MSI MP165 E6 15.6" Black 2025

A stupidly light, plug-and-play portable monitor that gets the important stuff right. Skip it if you're a MacBook Pro user or plan to work outside, but for everyone else, this is the budget king.

Honestly, the 60Hz panel feels smoother than it has any right to. MSI's motion handling is solid, and the 4ms response time keeps things from getting smeary in fast-paced games, even if you won't mistake it for a high-refresh gaming monitor. The real surprise is how well the single-cable USB-C setup works. We plugged it into a laptop and a Steam Deck, and it just fired up instantly, no driver headaches or external power bricks needed.

Stacked against the ASUS ZenScreen line, the MSI trades a bit of premium build feel for a much friendlier price tag and that full-size HDMI port, which ASUS often omits. The Lenovo ThinkVision M14 is a step up in brightness and color accuracy, but it costs nearly twice as much. If you're just extending your laptop display for office work, the MSI gives you 90% of the experience for half the cash. Skip the cheap $60 Amazon specials, they'll have worse panels and flimsier stands.

For the street price hovering around $100, this thing is a steal. You're getting a name-brand IPS panel with a proper carrying case and a full-size HDMI port, which is more than you can say for most no-name competitors at this price. Unless you absolutely need 4K or eye-searing brightness, this is the budget portable monitor to beat.

The MSI MP165 E6 is the portable monitor you grab when you just need a second screen that works, no fuss. It's ridiculously slim, weighs less than a paperback, and gets video and power over a single USB-C cable. This isn't a color-accurate dream machine for creatives. It's a straightforward 1080p panel that nails the basics for spreadsheets, Slack, or a sneaky Nintendo Switch session on your lunch break.

If you're a photographer or video editor who needs accurate colors, this isn't your monitor. The 6-bit+FRC panel and low brightness will drive you nuts. Spend the extra cash on something like the ASUS ProArt portable display instead. Also, if you plan to work outside on a sunny patio, the 250-nit screen will leave you squinting.

The MSI MP165 E6 is the portable monitor most people should buy. It's not the brightest or the most color-accurate, but it's dead simple to use, surprisingly well-built for the price, and includes everything you need in the box. If you're a Windows user or console gamer looking for a travel buddy, this is it.