The MSI Claw EX is the most important handheld since Steam Deck — I still wouldn’t buy one
17 min read
Summary
As The Verge’s resident handheld reviewer, I have nearly every portable gaming PC on a shelf in my house. The MSI Claw 8 EX AI Plus is now the first one I reach for. Thanks to a next-gen Intel chip and improved MSI design, the Claw EX is the most powerful handheld that truly feels portable. It’s the handheld with the longest battery life, and the first Windows handheld I can trust to sleep and wake reliably.
The MSI Claw EX is the most important handheld since Steam Deck — I still wouldn’t buy one
Intel and MSI’s handheld is a preview of a potato-free portable future.
Intel and MSI’s handheld is a preview of a potato-free portable future.
Like the Steam Deck, when I press the power button, my game is always right where I left off. Unlike the Steam Deck, it can hibernate for days without losing a significant amount of charge.
Performance and battery? Windows and sleep? I wish I could say “you can have your cake and eat it too.” But you can’t. You probably shouldn’t.
You can’t because this is a Ferris Bueller Product Review — this handheld costs a staggering $1,800, and you’ll be lucky to find it even at that price. (MSI’s Anne Lee tells me the US should have limited supply sometime this month.)
Even if you could, you probably shouldn’t because Intel and MSI and Microsoft didn’t fully stick the landing. This is indeed a milestone for the handheld gaming space. But like actual milestones on a highway, you should probably drive right past.
The Good
This Windows handheld sleeps reliably
A leap forward in handheld performance
Can trade that performance for good battery life
The Bad
Graphical and performance issues in some games
$1,800 for a handheld
Many Windows annoyances remain
The Claw EX does have comfortable grips, I’ll give it that. Those manta-ray-wings wonderfully spread out its weight, to the point that the 1.73-pound (785g) portable feels far more comfortable than the 1.58-pound (715g) Xbox Ally X when I hold it above me in bed.
And while a 1,800handheldshouldreallyhave[anamazingOLEDscreen](/games/965123/asus−rog−xbox−ally−x20−oled−preview),IdefinitelyprefertheClawEX’s8−inch1920x120048−120HzVRRscreentothecomparativelycramped7−inch1080poneintheAllys.Theonlyrealproblemisglare—theultra−glossyscreenwasnotgreatonmyroadtripthissummer.Butthecontrolsaremerelyaverage,thefanisloud(thoughit’swhooshnotwhine),andthosemanta−raygripscanbuzzmyhandswhenIturnupthespeakers.Soundreverberatesinside.No,theClawEX’struestrengthsareperformanceandbattery—buteventhere,thehandheldsometimesletmedown.I’vealwayslovedthephrase“potatographics.”It’ssuchafunwaytodescribewhatgameslooklikewhenyourrigistooweak.They’reroughandpasty—likeapotato!