MSI Raider A18 HX: lights, special keys, and resetting the battery

The power light — a two-way indicator

This light doesn't just show the laptop is on: its color also reveals which graphics mode is active. White means the computer is running on the integrated GPU; amber means the dedicated GPU is in use. The light goes off in sleep or when powered down — a simple way to tell at a glance which chip is doing the work.

What to do if the system locks up or after a firmware update

There's a dedicated reset procedure for exactly these cases: unplug the AC adapter, hold the power key for 20 seconds until the light blinks and then goes off after another 5 seconds, plug the AC power back in, then turn the laptop on normally.

The webcam and its physical shutter

A slider lets you physically hide the camera lens when it's not in use — a simple hardware-level protection, independent of any software setting. A dedicated light turns on as soon as the camera is active.

The quick Fn keys, switchable on or off

The F1 through F12 keys carry dedicated functions (mute, volume up/down, toggle the touchpad, mute the mic, open Bluetooth settings, switch profiles in MSI Center) available with a single press. The Fn + Esc combination switches between this quick mode and standard Fn combinations; the light on the Esc key shows which mode is active.

The Copilot key

It opens the Windows Copilot assistant, or launches Windows Search if Copilot isn't installed on the machine.