MSI PRO MP161 Series Portable Monitor Review

A Closer Look

Out of the box, I guess it looks pretty much as you would expect, like a laptop without the lap part. There’s no doubt about it that this is pretty much exactly what you’re looking at here. It’s quite lightweight too, much lighter than say, a similarly sized tablet would be. That’s because this isn’t a smart devices or anything like that, it’s pure and simple a display, so that does keep the weight down.

The design is nice enough though, there’s this weird fake grill design on the bottom and an MSI logo in the centre.

I thought these were speakers, but no, they’re just a decal, which seems odd, but honestly, in person, it actually looks quite nice.

The overall bezel is nice and slim, but again, no surprise given the compact and portable nature of the product.

The screen has some form of matte finish, that’s a little reflective but does diffuse light too; let’s call it semi-gloss.

On the edges, you’ll find some grippy rubber feet to stop it sliding around.

On this side, there are some ports, and the main controls; up, down and ok, but these serve multiple purposes for the power, UI, volume, etc.

There are two USB Type-C ports, as well as a single mini-HDMI. Either of the Type-C can be used for a display or to deliver power, and if you have a compatible device, you can get power and display from a single Type-C cable too but will need a Type-C to deliver power when using the mini-HDMI.

The speakers are located on each side of the monitor too, providing stereo sound output.

There’s a dynamic kickstand on the back too, which can rotate 360 degree to prop the monitor up on any side.

You can’t stand the monitor straight up, it always has a lean back to it.

But you can adjust how far back it leans, which is pretty neat.

The same is true in portrait mode, however, it’s got even more backward tilt in this mode, but given it sits on the desk not a taller stand, this actually works rather well.