On October 31st, 2014 MSI announced its latest
gaming notebook dubbed the GT80. At first glance the unusual and different
layout of the keyboard was an early indicator that this wasn’t going to be just
an ordinary gaming notebook. Joint engineering with SteelSeries the MSI GT80
Titan is the world’s first notebook with a backlit mechanical keyboard fitted
with Cherry switches. But it didn’t stop there, throw in dual NVIDIA GeForce
GTX 980M and the best and latest mobile CPU from Intel.
There is no doubt that this is hands down the most powerful
laptop on the market today. We’ll get to performance later but first let’s take
a look at the specs on the highest model available.
Intel® Core™ i7-4980HQ 2.8GHz to 4GHz (i7-4720HQ Review
Model)
32GB Memory (16GB Memory Review Model)
Dual NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M 8GB SLI
18.4” Full-HD 1080p Anti-Reflective Display
SteelSeries Cherry MX Brown Backlit Keyboard (RED LEDs)
1TB Solid State Drive + 1TB Hard Drive (512GB SSD Review Model)
BluRay Writer
Windows 8
2 Years Warranty (Includes 1 Year Global)
We received an engineering sample from MSI so the packaging
was pretty standard laptop style but I’m sure the full retail versions will
offer much more to the customers who buy this beast!
With a screen sized 18.4” the GT80 Titan SLI is a big unit,
but the screen size isn’t what makes it the monolithic size it is. The sheer
parts inside this beast coupled with a mechanical keyboard makes it a beefy
monster that will trouble the strongest of guys carrying it around.
The sides of the GT80 contain 5x USB3.0 ports, audio jacks
and an optical output. Towards the back of the sides you’ll find two large
vents which exhaust an incredible amount of air. Be sure to keep these vents
cleared of any objects that aren’t fond of heat. The GT80 produces and
incredible amount of heat but the cooling does an incredible job on getting all
that hot air out.
Along the top you’ll find the SteelSeries mechanical
keyboard with Cherry Brown switches which is my personal favourite switch so I
did find it quite pleasing that they opted for browns. It gives you the tactile
feel without the ‘click’ of Blues. The placement of the mechanical keyboard is
towards the edge of the laptop to accommodate for the switches and plethora of
hardware housed in the GT80. However, I did find the placement to heavily
compliment the 18.4” sized display when gaming. It meant that you could
comfortable sit back and game like you would using a standard keyboard and
desktop with the 18.4” sized display perfectly coupling the distance you would
normally be using the GT80. The 18.4” display is vibrant and good enough
display for casuals and professionals; however with the dual 980M’s in here it
would have been nice to have a 1440p display option (no 4K for me).
Next to the keyboard you’ll find a cleverly designed digital
trackpad. When lit up the trackpad acts as a number pad, click the ‘NUM’ button
on the trackpad and the lights turn off and it now acts as a mouse trackpad.
The trackpad itself is a bit of an awkward location but with a laptop this size
most users will find themselves using as USB or wireless mouse so it’s not
really that big of a deterrent. Above the number pad are the only physical
buttons with the power, GPU switch and fan controller. The fan controller only
allows you to switch between full speed or auto control.
The rear of the unit keeps it basic with air vents on either
side, 2 mini Display Ports, HDMI, Ethernet port and a large 4-pin power jack
accompanied with a huge 360w power brick. The power brick is big and does get
warm so always remember to keep it well ventilated. The lid is presented in a
faux brushed aluminium and has a clean look to it, just be cautious though as many
of the surfaces on the GT80 Titan is a magnet for fingerprints. The back side of the display has a gently
illuminated logo that adds a subtle classy touch to the overall design.
Back at the front of unit above the keyboard area you’ll
find a removable cover that reveals just some of the powerful internals
including the DVD drive, a 4x m2 SSD’s and a mechanical hard drive. You see
glimpses of the GPU’s and CPU but all those components are revealed more on the
bottom side of the unit.
The performance of this laptop is what makes it come to
life. No matter what game I threw at it (aside from a few AAA titles) it
managed to hold up ultra-graphics at comfortable 100fps+. Playing games on this
laptop truly felt like a full desktop experience. It looked good and performed
amazingly well. The concerning thing was the total underutilization of the GPU’s
for most parts which can be partially put on lack of driver updates. In the
coming months with NVIDIA’s strong driver support and updates I do expect the
GT80 to push performance even more with future updates.
Gaming was comfortable and pleasantly comfortable with the
large screen and mechanical keyboard, the laptop did remain pretty cool with
GPU temps hovering around 70-75 degrees on load. The keyboard area remained
cool with means you can game on the GT80 for prolonged times without the need
to worry about sweaty palms. The placement of the keyboard is definitely a win
for MSI and I would like to see more gaming focused laptops to adopt a similar
style.
