Review: MSI PR200-064UK notebook computer

Intel’s number scheme is getting ever more confusing and the Core 2 Duo T7250 had us scratching our heads at first.

Despite its T72xx numbering scheme, it’s actually a Santa Rosa part running at 2GHz with an 800MHz FSB and 2MB of L2 cache.

Like other regular voltage Core 2 Duo chips, its 35W TDP will drastically lower its battery life under strenuous workloads. But in our Mobilemark Reader test the enhanced Speedstep technology underclocks the processor in a series of steps and it achieved a whopping six hours.

This is more than Hi-Grade's offering, which uses the same shape and format of battery (they are interchangeable), because MSI bundles a slightly higher capacity, 4,800mAh-rated battery.

With 2GB of Ram, PCmark05 raced to a decent 4,015 and, although unplayable at the highest settings, 22fps in Fear is not too shabby at all.

It fell down by pushing our highly sensitive scales to 2.072kg. MSI’s excuse for submitting a notebook above 2kg is that it weighs considerably less with a four-cell battery ­ however you can’t buy this battery with the system so you’re lumbered with the extended one. The stiff trackpad buttons and protective plastic in the Express Card slot that continually fell out, also concerned us.

The speakers, placed just below the screen, created reasonable sound, but the edge of the speaker grille grazed our skin as we ran our hands across it. Again, like too many notebooks, the trackpad has no scroll ­ something manufacturers have previously told us is down to poor Vista driver support.

The PR200’s grey chassis and translucent front black lining reminds us of VHS recorders. But, despite the antiquated looks, MSI is the sole manufacturer to include an HDMI port ­ a hassle-free way of outputting audio and video to an HD TV with one cable. This makes it a top choice for big TV owners.

                                          Next>

This article is part of a group test, see also:
1 Introduction
2 The great weight conundrum
3 Acer Travelmate 6292 review
4 Advent 8112 review
5 Fujitsu Siemens Lifebook P7230 review
6 Hi-Grade Notino D2200 review
7 HP Compaq 2710p review
8 HP Pavilion TX-1260ea review
9 Lenovo Thinkpad X61 review
10 MSI PR200-064UK review
11 Panasonic Toughbook CF-W7 review
12 Samsung Q45-A007 review
13 Toshiba Portégé R500-10U review
14 Performance graphs, page 1 of 2
15 Performance graphs, page 2 of 2
16 Replacement battery costs
17 Conclusion and awards