MSI opens pre-orders for the new Claw 8 AI+ and Claw 7 AI+ with Intel Lunar Lake SoC
- The MSI Claw 8 AI+ and MSI Claw 7 AI+ are MSI’s second generation gaming handhelds
- Both handhelds are powered by the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V with Intel Arc Xe2 graphics card
- Pre-order the MSI Claw 8 AI+ and Claw 7 AI+ from Amazon, Best Buy or the MSI store
MSI this week launched its latest gaming handhelds, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ and MSI Claw 7 AI+, following on from the inaugural MSI Claw launched earlier this year.
The new MSI Claw handhelds will feature the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V system-on-a-chip (SoC), which features Intel’s new Arc Xe2 graphics architecture for improved gaming performance and efficiency. The first MSI Claw featured Intel’s previous-generation SoC, and the handheld received somewhat mixed reviews on its performance.
However, with the second generation Intel Core Ultra 7 chip, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ and Claw 7 AI+ should be able to get past the problems of its predecessor. But we won’t know for sure until we get our hands on one ourselves.
In addition to the Core Ultra 7 chip, the Claw 8 AI+ will feature an 8-inch 1200p, 120Hz display with 100% sRGB color gamut and up to 500 nits brightness. It also comes with 32GB of LPDDR5x-8533 RAM (impressive for a gaming handheld), a 1TB PCIe SSD and a massive 80Wh battery with 65W USB 3.0 power.
The Claw 7 AI+, meanwhile, only differs from the above in its screen size – it’s 7 inches instead of 8 inches – and a smaller 54.5 Wh battery.
The MSI Claw 8 AI+ is available for pre-order now from Best Buy, Amazon and the MSI Store for $899.99 in the US, while the Claw 7 AI+ is available for $799.99 (approximately £700 / £630 respectively in the UK, and approximately AU$1,400 / AU$1,245 in Australia, although availability and pricing in the UK and Australia have not yet been confirmed).
Time to get excited about the MSI Claw again?
When the original MSI Claw debuted at CES 2024, I was as excited as anyone to see what the new handheld, the first powered by an Intel chip, could do. Featuring the Intel Core Ultra 100 series SoC, the first Claw had a few things to offer, such as hardware accelerated scaling via XeSS, the first gaming handheld to do so.
Unfortunately, the gaming performance of the Intel Core Ultra 100 series chips was somewhat disappointing, especially compared to the AMD Z1 chips that power devices like the Lenovo Legion Go and Asus ROG Ally.
However, the new MSI Claws could be in a much better position this time around, thanks to Intel’s upgraded Lunar Lake chips. The laptops we were able to test with Intel Core Ultra 200 series chips were fantastic, and their gaming performance was surprisingly excellent.
Combine that with the improved power efficiency of the redesigned Intel architecture, and you might have a gaming handheld that delivers fantastic performance And much longer battery life – two things that can make or break the appeal of a gaming handheld.
I can’t say yet whether the new Claw models can perform, but in the limited time I spent checking out the Claw 8 AI+ at IFA 2024, it seemed to be a very different beast from the original. Was it enough to justify an $899.99 price tag? That remains to be seen.