MSI is joining the handheld boom with its gaming console known as the “Claw.” The “whole new breed of MSI dragon” has been teased on the MSI’s X handle. The console looks structurally similar to the ROG Ally and the Steam Deck (perhaps with shinier controls) but leverages an Intel Core Ultra Meteor Lake processor. MSI will unveil its handheld at CES 2024, but we already know some of the specifications thanks to a Geekbench entry.
The MSI Claw is powered by the 1st Gen Core Ultra 7 155H, a 16-core CPU with 6 P-cores, 8 E-cores, and 2 LPE cores. In practice, it’s a 14-core chip, as the LPE cores remain parked when the rest are in action. The P-cores feature hyper-threading, bringing the thread count up to 20. They boost up to 4.8GHz, up from 3.8GHz on their E counterparts. The LPE cores top out at 2.5GHz. The CPU has a default TDP of 28W, which can be increased or decreased as needed.
The Core Ultra 7 155H features Arc Xe-LPG graphics. This particular variant packs 8 Xe-cores, each consisting of 16 Vector Units. This adds up to a shader count of 1,024 (8 Xe-c * 16 VEs)*(8 ALUs), higher than the 768 found on the Radeon 780M. The GPU has a boost clock of 2.25GHz and is paired with 32GB of (shared) dual-channel LPDDR5-7467 memory.
The MSI Claw looks good on paper, but the Intel Meteor Lake SKU may backfire. Not only do these 4nm-class chips disappoint at low TDPs, but they also deliver mediocre gaming performance. The Arc Xe-LPG iGPU on the 155H loses to the Radeon 780M in most scenarios, often crippled by poor lows.
Furthermore, the hybrid CPU is a risk, as most games ignore the E-cores due to their lower clocks. Then again, Intel claims to have significantly improved Meteor Lake’s scheduler, so it might just work as intended. Regardless, the MSI Claw will be a curios device.
