MSI CreatorPro X17: Review

Regarding laptops, gaming laptops and workstation laptops are constantly vying for the title of “most powerful.” Both have high-powered processors and graphics chips, but one is designed for games and the other for demanding work tasks like engineering, design, and complicated 3D work. The MSI CreatorPro X17, which started at $3,449.99 and was tested at $4,899.99, is the company’s attempt to use its skills at pushing pixels to make a laptop for professionals.

This laptop is challenging to carry around, and it’s not cheap. But this is the most powerful portable workstation we’ve tested this year. For these reasons, we give the MSI CreatorPro X17 4.5 stars and our Editors’ Choice award.

MSI CreatorPro X17 Tech Specs :

PROS

• Exceptional overall performance
• 17-inch 4K display
• Outstanding RGB keyboard
• Large port variety

CONS

• Huge design limits portability
• A bit expensive

The MSI CreatorPro X17 is set up for power

Some of the most powerful parts on the market are in the MSI CreatorPro X17. The heart of the machine is an Intel Core i9-12900HX, a mobile chip that pushes the limits with 16 cores (eight performance cores and eight efficient cores) and speeds of up to 5 GHz. It is designed to bring desktop-class performance to laptops. This beastly CPU is paired with an Nvidia RTX A5500 graphics card, which is a professional GPU with the power of the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti gaming hardware and independent software vendor (ISV) certifications for everything from media editing to automotive design and structural engineering.

Inspiration for creativity

The best model in MSI CreatorPro X17 series can be bought for $3,799.99. It has a beautiful screen, an Intel Core i9-11900H processor with eight cores, 32GB of RAM, a 2TB solid-state drive, and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 graphics. The Mini LED screen has a resolution of 4K and a brightness of 1,000 nits (3,840 by 2,160 pixels). Lower-end models have a 4K screen with a faster refresh rate of 120 Hz, which might be better for content creators who like to play games for long periods. Intel’s 11th Generation has different Core i7 and Core i9 processors and GeForce RTX 3060, 3070, and 3080 GPUs.

Powerful workstations with a gaming look

From the outside, the MSI CreatorPro X17 looks a lot like its brother, the MSI GT77 Titan, which is a gaming laptop. Both have the same 0.91 by 15.63 by 12.99-inch chassis made of plastic and aluminum. It has a chunky design that focuses on airflow, with big ventilation grilles along the back edge and cooling solid fans inside. It weighs 6.82 pounds, so it’s not a light item either. But that’s just the laptop. The 330-watt power brick with it adds a few pounds to the total weight.

The Ports: There are plenty of them.

Because the MSI CreatorPro X17 is so big, there’s plenty of room for both big and small ports. On the left are a power jack, two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, an SD card reader, and an audio combo jack. On the right are a third USB port, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, a mini DisplayPort, a full-size HDMI output, and an RJ-45 Ethernet jack for wired networking. The MSI also has Bluetooth 5.2 for audio and peripherals and Killer WiFi 6E with a 2×2 antenna array for wireless networking.

Tests for the battery and screen

We test the battery life of laptops by playing a locally stored 720p video file (the open-source Blender movie Tears of Steel), with the display brightness at 50% and the audio volume at 100%. Before the test, we ensure the battery is fully charged and turn off Wi-Fi and the keyboard backlighting. For color testing, we use a Datacolor SpyderX Elite monitor calibration sensor and software to measure a laptop screen’s color saturation (what percentage of the sRGB, Adobe RGB, and DCI-P3 colour gamuts or palettes it can show) and its 50% and peak brightness in nits (candelas per square meter).

Conclusion

The MSI CreatorPro X17 is one of the most potent workstations you can buy. It has the best parts and a proven, performance-optimizing design. It did well in almost every test we gave it, and its features often beat those of the best-competing workstations we’ve looked at. It’s enough to make it better than the Lenovo ThinkPad P15 Gen 2 in raw performance. However, independents will have to pay a high price for that high performance because the design is large and heavy, and the price is even higher.

FAQs

Is the MSI CreatorPro X17 worthwhile?

The MSI CreatorPro X17 dominates practically every test. In Cinebench and Geekbench, the Core i9-raw 12900HX’s processing power doubles competing workstations’ highest ratings.

Does MSI recommend windows 11 Pro?

Model-specific specs. (MSI recommends business Windows 11 Pro.) Check the spec sheet for model-specific configurations.

MSI CreatorPro X17 A12U?

The MSI CreatorPro X17 A12U is a new Windows 11 Pro laptop with a 4-cell, 99-Whr Li-Polymer battery and a 3-year on-site pickup.