For those who are oblivious and who haven’t read any print or online material that possibly has an association with it, it is easy to think that the EX300 is a new gaming notebook from MSI’s camp. Such a perception could come to mind, taking into account that many of us are pretty much familiar with the “flashiness” of gaming notebooks these days.

Although the “EX” designation on its product name clearly tells us that it isn’t a gaming machine (as MSI assigns the “GX” designation to such a notebook category), to enlighten ourselves, we decided to visit MSI’s website and found out that the EX300 is classified as an entertainment notebook. This classification is supported further by the presence of a discrete GPU on the inside, and an HDMI output on the outside. By and large, the MSI EX300 is a multimedia notebook which sports an athletic build – a thing that will surely appeal both the sporty and the stylish.

The gaudy finishing along with a sloping crease on it bears a resemblance to that of a sports car’s hood.

The EX300’s casing is made up of magnesium alloy which supports the delicate 13.3-inch, widescreen LCD panel. Also shown in this shot is the 2-megapixel web camera.

The glossy LCD surface is not everyone’s cup of tea.

The panel above the keyboard shows off a swirly pattern.

Discreet hotkeys just above the keyboard. Surprising for an entertainment notebook, we didn’t find any multimedia hotkey on the EX300, which MSI should have placed in-between the Num Lock, Caps Lock, and Scroll Lock LED indicators.

The palm rest’s matte surface looks subtly frosted at some angles. There’s no place for unsightly fingerprints here.

The touch pad is streamlined with the palm rest, yet the buttons are quite hard to push.

The line-in port and the microphone port are located on the front.

Occupying the right side are an ExpressCard slot, a 3-in-1 card reader, a USB port, an eSATA port, an HDMI output, and…

… a connector which looks like a built-in TV tuner. We searched the Internet, particularly MSI’s website, but found no resource confirming it is indeed a TV tuner. Noteworthy, the package that we received didn’t include a TV antenna which we could have used to test the connector.

Dwelling on the left side are a VGA, Gigabit Ethernet and another USB port, along with the DVD Super-multi drive.

Once popped in, the enormous battery pack protrudes out from the back, putting the notebook in a tilted position.

Here’s a quick rundown on MSI EX300’s specs for your perusal:

Well, that’s all for now, folks. The comprehensive review in print is currently in the works and will be out on HWM next month. Better check it out!