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MSI Raider A18 HX: Two-minute review
The MSI Raider A18 HX is a high-end, premium gaming laptop with a price point to match. Featuring some of the absolute best specifications on offer on the market right now, there’s no need to worry about low frame rates or poor game quality when sporting this titan of a machine.
You do get absolutely brilliant gaming performance on the MSI Raider A18 HX, however this is the expectation when it comes to a laptop at this price point. This device is by no means an option for those who are budget-conscious, however, but you get gaming performance like no other, a stunning 4K display, and a laptop which is future-proofed for years to come.
It does, however, come with some big flaws. Of course, you’d expect an 18-inch gaming laptop to be large, but this device really and truly is on another level in terms of both size and weight.
It’s a behemoth of a device which does have its perks, such as an immersive screen size and lots of ports, but on the other hand, it’s so large to a point I wouldn’t necessarily consider it portable. It also only features a 2TB SSD, which despite sounding large, will easily be filled with the size of AAA titles in this day and age.
MSI Raider A18 HX: Price and availability
- How much does it cost? $5,609.99 / £4,799
- When is it available? Available now
- Where can you get it? UK and US
The MSI Raider A18 HX is a top-of-the-line laptop in terms of performance and of course that comes with a matching price point. Coming in at over $5,000 for the highest specification edition of this laptop, this price point is not for the faint of heart. Considering the specifications of the laptop, the price point does make sense as similar options are around the same price point.
The Asus ROG Strix Scar 18, which also features a RTX 5090 graphics card and a larger SSD, will set you back $4,499.99 / £5,099.
You can currently get this laptop in the UK, US and other select regions across the world. However, it’s currently not available in Australia.
MSI Raider A18 HX: Specs
| Header Cell – Column 0 | Base configuration | Review configuration |
|---|---|---|
Model | Raider A18 HX A9WIG-003 | Raider A18 HX A9WJG-002 |
Price | $4,499.99 / £3,999 | $5,609.99 / £4,799 |
CPU | AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX3D Processor | AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX3D Processor |
GPU | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 |
RAM | 64GB DDR5 | 64GB DDR5 |
Screen | Mini LED, 18inch, 3840 x 2400p, 120Hz refresh rate | Mini LED, 18inch, 3840 x 2400p, 120Hz refresh rate |
Storage | 2TB SSD | 2TB SSD |
Ports | 3x USB-A, 2x USB-C, 1x SD Card reader, 1x HDMI, 1x Ethernet, 1x 3.5mm Audio Jack | 3x USB-A, 2x USB-C, 1x SD Card reader, 1x HDMI, 1x Ethernet, 1x 3.5mm Audio Jack |
Wireless | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 |
Camera | HD Camera (30fps, 1080p) | HD Camera (30fps, 1080p) |
Weight | 3.6kg | 3.6kg |
Dimensions | 404 x 307.5 x 24-32.05 mm | 404 x 307.5 x 24-32.05 mm |
The MSI Raider A18 HX is a top-end gaming device where you can either opt for the Nvidia RTX 5090 or Nvidia RTX 5080 graphics cards. While both of these provide high-level graphics performance, if you really want the best of the best in terms of specifications then of course the Nvidia RTX 5090 is the clear option.
All the other specs between these two devices are identical, so no matter which option you pick up, you’ll be getting a mighty processor as well as an almost excessive amount of RAM with 64GB at your disposal.
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MSI Raider A18 HX: Design
- Large and heavy
- 18-inch screen looks fantastic
- Plenty of ports
When first unboxing the MSI Raider A18 HX, all I could think was… woah. Weighing in at 3.6kg, this definitely isn’t the lightest of laptops, and pair this with the absolutely massive size measuring at 404 x 307.5 x 32.05 mm, this device is almost certainly too big for most laptop backpacks.
Being an avid collector of laptop bags, I tried it in a whole load of different bags, and the only thing I could fit this device in was a suitcase. This is definitely something to take note of if you’re planning to use a gaming laptop on the go.
Size aside, the laptop itself is very traditionally gamer-y in terms of style. You get red accents around the edge of the device as well as RGB on the logo and along the bottom bezel. Contributing to this aesthetic is the font of the keyboard, which is quite aggressive.
You get a stunning 18-inch screen with this laptop with a 3840 x 2400 resolution, perfect for playing AAA titles in 4K. However, for those who play competitive titles where frames win games – you also get a 120Hz refresh rate, ensuring you have the best of both worlds with this display.
