MSI’s PS42 Business Laptop Now Available: 14-Inch Quad-Core Ultrabook
by Anton Shilov on August 17, 2018 4:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- MSI
- GeForce
- Kaby Lake-U
MSI has started to ship its ultrathin Prestige-series laptops that it introduced in early June. The new PS42 models feature a 14-inch display, a quad-core CPU, and a discrete GPU in select models. MSI positions the new notebooks primarily for business users who need maximum portability, which is why the laptops are thinner and lighter than most 13.3-inch mobile PCs.
The MSI Prestige PS42 notebooks feature a 14-inch IPS Full HD display and are based on Intel’s quad-core Core i5-8250U or Core i7-8550U processors. Depending on exact model, the notebooks may be outfitted with 8 or 16 GB of single-channel DDR4-2400 memory, a 256 to 1 TB SSD featuring a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, and NVIDIA’s GeForce MX150 dGPU (PS42 8RB SKUs only). The latter certainly offers better performance in games than Intel’s UHD 630 iGPU, but do not expect it to run modern games at high FPS using this chip.
Apart from its 14-inch display and a discrete GPU, two key selling points of MSI’s Prestige PS42 are its weight and thickness. The laptop weighs around 1.19 kg (2.623 lbs), which is in line with Lenovo’s latest X1 Carbon. Meanwhile, the notebook has a z-height of 15.9 mm (0.62 inches), which is 1 mm thicker than Apple’s latest MacBook Pro 13.3-inch. Considering the fact that the PS42 comes in a brushed aluminum chassis, it is logical to expect the notebook to feature a solid build and be fairly durable too. Meanwhile, to minimize dimensions and weight, MSI has to stick to a 50 Wh battery that provides up to 10 hours of operation on one charge, enough for a day, but not exactly long by today's standards.
On the connectivity side of things, the MSI Prestige PS42 offers a pretty standard configuration for business laptops. For wireless comms, the notebook has an Intel Wireless-AC 3168 1×1 802.11ac Wi-Fi + Bluetooth 4.2 controller. When it comes to physical ports, the laptop is outfitted with four USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A and Type-C headers, an HDMI 1.4 output (so, 4Kp30 only), an SD card reader, and a TRRS audio connector. Naturally, a 720p webcam (albeit located beneath the display), a microphone array, and stereo speakers are also present.
| General Specifications of MSI's Prestige PS42 | |||
| PS42 8RB | PS42 8M | ||
| Display | Diagonal | 14" | |
| Resolution | 1920×1080 | ||
| Type | IPS | ||
| CPU | Intel Core i5-8250U (4C/8T, 1.6 - 3.4 GHz, 6 MB cache) Intel Core i7-8550U (4C/8T, 1.8 - 4 GHz, 8 MB cache) |
||
| PCH | integrated | ||
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce MX150 with 2 GB GDDR5 GP108, 384 SPs |
Intel UHD 630 | |
| RAM | 8 - 16 GB DDR4 (single channel, 1 SO-DIMM slot) | ||
| Storage | M.2 SSD | 256 GB 512 GB 1 TB |
|
| Interface | PCIe 3.0/NVMe | ||
| Wi-Fi | Intel Wireless-AC 3168 1×1 802.11ac Wi-Fi | ||
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 4.2 | ||
| USB | 2 × USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A 2 × USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C |
||
| Display Outputs | 1 × HDMI 1.4 | ||
| Audio | 2 × 2 W speakers Microphones 3.5-mm audio jack for headset Nahimic 3 software enhancements |
||
| Fingerprint Reader | Yes | ||
| Other I/O | 720p HD webcam, SD card reader | ||
| Battery | 50 Wh | ||
| Dimensions | Width | 32.2 cm | 12.67 inches | |
| Depth | 22.2 cm | 8.74 inches | ||
| Thickness | 15.9 mm | 0.62 inches | ||
| Weight | 1.19 kg | 2.623 lbs | 1.18 kg | 2.601 lbs | |
MSI this month started to sell its Prestige PS42 laptops worldwide. The notebooks are available in different configurations depending on the region and reseller. For example, Amazon currently offers three configs from $899 for the most simplistic version and $1,349 for the most advanced one.
| MSI's Prestige PS42 Laptops Available at Amazon | ||||
| PS42 8M-064 | PS42 8RB-060 | PS42 8RB-059 | ||
| CPU | Intel Core i5-8250U 4C/8T 1.6 - 3.4 GHz 6 MB cache |
Intel Core i7-8550U 4C/8T 1.8 - 4 GHz 8 MB cache |
||
| GPU | Intel UHD 630 | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 with 2 GB GDDR5 | ||
| RAM | 8 GB DDR4 | 16 GB DDR4 | ||
| Storage | 256 GB SSD | 512 GB SSD | ||
| Price | $899 | $1,099 | $1,349 | |
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Source: MSI
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19 Comments
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hfm - Sunday, August 19, 2018 - link
Samsung Notebook 9 15' is a better deal and includes a 4-lane TB3 port. If this doesn't have 4-lane TB3 it's dead in the water for me..hfm - Sunday, August 19, 2018 - link
Oops 15" .. LOL..Plus only single-channel memory compared to dual-channel on the Samsung? Not sure what version the HDMI port is, but I can't find any info about that.
PeachNCream - Monday, August 20, 2018 - link
DisplayPort doesn't appear to have much of a future given how prolific and universal HDMI has become. Over the next few years DP will probably get phased out entirely. HDMI is already the only video interface on a large number of laptops.Pessimism - Tuesday, August 21, 2018 - link
My understanding is that HDMI is licensing fee encumbered more so than DisplayPort, which is why you see brand new 2018 devices with HDMI 1.4 ports that can't do 4K/60 like HDMI 2.0 can, because its cheaper for the manufacturerheffeque - Tuesday, August 21, 2018 - link
My bad. Specs on online store were screwed up. It's Intel 3168 instead of 9462. Also single channel (why 16GB single channel?!). This laptop will go to my gf, but still... don't understand those two choices. Everything else is more than OK on my book.timecop1818 - Sunday, August 19, 2018 - link
> Crappy WiFi,Newsflash - XPS13 has even CRAPPIER wifi, and as a bonus, it's not even removable. At this point I would not recommend Dell to anyone who actually uses it on the move (i.e. connecting to random Wifi APs and not just a particular setup at home that has a slight chance of working).
If I didn't already have HP x360 13t with 4k screen I would buy the huawei matebook pro, but not another dell (i owned XPS15 9560, and replaced Killer Wifi with intel after a week with it.
kmmatney - Monday, August 20, 2018 - link
I have a new-ish Dell laptop, and it has trouble with connecting to Wifi at Airports and Hotels. What happens is that the browser log-in page fails to load. i found that if I type in the address "1.1.1.1" in the browser, then I get the log-in page, and after that everything is fine. I have to do this nearly 50% of the time while I travel, and this fixed always works. Not sure if this is a hardware Wifi issue, dell driver issue, or an issue with how IT setup my laptop.hfm - Saturday, August 18, 2018 - link
Thunderbolt 3?plewis00 - Sunday, August 19, 2018 - link
The Amazon ones listed at the bottom say they have a GTX 1050 2GB, is that right? Or is it meant to be an MX150?