There is a big difference between the MSI GS66 Stealth gaming laptop we reviewed just over a year ago and the laptop you see before you now: the slim chassis that MSI has used for generations of GS66 machines is still there, but the core The performance is very different thanks to the core components chosen for this 12th generation build.

The 2021 version of this machine uses an Nvidia RTX 3080 GPU paired with a 10th generation Core i7 10870H processor, compared to the Core i9 12900H that MSI put in this laptop, which by now sits in the corner of the class It's just silicon tone-deaf. It is also interesting to note that the more recent Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti used in the new GS66 Stealth compares very favorably with last year's model as well.

But that doesn't mean we can't fall for this black hunk of technology in front of us.

A gaming laptop in 2022 inevitably means a few things: first, there won't be the slightest change in the chassis or cooling offered; second, there's going to be a strange selection of specifications; and third, you're going to hear a ridiculous roar from the fan and that noise-canceling headphones are likely to be needed.

So, here are the specs: for around $3,000 you get a 14-core Alder Lake CPU with six Performance cores and eight Efficient cores combined for a total of 20 multi-threaded threads. The 12th generation Intel platform means DDR5 memory and 32 GB of 4800 MHz RAM. [5632 CUDA cores and 8GB GDDR6 memory, and is powered by a refreshed Ampere GPU, the RTX 3070 Ti. MSI's GPU has a TDP of 105W, slightly higher than the 95W TDP of the previously used RTX 3080.

So far so good. What I am struggling with is that MSI has added a 4K screen that runs at a mere 60Hz. I was excited to see the online specs for the latest GS66 12UGS, which promised a 120Hz UHD panel.

I got the UK SKU, which may or may not be available in the US.

Maybe I'm a bit of an entitled Timmy about this, but there should be no gaming laptops with 60Hz refresh screens in 2022. Certainly, this RTX 3070 Ti machine struggles to achieve 60fps, again suggesting that this spec is not the smartest, but even just running an Explorer window on the desktop is littered with blurry ghosting.

Contrast is fair, and white saturation is there, but gradient banding is noticeable, and black levels are quite substandard. My point is that I do not like this panel.

However, I was impressed with the performance of the 105W RTX 3070 Ti. At the very least, it feels like a better match for the chassis than the previous 95W RTX 3080, which is inevitably lower than the 150W RTX 3070 Ti that Asus packed into the powerful ROG Strix Scar 17, but it regularly records higher frame rates than last year's laptop.

1080p gaming performance

System performance

The good news is that the latest MSI Stealth GS66 does this at a lower peak operating temperature than any of these machines. The same goes for the processor and GPU. Whereas the 10th generation chip and Strix's own 12900H CPU had a maximum of 100°C, the new GS66 had a maximum of 97°C.

This is obviously high temperatures, but the processing performance you get from the 12th generation chips definitely justifies it. The single-core speed is impressive, and it certainly has workstation-level power as well, with smaller cores coming online to support multi-threaded workloads.

In other words, I'm happy with this aspect of the system, but not so much with the noise to keep the temperature down. Frankly, it is extremely uncomfortable. In polite company, I would not be able to play games on this machine.

While benchmarking Metro Exodus, a two-year-old wandered into the room and loudly asked, "Daddy, what's this? he yelled loudly. Even with good headphones, I could hear the fan running hard.

For this reason I have a very hard time recommending this system. I can forgive the slight wobble of the keyboard when typing and the odd ultrawide, rattly trackpad, but the noise is a deal-breaker for me. So is the price: when Nvidia announced the RTX 3070 Ti, we were promised a $1,500 laptop. At twice that price, this MSI Stealth GS66 doesn't do enough to justify its cost.

Sure, it's thin, but it's certainly not stealthy, as it makes a noisy noise while gaming.