Nostalgia for the 1990s has been running high for years, but finally we have what we’ve been missing: transparent tech. MSI’s new Cyborg 14 has a transparent chassis in a gray-blue shade that is immediately reminiscent of Nintendo’s translucent Gameboy Color and Gameboy Advanced handhelds.
As far as budget gaming laptops go, this may be the only exciting entry into that space due to its style and surprising amount of computing power for FHD gaming.
Let’s dig in and see if it’s destined to find a spot among our best budget gaming laptops.
MSI Cyborg 14: Price and availability
The high-end version of the Cyborg 14 with an Intel i7-13620H and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 will retail for $1,099. MSI has not finalized pricing for the lower configurations which could come with an Intel Core i5 13th gen processor and an NVIDIA 2050, 3050, or 4050 GPU. However, it’s safe to say the Cyborg will start below $1,000.
The Cyborg 14 doesn’t have a set date to hit the shelves as of press time.
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MSI Cyborg 14: Design
Positioned as the new entry level in the Cyborg line-up, the 14 exchanges the Cyborg 15’s red and black colors for a blue and gray scheme which gives it a unique look among gaming laptops, especially in the budget gaming space. The transparent chassis and WASD keys pair well with the bright blue keyboard lights for a slick cyberpunk design. It is very much the kind of 90s design throwback that Millennials have been hoping for.
The Cyborg 14 also weighs just 3.5 lbs (1.6 Kg) so it is very light, which is also a nice touch on a gaming laptop.
MSI Cyborg 14: Display
The Cyborg 14 features a 14-inch FHD+ (1920 x 1200) display with a 144Hz refresh rate. The IPS panel will hit 100% on the sRGB color gamut, so you’ve got a decent bit of color accuracy for gaming and web surfing.
MSI Cyborg 14: Performance
Topping out at $1,099, the Cyborg 14 packs a surprising amount of power in its small chassis with a 13th gen Intel i7-13620H CPU and NVIDIA RTX 4060 GPU. As the 14-inch display tops out at FHD+ resolution, you should have all the power you need with that top end configuration. Obviously, we’ll need to confirm that in our labs in the future.
MSI Cyborg 14: Battery
The Cyborg 14’s Achilles’ heel may very well be its 53.5 Whr battery which is a small power supply for any gaming laptop. MSI’s AI Engine will be working hard to keep the machine going for as long as possible, but we’ll need to test it out in our lab to be sure of exactly how much leverage the new AI Engine gives to battery life.
Outlook
Budget gaming laptops are rarely exciting. In fact, they’re usually the kind of laptops I dread dealing with because of the compromises they need to make to hit that low price point. But the RTX 4060 is a powerhouse of a GPU and while the i7-13620H isn’t the flashiest or most powerful CPU, but it can absolutely keep up with the demands of 1200p gaming.
Maybe it's my 90s nostalgia hitting, but I am actually excited about the Cyborg 14. And that honestly might be the most impressive thing about it.
