MSI Claw A1M 1TB - £300 price drop, now worth buying? (revisit)

[@KitGuruTech]

Guys, please report spam as soon as you see it so it can be removed. Let us know what you think about the 1TB Claw - with a new UK price drop of £300 to £499.

[@quintingreyling2571]

I know that the Claw gets a lot of flack, but despite that I picked up one about 2 months ago just because it was heavily discounted. I've been quite impressed that I'm able to play games like Forza Horizon 5, Black Myth and Diablo 4. I'm sitting here playing RDR2 on medium settings without any issues. I don't have any other handheld to compare it to, but I'm quite impressed with it.

[@ReyGaleon-p2q]

@@quintingreyling2571 what version of claw?

[@quintingreyling2571]

@ReyGaleon-p2q I have the Core Ultra 5, so not even the higher spec'ed Ultra 7

[@huxley3775]

Good viewpoint from the point of a desktop gamer - I always wondered how it would work - but the video helped me realise I think I will wait for the new one, that battery life is terrible

[@giovannipisano1906]

Thanks for the review - I am waiting for the new one, but the price drop make sense, even if the 512GB version is still full price and costing as much as this one. Wonder how many of them they will sell to grandmothers at christmas

[@shirleyfu4081]

I have a manba one controller that is compatible with PC and SWITCH, I wonder if it can be used to play with this console?

[@james8449100]

Should be it's got, I've had many issueses across several pcs using built in Bluetooth. Intel laptop's with intel Bluetooth antennas

[@parker3715]

512GB same price as the 1TB? why not drop the 512gb to £325? would sell much better if they are clearly old stock to make way for the new model

[@lewittmusic]

Mat cant believe you never tried any handheld before, must have been some shock running everything on low IQ

[@weston1701]

Can you not get more out of it with lower screen brightness - did you have it on full?

[@nicolasjoseph9446]

Hard to get market share in this with Valves steamdeck, its killer

[@easyygo3008]

Not really. Steam deck is a piece of shaite doomed to fail next gen. These machines actually have better compatibility and will run steam os soon. Buying a steam deck is a very bad idea atm as most games don't run well

[@12ig]

@@easyygo3008 The Steam Deck OLED is currently the most versatile gaming device in terms of price-to-performance ratio. If you already own a powerful device that allows you to comfortably play modern games, the Steam Deck perfectly fills the gap for indie games and AAA titles released before 2019-2020. However, if you want to play new AAA games on a portable console, the question arises about purchasing devices that cost twice as much as the Steam Deck but still face challenges due to their FHD screens. In the end, even if you buy a device twice as expensive as the Steam Deck, you still won’t be able to fully enjoy the latest releases.

[@mikemarshall2747]

Currys - no stock no worries

[@NoahLife97]

Another great video. I love you guys

[@allensmall5448]

I like the optimism you would get Wukong running well. its ran like turd on my AMD discrete GPU since I got it

[@RYTHMICRIOT]

The 1tb Lenovo Legion Go was recently on sale for $599. I'm guessing the competition for black Friday sales will be a good time to snag a portable of your choice. The downside with the Steamdeck (I own the LCD version) is that it's only sold through the Steam store.

[@Taylor-js9sg]

LeGo in preference any day, love removable controllers

[@billy9245]

The poor battery life is due to a smaller than needed battery size combined with shocking windows oprtimisations and power profiles.

[@hothardwareforthewin-he4fz]

Honest review - you didnt seem overly impressed and my overall feelings were that its a missed opportunity. I think Valve know the audience better and while the prices arent great either, they have such a strong platform - although not enough power for bigger games, just indie stuff IMO

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

The Claw isn't too bad if you temper your expectations considering it's a 1st gen proper dGPU down to an iGPU. I've been able to play games like FH5 with about 40- 45 FPS on high at 1080p. HD2, I have to lower to 720p and run some settings low and others medium but it also runs about 30-45 fps. Lunar Lake will be a MASSIVE step up so I suggest looking at that one when it launches...presumably MSI doesn't screw up the BIOS

[@fredericknewman6338]

What version of Windows does this run?

