MSI Battles its Way Into the Peripheral Sector at Computex 2019
MSI debuts a broad round up of mid-range and budget level peripherals at Computex 2019
Peripherals are a funny one really, there never is a one size fits all device. Whether that’s a key switch, a mouse shape, a preference in audio driver or even budget, we’ve all got our specific favorites and expense limits. So to come into this particular segment of the market, fairly fresh faced and do arguably just as well as some of the more established brand, takes guts. Admittedly MSI’s peripheral lineups has had a bit of a rocky start, however it's nice to see the company, certainly at this Computex anyway, really refine its designs like this.
MSI Immerse GH30 and GH50 Headsets
Launching in August, these two new headsets, the Immerse GH50 and the Immerse GH30 are just the start of MSI's mid-range battle. The GH50 is a more mid-ground oriented version of its already popular GH70 gaming headset. Coming in with a USB input, your standard default gaming 20Hz-20kHz frequency response, and a fairly well rounded aesthetic design too, it was definitely a strong contender for our Best Headset of Computex award. Overall these drivers are impressively solid, it’s a well balanced soundstage, there’s no excessive levels of bass like you’ll find in most gaming headsets at this price point, and the trebles remain untarnished because of it.
However it’s the GH30 that’s the more impressive headset in our opinion. This pair of budget cans, may lack the a bit of the overall structural rigidity of some of MSI’s higher end headphones, however its compact nature allows it to be folded up and stowed away taking up minimal space in your backpack in the process. It’s also powered entirely by a 3.5mm headphone jack, making it ideal for a multitude of platforms. Ok, yeah that means you don’t get access to RGB (which let’s face it, once these things are on your head you won’t see that anyway) but it brings the cost down and that’s important, because the drivers in these things, still put on a very strong showing. They're crisp and clean, although they do lack some of the sensitivity of those found in the GH50s.
MSI Clutch GM11 and GM30
Much like the headsets we mentioned earlier, MSI are also launching two new mice, both aimed at different segments of the market again. Namely, the Clutch GM11, and the Clutch GM30. The GM11 packs in an ambidextrous design (although only two side buttons on the left), a subtle RGB finish, and is overall ideally suited to those who prefer a claw grip, as it does lean on the small side of things. That’s not to say you can’t palm grip this thing, but you’re going to need small hands to do so.
The big thing though is that this pixel pointer is powered by the PixArt PMW3325 sensor. Although not the best out there, for a budget mouse at this price point ($20) it’s a fine edition. It’ll spin out typically when you’re moving this thing faster than 2.5M/s unless MSI has done any tinkering with it behind the scenes (which most manufacturers do), but that's a pretty tough target to hit, unless you're using ridiculously low CPIs, at which point you may be at a level in your gaming career where the GM30 or GM60 and above would be the better pick. Outside of that, it’s got a fairly high CPI of around 5000, comes with Omron switches rated up to 10 million clicks, and also can be picked up in a bundle with MSI’s rather impressive Vigor GK30 Gaming Keyboard, the one that we raved about earlier this week for around £50/$50.
As for the GM30. Well this is a more advanced form of the GM11 it features a slightly improved sensor the Pixart PMW3327 (admittedly one we haven’t had hands on with just yet), and it also features a bit more of an ostentatious design style. Yet the more impressive design feature is the injection moulded silicone side grips, etched out to look like dragon scales. Yup, that may sound a bit lairy, but on the whole this should provide you with a longer lasting side grip than those mice that have their textured sides glued on instead. We’re expecting these to drop some time in August according to MSI, alongside those two new headsets, and the GK30 keyboard.
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As Associate Editor of Tom's Hardware's prestigous British division, Zak specializes in system building, case reviews and peripherals, and has a particular penchant for liquid-cooling. He's also a lover of all things Viking/Scandinavian (thus the poor attempt at a beard).