Reviewing the upgraded version of the MSI Titan GT77 series, which we previously reviewed last year. This new version comes with an i9 13th gen processor, RTX 4090 16 GB graphics card, 4K display, and 64 GB RAM, and costs $4,299.00.
Table of Contents
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Unboxing
Inside the MSI TITAN GT77 2023 box, you’ll find a sleek black and white box adorned with the MSI logo. Within this box lies a hefty black laptop box containing the essentials: a 330W charger and the laptop itself.
Upon opening the laptop proudly displays the MSI branding, exuding a premium aesthetic. While some may argue about the possibility of building a PC with similar specs, it’s important to note that the TITAN GT77 offers PC-level performance in a compact form factor.
Achieving this level of performance in a smaller design requires extensive research and development, contributing to the overall cost. Therefore, comparing the price of a PC to that of a laptop isn’t entirely fair, given the differences in form factor and engineering complexities.
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Specs
The MSI TITAN GT77 equipped with an Intel Core i9-13980 HX CPU boasting 24 cores and 32 threads, comprising 8 P cores and 16 E cores, this powerhouse offers unparalleled processing capabilities. With a base TDP ranging from 45 to 55W and a maximum of 157W under heavy load, it delivers PC-level performance with ease. The inclusion of an RTX 4090 16 GB graphics card, featuring a 175W TGP, ensures stunning visuals and seamless gaming experiences.
Accompanied by 64 GB DDR5 RAM clocked at 4000MHz, expandable up to 128 GB, this laptop offers ample memory for multitasking and intensive tasks. Its 4 TB GEN 5 SSD, boasting impressive read and write speeds of approximately 13,000 and 10,000 respectively, provides ample storage for all your files and applications. With three M.2 slots, including one GEN 5 and two GEN 4 supported, storage expansion options are plentiful. Connectivity is seamless with the latest WiFi 6E and Bluetooth version 5.3.
However, despite its premium price tag of $4,299.00, the absence of MS Office may be considered a notable drawback.
Design and Build
The MSI TITAN GT77 2023 boasts a sleek metal finish throughout its entirety, including the top lid adorned with the distinctive MSI logo. Notably, the top lid features additional cuts for a unique aesthetic touch. RGB lighting adorns the back area, enhancing the laptop’s visual appeal. Despite its sturdy build, minimal flex is observed, ensuring durability and longevity. The interior also sports a metal build, with negligible keyboard flex, further contributing to its robust construction.
The bottom area is designed for efficient air intake, housing four fans – two small and two large – to facilitate optimal thermal management. Air exhaust vents are strategically positioned on the left, right, and back sides, ensuring effective heat dissipation. Weighing in at 3.3 kg, or approximately 5 kg with the charger included, this laptop is undeniably hefty. However, this weight is justified by the robust thermal system necessitated by the powerful hardware components, including the 20-processor GPU. With a focus on proper airflow prioritizes performance and reliability.
Keyboard and Trackpad
The MSI TITAN GT77 2023 features a full-sized keyboard equipped with Cherry MX low-profile mechanical switches, a notable inclusion for a laptop. The keyboard produces satisfying mechanical sound, enhancing the typing experience.
Powered by SteelSeries, users can customize per-key RGB lighting through the SteelSeries software, allowing for personalized aesthetics. Additionally, the trackpad is generously sized, offering smooth operation and support for multi-gestures fully clickable and responsive, it provides a comfortable navigation experience.
Positioned on the right side is a fast and efficient fingerprint sensor, offering quick access to the laptop’s functionalities. Moreover, the MSI TITAN GT77 boasts Face Unlock support with Windows Hello, ensuring swift and secure access upon opening the laptop.
It boasts per-key RGB lighting that can be personalized using the SteelSeries software. This allows users to customize the RGB lighting across various components of the laptop, including the keyboard, logo, and air vents. The vibrant RGB lighting adds a stylish touch, particularly in low-light environments.
With the SteelSeries software, users have access to a plethora of customization options and effects for the RGB lighting. They can create customized effects, assign different colors to different zones, and even customize individual keys on the keyboard. Additionally, the software offers pre-built templates for convenient customization.
Display
And since we have a flagship-level laptop, the display is also flagship-level. MSI Titan GT77 has a 17.3-inch 4K UHD display with a resolution of 3840 x 2160, and it has a 16:9 aspect ratio. This is an IPS-level display, and as I have mentioned before, the IPS term is trademarked by LG and Philips. Therefore, laptops use IPS-level so that they don’t have to spend extra money.