The MSI Raider A18 HX features 3 USB-A ports, 2 USB-C ports and a headphone jack. You also get an ethernet port and HDMI port on the back of the device. While this is more than enough ports for a standard set up of gaming peripherals, you’ll likely need extenders if you’re hoping to run a full streaming setup.
MSI Raider A18 HX: Performance
- Can become unstable when battery drops too far
- Top-tier gaming performance
- Fans get loud
MSI Raider A18 HX: Benchmarks
3DMark: Night Raid: 80877 ; Fire Strike: 42898 ; Time Spy: 18448
GeekBench 6: 2867 (single-core); 12285 (multi-core)
CrossMark: Overall: 1578 Productivity: 1532 Creativity: 1851 Responsiveness: 1067
Total War: Warhammer III (1080p, Ultra): 203 ; (1080p, Low): 454
Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p, Ultra): 167 ; (1080p, Low): 198
Dirt 5 (1080p, Ultra): 306 ; (1080p, Low): 204
PCMark 10 Battery Life: 1hr 27mins
TechRadar movie test: 1hr 45mins
I did have some teething issues when first booting up the MSI Raider A18 HX. At first it was freezing frequently and at one point in the middle of benchmarking it completely froze and I needed to hold down the power button to shut it off. I realised the main issue was when the battery dropped below 10% – it became practically useless, even when I adjusted power saving settings to ensure the best performance.
I resorted to using the laptop plugged in the majority of the time because of the power draw, and risking dropping below 10% battery and having the entire system shut off was not a gamble I was willing to take – especially when playing online. However, when the laptop did work as intended, it was absolutely fantastic, I got top-tier performance from every single title I booted up in Ultra.
Whether I was running lower-intensity titles or AAA games, which did send the fans of the laptop into orbit, I was able to get amazing quality graphics and high frames every time.
It’s worth noting that – as with a lot of gaming machines of this calibre – it did get very hot and very loud quite quickly, with fans going full throttle as soon as I would boot up a game in 4K.
The speakers on the laptop are pretty good, while they of course don’t match headset-level quality, they are perfectly fine for gaming with.
However, if you’re looking for pinpoint-accurate directional audio, you won’t really find that from laptop speakers in general anyway, and should in vest in the best PC speakers.
MSI Raider A18 HX: Battery life
The battery life was the biggest let down of this laptop. Of course, most gaming laptops have a very high power draw since they contain some pretty intense components, but the MSI Raider A18 HX really was unbelievably low.
When playing AAA games at 4K, I got less than an hour out of the laptop before it would shut itself off. Considering the performance issue I experienced when reaching low battery levels, this rendered the device even more useless for portability.
In tune with the size of the laptop, you get an absolutely gigantic 400w charging brick which also contributes to the lack of portability. However, the perk of having such a big charging brick is that your laptop will charge back to full battery very quickly with mine going from 10% back to 100% in around an hour.
It’s clear that this laptop was designed to remain plugged in at all times, whether it’s due to the size of the device itself, the size of the charger or just the battery life in general. While it is a gaming laptop, it’s clearly one intended to remain stationary.
Should you buy the MSI Raider A18 HX?
Attributes | Notes | Value |
|---|---|---|
Value | 4 / 5 | Priced appropriately based on specs, the one downside here is the lack of availability in certain territories |
Design | 3 / 5 | Despite coming with a gorgeous chassis, it’s hard to look past just how big this laptop is which takes away from its portability. |
Performance | 4 / 5 | You get fantastic performance here which is let down when you get to lower battery percentages. |
Battery | 1 / 5 | The battery is a major letdown when it comes to this laptop to the point I wouldn’t even consider using it unplugged. |
Average rating | 3 / 5 | The MSI Raider A18 HX is huge and chugs through its battery, but there’s no faulting the level of performance for the price, even if it comes at the (literal) cost of everything else. |
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
MSI Raider A18 HX: Also Consider
How I tested the MSI Raider A18 HX
I spent two weeks using the MSI Raider A18 HX as my everyday laptop for work and leisure. I was sure to use the device all day for my typical work day, and then also used it for gaming in the evening. I took it on the go with me to different locations where I needed to work to see how it would feel outside of my workstation. As well as using it every day I also benchmarked the laptop using a range of different benchmarking software.
- First reviewed: June 2025
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