Yo.. what up guy this leo..The MSI Katana 15 is one of the brands latest affordable gaming laptops..(Msi katana 15 review)
It starts at a modest $999 although our higher end test model is priced at $1599.
The laptop has an uninteresting design that is only a little adorned by basic RGB lighting.
Although the screen displays games with a 144Hz refresh rate its no visually appealing.
The true worth of this laptop lies the internal hardware that it comes with equipped with high end components that provide it with an advantage over rivals such as that of the Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 7 or the HP Omen 16 when it is about gaming performance.
This laptop Katana 15 is an exciting alternative if youre hoping to purchase the most advanced hardware at a cheaper price than the flagship models weve seen and is a worthy recommendation.
Edged build quality
Like I said that as I said the MSI Katana 15 (model B13VGK 484US) isnt an aesthetically striking model but it does keep to its budget friendly trappings. (Msi katana 15 review)
The laptop is largely coated in black plastic with carbon fiber accents on the sides.
The plastic is designed to look like metal sheets however the appearance isnt convincing.
The entire piece is an item with a weight of 4.96 kilograms and measuring nearly 1 inch in thickness (0.98 in. by 14.1 in. 10.2 millimeters).
Its width is typical for 15.6 inch laptops however its a bit taller due to the large bezels both above and below the display.
The base is quite sturdy and the four feet at the bottom offer the perfect grip for the table or desk however the hinge for the display can be a little wavy.(Msi katana 15 review)
MSI created an enlarged numeric keypad adjacent towards the keyboard.
Instead they reduce the keys….The design decision I discovered did not aid me in avoiding striking the wrong key but also made them difficult to use when I did manage to find the keys…..(Msi katana 15 review)
The RGB backlighting on the keyboard could have been helpful if it had been adjustable per key but its an easier four zone lighting system….
Design on msi katana 15
Theres a lot involved in how the Katana 15 is designed. Katana 15…(Msi katana 15 review)
The laptop is made from high sheen plastic throughout with a great deal of flex on the lid of the display and the keyboard deck.
MSI prints its logo on the lid and adds fake flathead screw accents around the deck of keyboards…
Although the overall feeling it has to offer appears cheap its right to what wed expect from laptops of this price range.
The most innovative design can be the 4 zone RGB keyboard that uses an off beat font as well as pixels in between the keys in the vicinity of that number pad.
Its WASD as well as the power key are translucent which allows you to view the scissor switches below.
Im not a huge fan for the arrows keys due to their quirky designs that appear too busy.
The right hand part of the chassis houses an Ethernet connector HDMI 2.1 USB 3.2 Type A and USB 3.2 Type C ports. (Msi katana 15 review)
On the other side theres a USB 3.2 Type A connector as well as an USB 2.0 port and a power receptacle made specifically to connect a barrel shaped plug.
Its Katana 15 measures 14.13 x 10.20 0.98 inches.
0.98 millimeters and weighs 4.96 pounds placing it on the lighter side of this category.
In comparison to The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 measures 14.16 x 10.49 0.86 inches.
0.86 inches and weights 5.51 pounds The Dell G15 (5520) comes in at 14.1 10.8 x 10.8 and 1.1 inches and 5.5 pounds. (Msi katana 15 review)
Acer Nitro 5 Acer Nitro 5 weighs 5.51 pounds and measures 14.19 10.67 x 10.67 x 1.06 inches.
Productivity Performance on the MSI Katana 15
This MSI Katana 15 review unit is equipped with a Core i7 13620H processor with 16GB of DDR5 5200 RAM as well as 1TB of SSD.
Geekbench 5 provides a test of the performance of synthetic CPUs and we see that the Katana 15 easily outpaced the Core i5 12700H processor that is found in all three competitions with an individual result of 1787.
The difference in performance was amplified in the multi core benchmark which Katana 15 scored 12017.(Msi katana 15 review)
Katana 15 performed 12017 as compared to the second highest Acer Nitro 5 at 9148.
We employ Handbrake to convert the 4K video into 1080p.
The Katana 15 accomplished the feat in just four minutes and 27 seconds.
