Ever since handheld gaming PCs became a thing, I have found myself asking one question every single time a new one launches. Can this finally replace my gaming setup, at least for a few days? The MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ made me ask that question again. It has been over 10 days since this became my primary gaming machine. And during this time, I’ve played AAA games on it, carried it to work, connected it to my TV, and even spent time running benchmarks. Somewhere along the way, I realised I had stopped thinking about the hardware altogether and was simply enjoying the games. That, in my opinion, is the biggest compliment you can give a gaming handheld.
During Computex this year, the MSI Claw EX AI+ was the center of attention. And a big reason for that is the new Intel Arc G3 Extreme processor, which has been built specifically with handheld gaming in mind. By promising a smoother performance, better efficiency, and an experience that feels much closer to a dedicated gaming console than a Windows PC, the chipset has been talked about a lot. But does it actually deliver? Let’s find the answer to that question in this review.
PS: The MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ hasn’t launched in India yet. But read on to find out that when it does land here, should you pick it up or not.
The MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ is undoubtedly one of the best-looking handhelds I have used. The new colour looks premium without trying too hard, and the massive 8-inch display immediately grabs attention. If you place it beside another handheld, the larger screen is the first thing you’ll notice. However, there is one compromise. The Claw is big. And I mean, really big.
In fact, it is almost as wide as my MacBook Neo, which was super surprising when I first placed them side by side. It is also on the heavier side. While carrying it around the house wasn’t an issue, I definitely started feeling the weight after gaming continuously for more than an hour. My wrists didn’t hurt, but they did remind me that I was using a fairly hefty device.
That said, the controls themselves are comfortable. The joysticks feel responsive, the triggers have enough travel, and all the buttons are placed where your fingers naturally rest. It is a handheld that feels familiar within minutes.
Coming to the display, I wouldn’t really call it the star of the show, but it certainly gets the job done. The 8-inch IPS panel is large enough to make open-world games feel immersive, while the 120Hz refresh rate keeps gameplay smooth. Colours look pleasing and the display is bright enough for indoor gaming.
Would I have preferred an OLED panel considering the asking price? Absolutely.
But once I was deep into a mission, I rarely found myself thinking about the display. Instead, I was focused on the story unfolding in front of me.
If there is one area where the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ will have you surprised (in a good way), it is performance. And that is all thanks to Intel’s new chip.
As mentioned already, this model is powered by Intel’s new Arc G3 Extreme processor, and the improvement is immediately noticeable. Intel has paired the chipset with Xe3 graphics architecture, hardware ray tracing, XeSS 3, Multi Frame Generation, and 32GB LPDDR5X RAM. Now on paper, it is an impressive package. But in practice, does it deliver?
When I was testing the device, I simply couldn’t get it to struggle in terms of performance. And boy, did I try to do that.
Games launched quickly, Windows felt responsive, applications opened instantly, and switching between tasks was never sluggish. More importantly, modern AAA games ran exactly the way you would expect from a premium handheld. I didn’t really notice any stutters, random frame drops, or moments where I had to stop playing just to tweak settings.
I also ran several benchmarks and considering this is a handheld, the results were quite decent.
The Claw scored 117 in Cinebench 2024’s single-core test and 835 in the multi-core test. In Cinebench 2026, it managed 459 in the single-core benchmark and 3,388 in the multi-core test. Meanwhile, 3DMark Steel Nomad returned an overall score of 1,522.
These numbers reflect that the Arc G3 Extreme has enough muscle to comfortably power demanding games while keeping the overall experience smooth and consistent.
Now, benchmark tests are useful, but they only tell part of the story. The real test, for a device like the MSI Claw 8AI+, is gaming.
I spent most of my time playing 007 First Light, and the Claw handled it without any lags or stutters. Running at 1080p on medium graphics, I consistently saw around 80 FPS, with frame rates occasionally touching 90 FPS in Best Performance mode. Even during action-heavy sequences, the experience remained smooth and responsive. There were no annoying stutters or sudden dips that broke immersion.
Some other games that I tried here were Red Dead Redemption 2, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Pragmata, Forza Horizon 6, and Doom: The Dark Ages. And I had a decent experience overall. Demanding titles like RDR 2 and DOOM needed to get graphics tweaked to low. But other games ran well even at medium to high graphic settings.
A special mention to games like Hollow Knight: Silksong and Mouse PI For Hire because these two were buttery smooth on this device.
One of my favourite moments, however, came when I connected the Claw to my television using a dock.
My gaming setup is on a different floor of my house, and there are plenty of days when I simply don’t feel like sitting at my desk. The Claw solved that problem. I plugged it into my TV, paired a controller, and within minutes I was playing my Steam library from the comfort of my bedroom. It almost felt like carrying my gaming PC from one room to another without actually moving it. And on a lazy Sunday, that is all you need.
Talking about the speakers, they have some decent quality but just aren’t loud enough. You will definitely need a pair of earphones if you want to completely immerse yourselves in the game.
Now, when it comes to battery life on a gaming handheld, it’s important to be realistic. You simply can’t expect a handheld Windows device running AAA games to last an entire day. What you can expect is around two hours of gaming on a single charge, and that’s exactly where the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ stands. I started gaming on the device when its battery was at a perfect 100 percent on a busy day. And when I started trying out the latest AAA titles on it and got completely immersed for 2 hours and 15 minutes, I saw the battery running out.
One thing to mention here is how wonderfully the handheld performs even on low battery. I started playing 007 First Light at around 72 percent battery on the device. And by the time it dropped to just 3 percent, the game was still running exactly the way it had been earlier.
There was no lag. No stutters. And no sudden frame drop. The handheld delivered a consistent experience right until it shut down. And that’s not a small achievement.
As for thermals, there isn’t much to complain about here. After long gaming sessions, the Claw became warm, but for me, it was never too uncomfortable to hold. The heat stayed away from the grips, allowing me to continue gaming without constantly adjusting my hands.
The MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ is a capable handheld overall. The Arc G3 Extreme is easily the highlight here, delivering excellent performance across benchmarks and, more importantly, during actual gameplay. The large display, comfortable controls, and ability to double as a living room gaming machine make it a great package.
However, things aren’t absolutely perfect here. The handheld feels bulky during longer sessions, the display could have been better considering the asking price, and the price of nearly ₹2 lakh makes it difficult to recommend to everyone.
If money isn’t a concern and you want one of the fastest Windows gaming handhelds currently available, the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ won’t disappoint. For everyone else, its biggest competition isn’t just other handhelds, but also powerful gaming laptops that cost almost the same.
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