MSI Creator A16 AI+ A3HVFG review: Excellent performance comes at a price

If you're on the prowl for an AI-powered creator laptop with discrete graphics, especially for those who don't necessarily intend to use it for gaming, MSI has come swinging with the capable MSI Creator A16 AI+.

However, in a sea full of competitors offering equivalent for far cheaper, this is the sort of product best invested in during a steep sale. It delivers excellent processing power and solid GPU performance, yet smaller flaws like high heat levels and a weak trackpad take away from its success.

However, if you're really in need of an AI-powered PC with discrete graphics, this is still a solid pick, but given the tradeoffs it won't make it on our list of best laptops. For more information on whether or not this laptop is right for you, keep reading.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Specs and benchmarks

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Price and configurations

We reviewed the base model of the MSI Creator A16 AI+; it's built with an AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 processor, 32GB of RAM, 1TB of SSD storage, a Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 laptop GPU, and a 2,560 x 1,600-pixel resolution IPS display at 240Hz refresh rate. It's available for $1,799 at NewEgg.

There are plenty of other models available, with one that bumps the display up to an OLED panel and has an RTX 4070 laptop GPU, which is available for $2,099 at Amazon. There's also a model that features a Mini-LED display but drops the refresh rate down to 120Hz, but has a 3,840 x 2,400-pixel resolution panel, and still boasts the RTX 4070 GPU. This model costs $2,199 at Amazon.

If these prices seem a bit too rich for your blood, be sure to check out the best cheap gaming laptops to see if you can find something with a discrete GPU for well under $2,000.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Design

I appreciate a laptop that can channel a color that isn't silver or black, so the MSI Creator A16 AI+'s dark gray shell is more than welcome (although I'd love to see something outside of the grayscale too). Its lid is occupied by nothing more than the MSI logo, but lifting it reveals a gorgeous, shiny deck with a collection of black keys that have per-key RGB lighting, blaring their various hues at the user.

It's a pretty minimalist design, as the deck appears as a uniform slab with speaker holes, a fingerprint scanner, and the trackpad. Its magnesium-aluminum chassis feels sturdy for the most part, but it's a bit hollow around the lower half of the deck, as pressing into it reveals that it's malleable. However, it benefits from its lightness, alongside at no point resulting in me smudging fingerprints all over the deck.

The MSI Creator A16 AI+ weighs 4.63 pounds and measures 14 x 10.24 x 0.79-inches. Here's how it compares to the competitors:

• Dell G16 (7630) — 14.05 x 11.37 x 1.01 inches, 6 pounds
• Acer Predator Triton Neo 16 — 14 x 9.8 x 0.82 inches, 4.5 pounds
• Lenovo Legion 5i 16 Gen 9 — 14.16 x 10.33 x 0.78~0.99, 5.33 pounds

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Ports

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Packed with a solid selection of ports, the Creator A16 AI+ delivers in securing most of your needs with its Kensington Lock for protection, HDMI port for external video connections, and RJ45 for ethernet. We think it'll have what most people need without requiring an USB Type-C hub.

• 1 x USB4 Type-C / DP (PD 3.0 Charging)
• 1 x HDMI 2.1 port
• 1 x headphone/mic jack
• 1 x Kensington Lock
• 1 x RJ45
• 2 x USB3.2 Gen 2 Type-A
• 1 x DC-in

However, its singular USB Type-C port could be lacking for some. If you need more than one USB Type-C connection for whatever reason, our best USB Type-C hub or best laptop docking station can get the job done.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Battery life

Laptops with discrete graphics cards typically don't handle themselves well when it comes to battery life, although a less-demanding GPU like the RTX 4060 can usually channel greater longevity than more powerful hardware.

The Creator A16 AI+ doesn't do terribly in this metric, coming in a solid second place amidst its competitors. On the Laptop Mag battery life test, which consists of continuous web surfing over wifi at 150 nits, it lasted 6 hours and 1 minute.

Anything above 5 hours for a gaming laptop is considered solid battery life, and while the Creator A16 AI+ isn't going as far above and beyond as we've seen other gaming laptops (like the Asus TUF Gaming A14 with over 10 hours of battery life), it's still pretty good.

However, the Creator isn't actually a gaming laptop. It simply has a discrete GPU, but is aimed and intended for those who mostly plan to use it for work or artistic endeavors like editing and rendering. If you want something to work on-the-go with, this might die a little too quick for most.

Here's a look at how the MSI Creator A16 AI+'s result stacks up against its actual competitors:

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Display

Built with a 16-inch, 2,560 x 1,600-pixel resolution IPS display at 240Hz refresh rate, the Creator A16 AI+ has a pretty solid panel, but nothing that stands out amidst competitors.

With its DCI-P3 color coverage of 80% and 372 nits of brightness, you can enjoy a colorful journey into your favorite films, TV shows, and video games with a decent bit of brightness that can handle well-lit rooms, but it won't do excellently in direct sunlight.

I watched the trailer for The Wedding Banquet and it looked fantastic, with the colors of every scene appearing vivid and bold. It can be far too easy to be subjected to overly muted hues when it comes to a laptop's display, but you won't have to worry about that with the Creator A16 AI+.

I played Elden Ring and was quite impressed by the display as I mounted my valiant steed and rode through a heavily guarded encampment. The royal blue tents pelted by rain amidst the orange glow of far-off torches was beautiful.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Keyboard and touchpad

Featuring a satisfying and clicky keyboard with the addition of a tiny number pad squeezed to the side, there's no denying that it feels as if MSI had to cleverly figure out how to get every key they wanted to fit on the deck of this 16-inch laptop. Some examples include half-sized tilde and tab keys, slightly shrunken arrow keys, and as mentioned, the small number pad.