[@ThaexakaMavro]

in canada the 135h claw is 599$ like the rog ally z1 extrême make it hard to choose

[@dragonling748]

I picked up the ultra 7 512gb one for $500 aud. Love it for that price

[@pixelrefresh348]

I know it's nonsense but I really like the backlit RGB thumbsticks. Just look so cool with that. Wonder if It costs any serious amount of battery life having them on?

[@jamey-pl4ez]

Anyone who plays AAA games on a desktop system with a modern GPU will find one of these hard to take - but i guess if you travel a lot - short journeys and like an indie game like Vampire survivors they are a good way to spend an hour

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

I have a 2080 equipped rig with a 13700K and I love playing on my Claw. Yea it's power is lackluster compared to even other handhelds, but I'm still able to mostly play the games I like....besides maybe COD Advanced Warfare. It's a nice thing to have in bed if you don't wanna have your laptop on your lap

[@justswitched8841]

Not really. I use my handhelds more than my 4080 pc because of how convenient they are. Also the performance of them are way better than you think with the right settings. I'm getting 60 plus fps in Forza horizon 5 with high settings 1080p

[@jamey-pl4ez]

@@justswitched8841 Great

[@Draakh]

A great game for this is actually GTA - the older ones, they run great and dont kill the battery so much GTA San Andreas baby !

[@kindnessofwooedandwooer2494]

Shout out CJ!

[@Draakh]

@@kindnessofwooedandwooer2494 oo

[@Alibaba-r2y]

It's at 429 euros right now on amazon, I'm really tempted, I mainly play older games or indies....

[@lucasw4766]

I tried playing Horizon Dawn on the steamdeck - was dire

[@james8449100]

I really want one. Looking at the price and adjust it for inflation and then look at the original iPod

[@EvaMorris3718-g2z]

I really want to like this but gaming on the move would just make me nauseous 😵‍💫

[@JulianTurner2019]

It's bad enough when I look down to check my phone for a minute 😂

[@0tispunkm3y3r]

They've made some big improvements since launch and with the massive price cuts it does look more appealing. But I think it's just about a lost cause now. They have a new one with much better hardware just round the corner and the RoG ally mops the floor with it performance wise for similar outlay. However I think you can't be too hard on the battery life of this thing because the battery life on all of these things is pretty terrible. Steam Deck oled and Ally X being quite a bit better than the rest but still nothing to write home about.

[@festerleech4952]

Gaming on that small screen means you dont have to have all the quality options turned on so it is going to be a fairly decent gamer. Plus would be great for emulation.

[@SarahBytesBack-s4e]

Given the power draw of intel ultra 7 processors, its no surprise the battery life suffers :( this may perform better docked rather than handheld

[@PCPro2017]

Does the Claw A1M support any specific thermal management software or manual performance tweaking? Also curious to know if the Hall effect joysticks replaceable, or are they soldered into the board?

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

Uhh, what do you mean by thermal management software or manual performance tweaking? Also, iirc they might be soldered in but I haven't had any issues since I've had mine... Owned it since launch. I've played many different games like FH5 and HD2 and haven't had controller issues. I'll warn ya though and make sure you download all the newest firmware through M Center. If it doesn't show up, check the MSI Downloads page on their site. Had an issue with my right stick and turned out I didn't have the firmware for the controller updated. Oops

[@PCPro2017]

@ Thanks for the info! When I mentioned thermal management, I was thinking of any built-in options to adjust fan speeds or manage thermal throttling. And by manual performance tweaking, I meant settings for dialing in power or performance levels directly-something similar to what you see on some gaming devices. Good to hear the joysticks are solid. I was curious if they’re replaceable down the line or if they’re soldered in for good. I’ll also take your advice on the firmware and keep an eye on MSI’s site to avoid any issues. Much appreciated!

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

@@PCPro2017 So, adjusting that stuff is really weird. I assume they half baked it cause they knew it wasn't worth the effort doing super granular adjustments and what not. The manual mode DOES allow you to adjust power level, but not fan curve levels. Super weird for software....but not a massive gripe for me. Fan speed is normally pretty good. Oh! You can also adjust wattage based on whether you are running from battery or the wall. As for fan adjustment, you can do that on the Performance mode. You can let it do it by itself or do fan adjustments based on temperature on a graph. Both fans can be adjusted differently when it comes to temperatures. Also there is an Overboost feature that can help with performance on some games, other games might not launch however .

