To expand its non-gaming laptop lineup, MSI first introduced the Summit business laptop series in 2020. The Prestige, Modern and Summit series have three distinct product lineups for consumer, business and productivity.
Similar to the Prestige lineup, MSI is updating the Summit series with new Intel Lunar Lake and AMD Ryzen AI “Strix Point” processors. As we discussed with the Prestige A16 AI+, these hardware updates bring significant improvements in performance and AI-powered productivity.
One big difference between the Prestige and Summit series is that the Summit comes in a 2-in-1 form factor, while the Prestige series focuses on portability.
I had the chance to see the MSI Summit A16 AI+ in Taipei, Taiwan during Computex, the massive annual computer expo that took place from June 3rd to 7th this year. The MSI Summit 16 AI+ Evo was enclosed under glass alongside the Intel Lunar Lake offerings. I've often wondered how the Summit line stacks up against the MSI Modern and MSI Prestige offerings, but after trying the Summit A16 I'm cautiously optimistic. But will this laptop be good enough to rank as one of the best business laptops when it launches later this year?
MSI Summit A16 AI+: Specifications
| price: | $1,699 |
| CPU: | AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 |
| graphic: | AMD Radeon Graphics |
| memory: | 32GB |
| storage: | 1TB |
| screen: | 16-inch QHD+ (2,560 x 1,600) 165Hz touchscreen IPS |
| battery: | 80.25 Whr (Watt-hours) |
MSI Summit A16 AI+: Price and Configuration
Similar to the Prestige, MSI is updating its Summit lineup with multiple configuration options. The only pricing and specs information available at this time is for the AMD-powered MSI Summit A16 AI+, which comes with an AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 processor, integrated Radeon graphics, 32GB of memory, 1TB of storage space, and a 16-inch QHD+ IPS touch display. This particular configuration is priced at $1,699.
Based on units viewable at Computex, it appears that the MSI Summit 16 AI+ Evo with Intel Core Ultra (“Lunar Lake”) processors and the MSI Summit A16 AI+ with AMD Ryzen AI (“Strix Point”) processors will retain the 16-inch design.
MSI plans to reveal additional configuration options closer to the laptops' launch, but the MSI Summit A16 AI+ is expected to launch in the third quarter of this year, while the MSI Summit 16 AI+ Evo is expected to launch in the fourth quarter.
MSI Summit A16 AI+: Design
The Prestige lineup focuses on offering a lightweight, portable chassis, while the Summit is a bit thicker to compensate for its 360-degree rotating hinge, but that's not the only difference between the two laptops.
The MSI Summit has contrast stripes on the sides of the keycaps and the edges of the trackpad to give it a slightly fancier look – these little details give the Summit a more “premium” feel compared to the rather plain and minimalist Prestige.
MSI Summit A16 AI+: Display
IPS displays generally aren't as vibrant or bright as OLED panels, but the MSI Summit A16 AI+ looked to excel on both fronts from what we saw at the show: the panel had less glare and colors were deep and expressive.
MSI claims the IPS panel has a 100% DCI-P3 rating, which is certainly the highest level for a laptop display, and while we'll have to wait until we can run the Summit A16 AI+ through our testing lab to provide a full display analysis, MSI has a strong track record when it comes to high-quality displays.
It's a touchscreen panel, naturally, and we didn't have much time to test the responsiveness of the touch controls, but it's rare for a touchscreen to fail to provide good input these days, so that's unlikely to be an issue with the Summit.
MSI Summit A16 AI+: Performance
This varies depending on the configuration, but any Summit A16 AI+ model can handle web browsing, photo or video editing, or any document management tasks that might come up while working.
As part of Microsoft's Copilot+ program, you'll also have access to a range of AI-powered tasks, including intelligent document summarization, image generation, and live captioning.
Of course, our final verdict on the Summit's performance will have to wait until we can take the laptop into our testing lab and run it through a battery of benchmarks and hands-on tests to render a full verdict.
Outlook
Whether you choose the AMD-powered A16 AI+ or the Intel-powered 16 AI+ Evo, the Summit series laptops have plenty of power. The biggest difference between the Summit and Prestige series is the design of the two laptops: the Prestige is a minimalist clamshell laptop, while the Summit is a 2-in-1 convertible.
So if you don't mind a slightly thicker chassis to accommodate the hinge and want the flexibility of a convertible design, the Summit is the way to go. Of course, there are convertible laptop options from other manufacturers, but for a completely accurate comparison of 2-in-1s, we'll have to wait until we get our hands on a review unit to properly determine which laptop is best. The best 2-in-1.
Travel and accommodation to and from Computex Tapei was covered by MSI, which did not verify the contents of this article prior to publication.
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