MSI Sword 17 (2023) vs Sword 16 HX (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 Sword 16 HX (2024)
- Easier to carry: weighs 300 grams less (around 0.66 lbs)
- Can run popular games at about 41-56% higher FPS
- Performs significantly better (up to 73%) in 3DMark Steel Nomad Lite
- Around 46% better multi-core CPU performance in the Cinebench 2024 test
- Thinner bezels and 2% higher screen-to-body ratio
- Features a bigger (~21%) battery – 65 against 53.5 watt-hours
- Much smaller footprint: 12% more compact case (148.2 vs 168.5 square inches)
Tests and Specifications
Comparison table of test results and technical specsCase
| Weight | 2.6 kg (5.73 lbs) | 2.3 kg (5.07 lbs) |
| Dimensions | 398 x 273 x 25.2 mm 15.67 x 10.75 x 0.99 inches |
359 x 266.4 x 21.8-27.7 mm 14.13 x 10.49 x 0.86-1.09 inches |
| Area | 1087 cm2 (168.5 inches2) | 956 cm2 (148.2 inches2) |
| Screen-to-body ratio | ~75.9% | ~77.6% |
| Side bezels | 7.5 mm | 7.2 mm |
| Colors | White | Gray |
| Material | - | Plastic |
| Transformer | No | No |
| Opening angle | - | 180° |
Size comparison
| Cooling system | Active | Active |
| Vapor chamber | No | No |
| Liquid metal | No | No |
| Number of fans | 2 | 2 |
| Noise level (max. load) | - | 50.3 dB |
Display
| Size | 17.3 inches | 16 inches |
| Type | IPS LCD | IPS LCD |
| Refresh rate | 144 Hz | 144 Hz |
| PPI | 127 ppi | 142 ppi |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 | 16:10 |
| Resolution | 1920 x 1080 pixels | 1920 x 1200 pixels |
| HDR support | No | No |
| Sync technology | - | No |
| Touchscreen | No | No |
| Coating | Matte | Matte |
| Ambient light sensor | No | No |
Screen space comparison
Sword 17 (2023)
17.3″ (16:9 ratio) = 127.9 in2
Sword 16 HX (2024)
16″ (16:10 ratio) = 115.1 in2
~11% more screen space
| Contrast | - | 1196:1 |
| sRGB color space | - | 62.2% |
| Adobe RGB profile | - | 43.3% |
| DCI-P3 color gamut | - | 41.8% |
| Response time | - | 11 ms |
Max. brightness
Battery
Capacity
| Battery type | Li-Po | Li-Po |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes | Yes |
| Charging via USB (Power Delivery) | Yes | Yes |
| Charging port position | Left | Left, Bottom |
| Charge power | 180 / 200 W | 200 W |
CPU
CPU name
| Base frequency | 2.3 GHz | 2.2 GHz |
| Turbo frequency | 4.7 GHz | 5.2 GHz |
| Cores | 10 (6P + 4E) | 16 (8P + 8E) |
| Threads | 16 | 24 |
| L3 Cache | 24 MB | 30 MB |
| Integrated GPU | Intel UHD Graphics (64EU) | Intel UHD Graphics (16EU) |
| Fabrication process | 10 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 | 75 W | 105 W |
| Nvidia Optimus | Yes, Advanced Optimus | MUX |
| Type | Dedicated | Dedicated |
| Fabrication process | 8 nm | 5 nm |
| GPU base clock | 1403 MHz | 1905 MHz |
| GPU boost clock | 1635 MHz | 2280 MHz |
| FLOPS | 6.7 TFLOPS | 11.7 TFLOPS |
| Memory size | 6 GB | 6 GB |
| Memory type | GDDR6 | GDDR6 |
| Memory bus | 128 bit | 96 bit |
| Memory speed | 12 Gbps | ~16 Gbps |
| Shading units (cores) | 2048 | 2560 |
| Texture mapping units (TMUs) | 64 | 80 |
| Raster operations pipelines (ROPs) | 40 | 32 |
| GPU performance | 6.7 TFLOPS | 11.7 TFLOPS |
GPU Benchmarks
Steel Nomad Lite Score
| Blender GPU | 1153 | 2798 |
| Solar Bay | 23522 | 36310 |
Expected FPS based on average performance across 9 popular games. Details
RAM
RAM size
| Channels | 2x8 GB | 2x8 GB |
| Clock | 5200 MHz | 5600 MHz |
| Type | DDR5 | DDR5 |
| Upgradable | Yes | Yes |
| Total slots | 2 | 2 |
| Max. ram size | 64 GB | 96 GB |
Storage
Storage size
| Bus | PCI-E Gen 4.0 (4x) | PCI-E Gen 5.0 (4x) |
| Storage type | SSD (M2) | SSD (M2) |
| Channels | 1x512 GB | 1x1024 GB |
| Upgradable | Yes | Yes |
| Total slots | 2 | 2 |
| NVMe | Yes | Yes |
Sound
| Speakers | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Power | 2x2W | 2x2W |
| Dolby Atmos | No | No |
| Loudness | - | ~77.9 dB |
| Microphones | - | 2 |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | v6 | v6E |
| Bluetooth | v5.2 | v5.3 |
| Fingerprint | No | No |
| Infrared sensor | No | No |
| Optical drive | No | No |
| Webcam | Above the display | Above the display |
| Webcam resolution | 1280 x 720 | 1280 x 720 |
| USB-A | 3x USB 3.2 | 3x USB 3.2 |
| USB Type-C | 1x USB 3.2 | 1x USB 3.2 |
| Thunderbolt | No | No |
| 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 | No | No |
| Proprietary charging port | Yes | Yes |
Input
| Keyboard type | Island | Island |
| Numpad | Yes | Yes |
| Backlight | Yes | Yes |
| Key travel | - | 1.7 mm |
| Surface | Plastic | Plastic |
| Windows Precision | Yes | Yes |
*Disclaimer! Ports, speakers, display, and other specifications can vary depending on the laptop's specific configuration or region.
Cast your vote
Total votes: 2