This $1000 gaming handheld may simply be price its insane pricetag

For lots of players, together with myself, handheld gaming PCs are a secondary machine, providing on-the-go play when your major PC or console is not accessible. Although I personally use gaming handhelds loads in my house so I can play on the sofa or in mattress, these units are designed to be moveable first, and nearly at all times come second to a different, major gaming machine.

Nevertheless, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ is the primary gaming handheld I’ve tried that feels prefer it might really grow to be the first means I play video games. With insane {hardware} below the hood, a high-quality display, and AI options that take the guesswork out of optimizing your machine in your favourite recreation, I discovered myself prioritizing enjoying video games on a handheld over a console for the primary time ever.

Sadly, such a premium expertise does come at a price, and the MSI Claw 8 AI+ is not a handheld for everybody. However if you’re in search of a gaming machine that fairly actually does all of it, and do not thoughts plunking down a hefty chunk of change, this simply is perhaps the console-replacement you are in search of.

See our course of

How we test and review products at Pocket-lint

We do not do arm-chair analysis. We purchase and take a look at our personal merchandise, and we solely publish purchaser’s guides with merchandise we have really reviewed.

Worth, availability, and specs

Energy in your fingers

Beneath the hood, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ is rocking the extremely highly effective Intel Core Extremely 7 258V processor, which offers a lot better efficiency than different handhelds just like the ROG Ally sequence and the Lenovo Legion Go S, which use an AMD Z1 Excessive. Paired with 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage, this handheld is actually essentially the most highly effective I’ve examined and may go toe to toe with loads of mid-range gaming laptops and PCs, which is fairly spectacular for a handheld.

Along with uncooked energy, this handheld packs Corridor Impact joysticks, two Thunderbolt 4 ports (excellent for attaching a controller or exterior show whereas nonetheless charging), RGB lighting, whisper-quiet Hyperflow followers, and a high-capacity 80WHr battery.

Nevertheless, it must be famous that each one this energy does come at a value, because the MSI Claw 8 AI+ is without doubt one of the costliest gaming handhelds at the moment accessible, costing an eye-popping $1000 as of July 2025. Little question a few of this value could also be on account of elevated prices thanks to political policy, however with this unit costing greater than a PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Swap 2 mixed, price is certainly one of many first elements it is best to contemplate when you’re pondering of choosing up this machine.

Associated

The Lenovo Legion Go S is a big, bright beast that might blow your budget

The Lenovo Legion Go S is a superbly advantageous handheld, however pricing holds it again from being really nice.

What I favored concerning the MSI Claw 8 AI+

Gaming on the go with out limitations

When placing the MSI Claw 8 AI+ by way of its paces, I attempted to pick a recreation that I knew would push the {hardware} to its limits. On this case, that title ended up being Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle, a recreation that has pissed off me on different units with frequent crashes, framerate drops, and loading points. And after I bought began with the MSI Claw 8 AI+, I famous a few of these identical points inside the first ten minutes or so of beginning the sport.

Nevertheless, the sport has a wise AI Engine characteristic that mechanically optimized efficiency and as soon as I turned it on I used to be capable of get the sport working easily in only a matter of moments. Although you might be nonetheless free to make use of the machine’s guide settings mode if you want, I am unable to advocate the AI engine sufficient because it helped me get into the video games I wished to play as shortly as attainable, with Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle working at a secure 50 FPS when in handheld mode. Sadly, the sport’s power-saving endurance mode was merely lower than the duty when it got here to enjoying this recreation, however after I booted up lighter weight video games like Persona 3: Reloaded and Slay the Spire, the MSI Claw 8 AI+’s battery saving mode offered satisfactory efficiency as effectively.

