MSI Pro MP161 E2 Portable Monitor Review

The MSI Pro MP161 E2 is a portable IPS monitor designed to enhance productivity for portable workstations. Those regularly working on a laptop while travelling will find comfort in using the Pro MP161 E2, as its slimline and lightweight chassis allow it to be easily carried in a laptop bag, making it the ideal ‘on-the-go’ companion. But with so many portable displays widely available on the market, we’re curious to see how this monitor compares in various tests that analyse its features, versatility and usability in a portable and office setting.

While useful for some, portable monitors often become cumbersome due to their design or poor quality, resulting in what is effectively just extra baggage. However, the Pro MP161 E2 has piqued my interest. This display looks to fill a gap in the market by providing an ‘all-in-one’ display that works with phones and PCs and has an integrated kickstand system that allows it to be displayed vertically, horizontally, or with a tripod.

In this review, we’ll determine whether the Pro MP161 E2 is a worthwhile pickup based on its specs, design, various features, and overall performance. We’ve also assessed this display in a portable setting to see how it coped as a secondary monitor in a mobile workstation.

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Specification

The MSI Pro MP161 E2 is designed to offer professionals an easy-to-use and portable monitor setup. It caters to those looking for a small form factor monitor that will easily slip into a small bag to carry on a train or plane. At 15.6″, the MP161 E2 is notably small. It does take some time to adjust to a screen with this form factor, but I feel the MP161 E2 provides plenty of screen real estate despite its small stature.

This display’s panel is IPS, rated at 1080p. This means visual fidelity is less than stellar compared to other displays, based on the restricted resolution. However, the IPS panel helps with contrast and colour, making it a better option for some light Photoshop or, potentially, video editing work.

However, refresh rate and response time aren’t as strong here, sitting at 60Hz and 4ms, respectively. While this won’t be particularly noticeable during day-to-day usage, the slower speeds will impact fluidity and movement, making gameplay feel more sluggish.

Colour accuracy and brightness aren’t as strong as on other monitors. At 250 nits typical brightness, the Pro MP161 E2 won’t blow you away, but it’s bright enough to be used in situations where there’s backlighting in the background. This is also more possible because of the anti-glare technology being used.

MSI has kept port choices to a minimum on the MP161 E2, featuring no additional USB ports for peripherals. On the Pro MP161 E2, you’ll find two USB Type-C ports that offer up to 15W power delivery or double as Displayport alt ports. The Mini-HDMI port utilises the 2.0b standard. MSI has likely picked HDMI 2.0b over older versions for better bandwidth and HDR support over multiple devices.

The Pro MP161 E2 is priced at $129.99, which I believe is reasonable. However, we’ve seen this portable display drop below the $100 mark, which is an exceptional deal. The portable monitor market is heavily saturated with a range of options. Most tend to sit well above $100, with alternatives like the ASUS ZenScreen reaching close to $200. This puts the Pro MP161 E2 in an incredibly competitive position, as it is one of the best-priced portable displays.

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MSI Pro MP161 E2 Design

Unfortunately, the MP161 E2’s aesthetic isn’t particularly exciting. Because this portable display is designed to be affordable, MSI has likely had to make sacrifices, and looks are often the first to go. Despite this, the MP161 E2 is by no means ugly. It features a relatively slim black frame around the monitor panel and a larger black bar at the bottom with the MSI logo in the centre.

Moving around to the back, the sleek and smooth plastic design persists, but the chassis is a slightly lighter grey. At the rear centre of this monitor is an integrated kickstand. This can hold up the MP161 E2 horizontally or vertically, catering to various workstation setups.

On the right-hand side, you’ll find the three IO ports (two USB Type-C and one Mini-HDMI). MSI provides a USB Type-C to C and a Mini-HDMI cable to HDMI in the box, so buying additional wires is unnecessary. Admittedly, they are pretty small, which is an issue if your setup is further away.

The cables provided are right-angled at one end, minimising bending and ensuring convenience. This also makes them much easier to manage, as they’re pointing away from the display.

In the box is a small pouch to carry and protect the monitor. While it isn’t required, it’s relatively small and protects the screen from potential damage while being carried inside a bag.

Above the IO ports are two buttons to control the OSD (on-screen display). The rocker moves the cursor up and down while the smaller button selects various settings. Additionally, the rocker controls the monitor’s volume on its own.

Furthermore, this monitor’s speakers are located on the left and right sides of the chassis. I prefer this configuration instead of them being down-firing, as this would limit the amount of sound produced.

Features We Like

Compact and Versatile Design

The MSI Pro MP161 E2 is incredibly slim and offers a versatile design that makes it easy to set up and carry while travelling. It is very compact, weighing 0.75kg, which is impressive considering the screen size.

Setting up the monitor is also very straightforward and effectively plug-and-play. After extending the kickstand, plug in the required cables, and the display will fire up immediately.

