Short comparison: MSI X-Slim X320 vs Asus UX30

As I had the Asus UX30 on my desk last week, i though it would be a good idea to compare it with one of its main competitors, the MSI X-SLIM X320 , that luckily enough, was also available at the moment.

MSI X-SLIM X320 vs the Asus UX30

In terms of looks, both laptops have 13″ screens (thus have similar dimensions) and are part of the slim stylish class. The Asus has an aluminum upper part, while de MSI is built entirely from glossy white plastic . The MSI also has a glowing logo on the lid, somewhat similar to the Apple logo you can find on Mackbooks .

On the inside, the Asus has a keyboard with individual keys, while de MSI has a standard one. I do prefer tha one from the last one, as key size on the ASUS in uncomfortable for me (and no, i don’t have big fingers at all) . Both laptops have big touchpads, the smooth one from the MSI being better than the one you can find on the UX30, that has tiny bumps on it, for a better tactile feeling (they say, but i consider it worse).

In terms of hardware the two competitors are also tightly matched. Let’s see first the main specs:

As you can see, hardware specs are more or less the same. The UX30 has a newer generation slower CPU , the SU2700 , while the X-Slim X320 has a faster Atom Z530 . Performances level is comparable between the two.

Both these laptops came with Windows Vista Basic. That’s a poor choice considering how resources hungry is Vista and i can’t say i was at all impressed on how things were running. But things should get better once you install a clean version of Windows 7 later this fall when this SO will hit the stores. Graphic performance is medium, both being capable of playing a 720p movie but not a 1080p .

In terms of battery life, you can’t expect much from these two notebooks: Asus managed to pack something around 4.15 hours, while de MSI one 3.20 , both on regular usage with Wi-fi on and Balanced mode selected.

Not ever prices cant’ separate these two models, as they are both expected to start from around 800-900 bucks.

So in the end we can’t really say there’s a winner in a virtual fight between the Asus UX30 and the MSI X-Slim X320. Both have their positive and negative parts. I for one would go for the Asus because it’s better looking, better overall built and has a better battery. But that’s only a matter of taste after all.

What would you folks choose between the two? Would you pick one of them or will smaller devices win the eternal netbook vs laptop battle for you? IF that’s the case, maybe you should check this other netbooks comparison posts too.

Tags: Asus, MSI, stylish netbooks, ultra portable