MSI Raider 18 HX AI (2025) vs Acer Predator Helios 18 (2024)
Please select specific configurations for the laptops to get a more accurate comparative review
Review
Performance
System and application performance
Gaming
Performance in popular 3D games
Display
Viewing angle, color accuracy, brightness
Battery Life
Potential battery life in light and average use
Connectivity
Ports, webcam and other interfaces
Portability
Design, materials, durability and usability
Pick the usage scenario that best matches your needs
Value for money (Beta)
Key Differences
Advantages of the MSI Raider 18 HX AI (2025)
- Performs better (up to 22%) in 3DMark Steel Nomad Lite
- Can run popular games at about 7-9% higher FPS
- Around 12% better multi-core CPU performance in the Cinebench 2024 test
- Features a bigger (~11%) battery – 99.9 against 90 watt-hours
Advantages of the Acer Predator Helios 18 (2024)
- Higher screen refresh rate: 250 versus 144 Hz
- Easier to carry: weighs 350 grams less (around 0.77 lbs)
- 33% sharper screen – 168 versus 126 pixels per inch (PPI)
Tests and Specifications
Comparison table of test results and technical specsCase
| Weight | 3.6 kg (7.94 lbs) | 3.25 kg (7.17 lbs) |
| Dimensions | 404 x 307.5 x 24-32.05 mm 15.91 x 12.11 x 0.94-1.26 inches |
404 x 311.6 x 26.9-28.9 mm 15.91 x 12.27 x 1.06-1.14 inches |
| Area | 1242 cm2 (192.7 inches2) | 1259 cm2 (195.2 inches2) |
| Screen-to-body ratio | ~75.6% | ~74.6% |
| Side bezels | 8.2 mm | 8.2 mm |
| Colors | Black | Black |
| Material | Top: Aluminum Middle: Plastic Bottom: Plastic |
Top: Aluminum Middle: Aluminum Bottom: Plastic |
| Transformer | No | No |
| Opening angle | 145° | - |
Size comparison
| Cooling system | Active | Active |
| Vapor chamber | No | No |
| Liquid metal | No | Yes |
| Number of fans | 2 | 2 |
| Noise level (max. load) | 45.8 dB | 51 dB |
Display
| Size | 18 inches | 18 inches |
| Type | IPS LCD | Mini LED |
| Refresh rate | 144 Hz | 250 Hz |
| PPI | 126 ppi | 168 ppi |
| Aspect ratio | 16:10 | 16:10 |
| Resolution | 1920 x 1200 pixels | 2560 x 1600 pixels |
| HDR support | No | No |
| Sync technology | No | G-Sync |
| Touchscreen | No | No |
| Coating | Matte | Matte |
| Ambient light sensor | No | No |
| Contrast | - | 18050:1 |
| sRGB color space | - | 100% |
| Adobe RGB profile | - | 91.6% |
| DCI-P3 color gamut | - | 100% |
| Response time | - | 25 ms |
Max. brightness
Battery
Capacity
| Full charging time | 2:10 hr | 2:00 hr |
| Battery type | Li-Po | Li-Ion |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes | Yes |
| Charging via USB (Power Delivery) | Yes, 140 W | Yes |
| Charging port position | Right, Bottom | Bottom |
| Charge power | 400 W | 330 W |
| Weight of AC adapter | 1375 grams | - |
CPU
CPU name
| Base frequency | 2.7 GHz | 2.2 GHz |
| Turbo frequency | 5.4 GHz | 5.8 GHz |
| Cores | 24 (8P + 16E) | 24 (8P + 16E) |
| Threads | 24 | 32 |
| L3 Cache | 36 MB | 36 MB |
| Integrated GPU | Arc Graphics (4-Cores) | Intel UHD Graphics (32EU) |
| Fabrication process | 3 nm | 10 nm |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)
Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)
Graphics Card
GPU name
| TGP | 175 W | 175 W |
| Nvidia Optimus | MUX | MUX |
| Type | Dedicated | Dedicated |
| Fabrication process | 4 nm | 5 nm |
| GPU base clock | 975 MHz | 1860 MHz |
| GPU boost clock | - | 2280 MHz |
| FLOPS | 42 TFLOPS | 37.6 TFLOPS |
| Memory size | 16 GB | 12 GB |
| Memory type | GDDR7 | GDDR6 |
| Memory bus | 256 bit | 192 bit |
| Memory speed | ~28 Gbps | ~18 Gbps |
| Shading units (cores) | 7680 | 7424 |
| Texture mapping units (TMUs) | 240 | 232 |
| Raster operations pipelines (ROPs) | 96 | 80 |
| GPU performance | 42 TFLOPS | 37.6 TFLOPS |
GPU Benchmarks
Steel Nomad Lite Score
| Blender GPU | 7934 | 6091 |
| Solar Bay | 113735 | 102442 |
Expected FPS based on average performance across 9 popular games. Details
RAM
RAM size
| Channels | 2x16 GB | 2x8 GB |
| Clock | 6400 MHz | 5600 MHz |
| Type | DDR5 | DDR5 |
| Upgradable | Yes | Yes |
| Total slots | 2 | 2 |
| Max. ram size | 96 GB | 64 GB |
Storage
Storage size
| Bus | PCI-E Gen 5.0 (4x) | PCI-E Gen 4.0 (4x) |
| Storage type | SSD (M2) | SSD (M2) |
| Channels | 1x1024 GB | 1x1024 GB |
| Upgradable | Yes | Yes |
| Total slots | 2 | 2 |
| NVMe | Yes | Yes |
Sound
| Speakers | 4.2 (4 tweeters and 2 woofers) | 2.0 |
| Power | 4x2W, 2x2W | 2x2W |
| Dolby Atmos | No | No |
| Loudness | ~85.9 dB | ~85 dB |
| Microphones | 2 | 3 |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | v7 | v7 |
| Bluetooth | v5.4 | v5.4 |
| Fingerprint | Yes | No |
| Infrared sensor | Yes | No |
| Optical drive | No | No |
| Webcam | Above the display | Above the display |
| Webcam resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 |
| USB-A | 3x USB 3.2 | 3x USB 3.2 |
| USB Type-C | 2x USB 4.0 | 2x USB 4.0 |
| Thunderbolt | Thunderbolt 5 | Thunderbolt 4 |
| HDMI | 1x HDMI 2.1 | 1x HDMI 2.1 |
| DisplayPort | No | No |
| VGA | No | No |
| Audio jack (3.5 mm) | Yes | Yes |
| Ethernet (RJ45) | Yes | Yes |
| SD card reader | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary charging port | Yes | Yes |
Input
| Keyboard type | Island | Mechanical |
| Numpad | Yes | Yes |
| Backlight | Yes | Yes |
| Size | 13.0 x 8.2 cm | 15.0 x 9.0 cm |
| Surface | Plastic | Glass |
| Windows Precision | Yes | Yes |
Further details
Notes on Raider 18 HX AI (2025):
- The first NVMe SSD slot supports PCIe Gen 5, the second Gen 4.
*Disclaimer! Ports, speakers, display, and other specifications can vary depending on the laptop's specific configuration or region.
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