One of the key things MSI has done with the MSI GT80 Titan
is open the path for future upgrades. With promised GPU upgrades for at least
the next 2 GPU cycles you’re looking at a laptop than can last for a solid 5
years (if not, much longer). With most of the other internals being upgradeable
or changeable it does give the customer pretty open options to play with.
The biggest and most talked about thing about the MSI GT80
Titan SLI however, is the price tag. At $6299 it’s priced as much as a small
vehicle so you have to really ask yourself if this is something you actually
need. For hard-core gamers or even people who do a lot of travelling and aren’t
happy with their under $1000 modest laptop, this could be an option for you.
Sure, it’s a massive investment, but some people do travel a lot and want that
full gaming experience wherever they go. Unfortunately no other laptop other
than the MSI GT80 Titan SLI will give you that. It simple is the most powerful
and convenient gaming laptop on the market.
When doing these reviews I always ask myself what would I
change if I were to build this from the ground up? Firstly, I’d stick with a
single GTX 980M, which is a fair chunk of the price cut, a 1440p display and
more basic storage options (standard SSD’s)
Sahin Selvi
Purchase Link: http://bit.ly/cceliteprism
Design:
Be aware, wearing this headset will make people look at you
and giggle. The oversized yet extremely comfortable cups do add a bit of humour
to the design and does look slightly distracting on ones head. If you wear
these on public transport be careful not to smack another commuter across the
face with the ever so large cups. The size of the Elite Prism is a bit larger
than the V3 so larger heads should be ok with the sizing but it could have used
a little bit extra just to make it sit just a tad bit better on your head.
This is where the Siberia Elite Prism takes charge after the
Siberia V3. The sound quality is much more balanced and offers great response
over all frequencies but it does require a firmware update (sound was pretty
awful before the firmware update) which was done all through the SteelSeries
Engine 3, which leads me to add the SteelSeries Engine has got to be one of the
best software packaged I’ve come across for products like these. Gaming
products tend to have very flamboyant and excessively designed interfaces that
just plain don’t work or is a nightmare to work in, the SteelSeries Engine however
is extremely clean interface, simple to use and it just plain works as it
shows. Kudos for SteelSeries on that one, it’s definitely something to consider
when purchasing a USB-enabled headset (settings won’t take effect under 3.5mm
connection).
Running the headset off both the USB adapter on a PC and the
3,5mm off a FiiO X3 Player the headset performed pretty evenly and is a pretty
ideal daily headset to use if you have the space to carry and pack it. It’s not
foldable and does not come with a pouch or bag so you will need to consider
storage before hauling it around places.
For slightly less you get the Siberia V3 which drops on audio
quality, the Siberia Elite Prism however is where the price difference kicks in
and you get yourself a precisely crafted gaming headset. One thing I would say
to SteelSeries is, drop the Dolby. It doesn’t really add anything necessary and
the quality stereo setup of the headset is finely tuned enough to not need it. It
is a precisely engineered piece of gear that is super comfortable and has the
juice to make it a worthy investment choice.
The SteeSeries Siberia V3 Prism features a newly-refined
design that is both flexible and durable while still offering the legendary
comfort of the Siberia series. The iconic Siberia suspension headband returns
offering enduring, lightweight comfort for hours of gaming. Powerful, next-gen
SteelSeries speaker drivers deliver rich, detailed sound for enhanced gameplay.
Noise reducing memory foam ear cushions aid in isolating the natural sounds and
powerful bass while keeping out outside noise. A retractable, flexible
crystal-clear microphone can be muted with the flip of a switch behind the ear
cup. A PC adapter and a universal 3.5mm plug means Siberia v3 plays nice on
nearly all gaming systems and devices.
Super lightweight and a very high chance of good comfort, Unfortunately
the 2nd part of that statement is left a bit short from me due to
the fact the headband isn’t long enough for it to sit comfortable on my head. Around
the office was a similar issue with the Siberia V3 more suited for younger
gamers (or people with smaller heads than us here in the office). The cups
themselves are very comfortable and will not distract you for lengthy listening
periods. The build quality and overall design of the Siberia V3 is unchanged
since its first iteration and continues to be top in its class.
The LED lighting effects can be controlled via the
SteelSeries Engine 3 to go between a constant colour to an interchanging glow
which cycles through different colours. The software itself has a very clean
interface and easy to navigate with simple and quick EQ controls and mic
settings.
This is where the Siberia V3 is a bit of a letdown. The
headphone lacks quality and clean lows and generally sounds a bit muddy
listening to music and movies. It does a good job with games with the lack of a
clean crisp sound often helping in the player getting a bit more immersed in
the game. Compared to similar headphones around the $165 mark the Siberia V3
does fall short in performance at times. The lack of 3.5mm adapter also means
you won’t be using these in your portable devices anytime soon. The microphone
is good and should be a pretty sweet tool for gamers across multiple platforms
(currently supports Windows, Mac and PS4)
