MSI CR420 Review
We got the brother of the MSI CX420 for review here in Laptop Manila. The MSI CR420 is a 14” laptop sporting one of the latest Intel Core Processors, the Core i3. The specs are very much the same as the CX420 but this one only uses integrated graphics.
What makes people choose MSI is the affordability of its products without sacrificing too much on quality. Let’s see if that is still the case with the CR420.
Design
MSI used their Cross-Hatch Color Film Pattern technology to coat the CR420 making it scratch-resistant. I don’t know how many patterns MSI has but the one used here are simple horizontal lines which I find cheap-looking. Not stylish at all for my taste.
There’s nothing special about the chiclet-style keyboard but it’s not one of the best I’ve used on a laptop. I find the Backspace and Enter key a bit small. It doesn’t feel natural to type with it on the first go but eventually you’ll get the hang of it.
What I find discomforting is the backslash key between the Left-Alt and Spacebar. I’m not sure why the designers made a clone of this key and placed it in this position but it’s making it tricky to do Alt-Tabs on the keyboard.
The size of the touchpad is quite alright. It features a single rocker for the left and right-click buttons but it doesn’t affect the functionality at all. As I mentioned, the design on the palm rest does not make it fashionable nor stylish but that’s just me.
Display & Audio
The 14” display is of glare type so be warned when using this outside. There aren’t a lot of suitable viewing angles for the display here so it’s hard to share your videos or photos with a group of people. The display is bright though that even at below 50% it’s still very usable.
The speaker is located on top of the keyboard but I do find it soft even at full-volume and in a quiet room. I tried trailers, TV shows and movies but it couldn’t give the powerful, clear audio that I want. I would say audio is just average.
Performance
Our CR420 came with a 32-bit Windows 7 Ultimate (typically it’s Windows 7 Home Premium). Here’s the Windows Experience Index which is above average for your normal laptops thanks to the Intel Core i3 processor.
Watching 1080p trailers went without a hitch here despite having only the integrated graphics. Casual gaming with Facebook is handled really well by the Core i3 but I doubt if that will also be the case for 3D games although they would be playable.
What’s good about the Core i3 is that despite having only 2 cores, it supports HyperThreading, allowing it to handle 4 processing threads at once. To check how it actually performs, I did a video encoding test.
I used Cyberlink’s MediaShow Espresso to convert a 2-minute 1080p movie trailer from Apple into iPhone format (640×360) and the resulting 27MB file was created in just 1:20 minutes. A 43-minute TV show (349MB) was converted in just 18 minutes resulting to a 654MB file.
I also like the fact that it doesn’t get hot nor too warm even when using it for hours straight doing normal tasks.
Battery Life
If there’s really a letdown on the CR420, it’s the 4400mah 6-cell Li-Ion battery pack it comes with (although you can upgrade it to a 9-cell). How many hours do you think a single charge would last? 5 hours?
Here’s what BatteryBar has to say about it:
I did my primitive battery test on the CR420. At 100% charge, I used it with WiFi always on and connected and Brightness at 50%. I surfed the net, played some Facebook games, download and watch some trailers, normal things you do with a laptop. In just 2.5 hours, the battery was depleted. That’s quite low for my standards even for a Core i3 laptop.
Conclusion
The MSI CR420 is as ordinary as it gets for a Core i3 laptop. It would have been better if they stick with the standard keyboard layout and sizes (think Sony).
It’s quite powerful for your everyday use but with such power comes a tradeoff in battery life and the low capacity rating on the included battery doesn’t help its cause. Better get the the 9-cell battery option if you’re going to be away from a power source most of the time.
Overall, the MSI CR420 performs really well for a typical 14” casual laptop given its affordable Php32k price tag. The Core i3 adequate for most of your needs but if you are likely to do a lot of gaming with it, I would suggest going with the CX420 instead.
Local Price: Php31,999
Specs:
- Processor: Intel® Core i3-330M Dual Core Processor (2.13 GHz)
- OS: Genuine Windows® 7 Ultimate (32-bit)
- Display: 14″ wide (WXGA: 1366 x 768, Glare Type)
- Graphics: Mobile Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator HD
- HDD: 500 GB (Serial ATA)
- RAM: 4GB DDR3
- Optical Drive: Super-Multi DVD+RW
- Ports: USB 2.0 x 3, VGA, HDMI, 4-in-1 Card Reader, ExpressCard
- Wireless Connection: WiFi (802.11 b/g/n), Bluetooth 2.1
- Battery: 4400mah 6-cell Li-Ion
- Weight: 4.4 lbs.
