MSI Prestige 16 AI EVO: Revolutionizing Smart Computing with AI

Embarking on an odyssey of innovation, the MSI Prestige 16 AI EVO series, featuring Intel Core Ultra CPUs and groundbreaking AI capabilities, takes center stage in this exclusive review. We delve into the intricacies of its design, performance, and revolutionary AI features, providing a thorough insight for potential buyers.

Elegant Design and Display

Cloaked in a Stellar Gray magnesium alloy chassis, the Prestige 16 AI EVO seamlessly blends elegance with durability. The 16-inch display, available in UHD OLED and QHD+ IPS variants, delivers a visual spectacle with 400 nits brightness and complete DCI-P3 color gamut coverage. Despite its 3.5-pound weight, the laptop maintains remarkable portability at 14.1 x 10.1 x 0.7 inches.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The Prestige 16 AI EVO’s keyboard, featuring a dedicated number pad and spacious comfort, elevates the typing experience. The off-center touchpad, though unconventional, impresses with its ample size, contributing to an overall positive user experience. The device’s sleek design and responsive touchpad position it as a promising tool for productivity.

AI Features

Empowered by Intel’s Neural Processing Unit (NPU), the laptop introduces on-device AI capabilities. AI Model acceleration supports applications like Microsoft Copilot and Stable Diffusion. The MSI AI Engine analyzes user behavior, ensuring adaptive system settings for optimized performance. The review emphasizes the on-device generative AI capabilities, showcasing potential workflow efficiencies with Intel’s Core Ultra chips.

With the latest Intel® Evo™ Edition certification and up to Intel® Core™ Ultra 9 processor 185H, the Prestige 16 AI Evo B1M makes intensive computations seem easy and efficient. The Integrated NPU further empowers the laptop to handle diverse workloads, making it the ideal choice for accelerating AI programs and powering through long-sustained, power-moderate, intensive applications.

AI INTEGRATION BEYOND HARDWARE

Beyond the impressive hardware specifications, MSI plans to integrate its own AI software into these three laptops. This software includes AI noise cancellation and the MSI AI Engine, set to launch through an early 2024 update. The AI Engine promises to detect user scenarios and automatically adjust hardware settings to optimize performance. Despite not utilizing the NPU, the AI Engine pre-sorts the most common apps into categories for streamlined user experience, allowing toggling of performance, audio, visual settings, and more.

first Impressions

An exploration of the laptop’s on-device generative AI capabilities reveals a potential paradigm shift in workflow efficiency. We are equally intrigued by the remarkably light weight build of the 16-inch models. MSI attributes this to their special magnesium-aluminum chassis, maintaining the base version’s weight at just 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg).

Both versions of the 16-inch Prestige boast a 99.9 WHr battery. The regular models with Arc graphics come with a 100W power adapter, while the Studio version features a heftier 140W adapter capable of handling the discrete GPU. MSI suggests a remarkable up to 14 hours of usage on a single charge.

We’re also thoroughly impressed with the sleek design, impressive display brightness, and a delightful typing experience with the spacious keyboard.

Specifications and Configurations

Intel® Evo™ Edition: Elevating the Overall Experience

MSI’s Prestige 16 AI Evo B1M, powered by Intel® Evo™ Edition and equipped with Intel® Core™ Ultra processors (Series 1), redefines premium mobile performance. This business laptop is designed for seamless productivity, boasting a brilliant display, slim body, and high battery efficiency.

Crafted for Reliability and Elegance

The Prestige 16 AI Evo B1M features a slim and durable magnesium-aluminum chassis, utilizing Thixomolding with ATT for a seamless metal body. This innovative design not only enhances strength and durability but also reflects a commitment to quality. Weighing at just 1.5kg and with a thickness of 18.95mm, it embodies the epitome of ultra-light and ultra-thin design.

Wireless Innovation with Wi-Fi 7

Experience the future of wireless connectivity with Wi-Fi 7, offering a significant speed boost. With a potential maximum data rate of nearly 5.8 Gbps, this is 2.4x faster than Wi-Fi 6/6E, ensuring faster streaming, quicker downloads, and enhanced productivity. Achieve tasks at breathtaking speeds, stream high-quality videos, and download large files with unparalleled efficiency.

MSI Intelligent Technology

MSI Laptops, including the Prestige 16 AI Evo B1M, are equipped with exclusive MSI Intelligent Technology. This feature accelerates work and play, providing new intelligent features through automatic tuning. The upcoming MSI AI Engine, set to be introduced through an early 2024 update, promises to detect user scenarios and automatically adjust hardware settings for optimal performance. With AI Noise Cancellation Pro and a Spatial Array Microphone setup, users can enjoy crystal-clear sound even in noisy environments.

Intel Core Ultra and Meteor Lake Integration

The Prestige 16 AI Evo and 13 AI Evo proudly stand as the first laptops to incorporate Intel’s Core Ultra processors, codenamed “Meteor Lake.” These processors, built on the Intel 4 process node, offer a remarkable 10% performance improvement over Raptor Lake-H. Both laptops utilize Intel Core Ultra 7 H-series chips, with the 13-inch model offering the Core Ultra 5 125H or Ultra 7 155H, and the 16-inch models using the Ultra 7 155H and Ultra 9 185H.

In addition to the Core Ultra processors, the laptops come equipped with a dedicated NPU, providing sustained AI performance and offloading AI use cases from the GPU. The new Intel Arc integrated GPU ensures high-quality graphics, with the Prestige 16 AI Studio Evo relying on the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 or RTX 4070.

Port Connectivity

The Prestige 16 AI Evo features an array of ports, primarily located along the back of the device. These include an HDMI 2.1 port, USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 2, and two USB Type-C ports. On the Prestige 16 AI Evo, both USB Type-C ports are Thunderbolt 4; on the AI Studio Evo, one is Thunderbolt 4, and the other is USB Type-C 3.2. Additionally, users benefit from an Ethernet jack, a full-sized SD card slot, a lock slot, and a 3.5 mm headphone jack.

Display Options

Users can choose between two screen options for the 16-inch models: a 2560 x 1600 standard screen or a 3840 x 2400 OLED panel. RAM, which is soldered, comes in capacities of 16GB or 32GB on the regular Prestige 16 AI Evo and exclusively in the larger capacity on the Studio.

The 13-inch Prestige 13 AI Evo, with a smaller footprint and weighing just 2.1 pounds, offers a different port layout. On the sides, users find a micro SD card slot, a lock slot, USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, HDMI 2.1, a pair of Thunderbolt 4 ports, and a headphone jack. In the US, all 13-inch models feature a 2880 x 1800 OLED panel, although MSI’s specs suggest a 1920 x 1200 non-OLED option may be available in some markets.

Pricing and Availability

Anticipate the launch of all three laptops this month, possibly in limited quantities. The 13-inch Prestige starts at $1,299, while the Prestige 16 AI Evo and Prestige 16 AI Studio Evo begin at $1,649 and $1,899, respectively. Stay tuned for our comprehensive guide, as these devices promise not only aesthetic satisfaction but also a transformative impact on workflow efficiency through integrated AI technologies. Join us in exploring the evolving landscape of AI-powered laptops.