MSI Vector 17 HX AI A2XW (2025) 17" (Ultra 9 275HX / RTX 5080 Laptop / 32GB RAM / 2TB) VS MSI Vector 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) 18"

Both the MSI Vector 17 HX AI A2XW (2025) and the MSI Vector 18 HX AI A2XW (2025) are gaming laptops with similar features in terms of design, but there are a few key differences. The MSI Vector 17 HX weighs 3000 g, while the MSI Vector 18 HX is slightly heavier at 3600 g. This difference in weight may be noticeable when handling the devices, with the larger model being 600 g heavier.

In terms of physical dimensions, the MSI Vector 18 HX is larger overall, with a width of 404 mm, a height of 307 mm, and a thickness of 24 mm, compared to the MSI Vector 17 HX's width of 380 mm, height of 297 mm, and thickness of 22 mm. The MSI Vector 18 HX's larger volume (2976.672 cm³) also reflects its bigger build, compared to the 2482.92 cm³ volume of the MSI Vector 17 HX.

Both models share common features like having a backlit keyboard and not using a fanless design. Neither model is weather-sealed (splashproof) or has a rugged build, which means they are both not designed for extreme environmental conditions.

Both the MSI Vector 17 HX and MSI Vector 18 HX feature an 18″ display with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 px, ensuring high-definition visuals. However, the MSI Vector 17 HX offers a slightly higher pixel density at 177 ppi, compared to the 167 ppi of the MSI Vector 18 HX. This difference means that the display on the 17 HX may appear marginally sharper.

Both laptops utilize an LCD, LED-backlit, IPS display, providing wide viewing angles and vibrant colors. Neither model includes a touchscreen or anti-reflection coating, so they both share the same limitations in those areas.

In terms of refresh rate, both models support a fast 240Hz refresh rate, ensuring smooth visuals during fast-paced gaming or video playback. Additionally, both laptops support up to four external displays, offering plenty of connectivity options for multitasking or extended viewing.

The MSI Vector 17 HX and MSI Vector 18 HX both offer high-performance configurations, with some notable differences in their specifications. The MSI Vector 17 HX is equipped with 32GB of RAM, while the MSI Vector 18 HX comes with a larger 64GB of RAM. Both models feature RAM speeds of 6400 MHz and utilize DDR5 memory, though the 18 HX has a clear advantage in the amount of memory available for demanding tasks.

In terms of CPU, both laptops are powered by an 8-core processor running at 2.7 GHz, with 16 threads clocked at 2.1 GHz. The CPU performance appears similar between the two, with both supporting multithreading and a turbo clock speed of 5.4GHz. They also share the same maximum memory capacity of 96GB. The primary difference lies in the GPU: the MSI Vector 17 HX has 16GB of VRAM, whereas the MSI Vector 18 HX is equipped with 24GB of VRAM, providing additional memory for graphics-intensive applications.

When it comes to GPU performance, the MSI Vector 17 HX has a floating-point performance of 23.04 TFLOPS, while the MSI Vector 18 HX offers 31.8 TFLOPS. The texture rate and pixel rate also differ, with the 18 HX achieving 496.9 GTexels/s and 193.9 GPixel/s, compared to the 17 HX's 384 GTexels/s and 144 GPixel/s. Both models feature an NVMe SSD with 2048GB of storage and are equipped with a GDDR7 GPU, with slightly higher GPU clock speeds and GPU turbo in the 18 HX (990 MHz and 1515 MHz) compared to the 17 HX (975 MHz and 1500 MHz). Both laptops also support DirectX 12 Ultimate and have PCIe version 4 compatibility.

Both the MSI Vector 17 HX and MSI Vector 18 HX achieve identical PassMark results, each scoring 56426. This indicates that in terms of overall benchmark performance, both models perform equally well across various tasks and workloads. Additionally, their single-threaded performance is also the same, with both laptops scoring 4723 in the PassMark single-thread test.

Since both models show identical performance scores, users can expect comparable processing power and efficiency when using either laptop, regardless of their choice.

The connectivity options for both the MSI Vector 17 HX and MSI Vector 18 HX are nearly identical. Both models feature two USB 3.2 Gen 2 USB-A ports, two USB 4 40Gbps ports, an HDMI output, and support for USB Type-C. They also both support Wi-Fi across multiple generations, including Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be), Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax), Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), and Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n), as well as Bluetooth version 5.4.

Each model also includes an external memory slot and AirPlay support, making them versatile for a variety of external device connections. However, neither model includes a USB 3.2 Gen 1 USB-C port or a Thunderbolt 3 port. Additionally, both laptops feature HDMI 2.1 ports, allowing for high-definition output.

Both models are similarly equipped with no RJ45 ports, no DisplayPort or mini DisplayPort outputs, and no VGA connector, so they do not provide traditional wired networking options or older display connectors. The connectivity specifications are identical across both products, offering strong and flexible options for most users.

The MSI Vector 17 HX and MSI Vector 18 HX have similar battery features, with both models offering sleep-and-charge USB ports for convenient charging while the laptop is in sleep mode. However, there is a difference in battery size: the MSI Vector 17 HX has a 90 Wh battery, while the MSI Vector 18 HX comes with a larger 99 Wh battery, providing potentially longer usage between charges.

Neither model is equipped with a MagSafe power adapter, so both laptops rely on other charging methods.

Overall, the battery specifications are close, with the main difference being the larger battery size in the MSI Vector 18 HX, which could offer a slightly extended battery life under similar usage conditions.

Both the MSI Vector 17 HX and MSI Vector 18 HX offer similar features, including stereo speakers, a 3.5 mm audio jack, support for ray tracing, and support for DLSS, making them both capable gaming laptops. They each have a front camera and are capable of recording video at 1080 x 30 fps. Neither model includes Dolby Atmos, a stylus, a fingerprint scanner, or voice commands, and both have one microphone.

The MSI Vector 17 HX offers 3D facial recognition, while the MSI Vector 18 HX does not include this feature. Additionally, both laptops lack certain sensors such as a gyroscope, GPS, accelerometer, and compass. Neither model includes an optical disc drive or an S/PDIF Out port.

Overall, the two products are quite similar in terms of features, with the main difference being the presence of 3D facial recognition on the MSI Vector 17 HX, which the MSI Vector 18 HX does not have.

The MSI Vector 17 HX and MSI Vector 18 HX share many similar features, with both laptops equipped with 2 Thunderbolt ports, Intel Resizable BAR support, and Blackwell GPU architecture. Both also have the same maximum RAM speed of 6400 MHz, and utilize big.LITTLE technology in their CPU designs. Additionally, both models have 256-bit memory bus widths and support ECC memory.

However, the MSI Vector 18 HX has a higher Thermal Design Power (TDP) at 95W compared to the 80W of the MSI Vector 17 HX, indicating a higher power consumption under load. The MSI Vector 18 HX also boasts more USB ports, offering 5 compared to the 4 ports on the MSI Vector 17 HX. Furthermore, the 18 HX features more render output units (ROPs) at 128, compared to the 96 ROPs on the 17 HX. Similarly, the 18 HX has more texture mapping units (TMUs) at 328, compared to 256 on the 17 HX, and its shading units are also higher at 10496 versus 7680 on the 17 HX.

Both laptops have similar other features such as CPU cache (36 MB L3, 40 MB L2), GPU memory speed (2000 MHz), and they both support multi-display technology and 3D. The CPU temperature is also the same at 105 °C, and both models include integrated graphics. Despite the differences in power and GPU specifications, the overall configurations of the two laptops are very similar.