It doesn’t matter what you are enjoying, the MSI Claw 8 AI+’s large 8-inch IPS touchscreen seems shiny and exquisite and makes use of VRR (variable refresh fee) at as much as 120Hz to make sure clean efficiency from even essentially the most demanding titles. Given the machine’s premium value, you would be forgiven for questioning why the MSI Claw 8 AI+ does not have an OLED display, however I actually suppose the LCD will get the job performed effectively sufficient that if that is the place the nook needed to be minimize to maintain the machine from costing over a grand, the IPS display is a suitable substitution.

Associated

This $80 controller does a lot to justify its own existence

The GameSir G7 Professional is not constructed for the informal gamer.

What I did not like concerning the MSI Claw 8 AI+

Generally, it is not nearly energy

There’s actually not loads to dislike concerning the MSI Claw 8 AI+. It is a expensive handheld to make sure, however with loads of energy below the hood, that value is justified if you’re available in the market for a top-of-the line handheld. Nevertheless, there have been some nitpick-y issues that I did not personally like concerning the machine, although these largely fall below the “your mileage could fluctuate” umbrella.

First up, my largest problem personally with the MSI Claw 8 AI+ has to do with ergonomics. I’ve very small fingers, and I discovered the machine’s slab-like form to be robust to carry for lengthy durations of time, particularly as a result of the machine weighs nearly two kilos and put quite a lot of pressure on my wrists. I discovered myself typically propping the machine up on a pillow or a countertop to offer my wrists a break after only a few hours of gaming. As with something, I might encourage those that are all for shopping for this machine to discover a unit they’ll check out first, as my distinctive hand construction could merely be incompatible with the machine, whereas others could discover it simpler to carry.

One other small problem I had was with the MSI software program that ships with the machine. Very similar to different gaming handhelds, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ has its personal proprietary app on the machine named Middle M, which permits customers a central hub from which they’ll launch video games, customise controls, alter settings, and customarily bypass quite a lot of Home windows 11. Although the launcher will get the job performed, it is not as absolutely featured as Legion Area or Armory Crate on ROG units, and it takes some digging to seek out primary capabilities contained in the app. Luckily, when you’re like me and also you hate it, you possibly can at all times simply bypass it solely. In fact, which means you may be caught utilizing Home windows 11, which has its personal well-documented points, but when all you are attempting to do is get to your video games, this can be a comparatively small drawback.

Lastly, like just about any gaming handheld, the battery life on the MSI Claw 8 AI+ is not nice. When enjoying Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle, I used to be capable of simply barely eke out 90 minutes of gameplay earlier than needing to plug in. Granted, when enjoying different, much less resource-intensive video games like Slay the Spire or Persona 3: Reloaded, I might get nearly double that quantity, however its vital to know that if you’re getting this handheld primarily to play top-tier video games, do not anticipate prolonged battery instances, and ensure you have a high-capacity power bank with you when you’re taking it on the go.

Associated

I wasn’t expecting the ROG Ally X to outshine the Steam Deck quite this much

Each gaming handhelds have particular strengths and weaknesses, however usually, the ROG Ally X reigns supreme.

Do you have to purchase the MSI Claw 8 AI+?

Take into consideration your individual use case first

At an MSRP of $1000, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ is asking players for a giant funding up entrance, and if you have already got a handheld, a laptop computer, even a Swap 2 that you just use frequently, that pricetag could merely make this machine, as spectacular as it’s from a technical standpoint, not well worth the cash.

Nevertheless, if you’re in search of a brand new major gaming machine (or simply have cash to burn I suppose) that is nearly actually the very best handheld at the moment accessible. Regardless of some issues I had with ergonomics, the onboard software program, and the battery life, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ nonetheless is one premium buy you may most likely be glad you made.

Weight

1.75 kilos

Chipset

Intel Core Extremely 7 processor

RAM

32 GB

Storage

1 TB

A premium gaming handheld powered by Intel Core Extremely 7-258V with 32GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage. 

Associated

This $23 gadget is all you need to reuse an old NVMe SSD

When you’ve got an previous NVMe SSD mendacity round or are merely in search of a fast strategy to join one to your PC, this gadget is the answer.