Review: MSI GT62VR Dominator Pro

Introduction and design

We first went hands-on with MSI's Pascal series laptops about a month ago at a press conference where the company boasted, once again, that its latest gaming laptops were prone to 'shatter desktop performance'.

Featuring the same power of the Nvidia Pascal desktop GPUs we were all drooling over not three months prior, it's not hard to see where MSI was coming from. After all, these weren't GTX 1070Ms, they were the full-on, kick-ass GTX 1070 proper.

The GT62VR is just one of MSI's many renamed gaming models in an attempt to take on virtual reality in the notebook space, a sly move separate from the company's "VR backpack" initiative. In spite of Nvidia's split focus between 4K and VR with its Pascal series cards, it's crystal-clear what MSI's target is. After all, you can't spell GT62VR without VR.

Design

Though a beast on the inside, the surface of the MSI GT62VR is a different story. Wrapped in a mostly plastic shell, the GT62VR's display feels fragile and flimsy while the rest of the system is excruciatingly bottom-heavy.

Sure, the GT62VR is a gaming laptop, so it's not meant to be lugged around on your back in the same way you can a MacBook. At the same time, though, the Razer Blade seems to strike a better balance between portability and power, something we'd like to see more early Pascal-equipped notebooks achieve.

At least the keyboard is great

Aside from being a bit of a showoff aesthetically, the keyboard on the MSI GT62VR Dominator Pro is a joy to use. Though it doesn't take advantage of a full-size mechanical keyboard like the MSI GT80 Titan and Acer Predator 21 X does, and we're thankful for it (and your local coffee shop probably is too).

The keyboard on the GT62VR manages to impress with a perfectly-spaced arrangement of characters and function keys that are surprisingly quiet. In fact, it's quieter than Apple's Magic Keyboard while being more tactile than a Razer Turret.

The default backlighting color scheme is more of a distraction than an enhancement. Luckily, though, the three-zone keyboard lights are completely customizable using the SteelSeries Engine 3 software, which is pre-installed unless you buy from a custom retailer that specializes in removing bloatware like XOTIC PC.

Given that the keyboard itself was developed by SteelSeries, naturally the GT62VR would take advantage of third-party software to manage key lights. Moreover, there's a button dedicated to turning the lights off entirely if you're so inclined.

The trackpad, on the other hand, is a different story. It's spacious, sure, but by default the high sensitivity and precision it provides for gaming is not ideal for productivity.

Too often we found that while editing movies in Sony Vegas Pro or browsing the web and checking up on Facebook, the trackpad featured on the GT62VR demanded too many repeated swipes of the finger just to move around a page. You could argue that, yes, the sensitivity can be increased in your settings, but if you're constantly toggling between work and play, it's much easier just to use a mouse.

Specifications, performance and features

If you couldn't tell by the hulking bodybuilder superimposed in the background of MSI's official website, the GT62VR is almost exclusively focused on its high performance specs. This would be great if it were a desktop, but a gaming laptop should be designed with portability, if not a priority, at the very least a second thought.

MSI, however, determined that buyers of the GT62VR Dominator Pro are primarily concerned about playing games at the highest settings. This is where the machine succeeds. Like Gigabyte's Pascal laptop offering, the GT62VR is powerful to a fault. Given that it uses a mere 1080p display married to a swift Nvidia GTX 1070 graphics card, it can handle practically any game you toss at it.

Want to crank the game up to the highest visual settings? The GT62VR doesn't even break a sweat. Bring the laptop to bed with you for a late night gaming session, though, and you'll be lucky if it lasts more than 30 minutes on battery alone.

Spec sheet

Here is the MSI GT62VR Dominator configuration sent to TechRadar for review:

• CPU: 2.6GHz Intel Core i7-6700HQ (quad-core, 6MB cache, up to 3.5GHz with Turbo Boost)
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 (8GB GDDR5 RAM), Intel HD Graphics 530
• RAM: 64GB DDR4 (2,400MHz)
• Screen: 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1,080 FHD Matte Display
• Storage: 512GB M.2 SATA SSD; 1TB HDD (7,200 rpm)
• Ports: 3 x USB 3.0 ports, 1 x USB 2.0 port, 1 x USB 3.1 Type-C port, mini DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 1.4, Headphone jack, Microphone jack, Line-In, Line-Out, Ethernet
• Connectivity: Killer N1535 + Bluetooth 4.1 Wireless LAN Combo
• Camera: Built-in 1080p Video Camera
• Weight: 6.48 pounds
• Size: 15.35 x 10.47 x 1.56 inches (W x D x H)

The MSI GT62VR model we received was overkill to say the least. If you were to go through XOTIC PC and purchase this for yourself, it would set you back $2,710 (about £2,078, AU$3,593).

