MSI Claw 8 AI+ in 2026: Still Excellent, But It Costs 25% More Than It Did
The MSI Claw 8 AI+ launched at $899.99 and now costs around $1,149. We compared seven reviews, tracked the full price history, and worked out whether it is still worth buying.
- The Claw 8 AI+ launched at $899.99 and now sells for roughly $1,119–$1,149 — about 25% more, driven by the 2026 memory shortage rather than any change to the product
- Reviewers were near-unanimously positive, with several calling it a redemption after the original Claw's poor reception
- Intel's Lunar Lake platform is the reason: Core Ultra 7 258V with Arc 140V graphics, paired with 32 GB of RAM and an 80 Wh battery
- Two Thunderbolt 4 ports make it one of the very few handhelds with a genuine external GPU path
- MSI Center M software drew consistent criticism across almost every review
- MSI now sells five similarly named Claw models — this is the 2025 8-inch Lunar Lake one, not the newer Claw 8 EX AI+ or the AMD-powered Claw A8
The MSI Claw 8 AI+ is the handheld that fixed MSI's reputation. The original Claw shipped in 2024 on Intel Meteor Lake and was widely panned. Its replacement moved to Lunar Lake, added two inches of screen, half again as much battery, and 32 GB of RAM — and the reviews turned around almost completely.
There is one problem, and it has nothing to do with the hardware. The device launched at $899.99. In 2026 it sells for around $1,149. Nothing about the machine changed — the price did, because of a global memory shortage that has pushed the entire handheld category upward.
That changes the answer to whether you should buy one. Below is the full price history, what every major reviewer concluded, and — because MSI has made this genuinely confusing — a plain guide to which Claw is which.
Which MSI Claw Is Which?
MSI now sells or has sold five handhelds with near-identical names. If you are shopping, this is the table to read first.
| Model | Year | Chip | Screen | Battery | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claw A1M (Claw 7) | 2024 | Core Ultra 155H (Meteor Lake) | 7″ 1080p | 53 Wh | The original, poorly received model |
| Claw 7 AI+ | 2025 | Core Ultra 7 258V (Lunar Lake) | 7″ 1080p | 53 Wh | The 7-inch refresh, launched at $799 |
| Claw 8 AI+ | 2025 | Core Ultra 7 258V (Lunar Lake) | 8″ 1920×1200 | 80 Wh | This article — the one reviewers praised |
| Claw A8 | 2025–26 | Ryzen Z2 Extreme (AMD) | 8″ 1920×1200 | 80 Wh | MSI's first AMD handheld |
| Claw 8 EX AI+ | 2026 | Newer Intel platform | 8″ 1920×1200 | 80 Wh | The current flagship, ultra-premium pricing |
MSI Claw 8 AI+ Specs
| Component | MSI Claw 8 AI+ (A2VM) |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel Core Ultra 7 258V, 8 cores / 8 threads — 4× Lion Cove P-cores to 4.8 GHz, 4× Skymont E-cores to 3.7 GHz |
| Power | 30 W sustained, 37 W short burst |
| Graphics | Intel Arc 140V, 8 Xe2 compute units |
| RAM | 32 GB LPDDR5X-8533, dual-channel, soldered |
| Storage | 512 GB, 1 TB or 2 TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe, M.2 2230 |
| Display | 8-inch 16:10, 1920×1200, 283 PPI, IPS, 120 Hz, VRR, 100% sRGB, touch |
| Battery | 80 Wh |
| Ports | 2× Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 40 Gbps, microSD, 3.5 mm, fingerprint reader |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 |
| Dimensions | 299 × 126 × 30 mm |
| OS | Windows 11 Home |
The two Thunderbolt 4 ports deserve a mention. Almost no AMD-based handheld offers them, which makes the Claw 8 AI+ one of the few devices in the category with a real external GPU path. Wi-Fi 7 and a fingerprint reader are similarly uncommon here.
The Price Story: $899.99 to $1,149
This is the part that has changed since every review of this device was written, and it is the single most important thing for anyone buying in 2026.
| Date | Price | Configuration | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2024 / Jan 2025 | $899.99 | 1 TB, Core Ultra 7 258V | Launch price; the 7-inch Claw 7 AI+ launched alongside at $799 |
| Through 2025 | Around $899 | 1 TB | Held near launch pricing while reviews were being published |
| June 2026 | Around $1,119 | 1 TB | First clear evidence of shortage-driven increases |
| August 2026 | Around $1,149 | 1 TB | Current US retail; higher-capacity variants list above $1,200 |
That is roughly a 25% increase on an unchanged product. The cause is the global DRAM shortage that has driven memory prices up across the industry through 2026, and it is affecting the whole handheld category rather than MSI alone.
The practical consequence is that reviews scoring this device highly were scoring a $899 handheld. At $1,149 the value calculation is materially different, and no reviewer has revisited it at the new price.