The next closest competitor completed the feat in five minutes and fifty eight seconds while the lagging one model that of the IdeaPad Gaming 3 took six minutes and 46 seconds.
The Catana 15s SSD reached 1045.33 MBps in our file copy test of 25GB. (Msi katana 15 review)
Although this is good enough to get second place the Nitro 5 was the fastest of all with 1240.65 MBps.
Display on the MSI Katana 15
Its MSI Katana 15 uses a 15.6 inch IPS display with 1080p resolution and an extremely fast speed of 144Hz. (Msi katana 15 review)
When youre looking straight ahead the display is fairly luminescent (we have measured 250nits with our light gauge) but there is the brightness dropping when looking at angles that are extreme towards the right or left.
We didnt expect top quality display performance in the sub $1000 range which is the case for Katana 15…
Based on our colorimeter this Katana 15 could only reach 49 percent DCI P3 coverage and 70% of sRGB color spectrum…(Msi katana 15 review)
This is within the averages of segments in these particular categories.
However the brightness of 250 nits measure placed it in the last position in this grouping and Acer Nitro 5 was among the top performers.
Acer Nitro 5 took top distinction with 314 nits.
Despite the limitations of paper I was not having any issues with the readability of the display despite having a lot of overhead lighting in a work space or outdoors on a cloudy day.
From YouTube video to games from games to Disney Plus programming the colors displayed on the Katana 15s screen were dull.
MSI has a focus on a fast speed of refresh to please users over the lack of quality and its apparent.(Msi katana 15 review)
Battery Tests
To find out how long laptops can be away from an electrical outlet we perform an endurance test of the battery running local video file in 720p (the free Blender film Tears of Steel) with brightness set at 50% and the volume of the audio at 100 percent.
Make sure that its fully charged prior to the test and with the keyboard backlighting and Wi Fi turned off.
We also utilize the Datacolor SpyderX Elite monitor calibration sensor and Windows software to gauge the saturation of laptop screens colors what percent of the sRGB Adobe RGB and DCI P3 color palettes that the display displays along with its 50 and 100 percentage brightness in Nits (candelas per square meters).
The MSI Katana 15 B13V gives you plenty for the money however an excellent screen and efficiency arent included in the deal.
The gaming laptop has the longest battery life among the group and had the lowest quality graphics.
For sure the Katana isnt a disaster running for 5 and a half hours during our battery countdown due the ability of its battery to deactivate its discrete GPU and utilize better integrated graphics.
(When I made the decision to use GeForce graphics in the MSI the MSI was able to last for just under two hours.
The problem is that switching between integrated and discrete graphics modes is a process that requires a reboot and switching from a desk based setup to a portable one isnt easy.)
Other laptops had more time although it was the Legion 5is stunning performance wasnt as good due to its screens half brightness seemed noticeable less bright.
Personal suggestion for msi katana 15
- For a week we tested the system.
- As high as you can possibly gaming wise
- Experimented with various settings
I played with my MSI Katana 15 (2023) for around a week playing many challenging games such as Hogwards Legacy Control Gotham Knights and Far Cry 6.
When I was playing I ran the games on different settings focusing on the highest settings that ray traced whenever feasible and made note of the outcomes.
I also tested every part of the laptop from the trackpad and keyboard as well as the speakers and webcam.
After a few hours on this model MSI Katana 15 (2023) its clear that the company has managed to create a laptop capable of getting the most of its components for an excellent gaming laptop thats ideal for people searching for an entry level laptop or even their very first laptop for gaming.
Ive spent the past few years reviewing the latest tech equipment for gaming…
About the author
I m leo a gamer enthusiast based in the heart of Los Angeles. With a passion for reviewing killer games Ive got a couple of years under my belt bringing visions to life with style and flair.. Catch me chillin at 3215 Overland Ave Los Angeles California(CA), 90034.
Source
https://www.techradar.com/computing/gaming-laptops/msi-katana-15-2023-review
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/msi-katana-15
https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/msi-katana-15-2023
Image credits
Featured image by pcmag.com