General Analysis Continued

Getting down to the details, I was quite surprised by what this tiny 14 inch notebook could do. The Intel Core i7 6700 HQ, while somewhat limited by thermals, still did an admirable job. The GTX 970M was a huge step up from the GTX 960M in MSI's recently tested laptop. In Cinebench R15, the 6700 HQ got within 87% of the i7 6700K in multi-core performance. The gap was much wider in CPU Queen since the i7 6700 HQ offered 73% of the 6700K's performance. In terms of memory performance, the Monster 4 does much better than the MSI unit thanks to its dual-channel memory setup. The 2400 MHz DDR4 SODIMMs in fact managed to give the laptop the edge in terms of memory compared to the desktop's i7 6700K, which was a nice surprise.

In terms of storage performance, the 500GB HDD performs well enough as far as HDDs go, but the M.2 SSD steals the show. It offers a big boost in terms of drive performance compared to entry level offerings. In fact, the Samsung 850 Pro M.2 in this notebook offered performance nearly on par with the MX200 250GB that uses the traditional SATA interface. Battery life was a mixed bag, but not awful. When it comes to Netflix / web browsing, battery life was just about 2.5 hours whereas the MSI laptop managed just over 3.5 hours. However, when it comes to heavier work loads and general computing, the difference between the two is just 20 minutes. While gaming at 60 FPS, the two laptops lasted for about the same amount of time. However, the 30 FPS limit had the Monster 5 barely beat out 60 FPS. The result was surprising, but subsequent reruns showed the same result. The Eurocom Monster 4 is definitely a good mix of power and battery life, but both are limited by its smaller size. At 15.6 inches, a larger battery could have had this unit offer much better battery life.

The synthetic and gaming performance tests are where the Eurocom Monster 4 shines. With a power source handy, this little notebook can let you play pretty much anything without issue. Only the Witcher 3 with Hairworks proved taxing enough to bring the Monster 4 down. Everything else cruised along nicely. GTA V was another taxing game since it chugged along at 40 FPS while all other games ran at 50 FPS or higher with their settings maxed out. The only odd duck out was Dota 2 since the CPU and its thermal limit where a limiting factor. While the Eurocom Monster 4 is a strong performer, it still can't quiet replace my desktop. However, it does get close in many games. I only noticed a difference in the most demanding titles.

The speakers in the Eurocom Monster 4 were cleaner and clearer than those of the MSI GL62, but they still don't compare to a good set of speakers or headphones. In fact, if you plan to game, grab your headphones. The speakers are alright for a movie or Youtube, but for Netflix or real gaming, a good set of headphones will make a world of a difference. Still, I will say I was impressed by the 2W Stereo speakers used here. They were slightly above average in regards to laptop speakers.

Overall, the Eurocom Monster 4 is a bit pricey for what it offers, but I personally don't see the appeal of ultra-portable gaming laptops. They come with a lot of restrictions, and while Eurocom has done an admirable job, the design itself is the limiting aspect here. You can only do so much in a thin, lightweight 14 inch form factor. So in regards to that, it's an incredible unit, though it still has some shortcomings. Much like the MSI GL62, the Monster 4 did afford me a great deal of freedom and mobility, but when it comes to gaming on the go, a 15.6 inch or 17 inch unit feels better. Build quality was good, keyboard and touch pad were solid, and the IPS 1920x1080 screen was fantastic. As such, the Eurocom Monster 4 could be a good fit and definitely worth consideration if you prefer smaller, lighter notebooks.