This time last year, the future of MSI's foray into the world of portable handhelds looked pretty bleak. The original MSI Claw received an overwhelmingly negative response on launch, forcing the company to go back to the drawing board. Twelve months and the release of the MSI Claw 8 AI+ later, it's a much rosier picture, but it could be about to get better still, with fresh rumors pointing to another new handheld, the MSI Claw 7 A2HM.
According to multiple leaks via Notebookcheck, the MSI Claw 7 A2HM looks to be an upcoming refresh of the 7 AI+, the slightly more affordable sibling of the MSI Claw 8 AI+ from our guide to the best handheld consoles. Just like the 7 AI+, the Claw 7 A2HM reportedly also boasts a 7-inch display, but that's just about all we know about the handheld at the time of writing.
The big mystery right now is whether the upcoming MSI handheld utilizes AMD or Intel hardware. Until now, MSI has relied on Intel, which has worked in its favor of late, with the Claw 8 AI+ beating out a lot of the other Steam Deck alternatives in terms of performance in all the best Steam Deck games. However, leaks earlier this year suggested that the brand was also planning on teaming up with AMD to equip a future handheld with the Ryzen Z2 processor, and some are under the impression that this might be the Claw 7 A2HM.
Whatever the case, it looks like we won't have to wait too long for MSI to reveal its new handheld. The brand submitted the Claw 7 A2HM to the Japan Audio Society two months ago. The same group certified the Claw 8 AI+ and Claw 7 AI+ around five months before their launch last year, so theoretically, we could see the new model launch as soon as three months from now, in August 2025. Still, this is entirely speculation, so MSI could always surprise us by launching earlier or later than anticipated. Either way, we'll be keeping a keen eye on the brand's social media channels going forward.
While the MSI Claw 7 A2HM might still be in the distance, it seems that the Claw 8 AI+ Polar Tempest Edition is finally arriving in the US on July 15, with a global launch to follow. We first reported on the refreshed model with a white design and an extra 1TB of storage earlier this year, but shortly after, MSI removed the product's listing. Now it's back, and we're hoping that it doesn't suffer from the same sort of availability issues as the original on launch.
Of course, as is always the case with leaks and rumors like this, it's best to take the details surrounding the Claw 7 A2HM with a pinch of salt until we get official confirmation from MSI. If you need some new tech in your life right away, check out our guides to the best gaming tablets and the best gaming phones while you're here. Or, if you'd prefer to pick up something a bit more old school, see our list of the best retro handhelds.