With only a 1080p display available, it doesn't make much sense to go for the GTX 1070-equipped laptop when the Geforce GTX 1060 can pull off Full HD visuals at max settings and then some.

Go for the base model and you can expect the much more affordable price tag of $1,549 (about £1,193, AU$2,053). In doing so, you would see SSD storage plummet to 128GB while the RAM would drop to a modest 16GB. Paired with a GTX 1060, that's not a shabby deal when you can also bump up the specs with cheaper DIY upgrades.

Of course, the variation of MSI's GT62VR Dominator we were given was unnecessarily stacked with a GTX 1070 and 64GB of RAM, neither of which anyone really needs on a laptop like this. On the other hand, if you plan on using the GT62VR with a 1440p or 4K external display, you might want the 1070 version for gaming at Ultra HD resolutions.

When compared to the Gigabyte P57X and the Asus ROG Strix GL502, the MSI GT62VR model we received is outrageously priced, whereas if you settle for the entry-level model – even of the GTX 1070 variety – you can expect a better value.

For $1,799 (about £1,383, AU$2,350), you can get a baseline MSI GT62VR with 16GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD paired with a 1TB HDD. Meanwhile, a comparable Gigabyte P57X or Asus ROG Strix GL502 would set you back $1,999 (about £1,536, AU$2,609) or $1,699 (about £1,305, AU$2,217), respectively.

Performance

Although we had to use a separate mouse and kept the laptop plugged into external power in most cases, the MSI GT62VR handled everyday tasks with ease. Intensive multi-layer video rendering, 4K photo editing – you name it, the GT62VR Dominator Pro would eat it up and spit it out in an instant.

Test any game on it, and it's almost boring how smoothly it operates. You may not get 4K gaming on the GT62VR's 15.6-inch screen, but you won't have to worry about the screen being bottlenecked by a misguided GPU choice either – at least if MSI has anything to say about it.

The GT62VR Dominator Pro, well, dominated in all of our performance tests. Sure, GTA V pushed it to its limits on Ultra Settings, but even then it managed frame rates mostly over 50 fps. On average, it would have been nice to maintain a constant 60 fps, but as you can see by our experiences with The Division, that's not a problem with even the most graphically elaborate blockbuster triple-A games.

PC-exclusive adventure-puzzle game Obduction, for instance, is littered with intense particle effects that would cause for slowdown on hardier previous generation rigs. The GT62VR, on the other hand, displays the game effortlessly with no slowdown in sight.

Benchmarks

Here's how the MSI GT62VR Dominator performed in our suite of benchmark tests:

• 3DMark: Cloud Gate: 24,384; Sky Diver: 27,798; Fire Strike: 12,744
• Cinebench CPU: 678 points; Graphics: 110 fps
• Geekbench: 3,707 (single-core); 13,572 (multi-core)
• PCMark 8 (Home Test): 3,969 points
• PCMark 8 Battery Life: 2 hours and 17 minutes
• Battery life (techradar movie test): 2 hours and 43 minutes
• The Division (1080p Ultra): 73 fps; (1080p, Low): 150 fps
• GTA V (1080p, Ultra): 53 fps; (1080p, Low): 145 fps
• Steam VR bench: Ready

A battery to die for

Overall, while the screen still rocked Full HD 1080p, the matte display on the GT62VR Dominator Pro is hindered by washed out colors and black tones, such as shadows and outlines, inferior to what you might see on a glossier panel. That said, if you plan on taking the MSI GT62VR Dominator Pro outside with you, the matte 15.6-incher might be a saving grace. No one wants their Dota 2 match botched by the sun.

