MSI X340 hands-on review

We’re seeing more and more emphasis on portability and design on laptops are these days, with the likes of Apple’s MacBook Air and Samsung’s X-series leading the way when it comes to ultra thin models. MSI’s X340 is the latest laptop to offer an incredibly thin design, but undercuts its rivals on price.

We’ve had an MSI X340 in the office for the past couple of days, and although we haven’t got the chance to have a full play with it yet, first impressions are particularly informative.

The X340’s 13.3-inch screen is stunning, offering vivid and bright colour reproduction, and sharp images. It doesn’t have the highest resolution we’ve seen on an ultraportable – at 1366 x 769 pixels – but it falls in line with most rivals.

Those that hate Apple’s MacBook Air because of its lack of ports will also struggle to find favour with the X340, although it doubles the Air’s USB count to two. As with its key rivals, an optical drive is omitted, although there is a memory card reader, and a VGA and HDMI-out for hooking up analogue and digital displays.

First impressions of the keyboard reveal a responsive but slightly spongy typing action, lacking the quality of its more expensive rivals. The chassis itself is amazingly thin, at 21mm, and a weight of 1.4kg is also highly portable, although the whole unit feels slightly flimsy in the hand. There’s no doubting it’s one of the more portable laptops we’ve seen, though.

To find out how we get on with the MSI X340 over the next couple of weeks, and to see how it comes in daily life, along with full pricing, check back here for a full review.