What Reviewers Concluded
Seven outlets, and an unusual amount of agreement.
| Outlet | Verdict | Main praise | Main criticism |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notebookcheck | Called it the best gaming handheld, on efficiency | Performance, battery life, 8-inch display; worth the price at $899 | Expensive even against the Steam Deck OLED |
| Gizmodo | Quite a redemption story | Solid performance in demanding games; Lunar Lake battery efficiency | Software still needs work; hard to justify at $900 |
| Club386 | Handheld redemption | Arc 140V is Intel's strongest integrated graphics; 32 GB is the right call given no upgradability | A large step up in price as well as spec |
| Laptop Mag | Performance and build quality improvements | Strong 1080p performance at 30 W; MSI Center M lets you skip the Windows desktop | Priced at the top of the category |
| XDA | The most powerful handheld, and not the one you'd expect | Big improvement over the Claw 7 AI+ — larger screen, bigger battery, more storage | Intel remains an outlier in a mostly AMD category |
| Tom's Guide | Outperforms its closest competitors | Beats the ROG Ally X on performance | Premium pricing |
| FinalBoss | Fixes most of the original Claw's flaws | Efficient Lunar Lake APU; strong performance per watt; dual Thunderbolt 4 | MSI Center M software and AI power profiles remain rough |
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The One Consistent Complaint
Setting price aside, the criticism that appears in nearly every review is MSI Center M — the handheld interface layered over Windows. Reviewers credit it for letting you avoid the Windows desktop entirely once games are installed, and criticise it for being rough, inconsistent, and paired with AI power profiles that few found useful.
This is a software problem, which means it is the one weakness that could still improve. It has not been resolved as of 2026.
Is It Worth Buying in 2026?
- Intel Lunar Lake delivers genuinely strong performance per watt — Notebookcheck rated it the best handheld on efficiency
- 32 GB of LPDDR5X-8533 is more than almost anything else in the category
- 8-inch 1920×1200 120 Hz VRR display with full sRGB coverage
- 80 Wh battery, matching the largest in the category
- Two Thunderbolt 4 ports — a real eGPU path that AMD-based rivals lack
- Wi-Fi 7 and a fingerprint reader, both uncommon here
- Reviewed well across seven outlets with near-unanimous positivity
- Now costs roughly 25% more than launch — around $1,149 against $899.99, for an unchanged product
- MSI Center M software and AI power profiles were criticised in almost every review and remain rough
- Windows 11 on a touchscreen is still an awkward experience
- RAM and storage tiers are fixed — memory is soldered
- Superseded by the Claw 8 EX AI+, which complicates support and resale
- At current prices the Steam Deck OLED is significantly cheaper for a simpler experience
The honest position is that this was an easy recommendation at $899 and is a much harder one at $1,149. The hardware has not aged — Lunar Lake is still efficient, 32 GB is still generous, and the display is still excellent. What has changed is that the price now sits alongside devices that were more expensive than it a year ago.
If you find one at or near its original price — refurbished stock, clearance, or a retailer that has not repriced — it remains one of the best Windows handhelds available. At full current retail, wait, or look at what else that money buys.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does the MSI Claw 8 AI+ cost?
Around $1,149 in the US as of August 2026, for the 1 TB model. It launched at $899.99 in early 2025 — the increase is driven by the global memory shortage, not by any change to the device.
What is the difference between the Claw 8 AI+ and the Claw 8 EX AI+?
The Claw 8 AI+ is the 2025 model running Intel's Lunar Lake platform. The Claw 8 EX AI+ is the newer 2026 flagship on a later Intel platform, sold at a substantially higher price.
Is the Claw 8 AI+ better than the Claw A8?
On the spec sheet, yes — it has 32 GB of RAM against the A8's 24 GB, plus Thunderbolt 4. The A8 posts higher frame rates in some real-game tests at 17 W, so the comparison is closer than the specs suggest.
Can you upgrade the MSI Claw 8 AI+?
Storage only. It uses an M.2 2230 NVMe drive that can be replaced. The 32 GB of LPDDR5X is soldered on-package and cannot be changed.
Does the Claw 8 AI+ support an external GPU?
Yes. It has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, which is one of its clearest advantages over AMD-based handhelds in the same price range.
Why did the price go up?
A global DRAM shortage through 2026 has raised memory costs across the industry. With 32 GB of LPDDR5X on-package, the Claw 8 AI+ is more exposed to that than most handhelds.
The Verdict
The Claw 8 AI+ earned its reviews. It took a product line that had been written off and made it competitive, and it did so on a platform — Intel in a handheld — that almost nobody expected to work.
The only thing standing between it and an easy recommendation is a price it did not choose. Watch for it near $899 and buy without hesitation. At $1,149, treat it as one option among several rather than the obvious pick.
For the rest of MSI's handheld line, see our look at the AMD-powered Claw A8, our comparison of the Claw 8 EX AI+ against the ROG Xbox Ally X, and whether the original Claw A1M is still worth buying.
Sources: Notebookcheck, Gizmodo, Club386, Laptop Mag, XDA Developers, Tom's Guide, FinalBoss, Newegg. Prices accurate as of August 2026 — handheld pricing is unusually volatile due to the ongoing memory shortage, so confirm the live price before buying.
