MSI reveals a gaming PC without dedicated graphics

[vannvicente]

TL;DR: On Friday, MSI announced the MSI MAG Trident S 5M, the newest member of its Trident line of compact gaming desktops. Unlike other PCs in this lineup, it has no option for a dedicated GPU, being powered solely by integrated AMD graphics. MSI emphasizes that it's primarily for "cloud gaming and mobile gaming markets."

With the ongoing silicon shortage significantly raising prices on consumer-oriented graphics cards, some gamers have turned to cloud services for their gaming fix. MSI has taken this one step further by introducing a dedicated cloud gaming machine to their Trident range of gaming PCs.

This slim 2.6-liter tower is configurable with up to an 8-core AMD Ryzen 5700G APU with integrated Radeon graphics, two M.2 SSD slots, and up to 64GB of DDR4 3200MHz SO-DIMM system memory. While this configuration will allow for some light modern gaming, MSI emphasizes the system's cloud and mobile capabilities instead.

In its press release announcing the MAG Trident S 5M, MSI claimed this "reimagines the gaming experience." Out of the box, it comes with a 30-day free trial to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. This configuration should be compatible with most cloud gaming services, such as GeForce Now and Shadow, as long as you have the internet to run it. The computer also comes with an Android emulator with controller support.

The press materials also suggest that the PC is meant to be a console replacement instead of a traditional desktop, with the machine focusing "more on helping gamers enjoy games in the living room." All cloud services and Android games are integrated through MSI's Game Stadium software, which provides a big-picture experience similar to the PlayStation home screen.

While cloud gaming has seen increased adoption in recent years due to the GPU shortage, much of the gaming community remains skeptical. To run most titles in full resolution at a decent frame rate, you would need speedy, high-bandwidth internet over a wired connection -- and even then, it's doesn't guarantee a smooth gaming experience.

Earlier this year, we reported that Google refocused its Stadia cloud gaming service towards corporate licensing deals amid reports of low consumer adoption rates.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/93661-msi-reveals-gaming-pc-without-dedicated-graphics.html

 

[Dimitriid]

Yeah this is a bit more than fashionably late to cash in on the 5700g: I expect that we're less than 1 year away from a possible 6700g and given what we've seen out of the 6900hs (Probably the only positive point most reviewers almost fully ignored) is that the RDNA 2 cores and ddr5 supports means that the mobile chip can already match the 1650mobile so I expect the 6700g to actually match the 1650 super or so at least.

So if you want something with a Ryzen APU and don't want to build it yourself just wait to pick up a Steam Deck instead: even under the power limits it should be a match for this APU rig and probably for a lower price.

 

[Sausagemeat]

Yeah this is a bit more than fashionably late to cash in on the 5700g: I expect that we're less than 1 year away from a possible 6700g and given what we've seen out of the 6900hs (Probably the only positive point most reviewers almost fully ignored) is that the RDNA 2 cores and ddr5 supports means that the mobile chip can already match the 1650mobile so I expect the 6700g to actually match the 1650 super or so at least.

So if you want something with a Ryzen APU and don't want to build it yourself just wait to pick up a Steam Deck instead: even under the power limits it should be a match for this APU rig and probably for a lower price.

I think you missed the point, this PC is marketed to people who will use streaming services. It has a 5700G because it still needs a display output.

Also I would be surprised if the cheapest variant of this costs more than a steam deck.

 

[brucek]

Some customers will understand exactly what this is, know that they want it, and they may be happy with their purchase.

For anyone else - say, a parent browsing shelves because their child asked for a gaming PC - I'd worry the return rates will be horrendous.

 

[Sausagemeat]

Some customers will understand exactly what this is, know that they want it, and they may be happy with their purchase.

For anyone else - say, a parent browsing shelves because their child asked for a gaming PC - I'd worry the return rates will be horrendous.

There are already quite a few gaming PCs out there selling at retail in shops with something like a 3200G. They are super cheap, usually xbox series S territory but tbh if all you play is CS GO or Minecraft then you will be fine.

Personally I don’t like APUs, I’d rather buy a console but I think a lot of people who buy APU gaming PCs care more about the pretty rgb than the performance.

 

[ZedRM]

We need to see a teardown.

 

[yRaz]

Pfft, if it can't play 16k240 it's trash, can't wait to get 2 ti9990XTX to put in nVidia crossfire

 

[SG736F6]

Some customers will understand exactly what this is, know that they want it, and they may be happy with their purchase.

For anyone else - say, a parent browsing shelves because their child asked for a gaming PC - I'd worry the return rates will be horrendous.

Do you think you can't game on a 5700G at 1080P?

For me personally (the older I get) the more I choose to do as much as I can with as little as possible. Current graphics card pricing is completely ridiculous. AMD's next gen APU's are looking pretty tempting for the limited amount of gaming I do these days. Both of my daughters are using 5600G's at 1080P and they have been able to play everything they've wanted without any issues or poor performance.

 

[brucek]

I was mostly referring to the push to cloud gaming, which I don't think is for everyone, and particularly not for those who do not happen to have very low latency connections to the cloud GPU.

I've got no bone to pick with anyone who is able to make their own choice about what hardware they want. I do want to stick up for anyone who may not know anything about CPU and GPU models, and may possibly be misled by marketing. To the casual shopper the phrase "gaming PC" probably implies it has something beyond what is found in a "regular PC".

 

[yRaz]

Do you think you can't game on a 5700G at 1080P?

For me personally (the older I get) the more I choose to do as much as I can with as little as possible. Current graphics card pricing is completely ridiculous. AMD's next gen APU's are looking pretty tempting for the limited amount of gaming I do these days. Both of my daughters are using 5600G's at 1080P and they have been able to play everything they've wanted without any issues or poor performance.

