Briefly about the main thing:
CX500 embodies the classic budget notebook series ideas MSI... The buyer who chooses this laptop should first of all pay attention to the design and rather rich configuration of the device, which is a pleasant surprise for a laptop at such a low price.
But is there enough performance for a budget solution from MSI? We will consider these questions in this review.
Equipment:
There is nothing superfluous in the complete set of the laptop box. In addition to the device itself in the box, we can find:
- Charger
- Li-ion battery
- Documentation
- Disks (they contain software and drivers for installing an operating system on a laptop Windows)
- Operating system Linux
(Click on the pictures to enlarge them)
Appearance:
Housing
When choosing a budget laptop, you should not rely on an original design, but not in this case: MSI CX500 looks stylish and no-nonsense. I would like to note that the build quality of the laptop is made with high quality, which is important. The body of the device is made of black and gray plastic, the top panel is coated with a glossy color effect. The laptop weighs 2.48 kg with a lithium-ion battery, which means it's easy to carry around. The case is sturdy, and the sturdy hinges hold the screen in place, which can even be opened 180o and locked into position. The display is well made and stylish: it is framed by a narrow matte bezel, and the display itself is glossy with a diagonal of 15.6 "and a resolution 1366x768... The screen has a high brightness, but the viewing angles are a little disappointing. In the upper part of the screen there is a peephole of a 1.3 megapixel camera, and next to it is a microphone.
Keyboard and touchpad
Keyboard and touchpad on the operating panel MSI CX500 made non-standard for laptops: the speakers are brought out to the front edge of the case, as a result of which all the manipulators are shifted upward as much as possible, which made it possible to make a comfortable and large touchpad with large control buttons. The keyboard is full-fledged with a numeric pad, which is already standard for wide-format laptops. The keyboard keys are painted with a matte, non-slip coating for pleasant typing without mistakes. The buttons are pressed clearly without misfires, but when working in a text editor they create a characteristic noise. Above the layout is a block of additional numeric buttons. They are used to activate the camera, wireless communication and enable power optimization, and there is also a programmable button that can be assigned to different commands depending on the needs of the user.
Battery, cooling, connectors
With prolonged use MSI CX500 heats up weakly, the outlet of the cooling system is on the left. When testing a laptop, he showed that the device can work on battery power for only 2 hours, which is an average figure for budget laptops. The benefits include a two-year laptop warranty, which is rare for low-cost devices.There were no comments about the functionality, since all interface elements are conveniently placed on three sides of the case. The rear panel contains 2 USB 2.0 interfaces, a VGA video output, a charger slot, and a Kensington lock hole. But the right side is less loaded: there is a DVD Super Multi optical drive and a third USB 2.0 interface. The left panel consists of the following interfaces: audio jacks (for microphone and headphones), network adapter (LAN) jack, ExpressCard and CardReader 4-in-1 supporting formats SD, MMC, MS, MS Pro.
It was a little disappointing that the wireless module is only Wi-Fi ™ 802.11 (b / g).
Performance:
The model has a high performance for its price. It is based on a good entry-level processor Intel® Pentium® Dual-Core T4500 (2.3GHz), 2 GB RAM, 320 GB HDD (5400 rpm, SATA connector) and discrete graphics adapter ATI Mobility ™ Radeon® HD 4330 from 512 MB built-in memory.
In the tests, the device from MSI showed a decent indicator, which shows that the laptop can be easily used in simple multimedia entertainment, undemanding games and, of course, in office applications:
3DMark06: 2481 ball
PCMark05: 4568 points
General impressions:
MSI CX500 Is an inexpensive laptop that is ideal for home use. The model stands out for its high build quality and two significant advantages: a discrete graphics adapter and a two-year warranty, which is still a rarity for good budget devices.
