LaptopMSI64% by External Reviewers

MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Gaming Laptop

Product Gallery

Photo 0of MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Photo 1of MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Photo 2of MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Photo 3of MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Photo 4of MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Photo 5of MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Product Overview

MSI Pulse GL66 11UX is an entry-level 15.6-inch gaming laptop. It is also available in a different design but with the same characteristics as Crosshair 15 A11UX. They are successors to the GL65 Leopard from 2020 but differ in features and specifications from the GP66 Leopard this year.

Like the 17.3-inch Pulse GL76 / Crosshair 17, the Pulse GL66 / Crosshair 15 is powered by up to Core i7 Tiger Lake chips combined with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30-series graphics up to RTX 3060.

Unfortunately, MSI has mised on the spec list, leaving the Pulse GL66 / Crosshair 15 with just WiFi 6, USB 3.2 Gen1, and PCIe Gen3 and without any Thunderbolt port. Its battery is also just over 50Wh in capacity, while the chassis is not particularly thin

Nevertheless, the new laptop is endowed with a new QHD display option. This IPS panel refreshes at 165Hz and covers 100% of DCI-P3 color space.

Alongside the new GL66, MSI also refreshed its entire gaming laptop lineup with the new Tiger Lake processors.

Ratings

What we found

Pros

Excellent 1080p gaming performance
Good battery life
Good keyboard backlighting

Cons

Not the cheapest RTX 30-series gaming laptop

What external reviewers found

External score 64%

Pros

Great gaming performance
Great webcam
Excellent 1080p gaming performance
Good battery life
Decent keyboard and touchpad

Cons

No physical privacy shutter
No keyboard backlighting
Battery life could be better

Your rating:

12345678910

?/10

Launch Product Comparison

Price Comparison

As associates of the merchants above, we earn a commission when you make a purchase using the supplied links.

Specifications

[[{"Ft":"Connectivity","Fn":"Ports","Fv":"1x USB-C 3.2 Gen1 + 2x USB 3.2 Gen1 + 1x USB 2.0 + 1x HDMI + 1x RJ45 (1Gbps) + 1x Audio combo"},{"Ft":"Connectivity","Fn":"Wireless Connectivity","Fv":"WiFi 6 + Bluetooth 5.2"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Battery | Capacity","Fv":"53 Wh"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Camera | Front","Fv":"IR HD type (30fps@720p)"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Colors","Fv":"Titanium Gray"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Speakers","Fv":"Stereo Speakers"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Size | Depth","Fv":"259 mm"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Size | Height","Fv":"23.95 mm"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Size | Width","Fv":"359 mm"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Weight","Fv":"2.2 kg"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Display Diagonal","Fv":"15.6 inch"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Display Type","Fv":"IPS"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Refresh Rate","Fv":"144 Hz"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Resolution","Fv":"FHD (1920x1080) or QHD (2560x1440)"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Audio","Fv":"Nahimic 3 Audio Enhancer, High-Resolution Audio ready"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Chipset","Fv":"Intel HM570"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Graphics","Fv":"NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4GB GDDR6, RTX 3050 Ti 4GB GDDR6, or RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Keyboard Backlight","Fv":"RGB Backlight Keyboard"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Operating System","Fv":"Windows 10"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Processor","Fv":"Up to 11th-gen Intel Core i7 Tiger Lake"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Memory | Capacity","Fv":"2x slots, Max 64GB"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Memory | Type","Fv":"DDR4 3200 MHz"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Power Supply","Fv":"150 or 180 W adapter"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Storage","Fv":"2x NVMe M.2 PCIe Gen3"},{"Ft":"Production","Fn":"Debut","Fv":"2021-05"}],[{"Ft":"Connectivity","Fn":"Ports","Fv":"1x USB-C 3.2 Gen1 + 2x USB 3.2 Gen1 + 1x USB 2.0 + 1x HDMI + 1x RJ45 (1Gbps) + 1x Audio combo"},{"Ft":"Connectivity","Fn":"Wireless Connectivity","Fv":"WiFi 6 + Bluetooth 5.2"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Battery | Capacity","Fv":"53 Wh"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Camera | Front","Fv":"IR HD type (30fps@720p)"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Colors","Fv":"Titanium Gray"},{"Ft":"Construction","Fn":"Speakers","Fv":"Stereo Speakers"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Size | Depth","Fv":"259 mm"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Size | Height","Fv":"23.95 mm"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Size | Width","Fv":"359 mm"},{"Ft":"Dimensions","Fn":"Weight","Fv":"2.2 kg"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Display Diagonal","Fv":"15.6 inch"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Display Type","Fv":"IPS"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Gamut","Fv":"100% DCI-P3"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Refresh Rate","Fv":"165 Hz"},{"Ft":"Display","Fn":"Resolution","Fv":"FHD (1920x1080) or QHD (2560x1440)"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Audio","Fv":"Nahimic 3 Audio Enhancer, High-Resolution Audio ready"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Chipset","Fv":"Intel HM570"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Graphics","Fv":"NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4GB GDDR6, RTX 3050 Ti 4GB GDDR6, or RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Keyboard Backlight","Fv":"RGB Backlight Keyboard"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Operating System","Fv":"Windows 10"},{"Ft":"Function","Fn":"Processor","Fv":"Up to 11th-gen Intel Core i7 Tiger Lake"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Memory | Capacity","Fv":"2x slots, Max 64GB"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Memory | Type","Fv":"DDR4 3200 MHz"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Power Supply","Fv":"150 or 180 W adapter"},{"Ft":"Performance","Fn":"Storage","Fv":"2x NVMe M.2 PCIe Gen3"},{"Ft":"Production","Fn":"Debut","Fv":"2021-05"}]]

