It appears as if the primary official AMD Ryzen Z2 Excessive handheld to hit the market could possibly be the MSI Claw A8, based mostly on a brand new itemizing in China that means the hand held will ship earlier than the top of July 2025. As a part of this identical itemizing, a value is given, which interprets to round $970, which means the Claw A8 could possibly be set to launch for the same value to the Intel-powered 8 AI+ mannequin.
On paper, the brand new MSI Claw A8 is ready to be the most effective gaming handhelds when it comes to energy, sporting the brand new AMD Ryzen Z2 Excessive chips alongside 24GB of LPDDR5x 8,000MT/s RAM and a 1TB SSD. MSI caught with Intel for its Claw 8 AI+ mannequin, which course-corrected loads of errors made within the authentic A1M, however a shock announcement in Might revealed it could be releasing an AMD different, the Claw A8.
A pre-order advert has appeared for the MSI Claw A8 in China, first noticed by Videocardz, the place it is acknowledged that the system will begin delivery later this month, however we’re but to see affirmation for the US or another market. Due to a 15% subsidy supplied by the Chinese language authorities when buying sure merchandise, the Claw A8 value could possibly be as little as $737, however the value with out these subsidies, and together with tax, is roughly $970 utilizing present conversion charges. The worth with out tax is roughly $860.
If this value have been to translate over to the US and European markets, it could imply the Claw A8 is on par with the 8 AI+ MSRP, which presently stands at $999 / £899. It isn’t but clear whether or not the 8AI+ would obtain a value reduce when the A8 launches, however it could actually be welcome provided that the MSI Claw 8 AI+ has solely develop into costlier because it first launched, which is reportedly a results of tariffs imposed on imports into the USA.
In a change from the unique announcement, this itemizing additionally now states that the Claw A8 has Wi-Fi 7 when it was initially acknowledged as having Wi-Fi 6E. It isn’t clear whether or not this can be a change for the reason that announcement or a mistake being corrected from the unique reveal.
MSI has, it appears, crushed the likes of Asus and Lenovo to market with the AMD Ryzen Z2 Excessive, so the highlight will likely be firmly positioned upon the Claw A8, and its benchmarks, ought to it comply with an analogous launch schedule in Western markets.
If you wish to take a more in-depth have a look at another Home windows handhelds that can intently compete with the Claw A8, try our AOKZOE A1X overview and our Ayaneo 3 overview, with each gadgets costing over $1,000 however providing substantial efficiency enhancements over the likes of the ROG Ally X and Steam Deck.
You’ll be able to comply with us on Google Information for each day PC video games information, evaluations, and guides. We have additionally bought a vibrant neighborhood Discord server, the place you possibly can chat about this story with members of the crew and fellow readers.
