MSI’s M662 is the only notebook in our group test with a dedicated numeric keypad on its keyboard, which at first makes you think it’s bigger than the rest.

But MSI’s trick is to squash some of the other keys together, which means undersized buttons on the right-hand side of the keyboard. It may not sound like a big deal, but when you’re used to hitting keys in a certain place, typos can become more common. Whether it’s worth getting used to will depend on how much you use the keypad.

Nevertheless, it seems MSI has attempted to veer away from the usual laptop design by incorporating touches such as a professional-looking glow-in-the-dark badge and a 1.3-megapixel camera on the lid. There’s also a row of blue status LEDs on the front lip, highlighting things like the Wifi connection and battery charge status.

On the inside, the MSI uses Intel’s T5600 Core 2 Duo processor, which runs at a clock speed of 1.83GHz. With an accompanying 1GB of DDR2 memory, the MSI achieved 210 in Sysmark and was almost bottom of the pack with 3,089 in PCmark05. Things aren’t helped by the integrated Intel GMA 950 graphics chipset which had Far Cry trotting along at only 7.84fps.

A score of 444 in 3Dmark05 wasn’t much of an improvement either, making it clear that this notebook is not cut out for modern gaming.

However, this is MSI’s entry-level Core 2 Duo notebook, so we weren’t expecting bells and whistles – though it does have a ‘Vista Capable’ sticker.

The 100GB hard disk is what you should expect from a notebook costing this much, as is the multiformat DVD writer, and the 15.4in widescreen LCD has a maximum resolution of 1,280x800 and features an effective anti-glare screen coating.

However, like most LCDs with this special coating, you have to be directly front on and dead centre for the best picture. Deviate slightly and contrast will dip and colours will look washed out – a double-edged sword if there ever w as one.

We’d hoped for a DVI port for digital video connection to bigger displays but only S-video and VGA outputs are on offer. The big chassis does mean a healthy smattering of other ports though, with four USB, mini-Firewire, PC Card and memory expansion slots. MSI has kept things clean on the back of the case, opting to position everything around the side and front edges instead.

For a big laptop, the MSI is reasonably lightweight at 2.55kg excluding adapter, and definitely portable. However, running for only two hours in Mobilemark’s productivity suite and one hour, 37 minutes in the DVD playback suite isn’t particularly outstanding.

It also gets rather hot on the palm rest area underneath the keyboard, which some users may find uncomfortable.

Unfortunately the M662 doesn’t come with any bundled software applications but the package does include an MSI-branded mouse and carry bag. How appealing these are is another matter, though, and given that it’s an entry-level package many users might prefer a lower sticker price.

Notebook users with an eye on the future will appreciate the M662’s compatibility with Vista and, for the price, it’s not too bad. But compared to the majority of other notebooks here, it fails to compete on value for money, features or performance. A jack of most trades but master of none.

This article is part of a group test of budget Core 2 Duo notebooks
See also:
Evesham Voyager C530
Hi-grade Notino D7000-5500
HP Compaq NX7400 (RH393ET)
Rock Pegasus 665-T56
Sony VGN-C1Z/B
Asus F3Jv

Graphs and tables of features can be read via our pdf downloads above.