This display is a mini-LED panel, and its colors are excellent, and the display is very vibrant. It boasts a 100% DCI-P3 color gamut, which means we can perform color accuracy tasks, photo and video editing with great accuracy. MSI titan gt77 also has a 144 Hz refresh rate, which is great for gaming because the GPU is very powerful. We even get 100 FPS in 4K gaming, which I will show you in the gaming test.
You can enjoy 144 Hz to the fullest. It has a brightness of 1000 nits, which is suitable for indoor use, but I have also used it outdoors, and it has an anti-glare panel, which makes it easy to see even in bright sunlight. Additionally, the display is VESA certified, and it has HDR support, so you can watch HDR content on OTT and YouTube for an amazing experience. It has a contrast ratio of 100,000:1, so the black color is truly black. We have been testing it for the past month and have watched all types of content on it. It has a flagship-level display, and you will enjoy it a lot.
Ports
And in terms of ports as well, we have a power input port on the left side that looks like a USB port. Then we have two USB 3.2 GEN 2 Type-A ports, a full-sized SD card slot, and a headphone/mic jack combo. On the right side, there is an RJ45 LAN port, an HDMI 2.1 port that supports 8K 60Hz display externally or 4K 144Hz, and you can check online for the maximum resolution supported in different versions. There is also a mini display port, two Thunderbolt 4 ports, and a USB 3.2 GEN 2 Type-A port. So, in msi titan gt77 are no issues in terms of ports. As they are Thunderbolt 4 ports, they support power delivery, 100W running laptops so it will charge slowly. It will also support 65W, but the laptop needs to be in sleep mode for charging. Not in running state.
As a flagship laptop released in 2023, the MSI TITAN GT77 comes equipped with a MUX switch, allowing users to toggle between different display output modes. This modes include Discrete graphics mode, Hybrid mode, and Integrated graphics mode, all accessible through the MSI Center software. Discrete mode is recommended for optimal performance, while Integrated mode conserves battery life by utilizing the IGPU for display rendering instead of the dedicated graphics card.
Additionally, the laptop features two Thunderbolt ports capable of providing display output. With HDMI and mini DisplayPort connections, users can achieve a maximum output resolution of 4096, facilitating connectivity with up to four external displays simultaneously.
Webcam
And now, let’s move on to the webcam and mic test. The webcam has a resolution of 720P, and considering the price of the laptop, I was expecting a 1080P webcam. As for the light control, it seems to work well.
Speakers and Mic
It has flagship-level speakers. There are two down-firing speakers, each with a power of 2W, as well as two top-firing woofers on the left and right sides of the keyboard, resulting in excellent sound quality. The sound system is powered by Dynaudio, which adds to the overall audio experience.
Performance and Benchmarks
The Cinebench R23 scores are 32000 multicore and 2049 single core. We also have the Geekbench 6 scores and the Crossmark scores, which display productivity and creativity levels that can be compared with other laptops. Of course, there are no laptops in this price range that can compare.
| MSI Titan GT77 CINEBENCH R23,200 | Scores |
|---|---|
| CPU (Multi Core) | 32398 pts |
| CPU (Single Core) | 2049 pts |
| MP Ratio | 15.81 x |
| MSI Titan GT77 GEEKBENCH | Scores |
|---|---|
| CPU (Multi Core) | 15984 |
| CPU (Single Core) | 2600 |
| MSI Titan GT77 Blender Benchmark | Scores |
|---|---|
| GPU | 8183.91 |
These are the Blender benchmark scores, which are approximately 8100. With this laptop, you can run programs like After Effects, 3D modelling, rendering, and architecture, blindly, and with ease. These are the 3D Mark Time Spy scores, which are fully excellent.
It performance outstanding CPU and GPU scores, achieving a remarkable PC Mark score of 8800. It excels across various tasks, from productivity to gaming and streaming, thanks to its powerful Intel 13th generation processor. Featuring both P cores and E cores, the processor dynamically adjusts its workload allocation based on the task at hand. P cores handle performance-centric tasks, while efficiency cores come into play for everyday multitasking and battery-powered operations, ensuring efficient performance and extended battery life.