—evenwhenrunningsmoothly.Orifyouturnupthegraphicsanyway,yougeta“slideshow”becauseyourhardwarecan’tdeliverenoughframes.ThefirstreasonIreachfortheClawEX,beforeanyotherhandheld,isbecauseIdon’tautomaticallygetpotatoesorslideshowwhenIfireupdemandingPCgames.LikemycolleagueJayPeters[showedyouonlaunchday](/games/952637/msi−claw−8−ex−ai−plus−intel−g3−extreme−steam−deck−hands−on),theClawEXmakesgameslooksomuchsharperthantheydoonaSteamDeck,andit’snotjusttheDeckthat’sgettingbeat.The[XboxAllyX](/games/799698/xbox−ally−x−review−asus−microsoft−full−screen−experience)withitsAMDZ2Extremechip,andthe[oldMSIClaw8](/pc−gaming/769609/msi−claw−8−ai−plus−intel−review)withIntelLunarLake,aren’tplayingdemandinggamessmoothlyatthe1080por1200presolutionoftheirscreens.TheClawEXoftencan,andI’mseeingaround40percentmoreperformancethantheXboxAllyXinmytestsat1080p.Inmanygames,likeForzaHorizon6andCyberpunk2077,that’sthedifferencebetweenplayingatnativeresolutionorsettlingforless.1080pbenchmarksGameandpowermode∣MSIClawEX(PantherLake)∣MSIClaw8(LunarLake)∣XboxAllyX(Z2Extreme)∣PantherbeatsLunarby:∣ClawEXbeatsXboxAllyXby:∣XboxAlly(Z2Go)∣∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣∣Cyberpunk2077,15−wattTDP∣46∣35∣31∣31.43∣20−wattTDP∣56∣43∣43∣30.23∣25−wattTDP∣66∣48∣47∣37.50∣30−wattTDP∣71∣50∣50∣42.00∣Pluggedinmaximum∣79∣50∣49∣58.00∣DX:MankindDivided,15−wattTDP∣66∣51∣47∣29.41∣25−wattTDP∣87∣65∣62∣33.85∣Pluggedinmaximum∣115∣66∣63∣74.24∣HZDRemastered,15−wattTDP∣32∣26∣28∣23.08∣25−wattTDP∣43∣29∣35∣48.28∣Pluggedinmaximum∣50∣38∣37∣31.58∣ForzaHorizon6,15−wattTDP∣51∣35∣39∣45.71∣25−wattTDP∣74∣50∣53∣48.00∣Pluggedinmaximum∣81∣52∣57∣55.77∣Returnal,15−wattTDP∣44∣43∣28∣2.33∣25−wattTDP∣54∣55∣35∣−1.82∣Pluggedinmaximum∣67∣55∣35∣21.82∣ShadowoftheTombRaider,15−wattTDP∣52∣41∣50∣26.83∣25−wattTDP∣67∣50∣61∣34.00∣Pluggedinmaximum∣82∣56∣63∣46.43WhenIaddalittleupscaling,IcanevenstartenjoyinggamesIhaven’tbeenabletoenjoyhandheldbecauseofpotatographics.IcouldswinglightsabersinStarWarsJedi:SurvivorandcrackwhipsinIndianaJonesandtheGreatCircleatgoodqualitywithsmoothframeratewhilebingingK−dramaswithmyspouse.Until,suddenly,Icouldn’t—seeminglybecauseIntel’sdriversaren’tplayingnicewithsomegamesyet.WhenmyIndyvisitedtheGreatPyramid,theIntelchipwouldsimplynotrunatthewattageIset,andIfoundspotswheretheentiregamewouldrepeatedlyfreezeoreventriggerafullsystemhang.InJedi:Survivor,thegameisweirdlystutteryinsomeareas,eventhoughIgetfarmoreresolutionandsmootherframerateontheClawEXthantheXboxAllyX.UntilarecentIntelupdate,Expedition33hadwhatlookedlikeintensegraphicalcorruptionarounditsparticleeffectsinthegame,turningthemintoglitchyspotsoflight.720pbenchmarksGameandpowermode∣MSIClawEX(PantherLake)∣MSIClaw8AI(LunarLake)∣XboxAllyX(Z2Extreme)∣PantherbeatsLunarby:∣ClawEXbeatsXboxAllyXby:∣XboxAlly(Z2Go)∣SteamDeckOLED∣∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣∣Cyberpunk2077,15−wattTDP∣70∣51∣51∣37.25∣20−wattTDP∣85∣60∣69∣41.67∣25−wattTDP∣98∣71∣73∣38.03∣30−wattTDP∣95∣76∣75∣25.00∣35−wattTDP∣98∣75∣30.67∣Pluggedin∣113∣77∣77∣46.75∣DX:MankindDivided,15−wattTDP∣83∣79∣75∣5.06∣20−wattTDP∣93∣93∣92∣0.00∣25−wattTDP∣107∣105∣93∣1.90∣30−wattTDP∣113∣114∣93∣−0.88∣35−wattTDP∣116∣93∣24.73∣Pluggedin∣118∣119∣106∣−0.84∣Returnal,15−wattTDP∣57∣40∣42∣42.50∣20−wattTDP∣66∣48∣47∣37.50∣25−wattTDP∣73∣52∣50∣40.38∣30−wattTDP∣80∣54∣51∣48.15∣35−wattTDP∣83∣50∣66.00∣Pluggedin∣89∣56∣51∣58.93∣ShadowoftheTombRaider,15−wattTDP∣63∣55∣70∣14.55∣20−wattTDP∣74∣66∣80∣12.12∣25−wattTDP∣83∣73∣83∣13.70∣30−wattTDP∣91∣81∣83∣12.35∣35−wattTDP∣96∣85∣12.94∣Pluggedin∣99