Apart from Alienware, MSI belongs to the few gaming companies which have the courage to offer a notebook with optional graphics amplifier. However, the risky concept was implemented quite well. Due to the hot-headed Core i7-4870HQ, the notebook can already get quite loud while idle, which might discourage many customers from buying. Not to mention the fact that the Turbo is hardly used under load. In addition, the stability of the case, the battery life, the ClickPad and the connectivity are not the best.
Apart from Alienware, MSI belongs to the few gaming companies which have the courage to offer a notebook with optional graphics amplifier. However, the risky concept was implemented quite well. Due to the hot-headed Core i7-4870HQ, the notebook can already get quite loud while idle, which might discourage many customers from buying. Not to mention the fact that the Turbo is hardly used under load. In addition, the stability of the case, the battery life, the ClickPad and the connectivity are not the best.
Without a longer battery life in the laptop, and less noise while docked, the GS30s impressive gaming performance isnt quite enough to make it a must...
When we previewed the MSI GS30 Shadow and GamingDock at the end of 2014 we were blown away by the combination of Core i7-4870HQ CPU in the laptop and the desktop GTX 980 graphics card in the GamingDock. The concept of using an external dock to add proper...
MSI is hoping to cash in on that idea with its latest bit of kit, a weird but perhaps not entirely crazy concept: the GS30 bundles a high-spec 13.3-inch laptop along with a hefty box that MSI is calling a “GamingDock”: basically it's an enclosure...
OK so here it is, the GamingDock. It's huge, measuring at 364.4 x 209 x 197.7mm. That's pretty much a Mini-ITX desktop already, in fact it's actually bigger than some Mini-ITX setup. The front of the GamingDock is a set of speaker – my take on front...
The MSI GS30 Shadow is an interesting product. On one hand, it is a lightweight and portable laptop with a very capable processor and integrated graphics. But once the laptop is connected to the GamingDock, it turns into one beastly gaming machine that...
First, the MSI GS30 with GamingDock retails at RM10,999, that's a crazy amount to pay for a 13-inch laptop, it all comes to how you perceive its value to be very honest. In my case, I will consider the MSI GS30 to be the perfect machine for both gaming...
The MSI GS30 is not your typical gaming laptop. Weighing just 1.2kg, it is lighter than the 13-inch Apple MacBook Air.Here's the catch: It is equipped with integrated graphics that are barely better than the graphics on the MacBook Air or any other...
The unfortunate part of the MSI GS30 Shadow is that it's not perfect, and that is really what I was looking for. An Ultrabook-style notebook that can be docked with a discrete GPU when at home or at the office, with more accessories and connectivity...
MSI is onto something here - in our opinion it really needs to double-down on the eGPU strategy and to make it a cornerstone of its enthusiast notebook offerings. Firstly, we reckon that the dock expansion slot should be included as standard on all MSI...
The MSI GS30 is in itself a very special laptop. A 13.3-inch laptop with a weight of just 1.3 pounds and still feature beautiful specifications as a quad-core processor, two SSDs and a Full HD IPS display. Ideal if you're a powerhouse, but preferably...
We're really happy to see another attempt at creating a graphics card dock and laptop solution, and MSI seems to have made a decent attempt with the GS30 Shadow and GamingDock. We're not really sold on the inclusion of speakers or the styling of the...
The MSI GS30 Shadow is further proof that laptop docking stations have plenty to offer.Transforming a thin-and-light 13.3in laptop, the bundled GamingDock opens the door to greater storage, better connectivity, improved audio and a far superior...