MSI fuses Japanese craft, luxury partnerships in 2025 laptop range

MSI has introduced a series of new laptops, handheld gaming devices, and collaborative product lines at the 2025 Computer Show at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, with a focus on design, technology partnerships, and future product innovation.

One of the highlights at the event is the Prestige 13 AI+ Ukiyo-e Edition, created in collaboration with Japanese lacquerware company OKADAYA. This laptop fuses traditional Yamanaka lacquer artistry, a craft with more than 400 years of history, with AI-enabled computing. The Prestige 13 AI+ Ukiyo-e Edition received a COMPUTEX Best Choice Award in the Computer & System category. The device's outer design features Katsushika Hokusai's "The Great Wave off Kanagawa," showcasing the intersection of classic Japanese art and modern consumer technology. The collaboration underscores a shared commitment to combining visual artistry with performance hardware.

Building on the Artisan Collection, MSI announced that a further series reflecting the mix of craftsmanship and emerging technology will be shown at the event, continuing this approach of integrating heritage art with advanced laptop capabilities.

Two special editions have been introduced as part of MSI's ongoing partnership with Mercedes-AMG Motorsport: the Stealth A16 AI+ and Prestige 16 AI+ Mercedes-AMG Motorsport models. The Stealth A16 AI+ is available in both AMD and Intel configurations and features an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 series laptop GPU, alongside a premium display panel. The Prestige 16 AI+ includes an Intel CPU with a 4K OLED panel. Both devices incorporate exclusive branding and AMG design patterns, and come with a bundle of co-branded accessories including a sleeve, mouse, and mousepad, aimed at customers looking for luxury in their gaming products.

The success at the Best Choice Awards for the Titan 18 HX Dragon Edition Norse Myth, which secured the Gold award in the Gaming & Entertainment category, has been seen as a boost to these launches. This follows MSI's trend of combining advanced hardware with thematic design influences.

The handheld gaming portfolio from MSI has also expanded with the launch of the Claw 8 AI+ and the new Claw A8. The Claw 8 AI+, which was introduced in late 2024, has received recognition at the COMPUTEX Best Choice Awards and is joined by the Polar Tempest Edition. This model is powered by the Intel Core Ultra 7 processor 258V and is equipped with a 2TB NVMe SSD. It features a white finish with a UV coating.

The Claw A8, meanwhile, is based on AMD's Ryzen Z2 Extreme Processor and uses LPDDR5-800 memory. It features an 8-inch FHD+ 120Hz touchscreen and an expanded range of I/O ports, with a flexible approach to platform options between AMD and Intel-based devices.

Both Claw handhelds will be available in multiple colour options to enable further user personalisation in the growing handheld gaming market.

MSI further announced its integration of the upcoming RTX 50 series graphics processors into its flagship laptops, including the Crosshair and Cyborg series. The company displayed comparisons of the new GPU's AI capabilities and graphical performance against the previous RTX 40 series, using the Raider A18 HX as a benchmark for these improvements.

In addition to gaming-focused hardware, MSI unveiled next-generation concepts for its business and productivity laptops. These new laptops introduce a thinner, more minimalistic design, as little as 13.9mm, and will be available in 2-in-1 "Flip" and standard clamshell forms. Premium OLED screens with stylus support and an emphasis on full-day battery life were cited as key features, with the hardware targeting compatibility with Intel's forthcoming Panther Lake processor platform.

The company emphasised its "…unwavering commitment to design, performance, and partnership innovation. From artisan collections to new handhelds, MSI pushes boundaries. Beyond its current impressive products, MSI is shaping the future with new Business & Productivity and Gaming Series laptop designs for the next generation, promising more exciting developments. Looking ahead, MSI's design vision embraces absolute visual consistency and elegant aesthetics, presenting 'Fluid Beyond Boundaries, Infinite Possibilities.'"

Technical specifications provided for the main products show upgrades in processor choices, display technology, graphics capabilities, security features, and battery capacity across the new laptops and gaming devices. For example, the Prestige 13 AI+ Ukiyo-e Edition supports up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 288V processor, 32GB RAM, and a 2.8K OLED display, weighing in at 990g. The Stealth A16 AI+ Mercedes-AMG Motorsport variant features an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 GPU, 96GB memory capacity, a 16-inch QHD+ 240Hz panel, and weighs 2.1kg.

The Prestige 16 AI+ Mercedes-AMG Motorsport is powered by up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 288V processor, a 16-inch 4K OLED panel, and up to 32GB of RAM, while the new Claw 8 AI+ Polar Tempest Edition and Claw A8 offer options between Intel and AMD processors, with 8-inch FHD+ displays running at 120Hz.