Daily Use Impressions

Since our review sample arrived a week later than it was supposed to, I only used the MSI Claw 8 EX for six days before sitting down to write this review. Still, I spent enough time with the device to get a feel for it, see how it performs on a daily basis, and can say that it's an impressive PC handheld.

Xbox Mode is now good enough as a main interface that you don't really need to switch to Desktop Mode unless you need to do some work. While playing games, Xbox Mode is more than enough and works great with controllers.


The ergonomics of the Claw 8 EX are great, and I had multiple multi-hour sessions on it without feeling any wrist discomfort, let alone pain, despite the device being 70 grams heavier than the Xbox Ally X. Due to it being wider and having near-perfect weight distribution, I didn't really notice the extra weight, but I sure noticed the larger screen. Streaming games from my PC to the Claw 8 EX at 250 MB/s was also a very smooth experience once I disabled the Wi-Fi scanning feature that caused lag spikes every 10 minutes. It's also worth mentioning that the new rumble motors are much better than those on the Claw 8 and quite close to the ones found in the Xbox Ally X. That said, the Xbox Ally X also includes trigger rumble, which isn't present on the Claw 8 EX.


I also didn't encounter any bugs or driver instability while playing and testing games, aside from some light visual artifacts in 007 First Light, which are caused by the game's FSR implementation according to Intel. Older games (Dirt 4, SoTR, and WRC 7) worked well, without any bugs or graphical issues. Newer games performed rather well too, and I managed to play Death Stranding 2 and Forza Horizon 6 at 1200p with XeSS set to Quality and higher settings than what's possible on the Xbox Ally X and the original Claw 8. I was especially impressed with FH6 running between 40 FPS and 60 FPS with the Ultra preset (I only disabled Night Shadows because they tank performance in some busy areas), which was mighty impressive to see on a PC handheld.

While MSI Center M does lag considerably behind Armoury Crate, the massive screen, superb ergonomics, fantastic gaming performance at every power level, excellent battery life, and great speakers didn't make me reach for the Xbox Ally X, which has been my main handheld ever since I reviewed it in late 2025.


I reckon I'll switch to the MSI Claw 8 EX, because that performance jump cannot be ignored. Despite its d-pad not really working, it's serviceable for d-pad-based menus that don't require precise input, while I'll continue using the Xbox Ally X for games that play better with a d-pad. If the MSI Claw 8 EX weren't this comfortable to use, though, I would stay with the Xbox Ally X because I personally don't mind its 7-inch screen and find it the second-best PC handheld around, right behind this one.