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I have bought MSI CX420X last week. I find the performance pretty stunning. My index
for graphics is 4.6 (0.1 higher than what is shown above) and the disk data transfer is 5.9. It’s pretty worth the budget. I just don’t like the duplicate “|” and “\” beside the space bar as I have often mistaken this key as the ALT especially when I am just touching without looking. I bought this for a price pretty similar to the one you posted above.
By the way, what I really like about this laptop is that the keyboard is not that “clacking” as it sounds a little more “rubbery” than “plasticky”. The touch pad, I love the matte finish and the sensation it gives to my fingers. I have sweaty hands, and on regular touch pads, if your hands are already cold/wet, they are not pointing the way they should.. they even skip DPIs. I guess, the horizontal lines has something to do with that improvement, it’s more than just a physical design.
The ATI graphics card, WHOAH! 1 GB is really adorable. I am playing HoN and DoTA and it’s like watching a movie! HD videos also are really stunning!
The laptop’s built is longer (horizontal dimension) and shorter (vertical dimension). It’s pretty lighter than the ASUS laptops. I just don’t know with the other brands.
The OSD (on-screen display) is pretty useful at least you don’t have to observe what changes those keys make.
Another thing I don’t like that much is the area where the power button is located… it accumulates much dirt.
1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest, how I love this laptop is 8.5.
hi Kylie can i ask where can i buy MSI CX420? same as yours? and how much is the price now higher or lower? thank you for the favor.
In addition to my previous post, I also notice that my index for graphics is 6.1
(how do i paste the image for you guys to be able to see anyways?)
is it 4.6 or 6.1 for the graphics? am planning to buy the same one but have my eyes set also to lenovo z360 with i3 380m processor. can anyone suggest which is better regardless of the price. thanks.
MSI might be cheap but breaks down easily.
It also has a poor after sales service.
MSI service center will not cover the warranty and blame the defects on the user.
Don’t be a victim like me of this cheap laptop because instead of saving money you will spend more for its repair. I have IBM laptop since 2005 it’s still doing good until today Aug.10, 2011. Toshiba is ok still doing good after 3 years but MSI! did not last for a year. tsk! tsk! and the cost for repair is more than half of the price when i bought it. Shame on MSI! Poor quality with poor after sales service!
Kyle, I think it has something to do with your ATI graphics card. Very nice!!
ATI graphic??? I think “CX420″ not “CR420″ have a ATI graphic card… CR420 have a Intel HD Graphic only….
yeah i checked the site and I think you’re right. Maybe the one I recevied was configured differently. the sticker clearly says cr420 and i’m sure it’s also written there that it has the ATI graphics. a graphics score of 4.5 on the Windows Experience Index is pretty high for an integrated chip.
@calvin: Your review seems to find everything wrong with the CR420. You talk about ‘cheap looking’. I think aesthetics is very much subjective. I find the looks of the CR420 to have an elegance in its simplicity.
You shouldn’t compare the CR420 to any of Sony’s offerings. You are comparing something which is modestly priced to a premium priced product.
thank you for your comments mr mojo. yes design is more subjective and you are right about comparing it with Sony but i’ve seen other designs not only from Sony but also from other brands including other MSI notebooks and I still find the CR420′s design un-stylish if there’s such a word.
It still make a fine notebook especially if you like its design.
hi,i have msi cr420 but my note book can not detect the web cam ,could u please help me to fix it.
thank u
i suggest u download manycam software.
hope this help. n_n
how can i open the Bluetooth in msi cr420?
I´ve a CR420, and the bluetooth doesn´t work, can you help me?
thank´s
i am use cr420.and body confirm.it is good system.wait for expert people.
tnks
Hi,
I don’t know how to make my webcam work. Can anyone help me.
Thanks
why on cr420 spec have a (support o ram, wireless, hdd, ) subject
I plan to have one..GOD Willing…because it’s the lowest price for a particular specs i need. but I fear of its not as durable as the other high-priced laptops.. please help me.
Actually, I wouldn’t care of its appearance.. I want to know its performance and if it would be used for video editing…
tap the Function key(fn) on the keyboard beside ctrl key together with F6 key.. that will make you activate the webcam..
I’ve got a cr 420. but there are some problems. the bluetooth breaks frequently and it needs to be reinstalled again and again. the battery life is 2.5 hours. and the speaker is not so good. but in Iran it’s got a good guarantee!
what is your opnion how to works msi cr420
i recently got my msi cr420..but wifi not working..i already click on the fn button + wifi icon..but it doesn’t pop up..please help..!!!!
is anyone knows how to swicth on my msi 420 noteboook w/out the use of keyboard coz its keyboard is not working anymore thank’s
does a msi cr-420 have a wi-fi????