However, I appreciate the manner in which MSI shrinks some of these keys, as a laptop like the Asus TUF Gaming A14 goes as far as to cut its arrow keys in half, which makes them difficult to use. However, I had far less of an issue MSI's arrow keys, as they're only 3/4ths the size of a normal key to fit in with the number pad.

I took the 10fastfingers typing test and achieved a score of 109 words per minute with an accuracy of 97%, which goes to show how comfortable I was while typing. While some might find the keys to be a bit small for their tastes, I had no issue with it.

The touchpad, unlike the keyboard, leaves a lot to be desired. It's flimsy and easily sinks into the deck, and while that's reflective of the overall quality of the deck itself, it's especially noticeable when trying to click. At the very least, performing multi-finger gestures like changing tabs and hiding windows worked well.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Audio

The Creator A16 AI+'s top-firing speakers are clear, although they could benefit from being a tad louder.

I listened "Flatlands" by Chelsea Wolfe and was impressed by how the acoustic guitar sounded against Wolfe's melancholic singing, although the strings in the background did sound a little low. In general, the speakers would absolutely benefit from being louder, but I was satisfied with how it presented the more intense latter half of the song with clarity and balance.

I launched Elden Ring and especially felt my issues with the volume while battling enemies and listening to the atmospheric soundtrack, as it all come across as a bit too quiet. It was clear and balanced well, but the lack of oomph in the speaker system will leave a lot to be desired for those who really want to experience the games they play.

You're probably best off with a nice pair of the best headphones out there, as while the laptop's speakers are fine for casual use, you'll want another solution for films and games.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Performance and heat

Built with an AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 processor, 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of SSD storage, it delivers phenomenal performance and is lightning quick in all of the tasks we threw at it.

All individuals needing a powerful CPU for work, internet browsing, or more intensive work like video or photo editing, data analyzing, and far more will have no issue with the power brought by the AMD Ryzen AI 9 365.

Considering the Creator A16 AI+ is built with an dedicated graphics card, particularly the RTX 4060, it's not much of a surprise that the laptop gets pretty warm. Its hottest point at its far rear-center underside of 107 degrees is pretty toasty, and even the G/H key got quite warm at 95 degrees.

Here's how the MSI Creator A16 AI+ performed in our real-world and lab tests compared to its competitors:

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Gaming and graphics

While not necessarily a gaming laptop, the MSI Creator A16 AI+ is built with a Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 laptop GPU, which is more than capable of gaming.

I played Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree at Maximum graphics and with Ray Tracing off at 1,920 x 1,200-pixel resolution and saw the laptop hover around 45 to 50 frames per second, with occassional drops down to around 35 fps. Playing the game got the laptop pretty warm, and I heard the fans doing their work to keep things cool.

Otherwise, in our gaming tests, it on the lower end of the spectrum compared to competitors utilizing the same GPU, although it's not that far from the pack. It won't be at the top of our list for the best gaming laptops, but it can handle some light gaming if needed.

Here's how the MSI Creator A16 AI+ performed in a few of our typical game benchmarks compared to the competition:

MSI Creator A16 AI+: AI features

As it's a Copilot+ PC, the MSI Creator A16 AI+ is built with plenty of AI-ready features thanks to its AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 processor. Some features include Live Captions, which provides subtitles in real time, and Cocreator, which takes the user's drawings and allows the AI to create alternate versions off of it. And of course, there's Recall, which allows the user to find what was on your PC previously.

There's also MSI AI Engine, which automatically adjusts hardware settings to yield the perfect performance for what users need.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Webcam

Featuring a 1,920 x 1,080-pixel resolution webcam, the MSI Creator A16 AI+ isn't going to blow your mind, but it offers a decent enough image to where you won't be completely repulsed by your face while video conferencing.

I took a photo in my office and the pink of my wall appeared a bit muted, lacking in the boldness that it actually has. My face also appeared fuzzy and hard to discern more detailed physical characteristics. If you want something better, we highly recommend checking out our best webcams page.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Software and warranty

The MSI Creator A16 AI+ comes with Windows 11 and the typical suite of Microsoft's applications. MSI also offers it own applications like MSI Center, which allows the user to modify the performance profile, alongside choosing which GPU is used, between the discrete graphics, integrated, or MSHybrid mode, which utilizes both depending on what's needed at a specific moment. It also allows the user to monitor their hardware, whether that be CPU, NPU, GPU, disk, and memory usage.

There's also the MSI True Color application which lets you choose display panel settings, selecting between sRGB, AdobeRGB, DCI-P3, Display P3, Anti-Blue, Office, and Movie presets. Alternatively, you can customize the brightness, gammas, contrast, RGB, and color temperature freely.

The Creator A16 AI+ comes with a 1 year limited warranty.

Bottom line

The MSI Creator A16 AI+ is bolstered by the excellent AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 processor, and its Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 metrics are solid enough. It also has a satisfying keyboard with a number pad, alongside clear audio, a decently colorful panel, and a sturdy magnesium-aluminum alloy chassis.

However, it's held back by battery life that's a bit underwhelming for a creator laptop (even if it's decent for a gaming laptop), a flimsy trackpad, and toasty heat levels. It doesn't help that its price point is pretty steep, as $1,799 feels like a big ask for what it's offering, considering that the RTX 50-series is on the horizon.

If you can do without the AI features, the Dell G16 (7630) also offers an RTX 4060 GPU with a far more colorful display at the same resolution and refresh rate, yet it's only $949. If money doesn't seem like a problem, then the Creator A16 AI+ is definitely still a solid laptop, but most people are better off looking for alternatives among our best gaming laptops or best laptops for video editing.