The MSI Summit E16 Flip EVO is a 16-inch laptop that allows the balanced components to breathe and even has room for a number pad. However, there are also some disadvantages.

The MSI Summit E16 Flip EVO makes a high-quality first impression thanks to the black metal housing. First of all, it gives the laptop a very stylish look and feels sturdy. The MIL-STD-810H label seems to confirm this strength.

The keyboard is also nice and slim. MSI even finds space for a small number pad, which we always welcome. The roomy touchpad is precise and works well most of the time, although we did slack off on clicking. Soft taps don’t always register as expected, but we assume this is a matter of habit.

fingerprint magnet

Working on the laptop for a long time reveals a problem that we also saw with the previous version of this device: the casing is sensitive to fingerprints. What should be evenly black quickly becomes greasy, even with dry and clean hands. In our opinion, this MSI Summit E16 Flip has lost some of its classy looks after less than an hour of work.

MSI has given the laptop two USB-C ports (Thunderbolt) on the left, as well as an HDMI port and a button to turn off the webcam. The button clearly shows whether the camera is active or not, but the lens itself is not covered, so you have to trust MSI to work as advertised. On the right side there are two USB-A ports, a slot for a microSD card and a 3.5mm jack.

There is a stylized MSI logo on the back of this laptop. Luckily there is no sign of a kite, so you will be taken seriously with this summit in a business context. You are good at presenting in meetings. Finally, you can fold the Flip’s touchscreen completely for a presentation mode, tent mode, or even tablet mode.

Heavy tablet

The screen has an aspect ratio of 16:10 and our test model is equipped with 1920×1200 pixels. The screen has extensive color coverage at 123 percent of the sRGB spectrum. Color fidelity is decent for a business notebook, but falls short of what a graphics professional would expect. In the blue spectrum in particular, we see a difference between the hue the screen is showing and what it should be. In general, the DeltaE is in line with similar laptops, although the Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro performs better.

As the name suggests, the MSU Summit E16 Flip features a foldable touchscreen. We wouldn’t use this device as a tablet in a hurry because it’s too big and too heavy, but the functionality makes sense for presentations or media consumption. In our opinion, the brightness of 248 cd/m² is somewhat disappointing. When the sun shines through the office space behind you, the glossy screen is difficult to read. If you like smooth mouse movements, you can look forward to the refresh rate of 165 Hz. We ourselves admit that we don’t notice a big difference with 120 Hz panels, but some of our colleagues do notice it.

The MSI Center software has several useful features, including control and insight into performance, but installing it is a mess. The tool crashed several times for us and waited for an initialization, which never happened. Persistence wins, and once the tool is installed and initialized, it comes in very handy. You can use it to monitor performance and optimize the laptop for your use.

performance and specifications

In our test model, this performance is provided by an Intel Core i7-1360P with four P (Performance) cores and eight E (Efficiency) cores, which corresponds to a total of twelve computing cores and sixteen threads. MSI also relies on 16 GB of RAM and an SSD with a capacity of 1 TB. In this model, the graphics performance of the Xe chiplet comes on the Intel chip, but if you want, you can also buy a variant of this Summit with a discrete GPU.

The Core i7-1360P is a slightly more robust chip with a minimum TDP of 28 watts. This corresponds to a theoretical maximum clock rate of 5 GHz. The chip in the housing of the MSI Summit E16 Flip EVO does not make up this cloak. We see a maximum of 4.4 GHz, with a drop to 3.8 GHz after fifteen seconds. Finally, the chip stabilizes at a clock speed of 3.4 GHz.

That’s quite a lot and we can see that in the benchmark results. This notebook performs significantly better than Ultrabooks like the HP Dragonfly G4. Our test device has a lighter 15-watt processor with only two P-cores on board and is inferior to the MSI Summit in terms of power. A comparison with the Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro is also very interesting, since it has the same CPU and the same amount of RAM on board. Here we can see that MSI can get significantly more computing power out of the components thanks to the better cooling and the more spacious case (16 inch vs. 14 inch).

The difference is clearly visible in the benchmarks, but it is also relevant in everyday use. The additional room for maneuver of the CPU in the MSI is noticeable in slightly heavier tasks. For reference, we also add the MSI Creator Z17 HX Studio to the equation. This is a real workstation with twice the RAM and a much heavier CPU. It goes without saying that these components are also used in everyday tasks.

battery

Although the Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Pro performs slightly worse on similar specs, the MSI Summit E16 Flip lasts longer on a single charge. In principle, you should be able to get by for a whole working day without going through the local socket, provided you are not under too much strain.

The numbers are not unexpected: the Summit (2,105 grams) weighs almost twice as much as the smaller Galaxy Book (1,159 grams) and apparently has room for a little more battery. The charging time is impressive: in less than fifty minutes you can recharge the device halfway. This brings the notebook closer to the HP Elite Dragonfly G4.

Very good but not perfect

The benchmarks show that MSI has put together a well thought-out and balanced device that also comes with a fair price. While the 16-inch laptop isn’t small, it doesn’t feel too bulky either. MSI uses the space to give the interior enough air to breathe and cool while also ensuring an excellent battery. Add to that the numeric keypad and you have a phenomenal 16-inch laptop.

This device is ideal for anyone looking for a classy, ​​high-quality 16-inch notebook with no frills, but with the ability to successfully complete classic office work without a great deal of effort. Note the screen’s limited brightness.

Configuration tested: MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo A13MT-261NL (1,486 euros excl. VAT): Intel Core i7-1360P, 16 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD, 16-inch glossy IPS touchscreen (1920×1080 pixels), Windows 11 per .

Standard warranty: Two years Collect & Return support in the Benelux.