That's actually pretty amazing for 1080p gaming. In the video they were using ddr4 3200. IIRC, Vega loves faster memory. You could probably get nice boost in performance going to a 3600 kit. Ryzen also loves 1:1 memory ratio so I'd like to see what a DDR4 4000 kit would do.

 

[maroon1]

Yeah this is a bit more than fashionably late to cash in on the 5700g: I expect that we're less than 1 year away from a possible 6700g and given what we've seen out of the 6900hs (Probably the only positive point most reviewers almost fully ignored) is that the RDNA 2 cores and ddr5 supports means that the mobile chip can already match the 1650mobile so I expect the 6700g to actually match the 1650 super or so at least.

1- 6900HS does not match GTX 1650 Max-q (weakest version of mobile GTX 1650) according to techspot review

The two games that were tested on GTX 1650 Max-Q is gears 5 and Rainbow Six Siege
https://static.techspot.com/articles-info/2419/bench/29.png
https://static.techspot.com/articles-info/2419/bench/25.png

Gears 5 is 17% faster on GTX 1650maxq, and 20% faster if you look 1% low
Rainbow Six Siege is 28% faster average and 32% faster 1% low on GTX 1650Max-q


2- Desktop GTX 1650 Super is day and night faster than GTX 1650 Max-Q. Not even close. If best mobile APU can't match weakest variant of GTX 1650, then desktop APU has zero chance of matching GTX 1650 Super. There is barely any difference Mobile APU (h series) and desktop APU on GPU side. 6700G won't even match regular desktop GTX 1650, let a lone super version.

 

[VaRmeNsI]

5600G is actually pretty good for 1080p gaming if you're on a budget, be interesting to see what Zen4 offers regarding APU's.

 

[yRaz]

1- 6900HS does not match GTX 1650 Max-q (weakest version of mobile GTX 1650) according to techspot review

The two games that were tested on GTX 1650 Max-Q is gears 5 and Rainbow Six Siege
https://static.techspot.com/articles-info/2419/bench/29.png
https://static.techspot.com/articles-info/2419/bench/25.png

Gears 5 is 17% faster on GTX 1650maxq, and 20% faster if you look 1% low
Rainbow Six Siege is 28% faster average and 32% faster 1% low on GTX 1650Max-q


2- Desktop GTX 1650 Super is day and night faster than GTX 1650 Max-Q. Not even close. If best mobile APU can't match weakest variant of GTX 1650, then desktop APU has zero chance of matching GTX 1650 Super. There is barely any difference Mobile APU (h series) and desktop APU on GPU side. 6700G won't even match regular desktop GTX 1650, let a lone super version.

The problem with that is that the 1650 is going for $300+ and this comes free with a GPU. So, yeah, the 1650 is faster but what do you want out of a free GPU? Something else to consider is that the 5700G is a pretty could CPU as it is, it has a lot of longevity in it. This isn't a bad option for people on a budget.

Im sure you could increase performance by installing faster ram, the difference between 3200 and 3600 isn't that much anymore. A 16gb kit of 4000 is only around $30 more than a comparable 3200 kit. With how bandwidth happy ryzen and vega is I'm sure you could get a hell of a boost out of it.

 

[drjekelmrhyde]

Depending on the price this might be right up my alley. I'm on a 1/1 fiber connection with 2ms latency and really don't care about GPUs if I can use XBGPU or some other cloud service.

 

[Nobina]

This compact machine focuses on cloud gaming

This is pure marketing BS. How is a machine "focused" on cloud gaming? By being ****?. Anything with a screen and good internet is focused on cloud gaming then. Don't get me wrong, 5700G is capable of light gaming but the way it's marketed is annoying. Just be patient with GPUs, prices are coming down and while new-gen GPUs are still very expensive for what they are maybe you can snag a decent used GPU for a reasonable price and it will blow this junker away.

 

[A4mula1]

Unless this has a MSRP that floats around $600, it's going to be a tough sell. Looking at the rest of the MAG lineup that seems highly unlikely. Anything more and you're better served just buying a laptop.

 

[Ludak021]

Well, judging by their work with Aegis R, you really shouldn't buy computers from MSI...

 

[LuxZg]

Do you think you can't game on a 5700G at 1080P?

For me personally (the older I get) the more I choose to do as much as I can with as little as possible. Current graphics card pricing is completely ridiculous. AMD's next gen APU's are looking pretty tempting for the limited amount of gaming I do these days. Both of my daughters are using 5600G's at 1080P and they have been able to play everything they've wanted without any issues or poor performance.

I completely agree with you.

But I have to say, some games in that video look real bad on those low low low details just to get 45-60fps. For casual gaming I'd rather increase drawing distance and some details first, and play at around 30 fps.

I do look forward to 6xxx series APUs with DDR5, it should be notable jump in details. And my huge backlog of Steam games would look great at 1080p with RDNA2 APU. May as well be my next investment.

 

[ZedRM]

I was mostly referring to the push to cloud gaming, which I don't think is for everyone

Let's be honest and fair, Cloud Gaming is a pipe-dream that will never replace local hosted gaming.

 

[Athlonite]

MSI Devs: How can we compete with XBSX / PS5
also MSI Devs: I know lets make an XBSX / PS5

rest of the world WTF MSI

 

[captaincranky]

. To the casual shopper the phrase "gaming PC" probably implies it has something beyond what is found in a "regular PC".

This is true in spades for the DIY case market. Have you noticed that everything nowadays is a "gaming case"?

Frankly I doubt id they cool any better than My Antec 900 or Cooler Master "Storm Scouts". But those RGB lights have become a "necessity". .