Review of the MSI GF63 8RC (Intel Core i7-8750H, GeForce GTX 1050) Gaming Laptop

The MSI GF63 Gaming Laptop is also the manufacturer’s first entry-level gaming laptop with reduced screen bezels. The MSI GF63 is available in the GF63 8RC version with a GTX 1050 graphics card and the GF63 8RD version with a GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q. The model received for testing is the MSI GF63 8RC with an Intel Core i7-8750H processor and GTX 1050 graphics card.

Technical Specifications of MSI GF63 8RC

MSI GF63 8RC: Design and Build

For a long time, there hasn’t been much excitement factor with laptops, but the MSI GF63 8RC proves that even angular designs can be made appealing and perhaps even breathtaking. The exterior cover of the MSI GF63 8RC is made of brushed aluminum, and metal is also used around the keyboard. The bottom of the laptop may be described as oddly uneven, but it’s more for cooling purposes than for hiding design flaws forever.

The MSI GF63 8RC Gaming Laptop can definitely be called a thin gaming laptop with a quite powerful graphics card. The bezels around the MSI GF63 8RC screen are moderately thin, and even the hinges cannot be called excellent, but at least they are usable. More aggressive laptop users would definitely call the hinges too narrow. You can feel that the focus is more on the slimness of the MSI GF63 8RC, as the laptop slightly bends when lifted from one corner, but these are trifles because it will probably spend its life on a desk rather than in a bag.

The biggest flaw in construction, in my view, is the placement of the charging port on the left side right in the center. And it’s quite hard to clean the metal surface.

A few words about the sound of the MSI GF63 8RC – it’s not totally ground-shaking, but there’s a feeling that the sound comes from somewhere behind the laptop, going away from you rather than toward the user.

It should be understood that the MSI GF63 8RC is not intended for use far from a power outlet, so the laptop will neither be exceptionally light nor perfectly thin. In gaming mode, the MSI GF63 8RC Gaming Laptop operates for about an hour on a single charge; in regular usage, you can expect around two and a half to three hours, maybe three hours and a few minutes. The internet claims that the MSI GF63 8RC operates for nearly five hours on a single charge, but my observations don’t support this.

Keyboard and Touchpad

One might argue, but in my opinion, the MSI GF63 8RC keyboard looks divine. This is definitely not the most comfortable keyboard for typing, and gaming enthusiasts won’t fuss much about this detail. The keyboard has red backlighting; there’s no RGB backlighting here. Most likely, this is done to reduce costs and weight. The laptop has full-size arrow keys but lacks a numeric keypad. The sizes of the Backspace, Delete, and Space keys have suffered a bit, which is also the reason for the poor rating in terms of typing.

The touchpad is 10.8 x 6.0 cm in size (actually, it’s relatively small), it’s buttonless, and I can’t say that the touchpad works perfectly. Of course, no one uses a touchpad, but that’s quite a weak reason to include something so horrible in a relatively expensive laptop.

Overall, the aesthetically pleasing but functionally average keyboard and weak touchpad slightly spoil my thoughts on the MSI GF63 8RC build. A true gamer would bring out their 87-button mechanical keyboard and Mad Catz gaming mouse, forgetting about such trivialities.

Screen

The MSI GF63 8RC features a quite modest 1080p IPS screen with a 60 Hz refresh rate, which is nothing to write home about. Gamers probably cringe at this point because they were expecting at least a 144 Hz screen, but it should be noted that it uses the GTX 1050 graphics card – you can’t squeeze much more out of it anyway.

The so-called backlight bleeding is kept to a minimum, visible only at one corner on this specific laptop. Comments on the internet suggest that backlight bleeding is almost nonexistent in many units.

The weather outside isn’t exactly conducive to evaluating the performance of the MSI GF63 8RC screen in sunlight, but it’s unlikely that the screen will be bright enough to see the image perfectly. Here, it should be reminded that the battery life will prevent you from going too far from a power source.

MSI GF63 8RC – Connectivity

A few paragraphs about the range of connections on the MSI GF63 8RC. Let’s start with what’s not here. There’s no SD card reader or DisplayPort. Some might want Thunderbolt 3, but that’s not here either.

The HDMI port on the back of the MSI GF63 8RC can output 4K video at 30 frames per second.

Wi-Fi connectivity is provided by a 1×1 Intel 9462 network card, with a theoretical maximum of 433 Mbps, while competitors in similar price ranges have managed to install 2×2 Intel 9560 wireless network cards with 1.73 Gbps.

