MSI Installs Windows 8 on Its Gaming Laptops, Adds Special Network Cards

As we expected, Micro-Star International is upgrading its gaming notebooks, just like all other PC OEMs have taken to installing the new OS from Microsoft on their computers.

We are sure that MSI will eventually launch a new gaming notebook, but this time we are only looking at an update to the G Series that already exist.

That means the GT60, GT70, GE70, GX60 and GX70, all of them, with one exception, equipped with the Intel Core i7-3630QM CPU (2.4-3.4 GHz quad-core) and an NVIDIA GeForce Kepler graphics card.

To elaborate, depending on the laptop model, buyers will be allowed to choose NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M (2 GB GDDR5 VRAM), 675MX (3 GB), 670MX (3GB), GTX 680M (4GB) or GTX 660M (2 GB).

That said, the GX60 is the odd one of the bunch, since it gets an AMD Radeon HD 7970M 2GB GPU and an AMD A10 APU instead (2.3-3.2 GHz quad-core).

Storage and memory capacity are heavily customizable on the GT70 (SSD+HDD in RAID), but less so on the others, where a 750 GB or 1 TB HDD is used.

Moving on, the laptops have various connectors, but it is select models of the GT70 that stand out, thanks to the Killer Wireless-N 1202 network card, which improves network speed by five times.

This isn't really necessary, but it can be useful in first-person shooters or other games that depend heavily on reaction times.

"MSI's combination of superior gaming components and an upgraded operating system allows users to fully immerse in the gaming world without sacrificing affordability and performance," said Andy Tung, vice president of sales for MSI US.

"Windows has been a staple in the personal computing world and the new version promises to improve performance and re-engage users through a new interface."

The G Series laptops that don't have the Killer Wireless-N 1202 cards get Killer E2200 Game Networking adapters instead. The multi-colored keyboard backlights are just a bonus on top of everything else. See the table on the left for all the specs and prices.