The hybrid architecture of the Intel Raptor Lake processor effectively manages thermals, enhancing overall system stability. Additionally, equipped with a 16 GB RTX 4090 GPU with 175W power, this laptop effortlessly handles demanding productivity applications such as 4K video editing, After Effects, game development, and 3D modeling. Whether you’re considering a laptop instead of building a PC or prioritizing portability, the MSI TITAN GT77 2023 offers an ideal solution.
Gaming Performance
Now, have a look at the MSI Titan GT77 2023 game tests. I have tested games in 4K resolution because we have a 4090 graphics card. Firstly, we tested Valorant on high settings and 4K resolution. At 2160P resolution, I am getting 350-400 FPS, and it is drawing almost 80W power, yet the temperature is below 80 degrees. You can get an idea about its thermals, and titan gt77 GPU is also drawing 160-170W power, yet it is having a temperature of 66 degrees. The fan is very loud on cooler boost mode, but the gaming performance is really good.
We then tested Call of Duty 2.0 on 2160P resolution, and the settings preset was set to extreme but with no upscaling and DLSS. On 2160P resolution, I am getting 80-90 FPS, and we are getting amazing gameplay. It is drawing approximately 175W power, and the temperatures are not that high. The CPU is also drawing 80-85W power, and we are getting 70-90 FPS. We then tested the same settings and resolution, but the DLSS was set to quality. Because it is a 4K 144Hz panel, we need higher FPS for more enjoyment. So, we started to get 120-130 FPS after setting the DLSS to quality. If you want to set up an external monitor, we tested it on 1440P with DLSS set to quality, and there was no effect on the quality. I was getting the same 120-130 FPS, so this laptop is a beast in terms of performance.
Then we tested GTA V on 4K resolution and very high settings, and we were getting 150-160 FPS. The thermals are also good, and temperatures are under 80 degrees. We then tested Far Cry 6 on ultra preset, and the resolution was 4K, and Fidelity FX was turned off, so there was no upscaling method. On 4K and ultra preset, I was getting 80-90 FPS. Just keep in mind that this was 4K resolution. You must have noticed that 16 GB graphics card was not utilized in any game until now. In this game also, we were getting 8-8.5 GB.
Next, we tested Forza Horizon 5, and this was tested on Ultra preset by mistake. I wanted it to be on extreme, but you can see that on ultra, we are getting 100+ FPS on 4K resolution. The temperatures are also shown on the screen. This laptop gives flagship-level performance, but it also has a flagship price.
We then tested RDR 2 on ultra preset. Everything was set to favor quality, and DLSS was off. On DLSS off and full resolution, we were getting 80 FPS. It is drawing approximately 175W power, which means the performance is really good, but the graphics card memory used is only 8 GB. The RAM being consumed is around 16-17 GB.
We also tested Spiderman Miles Morales with DLSS set to quality, and the settings were set to very high. Ray tracing was on and set to very high. After enabling ray tracing, we are getting 80-90 FPS in 4K resolution during combat. All the stats are shown on the screen. We then kept the same settings with DLSS off, and even the ray tracing was off, and still, I was getting 70-90 FPS.
Battery
When it comes to battery life, the MSI Titan GT77 boasts a 99.9Whr battery, reaching the maximum capacity allowed for a laptop battery due to flight regulations. During basic usage, such as video playback or multitasking, it provides approximately 4 hours of battery backup. This aligns with expectations, considering the robust CPU with a base TDP of 45W. However, activating battery saver mode and running fewer applications can extend the battery life, even while operating in high-performance mode.
Conclusions
The MSI GT TITAN 77 2023 featuring a 13th GEN processor and a 4000 series Nvidia GPU, currently priced at $4,299.00, subject to change in the future.
Who is this laptop designed for? Firstly, it’s for individuals considering building a PC with similar performance at this price point. Secondly, its portability makes it suitable for users who require mobility. Unlike a PC setup, you can easily transport this laptop, complete with its display, keyboard, and mouse. The inclusion of a 4K 144Hz display, a flagship feature, adds to its value, albeit at a higher cost. Despite housing high-end components, the laptop maintains good thermals, thanks to its efficient thermal system, including four fans, additional heat pipes, and a well-designed chamber, further contributing to its price.
However, it’s essential not to directly compare it to a PC, as similar performance can be achieved with a desktop setup. The MSI Titan GT77 laptop targets professionals in fields such as architecture, 3D modeling, and game development, as well as frequent travelers who require on-the-go productivity and gaming capabilities. Therefore, investing in portability comes with a cost, as users must carry a 3.25 kg laptop for gaming and productivity anywhere they go.
