Lock 'n' Laptop! First Look: MSI Commercial 14, a Secure Fleet Machine

pcmag.com:

TAIPEI—MSI has long been known as a gaming-PC brand, but a couple of its newly announced laptops at the Computex 2023 trade show reflect the company's shift to try making some purpose-built, rather than rejiggered, business laptops. The targets for these systems, especially the first model below, include government agencies and other entities that have strict purchasing requirements around security, performance, and sustainability.

With some of the same smart designs and powerful components seen in its gaming machines, these business and media laptops are likely to bring more buttoned-down appeal to the Taiwanese computer maker, while also catering to the specific needs of professionals and content creators.

The biggest divergence from MSI's gaming past is the announcement of the MSI Commercial 14, an enterprise laptop with a sturdy, no-nonsense construction along with several security features and options. That should make it right at home in any office environment or meet the needs of large institutional buyers.

From the spill-resistant keyboard to the whisper-quiet cooling system designed to keep fan noise at zero decibels, this is a machine made for offices full of people. However, rear-mounted ports, like Thunderbolt 4, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, HDMI, an SD card reader, and optional Ethernet show MSI hasn't left the individual user out of the plan. This is a practical port mix, and the back-edge positioning of the ports like MSI does on some of its high-end gaming laptops shows the company bringing some of its best practices from the consumer side to businesses.

Security, though, is really where this machine is at. IT managers and agency procurement personnel will be glad to see plenty of security features, like