MSI X460DX Review

The $849 Intel Core i5-powered MSI X460DX packs plenty of power into an attractive 1-inch thick aluminum chassis. The 14-inch X460DX's vibrant display and Nvidia GPU make watching videos and playing games an engaging experience, while a powerful battery and Nvidia Optimus switchable graphics allow the notebook to last nearly all day. But are these pros enough to overcome a few issues with build and keyboard quality?

Design

The MSI X460DX's Metallic Black brushed-aluminum finish is simple but elegant. A raised chrome MSI logo in the center and a plastic black bar across the top give the lid a small flourish. When we pressed down on the front portion of the lid, we noticed a small but disturbing amount of flex. We also could feel some friction on the hinges as we opened and closed the lid, a sign of shoddy build quality.
While the palm rest has the same brushed-aluminum finish as the lid, the remaining interior is done in glossy black plastic surrounding a black matte keyboard. A slim chrome bar rests across the speakers with a smaller bar across the clear textured power button. Additional chrome accents can be found on the buttons for the S Bar and Turbo Battery + feature, a thin strip surrounding the touchpad, and the mouse button.

The MSI X460DX should slide easily into a medium-sized purse or messenger bag. At 4.4 pounds, the X460DX is lighter than competitors such as the 4.6-pound Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TG-6847, the Dell Inspiron 14z (also 4.6 pounds), and the 4.8-pound ASUS U41Jf-A1. The 13.4 x 9.4 x 1-inch MSI is a hair smaller than the 13.3 x 9.8 x 1.1-inch ASUS, as well as the Inspiron 14z (13.6 x 9.7 x 0.9 inches) and the Acer 4820TG (13.5 x 9.6 x 1.1 inches).

Keyboard and Touchpad

Cramped is the first word that came to mind when we started using the X460DX's island-style keyboard. We immediately noticed the undersized Backspace, Enter, and right Shift keys. Although we got firm feedback from the flat black keys, their small size made for an error-ridden typing experience. It's a shame that MSI didn't think to make use of the inch of space surrounding the keyboard and extend the deck about a half inch to give the keyboard room to breathe.

In contrast to the cramped keyboard, the 3.1 x 1.7-inch touchpad gave us plenty of real estate to navigate the desktop and use multitouch gestures. The palm rest was warm but comfortable, as was the slightly raised texture of the touchpad. Pinch-to-zoom, two-finger scrolling, and rotation gestures on the Elan Smart-Pad were rapid and accurate. The button beneath, a silver plastic bar, was stiff, but it loosened up with continued use.

Display and Audio

Images on the MSI X460DX's 14-inch glossy 1366 x 768-pixel display were bright and vivid. Watching the camera pan over Brett Reid's enviable classic car collection in The Green Hornet DVD was awe-inspiring. Brilliant blues, reds, and yellows caught and held our attention, but the deep rich black of the Black Beauty car stole the show. Explosions were big and bright, but appeared slightly washed out against the night sky. Wide viewing angles meant that we were able to watch movies with a couple of friends without everyone having to crowd the notebook.

Despite the adjustments for dialogue and music via the THX TruStudio Pro Settings software, audio sounded a bit tinny on the RealTek High Definition Audio speakers. With the speakers at full volume, we were able to fill up a small room, but sound did get a bit distorted. Jack White's vocals and guitar sounded tinny as we listened to "Seven Nation Army." Nicki Minaj and Rihanna fared slightly better on "Fly," but the bass was weak and Rihanna's vocals sounded a little distorted at maximum volume.

Heat

After we ran a full-screen Hulu video for 15 minutes, the X460's touchpad measured a reasonable 89 degrees Fahrenheit. The space between the G and H keys was a little cooler at 86 degree, but the notebook's underside measured an uncomfortable 106 degrees, 11 degrees above what we consider acceptable (95 degrees).

Ports and Webcam

On the right side of the notebook sit a USB 2.0 port, a 2-in-1 card reader, a headphone jack, a microphone jack, a DVD player, and a secure lock. Two USB 3.0 ports, a Gigabit Ethernet port, HDMI, and a VGA port are located on the left.


The X460DX comes equipped with a 1.3-megapixel BisonCam NB Webcam. While MSI did not include proprietary software for the webcam, it can operate with a number of third-party video chat programs including GChat, ooVoo, and Skype. During a Skype session, our caller reported a clear image with sharp details with loud, clear audio.

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