Tripod Mounting Support

Those looking to use the Pro MP161 E2 as a digital camera output or potentially as a teleprompter can utilise the quarter-inch tripod mounting support. This monitor can be attached to the tripod socket for convenient placement, making it easy to place alongside you at different angles.

Simple OSD

The OSD of this portable monitor is simple to use and offers additional customisation beyond changing the volume. The ‘Professional’ tab features various colour and brightness modes, providing an easy way to amend settings depending on the content being consumed.

Here, the response time and refresh rate can also be configured. There are also extra settings to add a crosshair, change the screen size, or enable adaptive sync. The ‘Image’ tab offers brightness, contrast and sharpness customisation using a slider. Image Enhancement is also helpful for those working with high-fidelity pictures or video, as this setting improves smoothness and quality.

The rest of the OSD settings are relatively standard for a monitor. You can easily change the input source and customise the Navi key to access specific settings quickly. Furthermore, more customisation options exist to set the language, OSD transparency, timeout, and more. Overall, the fact that this portable monitor has an OSD is impressive and demonstrates MSI’s lengths to provide a bespoke experience for frequent travellers.

Features We Don’t Like

No Touchscreen Capabilities

Upon unboxing and firing up the Pro MP161 E2, I immediately touched the screen to use it like a portable tablet. I was understandably disappointed that this portable monitor isn’t touchscreen compatible.

Admittedly, this isn’t a deal-breaker for us, as we understand that the primary function of this monitor is to be an affordable portable display. However, I’d be much more willing to spend a bit extra if there was touchscreen support. Because the monitor is relatively small compared to a traditional 24, or 27-inch option, touchscreen functionality would make moving windows around or clicking on smaller things much more accessible.

General Lack of IO

If I’m being reductive, the MSI Pro MP161 E2 only has three IO ports, all used for charging or as a display output. It would be great to see some extra IO, such as USB ports on the left side of the monitor, so that a mouse and keyboard could be easily plugged in. This would further enhance the overall portable experience, making it incredibly easy to plug in any peripherals or other devices.

Usability & Portable Experience

The MSI Pro MP161 E2’s main focus is to enhance portable workstation setups. Its lightweight and slim design makes it incredibly easy to carry around without being a burden or significantly contributing to luggage weight. We recently went to Computex, which gave us the perfect opportunity to test the Pro MP161 E2 while on the road. One of the editors for the GeekaWhat YouTube channel took the Pro MP161 E2 to Taiwan with him to form an enhanced makeshift editing setup.

The editor noted that it was easy to set up, mainly because all of the data and power were fed entirely through USB-C, which made the user experience straightforward. This display isn’t as bright as the Macbook screen that our editor was using, but it functioned well as a secondary display for the media pool on Davinci Resolve.

Some concerns were raised about the stand. Because the kickstand can’t be removed, there were potential worries that a tightly packed bag could cause the kickstand to put too much pressure on the screen, risking damage. However, while on the plane to Taiwan and back to the UK, the Pro MP161 E2 was perfectly fine, sitting in the pouch and laptop bag.

The Pro MP161 E2 is incredibly useful as an additional display in an office environment. After disconnecting my left monitor, I placed the MP161 E2 underneath the centre display, using it as a resource for research, chat messages, Trello, and Spotify. Because of its small size, it doesn’t impact desk space and doesn’t cut off any screen real estate of my centre monitor, which is an issue I generally have when I test other displays.

Overall, using the MP161 E2 was an enjoyable experience. If you regularly use a laptop and want to avoid the hindrances of traditional monitors, then this portable display is an ideal pickup, especially for frequent travellers.

Conclusion

MSI Pro MP161 E2

Product Name: Pro MP161 E2

Brand: MSI

• Features
• Design
• Performance
• Value For Money

4.3

Summary

The MSI Pro MP161 E2 is an exceptional portable display designed to maximise workflows for frequent travellers and laptop users. Its slimline and lightweight chassis allow this monitor to easily slip into a bag without adding considerable weight to your luggage. The Pro MP161 E2 is a plug-and-play device, making it incredibly straightforward to set up with a laptop, phone, or other external device. To top it off, this portable monitor is also highly affordable, considering its features, hovering close to the $100 mark at the time of writing.

The only major caveat regarding this portable monitor is that it is simple. There are no additional bells and whistles beyond the OSD, which is limited compared to traditional desktop displays. It would be nice to see touchscreen support or extra USBs, but we understand that to make the Pro MP161 E2 more affordable, MSI has likely had to sacrifice some features. However, these weaknesses aren’t deal-breakers for us, and the MSI Pro MP161 E2 is a monitor we’d highly recommend for those likely to be travelling and working on a laptop on the regular.

Pros

✅ Highly affordable

✅ Slimline design

✅ Plug and play

Cons

❌ Not touchscreen-compatible

❌ No additional ports

❌ Only 60Hz