Me and my colleague Tony Polanco really wanted to like MSI Claw...Then we tested it. At 2 separate hands-on events on both sides of the pond, I was equally frustrated with its lackluster software, which made it so hard to launch the game annoyingly because the MSI Center was not functioning as it should have been. As MSI Claw8AI Plus was just announced at Computex2024 this week, we hope the company has learned a lesson.

With a larger, more powerful battery and a much more impressive CPU, the Claw8AI Plus is starting to look like a gaming handheld that should have been obtained from MSI from the start and comes out with Intel's Meteor Lake chip and comes with the new Intel Ultra code-named "Lunar Lake." It has been known for some time that Lunar Lake is set to power more than 80 new AI laptops this year, but this is the first time this advanced silicon has appeared on a Windows11 handheld PC.  

The increase in power gained by throwing out the old Intel Core Ultra5 into the og model Lunar Lake Cpu should help make the game run smoother. And if you hate having to constantly charge your current nails, there's good news on the front of the battery. 

The MSI Claw8AI Plus comes with an 80Wh battery, which is a bigger upgrade than the 53Wh battery found in its predecessor. For the context, the Steam deck, which remains by far the most popular handheld PC from a sales point of view, has only a 40wh battery. When it comes to being a battery beast, only the recently announced ROG Ally X can match the AI Plus on paper. 

As for the screen, MSI is bringing chonk. Dropping the 7-inch display of the first nail, now on the 8AI Plus version 120hz refresh rate, support for VRR (variable Refresh rate) and touch screen

The new nail seems to work cooler than the old model, thanks to MSI's "Cooler Boost HyperFlow"; Using a duo of two fans and pipes, the system, which the company calls "revolutionary intraflow thermal design", helps drive full performance.

The first claw Hall effect joystick returns to give higher accuracy in the best PC games, but the new MSI Centre M gives gamers a better handheld This is one area I hope MSI will offer. 

No mention has yet been made about the price or release date, but given how quickly the claws burst into the scene before they could be purchased, it's clear that MSI Claw8AI Plus

is one of the busiest shows of the year, in the form of Prime Video's surprisingly good "fallout". In Canny's attempt to jump on the totale, MSI also unveiled another claw at Computex. The sport's serious "Pip Boy" vibe, MSI Claw: Fallout Edition, is probably on a lot of Christmas lists for those who adore Bethesda's irradiated sandbox series

Sadly, Fallout Claw has not been sold to the public since my Tom's Guide colleague was told on the show floor at Computex. It seems that it is not. At least not so long. This is a very limited edition model, so if it's released, don't expect it to be in store for a long time.  

Instead, in the first words, it is said that the device will be used more from a marketing point of view and will be sent only to selected influencers or may become available during the contest. If true, this is a bit disappointing.

When I feel better, Fallout Claw is just a skin-altering version of the original 7-inch model, so the Lunar Lake chip upgrade isn't that impressive, even though it sounds like I might need to be a "Lotto lucky" to get my hands on so far. Regardless, it's a pretty cool gizmo.

Going back to MSI Claw8AI Plus, I don't think it will replace my beloved Steam Deck OLED, but the company seems to be potentially cooking up one hell of a handheld 1.