- New pre -ordering listings for MSI Claw A8 have appeared at European retailers online
- Prices suggest that Claw A8 costs just under $ 1,000 / £ 1,000, corresponding to Claw 8 AI+
- It can be a hard sale, in the same way as its Claw 8 AI+ counterpart
Handheld PC players are eagerly waiting for the debut of the AMDS Ryzen Z2 Extreme processor that promises improved portable game performance. Fortunately, the MSI Claw A8 is officially the first to be launched using the powerful chip, but early lists indicate an ugly price.
As reported by Videocardz, European retailers have pre -orders available to MSI Claw A8, with lists indicating a price tag in the same ballpark as the MSI Claw 8 AI+. At Alza.de it is available for € 976 (excluding tax, € 820). There are still no lists in the US or the UK, so it is not exactly what the final price tags will be – but all characters point to a price tag of just under $ 1,000 / £ 1,000.
Based on early benchmarks, Claw A8’s performance is very similar to the Claw 8 AI+’using Intel Core Ultra 7 258V processor. As clearly below (thanks to line technology on YouTube), Shadow of the Tomb Raider Has an average of 52FPS at 1080p on the Claw 8 AI+, while the Claw A8 has an average of 49 fps at 1080p on the same graphics settings.
Whether this comes down to the Claw A8S Ryzen Z2 Extreme is slightly weaker than the central Ultra 7 258V, or the former 24 GB of RAM (which is strange 16 GB RAM in the benchmark video) instead of 32 GB, it is not clear yet. However, it seems to be priced just a little under the MSI Claw 8 AI+ ($ 900 / £ 899 / AU $ 1,799) and it’s not a good look.
Analysis: If MSI Claw 8 AI+ to $ 899 is a hard sale, so is MSI Claw A8
After finally using the MSI Claw 8 AI+ (review soon), it is easily one of the best handhelds in this generation with solid game performance.
Unfortunately, however, it is still a very hard sale for $ 899 / £ 899 / AU $ 1,799. If the Claw A8 unless RAM with a potentially weaker processor for game performance is at the same price or only slightly cheaper, I doubt it will compete well on the handheld market.
Again, I must emphasize that there are no British or American lists for the MSI Claw A8, but the award at European retailers gives us a strong idea of what they could be. It is also worth noting that customs duties in China -are likely to affect pricing, which we have already seen with the MSI Claw 8 AI+, so it can place the new claw in a weaker position on the market.
While the steam deck OLED is a weaker handheld performance, it still offers enough for a fantastic portable gaming experience for $ 549 / £ 479 / AU $ 899. It is also in the same region as Asus Rog Ally for $ 649.99 / £ 599 (currently $ 449.99 for sale) using Ryzen Z1 Extreme.
If the Z2 Extreme doesn’t turn out to be a big leap from its predecessor I can’t see the new Claw A8 that outsourcing its Claw 8 AI+ COVER – especiallyIf there are problems with stock and accessibility.