∣81∣93∣22.22∣HZDRemastered,15−wattTDP∣40∣31∣31∣29.03∣20−wattTDP∣46∣37∣33∣24.32∣25−wattTDP∣48∣42∣33∣14.29∣30−wattTDP∣49∣44∣33∣11.36∣35−wattTDP∣50∣33∣51.52∣Pluggedin∣54∣46∣35∣17.39AndyoushouldtakeReturnalbenchmarknumberswithagrainofsalt,becausemanygraphicaleffectsareentirelymissingonIntel.Undergrowthandvolumetricfogarebarelythere;stoneobjectsnolongerexplodeintoshowersofrock;transparentenergyshieldsareweirdlyopaque.ThesecondreasonIreachfortheClawEXisthatbatterylife.Likesomeofitscompetitors,ithasabig80watt−hourpack—buttheIntelchipcanstretchthatbatteryevenfurtherthanthecompetition.TakeCyberpunk2077,forexample.Tohitasmooth70fpsaverageat720presolution,theXboxAllyXandthelast−genClawrequirearound30wattsoftotalpower,drainingtheirbatteriesinroughly2.5hours.WiththenewClaw,youcanreachthatsameperformancewith21watts,givingyouawholeextrahouronacharge.Batterylifevs.performanceGameandpowermode∣ClawEXfps∣ClawEXbatterydrain∣XboxAllyXfps∣XboxAllyXbatterydrain∣Claw8AIfps∣Clawbatterydrain∣LegionGo2fps∣LegionGo2batterydrain∣ROGAllyX(Windows,Z1E)fps∣AllyXbatterydrain∣LegionGoS(SteamOS,Z1E)fps∣LegionGoSbatterydrain∣XboxAllyfps∣XboxAllybatterydrain∣SteamDeckOLEDfps∣Deckbatterydrain∣∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣−−−∣∣Cyberpunk2077,15−wattTDP∣70∣23W(3.4h)∣51∣23W(3.4h)∣51∣20W(4h)∣41∣24W(3h)∣41∣22W(3.6h)∣57∣25W(2.2h)∣39∣23W(2.6h)∣50∣23.5W(2.1h)∣∣20−wattTDP∣85∣28W(2.9h)∣69∣30W(2.6h)∣60∣25W(3.2h)∣55∣30W(2.4h)∣59∣29W(2.7h)∣73∣32W(1.7h)∣41∣30W(2h)∣∣∣∣25−wattTDP∣98∣35W(2.3h)∣73∣37W(2.1h)∣71∣31.5W(2.5h)∣62∣36W(2h)∣65∣35W(2.2h)∣79∣38W(1.4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣30−wattTDP∣95∣41W(2h)∣75∣44W(1.8h)∣76∣37.5W(2.1h)∣67∣42W(1.7h)∣71∣82∣44.5W(1.2h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣35−wattTDP∣98∣46W(1.7h)∣75∣50W(1.6h)∣70∣51W(1.4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣New:12WTDP∣57∣19W(4.2h)∣37∣19W(4.2h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣DX:MankindDivided,15−wattTDP∣83∣22W(3.6h)∣75∣23W(3.4h)∣79∣22.5W(3.6h)∣75∣25W(2.9h)∣59∣22W(3.6h)∣74∣25.5W(2.2h)∣55∣23W(2.6h)∣61∣22W(2.2h)∣∣20−wattTDP∣93∣28W(2.9h)∣92∣30W(2.6h)∣93∣29.5W(2.7h)∣88∣31W(2.3h)∣84∣30W(2.6h)∣92∣32W(1.7h)∣58∣30W(2h)∣∣∣∣25−wattTDP∣107∣35W(2.3h)∣93∣37W(2.1h)∣105∣31W(2.6h)∣99∣38W(1.9h)∣91∣36W(2.2h)∣99∣38.5W(1.4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣30−wattTDP∣113∣41W(2h)∣93∣43W(1.8h)∣114∣37W(2.2h)∣106∣43W(1.7h)∣93∣100∣45W(1.2h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣35−wattTDP∣116∣47W(1.7h)∣93∣50W(1.6h)∣106∣52W(1.4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣New:12WTDP∣67∣19W(4.2h)∣57∣20W(4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣Returnal,15−wattTDP∣57∣23W(3.5h)∣42∣23W(3.4h)∣40∣20W(4h)∣37∣24W(3h)∣31∣23W(3.5h)∣24∣25.5W(2.2h)∣24∣23W(2.6h)∣25∣23W(2.1h)∣∣20−wattTDP∣66∣28W(2.9h)∣47∣30W(2.6h)∣48∣26.5W(3h)∣43∣31W(2.3h)∣40∣30W(2.6h)∣30∣32W(1.7h)∣26∣30W(2h)∣∣∣∣25−wattTDP∣73∣36W(2.2h)∣50∣36W(2.2h)∣52∣36W(2.2h)∣45∣37W(2h)∣43∣36W(2.2h)∣32∣38.5W(1.4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣30−wattTDP∣80∣42W(1.9h)∣51∣43W(1.8h)∣54∣42.5W(1.9h)∣46∣42W(1.7h)∣46∣33∣45.5W(1.2h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣35−wattTDP∣83∣49W(1.6h)∣50∣49W(1.6h)∣47∣48W(1.5h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣New:12WTDP∣55∣19W(4.2h)∣32∣20W(4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣ShadowoftheTombRaider,15−wattTDP∣63∣22W(3.6h)∣70∣24W(3.3h)∣55∣21W(3.8h)∣61∣24W(3h)∣52∣23W(3.5h)∣62∣25W(2.2h)∣47∣23W(2.6h)∣57∣23.5W(2.1h)∣∣20−wattTDP∣74∣28W(2.9h)∣80∣30W(2.6h)∣66∣27W(3h)∣72∣30W(2.4h)∣65∣30W(2.6h)∣83∣31.5W(1.7h)∣51∣30W(2h)∣∣∣∣25−wattTDP∣83∣34W(2.4h)∣83∣36W(2.2h)∣73∣35W(2.3h)∣80∣36W(2h)∣70∣36W(2.2h)∣89∣37.5W(1.5h)∣∣∣∣∣∣30−wattTDP∣91∣41W(2h)∣83∣42W(1.9h)∣81∣42W(1.9h)∣87∣42W(1.7h)∣76∣93∣43.5W(1.3h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣35−wattTDP∣96∣47W(1.7h)∣85∣55W(1.4h)∣90∣52W(1.4h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣New:12WTDP∣54∣19W(4.2h)∣46∣19W(4.2h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣HZDRemastered,15−wattTDP∣40∣25W(3.2h)∣31∣24W(3.3h)∣31∣21.5W(3.6h)∣28∣25W(2.9h)∣28∣23W(3.5h)∣37∣25W(2.2h)∣26∣23W(2.6h)∣33∣23W(2.1h)∣∣20−wattTDP∣46∣29W(2.8h)∣33∣30W(2.6h)∣37∣28W(2.9h)∣32∣31W(2.3h)∣30∣30W(2.6h)∣47∣32W(1.7h)∣27∣30W(2h)∣∣∣∣25−wattTDP∣48∣37W(2.1h)∣33∣30W(2.6h)∣42∣34.5W(2.3h)∣32∣35W(2.1h)∣28∣36W(2.2h)∣50∣37.5W(1.5h)∣∣∣∣∣∣30−wattTDP∣49∣37W(2.1h)∣33∣30W(2.6h)∣44∣40W(2h)∣32∣36W(2h)∣34∣52∣44W(1.3h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣35−wattTDP∣50∣37W(2.1h)∣33∣30W(2.6h)∣33∣38W(1.9h)∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣∣New:12WTDP∣30∣20W(4h)∣27∣21W(3.8h)∣OrtakeBalatro,[the2Dmagicpokergame](/24082252/balatro−review−poker−roguelike−videogame)that’sbecomemybest−casebatterylifetest.JustbytogglingtheClawEX’s“Endurance”modeandsettingthescreento48Hzinsteadof120HzintheQuickSettingsmenu,Igotthehandheld’stotalsystempowerdrawdowntojust6.5watts,enoughtolast12wholehoursonacharge.It’sraretogetepicbatterylifefor2Dindiegamesandperformancefortriple−Aonesfromasinglechip.ButthisstrengthoftheClawEXisflawed,too.WhenIdrainthebatterybelow15percentchargewithtriple−Agames,performancedramaticallydips.Mychipcouldn’tmaintainits25Wperformancemodeandswitchedto15Winstead.Thatperformancedidn’timmediatelycomebackwhenIpluggedthehandheldin.AndthoughtheClawEXmightbethefirstWindowshandheldthatproperlysleepsandwakesrightoutofthebox,thatdoesn’texcuseitsotherWindowswoes.Ican’tcountthenumberoftimesI’velaunchedagameandbeenleftstaringatablackscreen,wonderingwhenit’llfinallyappear,onlytodiscoveritwasalreadyrunninginthebackgroundanddidn’tshowitself.Idon’tappreciatehavingtoholddowntheTaskSwitcherbuttontofixagamethatdidn’tproperlylaunchfull−screen,orhavingtoquitouttodesktopmodetodownloadthelatestInteldrivers.Thehandheldshouldreallyautomaticallyalertmewhenthey’reavailable.InearlydidaspittakewhenWindowstoldmeIcouldn’tusemyhandheld’scontrolpanelbecause,andIquote,“MostofthefeaturesinQuickSettingsrequireadministrationprivileges.Touseallthefeatures,pleaseswitchtoanadministratoraccount.”Thankfully,arebootfixedthat.IinstinctivelyreachfortheClawEX,insteadofanyotherhandheld,becauseI’mborrowingitfromIntelinsteadofpayingcash—andbecauseI’mwillingtotolerateitsidiosyncrasiesforfewerpotatographics.At1,800, I wouldn’t.
Photography by Sean Hollister / The Verge