The speakers generally sound fine, but don't offer much more than the standard sound you would expect from a gaming laptop. They're not particularly special, but then again, you'll more than likely have a headset connected anyway if you're all about that immersive gaming effect.

MSI made ports quite accessible on the GT62VR Dominator Pro. In fact, all of the ports used to output video are on the rear of the device. HDMI, USB 3.1 Type-C (Thunderbolt 3) and DisplayPort are all located on the back of the GT62VR. On the righthand side, you're greeted by three USB 3.0 SuperSpeed inputs, whereas on the left, you'll notice a single USB 2.0 port joined by four different audio jacks. The anti-iPhone 7 if you will.

The only way we would say this could be improved is by swapping the USB 2.0 port out for a spare Type-C port. If you're already using the rear USB-C port to output video, an extra Thunderbolt 3 port for 400Gbps data transfers would be convenient and, in most cases, much more practical than the inclusion of outdated USB 2.0 tech.

The battery life on the GT62VR Dominator Pro is bleak. Maybe we've been spoiled by Ultrabooks, but using the GT62VR Dominator Pro on battery alone offers but a brief glimpse of satisfaction.

You might be okay to edit documents for two hours or so (still pretty dismal), but fire up the ignition on the GTX 1070 to play some games or construct 3D renderings in Maya, and you might as well set the battery on fire. On the upside, the noise you'll hear from the fans at the rear of the GT62VR serves an an adept substitute for the white noise machine you might otherwise purchase to fall asleep at night.

Verdict

Performance of the MSI GT62VR Dominator Pro shines brightest when it's plugged into a weighty power supply. It's not exactly optimized for portability, but then again, there aren't many options right now for GTX 10-series laptops featuring extensive battery lives, if any at all.

Plan on using the Dominator Pro as a desktop if you do buy one. There's no external GPU support for upgrading down the line and what little we could do to save on battery (50% brightness, keyboard lighting off) isn't enough to save the notebook's internal power from caving in on itself a year or two down the road. In spite of all the problems, though, it's admittedly a painless route to VR.

We liked

The MSI GT62VR Dominator Pro is a gaming laptop with more than enough juice to power a desktop triple its size. It's VR Ready for your Oculus Rift or HTC Vive headset while simultaneously beefy enough to deliver 1440p graphics to an external display.

If you don't plan on gaming at the resolution, there's dual-4K monitor support as well by means of a USB Type-C adapter or daisy-chaining. This is made possible by the vast array of ports integrated on the machine, which we liked, even if they wasn't easy to get to. The GT62VR Dominator Pro won't stably run GTA V in 4K with all the settings turned up, but it could be used to offload some massive art projects to a pair of Ultra HD displays.

We disliked

The MSI GT62VR Dominator Pro is a desktop that wants to be a laptop. Setting it on your lap might burn a hole through your pants, and removing the wall charger makes it basically unusable for gaming. The 6.48-pound weight, excluding the power brick, only justifies our position.

With the exception of perhaps storage space, most of the specs for the configuration we received were overkill. A GTX 1070 paired with a 1080p screen feels frivolous, and no one in their right mind needs 64GB of RAM. And even with the base model Dominator Pro, you'd be better off picking up a more affordable and better equipped Asus ROG Strix GL502.

The trackpad on MSI's latest feels like an afterthought. It's decent for gaming if you don't want to disburse funds on an even better mouse, but it's shoddy for everything else including simple web browsing. The lack of GPU upgradeability down the line, too, makes us question the value of the GT62VR Dominator Pro.

Final verdict

At its core, the GT62VR Dominator Pro is a VR-designated rig that's somewhat easier to carry around than a Mini-ITX computer. Presenting itself as a high-performance gaming laptop, it's ultimately too powerful for its own good.

As long as you don't plan on taking it anywhere that a three-prong power outlet is out of reach, the MSI GT62VR Dominator Pro is more than enough for 1080p 60 fps gaming, as well as a stellar entry to the VR space. If you need a laptop for more than just gaming, though, you're bound to be disappointed by a short-lived battery and few redeeming qualities outside of just graphical capabilities.

With the GT62VR Dominator Pro, MSI appears to have crafted a Pascal notebook with the sole intent of being first rather than the best. Unfortunately, the result deserves little more than a slap in the face and a "you'll get it next time."