It’s a bit odd that MSI wants to restrict access to everything under the bottom cover with a sticker, although it won’t be possible to replace RAM and SSD/HDD without removing the sticker. Information online suggests that a damaged sticker is not taken into account unless you’ve only tampered around RAM and SSD/HDD. However, I think a torn sticker will cause quite a bit of trouble if you need to go to a service center. If you happen to open the laptop, you’ll see two RAM slots, the possibility to replace the HDD and M.2 SSD, and the network card.

The MSI GF63 8RC Gaming Laptop comes with three standard USB 3.1 ports and one USB Type-C port.

MSI GF63 8RC: Performance

MSI GF63 models are available with Core i5-8300H or i7-8750H processors, as well as with GTX 1050 or GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q. The version I received has an i7-8750H processor and the less powerful GTX 1050 graphics card. I dare say that the i5 version with the GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q graphics card would have been better… It should also be noted that the GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q is considered about 15% less powerful compared to a regular GTX 1050 Ti laptop graphics card.

Of course, performance-wise, everything is in good order. According to information from the Can You Run It website, the MSI GF63 8RC can run 99 out of 100 of the most popular games. It seems that only Cyberpunk 2077 didn’t make it into the list of games that could be run on this laptop.

Let’s be realistic and not deceive ourselves – the MSI GF63 8RC won’t handle the newest games at maximum resolution. However, it should be noted that even the world’s most popular shooter, Fortnite, didn’t run perfectly on the MSI GF63 8RC. Turning on the FPS counter, you can see that faster movement drops frame rates to 30 FPS, sometimes even noticeably lower. Frame rates also drop during combat moments. Graphic settings in Fortnite were adjusted according to the game’s recommendations.

Online sources claim that the GTX 1050 laptop can achieve around 38 FPS in Call of Duty Black Ops 4 (1080 x 1920, medium settings), 35 FPS in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (1080 x 1920, medium settings), between 35 and 38 FPS in Far Cry 5 (1080 x 1920, medium settings), and between 70 and 90 FPS in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (1080 x 1920, low settings).

If you’re not a big fan of the MSI GF63 8RC keyboard or touchpad, you can easily connect a mouse and keyboard to the laptop via USB.

Battery Life

MSI GF63 8RC Gaming Laptop doesn’t excel in battery life. Very optimistic internet data suggests that the MSI GF63 8RC will operate for up to 5.5 hours in office mode with one charge, which, in my opinion, is complete nonsense. If you can achieve 3.5 hours (three Chrome tabs, Word, and Wi-Fi), you should already be happy.

In gaming mode, the battery drains in about an hour. Charging the battery takes approximately 2.5 hours. The charging device is quite bulky and very heavy.

Noise and Cooling

The MSI GF63 8RC Gaming Laptop definitely has a loud fan. When performing everyday tasks, the fan is quiet, and the laptop doesn’t heat up much. However, when you start playing games, the fan turns into a hurricane. It’s very loud, and the laptop heats up quite quickly.

I didn’t see any throttling during tests, but the laptop became too hot to play games comfortably after about half an hour. So, if you’re thinking of playing games at a LAN party, it would be wise to invest in a cooling pad.

Upgradeability

As mentioned above, the MSI GF63 8RC comes with two RAM slots, allowing you to expand memory up to 32 GB. In my opinion, this is more than enough for a gaming laptop. You can also easily replace the HDD with an SSD.

Pros and Cons of MSI GF63 8RC

Pros

• The brushed aluminum exterior gives the laptop a sleek and modern look, making it visually appealing.
• Despite being a gaming laptop, the MSI GF63 8RC is relatively thin and lightweight, making it portable and easy to carry around.
• Equipped with an Intel Core i7-8750H processor and GTX 1050 graphics card, the laptop offers decent performance for gaming and everyday tasks.
• The laptop comes with expandable RAM slots and allows for easy replacement of HDD with an SSD, providing flexibility for future upgrades.
• With multiple USB ports, including a USB Type-C port, and HDMI output capable of 4K video, the laptop offers good connectivity options.

Cons

• The keyboard, although aesthetically pleasing, may not be the most comfortable for typing, and the touchpad is described as relatively small and not very responsive.
• The 1080p IPS screen with a 60 Hz refresh rate might disappoint some gamers expecting higher refresh rates for smoother gameplay.
• The battery life is relatively short, especially during gaming sessions, making the laptop more suitable for use near a power outlet rather than on the go.
• The laptop’s fan can become loud during gaming sessions, and the laptop heats up quickly, potentially affecting performance and user comfort.
• While the laptop can handle most games at medium settings, it may struggle with more demanding titles and may not achieve high frame rates in certain games.

Conclusion

The MSI GF63 8RC is a moderately priced gaming laptop that will handle most games at medium settings. However, it’s not without its flaws. The keyboard and touchpad are mediocre, and the laptop heats up quite quickly during gaming sessions. But for the price of $1000, it offers decent performance and a stylish design.