MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) 18" (Ultra 9 285HX / RTX 5080 Laptop / 64GB RAM / 4TB) VS MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) 18"

Both the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) share identical design specifications across the board. Both laptops are designed for gaming, with no significant differences in dimensions or weight. They both weigh 3600 g, have a volume of 2976.672 cm³, and are 404 mm wide, 307 mm high, and 24 mm thick.

In terms of features, both models lack a fanless design, include a backlit keyboard, and are not weather-sealed or ruggedly built. There are no distinctions between the two products when it comes to these aspects of their design.

Overall, the design specifications for both the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) are completely matched, with no differences in any of the listed criteria.

Both the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) feature identical screen sizes of 18″ and resolutions of 3840 x 2400 px. The pixel density is also the same for both models, at 251 ppi, providing a sharp visual experience.

In terms of display type, the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) uses a Mini-LED display, while the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) offers a combination of Mini-LED and LCD. This difference in display technology may affect factors like contrast and color reproduction, though both are high-quality display types.

Both models have a 120Hz refresh rate, a non-touchscreen display, and no anti-reflection coating. Additionally, both laptops support up to 4 external displays. Overall, the only distinction between the two is the display type, with the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) offering a mix of Mini-LED and LCD.

The MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) have several notable differences in their performance specifications. Both laptops come with 64GB of RAM, but the RAM speed differs: the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) has a faster 6400 MHz speed, compared to the 5600 MHz RAM speed of the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025).

In terms of storage, both laptops use flash storage and feature NVMe SSDs. The MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) offers a larger internal storage capacity of 4096GB, while the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) provides 2048GB. Both models support up to 96GB of maximum memory.

When it comes to CPU specifications, the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) has an 8-core processor running at speeds of 2.8 GHz and 16 cores at 2.1 GHz, totaling 24 threads. On the other hand, the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has a 16-core CPU running at 2.5 GHz, with 32 threads, offering a different processing structure. Additionally, the VRAM in the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) is higher at 24GB, compared to the 16GB in the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025). The two laptops also differ in floating-point performance, with the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) achieving 31.8 TFLOPS, while the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) reaches 23.04 TFLOPS.

The MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) show some variation in benchmark performance results. The MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) achieves a PassMark result of 58305, while the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has a slightly higher PassMark result of 61356.

In single-core performance, the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) scores 4629, while the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has a slightly lower single-core score of 4491. Although the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) performs better overall in the multi-core PassMark score, the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) has a marginally higher single-core score.

These benchmarks reflect a small overall performance difference, with the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) leading in the multi-core performance while the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) pulls ahead in single-core performance.

When it comes to connectivity, both the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) offer similar features, with a few key differences. Both laptops include USB 4 40Gbps ports (2 ports), USB Type-C support, and Wi-Fi support with the same Wi-Fi versions (Wi-Fi 7, Wi-Fi 6E, Wi-Fi 6, Wi-Fi 5, and Wi-Fi 4). Additionally, both support Bluetooth 5.4, have HDMI outputs (with HDMI 2.1), and feature an external memory slot.

In terms of USB ports, the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) has 3 USB 3.2 Gen 2 USB-A ports, while the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has only 1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 USB-A port. On the other hand, the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has 2 USB 3.2 Gen 1 USB-C ports, while the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) has none. Both models do not include any USB 2.0 ports or DisplayPort outputs, and neither has a VGA connector.

For Thunderbolt ports, the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has 2 Thunderbolt 4 ports, while the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) does not have any Thunderbolt ports. Overall, the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) offers more USB-C options and Thunderbolt 4 ports compared to the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025), which lacks these features.

In the battery category, both the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) share identical specifications. Both laptops are equipped with a 99 Wh battery, providing the same battery capacity for both models.

Additionally, both models feature sleep-and-charge USB ports, allowing users to charge devices even when the laptop is in sleep mode. Neither of the laptops includes a MagSafe power adapter.

Overall, the battery specifications for both the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) are exactly the same, with no differences in battery size or charging features.

The MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) are identical in terms of features. Both laptops are equipped with stereo speakers, a 3.5 mm audio jack, and support ray tracing and DLSS. Neither model includes Dolby Atmos, a stylus, or an optical disc drive.

In terms of biometric and security features, both models include a fingerprint scanner and use 3D facial recognition. They also have a front camera and a single microphone, but neither supports voice commands. The main camera on both laptops records at 1080 x 30 fps.

Both products lack several other sensors such as a gyroscope, accelerometer, compass, and GPS, and neither has an S/PDIF Out port. Overall, the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) offer the same set of features with no differences in this category.

In the miscellaneous specifications, both the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) and MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) share several similarities. Both have 5 USB ports, 2 Thunderbolt ports, and support multi-display technology. Additionally, they both have Blackwell GPU architecture, support 3D, and have integrated graphics. Both also use Intel Resizable BAR, support ECC memory, and offer a maximum memory bandwidth of 811.5 GB/s.

The key differences arise in the clock multiplier, where the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) has a multiplier of 28, compared to 25 in the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025). This reflects a slight difference in CPU performance scaling. The MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) also features a higher maximum RAM speed of 6400 MHz, compared to the 5600 MHz in the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025). The number of render output units (ROPs) is also higher in the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) at 128, compared to 96 in the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025). Similarly, the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has more texture mapping units (TMUs) at 328, versus 256 in the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025), and more shading units at 10496 compared to 7680.

Other differences include L3 cache size, with the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) featuring 36 MB, while the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) has a much larger 128 MB. The MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) also has a slightly lower CPU temperature of 100°C, compared to 105°C in the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025). The latter also has an unlocked multiplier, while the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) does not. Lastly, the MSI Raider 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) supports big.LITTLE technology, whereas the MSI Raider A18 HX A9W (2025) does not.