MSI A6200 Laptop Review

The MSI A6200 Laptop is a fine entry level unit with sufficient performance for most novice and occasional users. A review of the performance in the first month of use shows that this unit can be more than suitable for even some more advanced users.

The only other piece of hardware we bought was a GE super mini mouse. It took me about 30 minutes to load on an antivirus program, Open office, Thunderbird email and a few other basics. Then we hooked the computer to a desktop external drive for backup.

What I found was that the computer easily performed virtually all of the small business functions I needed. My work consists of sending/receiving emails, accessing online cloud-based software packages and creating word/office documents. I uses the computer to listen to and participate in online webinars and share information with clients and users.

This laptop easily handled all those functions. Recently I plugged in my Plantronics headset to access skype and do video chats. The laptop performed well. I was easily able to converse with my counterpart without issue.

This laptop has some decent specs for an intermediate business user, home laptop or student. It is not for game players or anyone doing anything graphic intensive...for these types of applications the performance would be adequate but not great. For those who like to know more, there is a manual online for the MSI A6200 that you can download for free.

Size & Weight:

The is unit checks in with a 5.4 pound weight and dimensions of 14.7"x9.7"x1.2". The light weight is fantastic. The dimensions while offering some advantages (see aspect ratio under display and extended keypad) it was kind of a tight fit getting it to fit into our laptop case we used with our old Dell.

CPU:

The specs for the process reads as follows:

Processor: Intel Pentium P6100 / 2 GHz
Multi-Core Technology Dual-Core
64-bit Computing Yes
Data Bus Speed 1066 MHz
Chipset Type Mobile Intel HM55 Express\

For those who don't keep up on the latest technology, this is in line with the standard low to mid-level laptop. The important thing here is that it supports 64-bit computing. This means you can upgrade to the 64bit version of Windows 7 which offers some performance advantages. If you want to get a little more out of your PC, this may be a worth while upgrade.

Battery Life:

The battery is a BTY L74 6-cell Lithium ion Battery. The battery life is in line with or better than most models at this price point. I'm getting a little over 3 hours unplugged surfing the internet. About 3.5 to 4 plus without the internet.

Keyboard & Mouse pad

Keyboard is a chicklet style keyboard similar to what you get on Mac's. It took a tiny bit of getting used to but now I love the feel. The mousepad is responsive and easy to use...I'm just old school. I like having the mini mouse in my hand.

Memory/Disk:

Laptop comes standard with a 320 GB - Serial ATA-150 hard drive, (5400 RPM) 3GB DDR3 SDRAM upgradeable to 6GB and an 8X DVD+/-RW DL that allows you to read & write CD's & DVD's and view blu ray though I have not tried the blu ray feature. With this combo there is plenty of umph for a moderate user like me and it is nice to know that you can upgrade the memory to 6GB.

Display and Camera

With a 15.6" TFT LED backlight WXGA wide screen dispay (1366x768) it easily performs everything I'd ever need. We use the laptop for everything from Webinars online to letting the kid watch DVD's on road trips. A little extra bonus is that having the widescreen allows the form factor of the keyboard to be wide enough to fit in a 10-key pad on the side of the keyboard.

There is an integrated sound card, hi def speakers, microphone and camera. The resolution on the camera is 1.3MPixel... kind of wimpy or low end by today's standards. In line with a cell phone camera so this goes down as one of my minor beefs with this unit, not a very good camera.

Connectivity:

Supports a variety of standards including Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b/g/n. In a simple test in my house, the 802.11n Wi-Fi card produces a decent transfer rates of 46 and 24 Mbps at distances of around 50 feet from the Netgear wireless hub. These numbers are in line with other units I've tired.

One small rub and I have this a lot is that there are only 2 USB slots. For me that gets used up by the mouse and backup disk...meaning no place to plug in my memory stick. More of an irritation than a complaint as this is true with a great number of laptops as well.

Well we didn't tell you the price. We got this at Fry's on one of those super savers for just under $350. At this price point it was a great deal for us. The unit aside from a couple of small irritations, has terrific value/performance ratio.

Again it is a terrific unit for someone who needs something to do moderate business, or home computing or a starter student laptop. Works fine for in the car having kids watch videos and is light to carry around. Wouldn't recommend it if you want top of the line graphics processing or you are a high end gamer.