MSI Claw vs Steam Deck: Is the MSI Claw Worth It?

CES 2024 has brought us news of the MSI Claw: a new addition to the oft-undervalued handheld games console market. Though the full release of this new handheld is still in the future, its reveal has pundits debating as to whether Valve’s flagship Steam Deck may be about to be dethroned. We’ve put the two under the microscope and put these handheld consoles head-to-head: MSI Claw vs Steam Deck.

Though the Steam Deck has had time to be stress-tested since release, all we currently have to go on for the MSI Claw are the specifications announced at CES 2024. They can still tell us a great deal about MSI’s handheld, however, so let’s break down not only what’s different about these two consoles, but equally what’s similar…

In the interest of fairness, we’ll be using the best possible specifications for both handheld consoles. There are several iterations of both either due to be released or currently on the market, so we want to compare which is the best in the best-case scenario.

MSI Claw vs Steam Deck: At a Glance

MSI Claw vs Steam Deck: Specs Comparison

The initial reaction to the MSI Claw’s reveal included some disappointment, in part due to the preemptive leak that spoiled a great many of the design specifications, but also because on a surface level this handheld doesn’t seem to be a large upgrade on the Steam Deck. But let’s take a closer look:

Processor

The MSI Claw employs an INTEL Core Ultra 7 155H split-core SKU, whilst the Steam Deck runs on a 6nm AMD APU processor. Neither of these cores has been truly put through their paces yet, but the latest Steam Deck CPU runs a lot smoother and cooler than previous models. The Core Ultra 7 is comparable in performance on paper, though INTEL cores have a reputation for being less energy efficient than their competitors.

Graphics

The combination of INTEL Arc Graphics with an INTEL processor should make for a more optimized graphical experience than the Steam Deck, as a 6nm AMD graphics processor is a decent but not overwhelming improvement. INTEL integration also purports to utilize XeSS AI-powered upscaling similar to the latest versions of DLSS that can be found on brand-new NVIDIA GPUs. The potential of this technology on graphics is exciting, if untested, and could give the MSI Claw a visual edge.

Screen Resolution

Speaking of visuals, it’s important to note that the big draw of the latest Steam Deck models is the use of OLED over LCD screens. MSI describe their 7″ touchscreen as having “exceptional color reproduction and smooth action”, and with a higher refresh rate and resolution than the Steam Deck OLED, this very well could be the better screen – though the Steam Deck’s is slightly larger.

Memory

As mentioned during our breakdown of the MSI Claw specifications, leaks posited that the Claw would have a whopping 32GB of virtual memory on release. This turned out not to be the case for the initial release, and both the Steam Deck and Claw have 16GB of RAM. This should still be sufficient for most AAA games, though it remains to be seen how they compare hands-on.

Storage

Similarly, both the MSI Claw and Steam Deck OLED have a whole terabyte of storage in the top-tier model. With game filesizes growing with each passing year, this is definitely a welcome amount of storage – rivaling that of full-size consoles such as the PlayStation 5.

Battery Life

The battery is where the MSI Claw claims to pull ahead of the competition: with a 53WHr battery that purports to allow 2 hours of continuous play at full power. With the major appeal of a handheld games console being portability, this higher battery life would be a major bonus.

Operating System

A huge drawback to modern handheld consoles has been their stability: both the ASUS ROG Ally and Steam Deck have been known to crash frequently, and Valve’s Linux-based SteamOS still has issues running. Though it remains to be seen, the MSI Claw running on 64-bit Windows 11 is a step in the right direction for crash prevention and should lend better compatibility with other programs and mods.

Price

The top-tier MSI Claw price currently listed is $799, with a $100 cheaper option offering a downgraded CPU and storage. This is still more expensive than the top bracket of Steam Deck, which has an RRP of $649. That said, the MSI Claw is literally brand-new, so it will be interesting to see how the price fluctuates pre-and-post-launch.

Steam Deck OLED Performance: Is it Better?

The main upgrade in the Steam Deck OLED model comes in the new 6nm AMD graphics processor, as opposed to the 7nm on the LCD variants. The upgrade may not seem huge, but it has had an impact on performance. The OLED version now has a megatransfers-per-second rate of 6400, up from 5500MT/s on the LCD. This overall means an additional 5-10% extra bandwidth, varying depending on the game and settings. Though it isn’t anything to brag about, the initial Steam Deck performance was already very strong – and it’s only gotten stronger.

Is the MSI Claw Worth it?

Though it’s met with an initially chilly reception amongst handheld gaming enthusiasts, we think you should keep an eye on the MSI Claw. We can only talk about it in hypotheticals at present, but the Claw has the potential to be a longer-lasting and more stable competitor to the ASUS ROG Ally. As with everything here, it’ll be hard to gauge until we get our hands on it, but we see the promise of this handheld games console!

Handheld vs Console: Which Should You Buy?

There has been a recent surge in great handheld consoles, which allow for portable, pocket-sized PC games. With all of the benefits of a full-fledged console such as dedicated gaming components and an ergonomic control scheme along with PC benefits such as game mods, it’s an appealing package. However, the battery life on these handheld peripherals is often quite short, something you don’t have to worry about with a console, and they can be prone to software issues and crashes. For comfort and portability, go for a handheld console. For guaranteed performance, opt for a console.

In Summary

It is early days for the MSI Claw, and we’re not too keen to dismiss it out-of-hand until we get the chance to try it for ourselves. Though the specifications may be disappointing to some, it has some useful quality-of-life features and improvements that we think could give it the edge over the Steam Deck OLED. We’ll be covering the updates on the MSI Claw as they come, so be sure to keep updated with us!