[@ravenspire9691]

Having one of these for quite a while (512GB 135) I paid £350 for one used (I dont think it had actually been used at all) I found it fine to meh. Got good use out of it but some games simply dont work, crash or run so bad they might as well not work (Arc problems). I like the sticks and the buttons are fine. The quick menu software frequently fails to work and requires a reset to get it working again. MSI has not had any updates to bios or software for ages so think they are done with it. If you want a handheld just get something powered by AMD, I picked up an Antec Core HS (AyaNeo Slide) which came with 2TB hdd, dock and case for £550 and prefer that to my Claw. Oh and if you want to replace the Claws m.2 you have to take the whole cooling system apart and repaste the cpu, terrible internal design.

[@KitGuruTech]

Thanks for the comments and info 👍🏻

[@SimonBennett-fw6zq]

This may just have to bet new go to for travel gaming!

[@PropaneWP]

RGB features are a turnoff for me. 95% of the time, it's a pointless distraction. The other 5% are actual useful features, such as indicating battery life or status indicators. It's amazing how experienced product designers manage to get this wrong. For example the PS4 controller, where they tacked on a huge RGB panel, whose main mission in life is to create a reflection in your screen.

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

Good thing it's not hard to turn off the RGB on the Claw

[@MrLense]

Depends, I can get a USED steam deck for less than Retail for the claw.. or any of the Steam Deck derivatives.

[@betag24cn]

if a used steam deck is better than a discounted msi claw, you know it is very bad that thing, msi hopefully got enough money from intel for this one

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

​@@betag24cnWell it seems like it was a stopgap. They're already going to release their new one soon if you think about it. Lunar Lake ftw

[@betag24cn]

@PixelatedWolf2077 you are optimistic,i know how bad inteo is doing rigth npw, i wouldnt keep my hope up on this

[@ganenam60]

You said the sound isnt bad out of it ? really? I am quite surprised. never seen one in the flesh, my mate has the steamdeck, first gen,. sound out of it is dire

[@KitGuruTech]

For a handheld device with tiny speakers the performance is decent Mat

[@kim7utv]

1TB for this at 499 is good price point, I might get one for christmas as I have had a shite year

[@harleylover9446]

Would you really buy that Mat as you said at the end?

[@KitGuruTech]

I'm definitely interested in picking a handheld up. The big question is which one though. I'll likely wait and see what the new model from MSI is like before deciding. Mat

[@noaro04]

Good review, interesting angle to take. it was massively overpriced. I dont know what MSI were thinking apart from maximising their profit margins which I assume they didnt in the end

[@Milena-g3m]

What is the power drain? my steamdeck takes around 18 watts gaming < I measured it

[@0tispunkm3y3r]

This thing uses a lot. I think in the top mode it pulls a good 10W more than the Ally. Something like 43W total.

[@CEONo1984]

​​@@0tispunkm3y3r Ally is more power hungry. AMD CPU needs 5W less to get similar performance, but whole system of Ally (total power consumption) actually takes more power.

[@sortingoutthebills-dy6td]

the 120hz IPS screen is good on this, but the new steamdeck with OLED is better.

[@dreschaffhausen5693]

My thoughts exactly should have put an OLED on it.

[@KitGuruTech]

Would be really interested to try a Steamdeck. I'll maybe pick one up at some point Mat

[@Itsameamario-ns3se]

I have one, its ok, but its not very portable, as you need to bring a portable battery charger to use it for more than a few hours - MSI need to rework the battery for the new model. I like my steamdeck too, its a bit more practical

[@KitGuruTech]

Battery tech in general needs to improve I think Mat

[@rufusmctavish1164]

Good. video, I agree. its not too bad, but it was massively overpriced and the battery is lifted from an Apple watch. with the price cut its a good deal better - why on earth are they selling the 512gb version for the same price as the 1TB one ? is someone not checking the prices? Good review mat as always mate

[@philipjfry628]

Could you imagine buying the 512gb version not realising the 1tb is on at the same price!

