and offer good feedback.

Performance and Battery Life:

The MSI GT 627 has a superb hardware configuration which is one of the best in its class. It is powered by the Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 clocked at 2.26 GHz, 1066 MHz, 3 MB L2 Cache. It has 4 GB DDR2 RAM, 800 MHz which is more than enough to run any application or game with the bundled Windows Vista Home Premium OS. It has the latest Intel PM 45 chipset. The graphics department is handled by the very able Nvidia GeForce 9800M GS with 1 GB GDDR3 VRAM. The storage is handled by a 320 GB hard drive at 7200 RPM. Overall, the whole hardware spec is superb and works great. You should be able to play all the latest games atleast at low settigns without any snags. The MSI GT 627 sports a Turbo button which overclocks your processor and boosts performance. The MSI GT 627 sports a nice collection of expansion ports – it has a VGA Output, 2 USB 2.0 Ports, Mic-in Port, Headphone Output, Modem Port, LAN Port, PCI Express Card, eSATA (USB Combo), HDMI and a 4-in-1 Card Reader (SD / MMC / MS / MS Pro). The Wi-Fi reception is very nice and the speeds good. The MSI GT 627 is powered by a 6 cell battery which offers nice endurance. It lasts about 2 hrs 40 mins on a full charge with moderate usage. If basic power saving tips like lowering the display brightness, turning down the system volume and switching off Wi-Fi when not in use are implemented, it can easily last you for about 3 hrs or more. This is respectable considering it is a gaming notebook.

Pros:

• Superb Performance
• Inexpensive
• Nice Display

Cons:

• Average Speakers

Final Words:

The MSI GT 627 is a great option for those who are on the lookout for an affordable gaming notebook. It offers superb performance at a superb price.

Our Rating: 4 / 5.