ASUS, Acer, Dell, Now MSI: The Core Ultra 200HX Plus Laptop Race Heats Up

MSI has rolled out a massive update to its gaming laptop lineup, spanning several series — Raider, Stealth, Titan, Crosshair, and Cyborg. In total, over a dozen configurations have been announced, with screen sizes ranging from 15 to 18 inches. The key change is in the CPU department, with eight flagship models getting the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus from the Arrow Lake-HX Plus family.

The devices getting the new chip include the Crosshair 16 Max HX E2WGXK, Raider 16 Max HX B2WJ, Raider 16 Max HX B2WI, Raider 18 Max HX A2WJ, Raider 18 Max HX A2WI, Stealth 18 HX A2WI, Stealth 18 HX AI A2XWHG, and Titan 18 HX A2WJ. In all cases, graphics are handled by the latest-gen NVIDIA GeForce RTX GPUs — all the way up to the top-tier mobile RTX 5090. The only exception is the Crosshair 16 Max HX E2WGXK, whose specs list the 12GB version of the GeForce RTX 5070.

Beyond the top-tier models, MSI also showed off more affordable variants of the Crosshair 16 HX. These are based on previous-gen Core i7-14650HX or Core i9-14900HX processors and come with GeForce RTX 5050, RTX 5060, or RTX 5070 graphics with 8GB of memory. This combo helps keep the final price down while still keeping the laptop firmly in the gaming segment.

The 15-inch Cyborg series deserves a special mention — here, MSI stuck to a minor visual refresh, leaving the internals on par with last year's models. We're talking about three versions: the Cyborg 15 Max, C2WG Cyborg 15 C2WF, and Cyborg 15 C2WE. Essentially, it's a redesign of already familiar entry-level devices. Earlier, MSI refreshed its Prestige laptop lineup and introduced a new flagship gaming laptop series, the Titan 16 MAX.

The manufacturer hasn't provided any info on release dates or recommended pricing just yet. When these new models will hit store shelves and how much they'll cost will be announced later.

What do you think — how much more expensive will laptops with Intel Core Ultra 200HX Plus be compared to the previous generation? Drop your thoughts in the comments.