[@KitGuruTech]

Thanks! The pricing is bizarre I agree Mat

[@peterjansen4826]

I don't claim this as some Linux fanboy, the biggest problem of the MSI Claw is that it ships with Windows. Why? Because of framepacing, the frametime-consistency. See GamersNexus who emphasized that multiple times. On the SteamDeck the FPS is lower (older hardware) but the frametime is much more consistent. That is most likely for 2 or 3 reasons. With a low powerbudget (25 Watt for example) the backgroundprocesses of Windows just use too much CPU and with that electrical power, those backgroundprocesses cause the GPU to have to wait longer for the data its need (especially with DX9/DX11) and you get higher framerendertimes. On Linux mostly (very few exceptions, those use OpenGL) Vulkan gets used for gaming, this also smoothens out the framerendertime, even though the dxvk-instructions were generated based on DX. Finally the used CPU-scheduler on SteamOS does better threadmanagement which helps to reduce cache-related datalatencies, this is a bigger problem for 2 ccd Ryzen than for 1 ccd Ryzen. I don't understand why MSI made the decision to use Windows, SteamOS is opensource, just use it! Valve went as far as actively supporting a 'competing' gamingtablet because Valve wants other companies to use SteamOS too, their interest is preventing Microsoft from locking gaming down and forcing (UWP was a step to it, fortunately that failed) game-developers to go through their MS Store. With Linux as a good option MS can't do that.

[@4thofjuly-fk4oq]

windows is a terrible OS, I would agree. Is the Steamdeck any better? ive heard a lot of people complain about the updates for it and the patchy performance from time to time. Its linux , right?

[@stickyfingers9710]

@@4thofjuly-fk4oq Steamdeck is a layered linux - its pretty solid . its going to take a bit of a performance hit running the emulation systems it does, but generally for what it is, its pretty good. I wouldnt touch a full windows OS for one of these. Microsoft dont know their arse from their elbow lately. Dont believe me? Check ANY CPU launch this year.

[@peterjansen4826]

@@4thofjuly-fk4oq The performance is better because it uses Linux thanks to the much lower backgroundload from the OS itself. That matters a lot more with 25 Watt available than with 200 Watt available. Where the average FPS is lower it just is because it uses a 5 year old CPU and a 4 year old GPU, also the GPU is pretty small. The SteamDeck only needs updated hardware and that will come in the next few years. I guarantee you that 40 FPS average with low fluctuations in framerendertime gives you a better gaming-experience than 6 FPS average with the framerendertime varying wildly. The SteamDeck uses a 'locked down' (immutable) tweak of Arch Linux. Immutable means that you can not easily install other software on it outside the users-directory. Valve chose to do that to protect the user against his own actions breaking the system. Because on Linux you can easily break your system if you don't know what you do. :)

[@geofftatesmate7748]

£300 - thats some price drop in a year, they must need to clear stock before the new one is released - its not bad. my mate has one, battery life is shocking though

[@dreschaffhausen5693]

Not surprising battery life is rubbish given the CPU. If had an ARM inside it....

[@betag24cn]

no one is buying it after the reviews, they dont know what to do with it

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

​@@dreschaffhausen5693ARM isn't worth it at all currently. Windows hasn't properly made an ARM compatible OS yet, it's too new.

[@SamuKhan-e9w]

meanwhile in our place we are waiting for the price to drop again but are currently stuck at 550 euros@@betag24cn

[@TheSleven67]

With the frame drops and instability of the claw i don't think it's worth even the price drop unless they fix the frame studder.

[@bobsmithson8592]

MSI are clearing stock, never used it. screen looks ok - thats the big thing for me, screen quality and battery life - battery life looks terrible.

[@betag24cn]

they are not clearing stock, they are trying to clear stock 😂

[@riccardo9280]

They arent powerful enough - if someone manages to get a bigger battery into these and the latest AMD mobile silicon they might be alright. no thanks

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

Nah, not gonna happen until Ryzen comes out with new Ryzen parts, plus Lunar Lake is close around the corner for the handheld.