	FHD	QHD

Related Products

Dell G15 5511 15.6" 2021

Product not reviewed.

Dell G15 5511 Special Edition 15.6" 2021

Product not reviewed.

Gigabyte G7 GD/MD 17" 2021

Product not reviewed.

MSI Katana GF66 11UX / Sword 15 A11U 15.6" 2021

High-quality aluminum case
Good gaming performance
Good battery life

Gigabyte G5 GD/MD 15.6" 2021

Product not reviewed.

MSI Pulse GL76 11UX / Crosshair 17 A11U 17.3" 2021

Product not reviewed.

HP OMEN 17t-ck000 17.3" 2021

Product not reviewed.

HP OMEN 15t-ek100 15.6" 2021

Product not reviewed.

MSI Katana GF76 11UX / Sword 17 A11U 17.3" 2021

Matte IPS display
Good keyboard
Good system performance

...

HP Victus 16t-d000 16.1" 2021

Product not reviewed.

Gigabyte AORUS 15P KD/XD/YD 15.6" 2021

Very good gaming performance
Very good keyboard and touchpad
Good battery life

...

Gigabyte AORUS 17G KD/XD/YD 17.3" 2021

Matte IPS display
Full HD resolution
Good color-space coverage

...

MSI's 2021 Gaming Laptops: How Do They Differ from 2020, and Where Does Each Model Stand in the Lineup?

MSI has finally refreshed its entire gaming laptop lineup for 2021 in early May. While some models continue the lineage from 2020, other models have be repositioned and/or renamed. In this short guide, let us examine two subjects as succinctly as possi...

14 May 2021

External Reviews

pcmag^[1]

Reviewer score 62% (normalized by Neofiliac)

Reviewers from pcmag have found:

MSI's GL66 Pulse churns out smooth 1080p gaming frame rates and looks every bit as a gaming laptop should. It wasn't enough to catch the Legion 5 Pro, but its newer "Tiger Lake-H" chip and two extra processing cores propelled it far ahead of the Predator Helios 300. You can find many better midrange gaming rigs to choose from.

Pros

Excellent 1080p gaming performance
Good battery life
Decent keyboard and touchpad

Cons

No keyboard backlighting

techradar^[2]

Reviewer score 65% (normalized by Neofiliac)

Reviewers from techradar have found:

MSI Pulse GL66 doesn't come with a lot of bloat, which is good since it can go either way at this price point. Perennial offender McAfee is an issue with its obnoxious pop-ups via desktop notifications. The 720p (30 fps) webcam is pretty standard as far as laptop webcams go. Since this laptop will likely live on your desk, setting the system to ultra performance is really the only way to go.

Pros

Great gaming performance
Good battery life
Great webcam

Cons

Battery life could be better
No physical privacy shutter

Also Check

Product ComparisonProducts in LaptopProducts by MSIKeyword tiger-lake

References

^ MSI GL66 Pulse Review. [pcmag].
^ MSI Pulse GL66 review. [techradar].

MSI Pulse GL66 11UX / Crosshair 15 A11U 15.6"

Product Gallery

Product Overview

Ratings

What we found

What external reviewers found

Your rating:

Price Comparison

Specifications

Related Products

Related Articles

External Reviews

pcmag[1]

techradar[2]

Also Check

References

pcmag^[1]

techradar^[2]