Review: MSI GT72VR 7RE Dominator Pro

by Parm Mann on 30 May 2017, 15:30

Tags: MSI, Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA)

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qadhpp

Add to My Vault: x

Test Methodology

Comparison Laptops - Part One

System Name
Form Factor
17.3in
17.3in
17.3in
17.3in
CPU
Intel Core i7-6820HK
Intel Core i7-6820HK
Intel Core i5-6300HQ
Intel Core i7-6820HK
CPU Base Frequency
2.7GHz
2.7GHz
2.3GHz
2.7GHz
CPU Turbo Frequency
4.0GHz
3.8GHz
3.2GHz
3.6GHz
CPU Cores / Threads
4 / 8
4 / 8
4 / 4
4 / 8
CPU TDP
45W
45W
45W
45W
Memory
64GB DDR4 (4x16GB)
64GB DDR4 (4x16GB)
8GB DDR4 (1x8GB)
32GB DDR4 (2x16GB)
Memory Speed
2,400MHz at 17-17-17-39-2T
2,400MHz at 17-17-17-39-2T
2,133MHz at 15-15-15-36-2T
2,666MHz at 18-18-18-43-2T
Integrated GPU
-
-
-
-
Dedicated GPU(s)
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 8GB
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 8GB
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 8GB
Display
17.3in AUO119D Full-HD IPS (1,920x1,080)
17.3in LGD04E8 Full-HD IPS (1,920x1,080)
17.3in LGD04E8 Full-HD IPS (1,920x1,080)
17.3in SHP145E UHD IPS (3,840x2,160)
Battery Capacity
93Wh
88Wh
76Wh
74Wh
Wireless
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8260
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8260
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8260
Network
Realtek Gigabit Ethernet
Realtek Gigabit Ethernet
Realtek Gigabit Ethernet
Intel Gigabit Ethernet
Primary Storage
2 x 512GB Toshiba XG3 NVMe M.2 SSDs in RAID 0
512GB Toshiba XG3 NVMe M.2 SSD
128GB Samsung CM871A NVMe M.2 SSD
256GB Samsung SM951 NVMe M.2 SSD
Secondary Storage
-
1TB HGST Travelstar 2.5in HDD
1TB HGST Travelstar 2.5in HDD
1TB Seagate Spinpoint 2.5in HDD
Optical Drive
-
Blu-ray reader
-
-
Power Supply
330W External
230W External
180W External
240W External
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Dimensions (W x D x H)
429mm x 309mm x 35mm
416mm x 322mm x 49mm
415mm x 280mm x 25mm
408mm x 296mm x 26.6mm
Weight
3.8kg
4.3kg
2.7kg
4.1kg
Standard Warranty
Two years
Two years
Two years
Two years
Date Reviewed
February 2017
August 2016
January 2017
November 2016
Price When Reviewed
£3,100
£2,300
£1,200
£2,900

Comparison Laptops - Part Two

System Name
Form Factor
17.3in
17.3in
17.3in
18.4in
CPU
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
Intel Core i7-7700HQ
Intel Core i7-6820HK
Intel Core i7-6920HQ
CPU Base Frequency
2.6GHz
2.8GHz
2.7GHz
2.9GHz
CPU Turbo Frequency
3.5GHz
3.8GHz
3.6GHz
3.8GHz
CPU Cores / Threads
4 / 8
4 / 8
4 / 8
4 / 8
CPU TDP
45W
45W
45W
45W
Memory
16GB DDR4 (2x8GB)
16GB DDR4 (2x8GB)
16GB DDR4 (2x8GB)
64GB DDR4 (4x16GB)
Memory Speed
2,133MHz at 15-15-15-36-2T
2,400MHz at 17-17-17-39-2T
2,133MHz at 15-15-15-36-1T
2,133MHz at 15-15-15-36-2T
Integrated GPU
Intel HD 530
-
Intel HD 530
-
Dedicated GPU(s)
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M 3GB
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 8GB
Nvidia GeForce GTX 980M 8GB
2x Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 8GB
Display
17.3in LGD0469 Full-HD IPS (1,920x1,080)
17.3in CMN1747 Full-HD TN (1,920x1,080)
17.3in LGD0469 Full-HD IPS G-Sync (1,920x1,080)
18.4in SDC4C48 Full-HD IPS (1,920x1,080)
Battery Capacity
76Wh
83Wh
83Wh
75Wh
Wireless
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8260
Killer Wireless-AC 1435
Killer Wireless-AC 1535
Killer Wireless-AC 1535
Network
Realtek Gigabit Ethernet
Killer E2500 Gigabit Ethernet
Killer E2400 Gigabit Ethernet
Killer E2400 Gigabit Ethernet
Primary Storage
256GB LiteOn L8T-256L9G M.2 SSD
256GB Samsung SM951 NVMe M.2 SSD
128GB Toshiba XG3 NVMe M.2 SSD
2 x 256GB Toshiba XG3 NVMe M.2 SSDs in RAID 0
Secondary Storage
1TB HGST Travelstar 2.5in HDD
1TB HGST Travelstar 2.5in HDD
1TB HGST Travelstar 2.5in HDD
1TB HGST Travelstar 2.5in HDD
Optical Drive
DVD writer
DVD writer
Hitachi Blu-ray writer
LG Blu-ray writer
Power Supply
180W External
230W External
230W External
330W External
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Microsoft Windows 10 64-bit
Dimensions (W x D x H)
421mm x 290mm x 24.9mm
428mm x 294mm x 48mm
428mm x 294mm x 48mm
456mm x 330mm x 49mm
Weight
3.0kg
3.8kg
3.8kg
4.5kg
Standard Warranty
Two years
Two years
Two years
Two years
Date Reviewed
February 2016
May 2017
October 2015
March 2016
Price When Reviewed
£1,350
£1,999
£1,999
£3,990

CPU Benchmarks

HEXUS PiFast Our number-crunching PiFast test is used to benchmark the computational power of each system's CPU.
Cinebench Using Cinebench's multi-CPU render, this cross-platform benchmark stresses as many cores as possible.
HandBrake Free-to-use video encoder that stresses all CPU cores.

Memory and Storage Benchmarks

AIDA64 Benchmark that analyses memory bandwidth and latency.
CrystalDiskMark Popular free-to-use storage benchmark, used to gauge sequential performance and aggregated 4K QD32 speeds.

Gaming Benchmarks

3DMark DX11, default Fire Strike test.
Gaming A selection of modern titles are tested at various resolutions.

Miscellaneous Benchmarks

Display Datacolor's Spyder 4 Elite professional monitor analyser is used to return a quantitative assessment of display quality.
Power Consumption Noted for system idling, under HandBrake video-transcoding load, and whilst playing Dirt Rally.
Temperature Noted for CPU idling, under HandBrake video-transcoding load, and whilst playing Dirt Rally.
Battery Life Measured while looping a high-definition movie clip with 50 per cent screen brightness and flight mode enabled.