[@riccardo9280]

@@PixelatedWolf2077 Right!

[@UnitedAlgorit-el4hy]

very monotone mat this one. you look fed up. Thanks for the review - it looks ok I guess, battery life is surprisingly bad. wonder if the new one will fix that

[@KitGuruTech]

You're welcome - Sorry for coming across like that - I'm all good though, thanks :) Mat

[@philipjfry628]

One of these with a lunar lake Intel would be formidable.

[@dreschaffhausen5693]

Guessing that will be next year and the price is going to be closer to a grand.

[@betag24cn]

no one inows, because no one will waste money on it to discover how bad the intel gpu in it is

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

​@@betag24cnHave you seen performance for it? Lunar Lake is very good for being a 30 watt part

[@CatherineMitchell-br8dx]

I love the concept of handheld gaming, but am I the only one who thinks battery life should be their top priority?!

[@jameskane6273]

These are only good for indie titles,. nothing else

[@mikejames6588]

The device needs love . I'm coming from an ally and legion go. I absolutely enjoy the claw. The macros are amazing. It works great. Also, it's the only handheld in the US that natively supports any EGPU. Yes screw you AMD, why have USB 4 and drivers that can't connect without serious work that a consumer shouldn't have to do

[@festerleech4952]

The specs of these things just amazes me. Only problem they have is that Nintendo switch which is almost the perfect handheld.

[@user-uv8qn1br8q]

Its a screen powered by a potato.

[@festerleech4952]

@@user-uv8qn1br8q Im old school and remember the original game boy...

[@betag24cn]

what specs, this thing is a bad intep laptop, overheats like a inteo laptop but dpesnt have the battery for a inteo laptop it is amazing a steam deck oled, this thing is a joke

[@festerleech4952]

@@betag24cn You mean Intel?

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

​@festerleech4952 This dude is just a hater lmao

[@dreschaffhausen5693]

Wish they had gone the extra mile and included an OLED screen. For the price that would have been a bargain. As it is its OK.

[@betag24cn]

ti male it more expensive and make more sad the reality of the device that decoded to use a inteo cpu that is well known for suck at games on mobile? it is just as it should be

[@afistfulofpimples1745]

Rubbish, oleds need more power.

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

​@@betag24cn I took it over an AMD part because of the speakers, haptics, and the fact they use hall effect instead of normal potentiometers like Asus does. On top of that, we need Intel to be better in the GPU department so I was willing to deal with a hotter CPU and lukewarm GPU if it meant supporting Intel's GPU division and seeing Alchemist's weird quirks. Now when people come up to me, I can give an unbiased opinion on how I feel about this handheld.

[@kiseoyoung05]

ITs not bad, my sister has one and she loves it. She won it in a competition when it was released and its held up well./ battery life is terrible however as you say. she is constantly charging it

[@betag24cn]

if your first statement to degend it is its not bad, is very bad, and you have to pay for it

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

​@@betag24cnI bought this over the Asus because it doesn't have SD card issues, doesn't have joystick issues thanks to it being Hall Effect, and it's speakers are great compared to the competition. On top of that, it power my Sennheiser HD8 DJ headphones just fine through its headphones jack

[@Philosophoholic163]

Two hours of battery. Reminds me of the old Game Gear and Atari Lynx...

[@Itsameamario-ns3se]

Wow the lynx, that was epic. loved it back in the day

[@hotdogsarepropaganda]

OG gameboy was what 80 minutes? thats not too bad given its extremely more advanced graphically and technologically

[@festerleech4952]

Two kids I knew at school had a lynx and a game gear. Both of those were absolutely amazing at the time.

[@KitGuruTech]

Ah the GameGear - I did use that as a kid - takes me way back :) Mat

[@Everychillitsjustlife-cz8zz]

cheer up mate, life isnt that bad

[@DarwinBrookes-ss6on]

he does look very down, I agree.

[@mikesunboxing]

living in the grim UK will do that to you.

