Gaming handhelds have been quite the rage in the past few years with several brands jumping onto the bandwagon. While there are quite a few options in the market for a travel companion that can play AAA titles, the MSI Claw unveiled at CES 2024 stands out in more than one way. It’s ergonomic, powerful, durable, and has much better endurance than the competition. If these aren’t enough reasons to pick up the handheld, let’s elaborate on them and you’ll surely be convinced to head out and pick up the MSI Claw right away!
1. Ergonomic User-Centric Design
One of the most important factors when buying a handheld gaming console is the in-hand comfort. After all, you’ll be holding the console in your hands and playing for hours on the trot. This is exactly where the MSI Claw shines. The brand has paid close attention to the device’s construction to ensure that your hands don’t feel fatigued even after long gaming sessions.
For starters, the console is lightweight with curves along the edges that fit perfectly into your palms. To add to it, MSI has included tactile buttons that are easy to press along with hall effect triggers that are not only more precise but also last longer.
MSI claims to have collected thousands of sample data across the globe to ensure the Claw is tailor-made to fit the natural contours of your hands, regardless of the size of your palms. The entire process follows the principles of anthropometry, the science of comfort.
2. Seamless MSI Center M Interface
Unlike other handheld consoles, MSI has designed a unique interface that’s specifically made for a screen of this size. The Center M UI consists of several elements that make it extremely easy to operate the console. For example, there’s a Quick Game Launcher right on the homepage. So, if you quickly want to start playing as soon as you turn on the console, you won’t have to waste time navigating through different menus.
The Instant Platform Access feature is also quite handy. With the press of a button, you can bring up a quick access menu that can teleport you to Steam or Epic launcher to download and play your favorite games. Moreover, there’s also a dedicated button on the console to take you to the Center M interface from any screen.
Apart from launching games and services, the Center M menu also lets you check your connection status, CPU and GPU performance, etc., right from the homepage. Naturally, this saves you the time and effort of navigating through different settings. You can also directly update your bios and other divers from MSI Center M without the need for a docking station.
3. MSI AI Engine
The Center M UI is accompanied by MSI’s smart AI engine that can optimize the performance of the console based on the task you’re running. The best part is that the AI engine, along with other settings, can be triggered on or off while you’re in a game without exiting it. Simply slide down the Quick Settings page and change the refresh rate, remap controls, or even monitor real-time CPU and GPU usage.
Speaking of remapping controls, you can set Macro Keys depending on your preferences. The buttons and analog sticks are also surrounded by RGB lighting that gives off a cool effect when gaming.
MSI has also partnered with Bluestacks to introduce an App Player that’s essentially an extended gaming library consisting of Android games alongside Windows titles. This makes the MSI Claw the most versatile gaming console out there with the largest library of games.
4. Unmatched Performance With Intel Core Ultra
Needless to say, software is just one part of the equation. A console needs to have high-performance internals to offer a seamless gaming experience. To nobody’s surprise, the MSI Claw has this section covered with the beastly Intel Core Ultra 7 processor. The chipset has Intel’s first integrated NPU along with 6 performance cores and 8 efficiency cores — resulting in stellar performance.
Along with gains in raw performance, the NPU helps with handling AI chores mentioned earlier with ease. MSI has also got the thermals under control thanks to the revolutionary Cooler Boost HyperFlow technology. The intra-flow thermal design redirects parts of the airflow to cool the internals, resulting in longer gameplay sessions.
Not just the internals but the 120Hz display also ensures your gaming experience is smooth as butter.
5. Endurance That’s Hard to Beat
The massive 53Wh battery in the MSI Claw lasts 50% longer than the one inside the ROG Ally, which is an enormous improvement. I’m sure every single gamer out there would want their gaming sessions to last longer — let alone 50% longer.
If you’re headed out on a short trip, you won’t even have to carry a charger along with you thanks to the excellent endurance of the MSI Claw.
6. Limitless Connectivity With Thunderbolt 4
MSI bundles a 65W PD adapter with the Claw console that connects to the USB-C port. However, the USB-C port can do much more than just charge the console, thanks to its Thunderbolt 4 port. While there’s already a microSD card slot on the MSI Claw, you can use the USB-C port to attach a Thunderbolt 4 dock and greatly increase the array of ports.
So, whether you want to attach an SSD to play games directly from it or plug in an ethernet cable to get lightning-fast internet speeds, it’s all possible. In fact, you can even connect a keyboard and mouse to use the MSI Claw like a portable PC on the go.
Limitless Gaming With MSI Claw
Along with powerful gaming laptops, MSI has now ventured into the world of handheld gaming consoles, which is a big win for end consumers. The brand has a legacy of making powerful hardware catered specifically to gamers, and the MSI Claw is no different. If you’re on the lookout for a powerful gaming console that you can carry with you anywhere, look no further than the MSI Claw.