The new fastest Not A Steam Deck has some of the same old problems

Image credit: Rock Paper Shotgun

Welcome to my review of the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+, a handheld PC that went on sale four months ago. And if you think that’s bad, tell it to the 2025-spec Lenovo Legion Go 2 I’ve left, neglected and unappraised, in the dusty heights of my utility cupboard.

This one, mind, is still worth looking at a smidgen late. It’s the first palmable PC to use Intel’s Arc G3 Extreme SoC, including the Arc B390 integrated graphics that’s already impressed in skinny laptops . Considering both the underwhelming framerate gains of previous handheld chip upgrades, like the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X ’s second-gen Ryzen, and the fact that the last-gen Claw 8 AI+ was already a high performer, this here EX model could be the one to usher in a new standard in game go fast technology.…