[@KitGuruTech]

I'm all good guys, thanks :) - although I did go a bit monotone on this one sorry, not sure why :) Mat

[@Taylor-js9sg]

​@@KitGuruTechIt's that Brummie accent, always sounds like that to me👍🤣

[@gusmlie]

Nope, Steam deck rules at that price.

[@drewnewby]

I'd be careful with these, I'm seeing listings all over the place. The 135H more than the 155H, 1 TB twice the price as 512 GB. I use a Fire HD 10 with a BSP D8 controller, under £55 with sales, etc. Moonlight / Sunshine to the PC.

[@guser7137]

Don't run games on these devices at native resolution, you just aren't going to get a good experience.

[@taeyundy6k]

I see you died just as much as me playing Wukong. as in every 10 seconds. hated it

[@KitGuruTech]

I'm not much good at timing based combat. I've never killed a single boss in Elden Ring 😂 Mat

[@SynnTM]

Intel ran handheld is worst idea.

[@Linuxdistro15-ih8ox]

Windows on one of these? absolutely no chance.

[@betag24cn]

the problem here is not windows, is intel inside.

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

​@@betag24cnNah, it's a Windows issue. Coming from a pure Windows user and a MSI Claw user.

[@betag24cn]

@@PixelatedWolf2077 dont defend it, you know how bad is it.

[@zezeti2246]

@@betag24cn it's actually the Intel arc igpu,it's very new and a lot of games are not optimised for it😮‍💨

[@perpetualomega]

They tried to screw us over with the price . .they cut £300 and still make profit? bye bye MSI.

[@stickyfingers9710]

Im pretty sure they need to clear stock, and if you can enjoy this one, 499 for a 1TB portable gaming unit really isnt too bad. faults and all.

[@Linuxdistro15-ih8ox]

some reduction I agree. I doubt they are selling them at a loss either.

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

I'm sure they could price it at 400 and still make a profit of 50 on each one lol

[@koodonghyeon]

They even managed to cram AI into it and all it seems to do is kill the battery - lols

[@betag24cn]

this is a laptop cpu, so all laptops must have a ai chiplet now, you like it or not, you use it or not, thanks microsoft

[@TVooka]

And msi make new claw for 1000$ 😅 still use intel wtf

[@himawbas1539]

msi claw Intel is very bad deal 🤝

[@Skobeloff...]

Still MSI, so no

[@Berlinticket]

800 Euro Crap 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@betag24cn]

they would need to pay me money to get and use one, alot of money nothing will make it worth any ammount of money

[@nexxusty]

This thing is complete trash. No idea what MSI was doing. Stutter city.

[@limsapt68]

1TB is quite useful for the price. pretty good. Wonder how the 120hz IPS compares to the 120hz OLED in the steamdeck

[@AshenTech]

My buddy has this and a steamdeck, his statement is that each have their strong points, and he packs a 20,000 or higher 65watt battery bank with either of them, because the deck drains fast if you use windows on it... its gotten better but... its still far from ideal... the claw works better for alot of what he does, and with the dock hes got, it works as a full desktop pc hooked to a tv, price drops are always welcome, and my buddy has 2 of these now he was a tester and bought one because his wife kept nabbing his and leaving the deck... shes got a couple games you just cannot run on linux due to their anti-cheats that shes still addicted to, that run great on the claw using user created controller profiles. oh and it was a mess early on when he got it...was actually fine if you just used it docked but... battery life was worse and perf was also worse... im told one up side has actually been ms update applying bios updates, as its needed quite a few.. LOL

[@FuzzyHead]

Same Here. Have the Release Steam Deck and got an U5 Claw for 280€. For this price, i think ITS a No brainer

[@byungsikseong]

The Steamdeck OLED is my favourite. its not perfect, far from it, but i have enjoyed it, I only play twin stick shooters on it tbh. most AAA games run like turd on a stick

[@hotdogsarepropaganda]

im going to guess no, because the intel chips are still trash

[@Linuxdistro15-ih8ox]

yep, pretty much

[@PixelatedWolf2077]

Depends on the game though. It's not entirely a lost cause, plus because of it I almost bought a A770 LE I found online for a good price cause of it