But despite its technical excellence, it might use more polish. Minor drawbacks include audible fan noise and a webcam that looks up at your chin, but the biggest is its average gaming performance. It falls short of the high standard set by the Alienware m17 R4, which is still our Editors’ Choice selection for a premium 17-inch gaming laptop. However, if you require a practical battery life or a more subdued design, keep this Aorus on your shortlist. The Gigabyte Aorus 17G is one of the first RTX 30-series gaming laptops from Nvidia to hit the market. For those who are unaware, the Aorus series from Gigabyte is equivalent to ROG from Asus in terms of gaming-focused goods. Everything about the Aorus is designed with gaming in mind, including the fastest graphics and CPU to guarantee the greatest frame rates, 300Hz refresh rates on the displays, and Windforce Infinity cooling. Heck, the laptops even have the endorsement of G2 Esports, the top CS:GO team in the world. also you can check our article on Gigabyte Aorus 17G review.
Design
It cannot be overstated: the Gigabyte Aorus 17G is excellent. When compared to the current slim offerings from other brands like the MSI GE66 Raider or the Asus TUF Dash, the chunky design feels almost retro, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. There is a sense of longing for the days when gaming laptops felt and looked as heavy as trucks, and when opening such a large device made you feel powerful. Of course, if you’re looking for something that needs to live in a backpack and go everywhere with you, it could be problematic. There are much lighter options available for those who game on the go, but given its portability as a laptop, this is still an option if you’re feeling up to the task of lugging its close to six pounds of weight around all day. Though it weighs about as much as two boxes of wine, the Gigabyte Aorus 17G has some serious advantages, with build quality playing a significant role. We make fun of the fact that it resembles a tank and seems practically invincible. The chassis is made of CNC-milled aluminum, which resisted warping or flexing in any area where we applied pressure, including close to the ventilation found above the keyboard. What a keyboard that is as well. Given that it must fit into such a small space, this is obviously not a genuine mechanical keyboard, but it still has all the essential functions and is unquestionably among the greatest laptop keyboards we’ve ever used. Despite their limited space, OMRON mechanical switches still manage to have a 1.6mm actuation distance and produce a satisfying click. The laptop doesn’t have an overtly aggressive gamer design, but when it is opened, RGB lights can be seen shining through the Gigabyte logo on the lid and all over the keyboard. However, if it weren’t for the rainbow lights, you might mistake this laptop for an outdated company model. Although it is understandable that the chassis hasn’t been upgraded, it is rather plain in comparison to competing products that are currently on the market. Although we would stress that it isn’t worth deliberately trying to damage your new hardware to test this yourself, the matte black finish on the aluminum case resists fingerprints fairly well and wipes down easily, so this laptop feels like it could take some punishment if you’re concerned about buying a more delicate device.
Keyboard and touchpad
The Gigabyte AORUS 17G stands out from a large number of other gaming laptops like the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 and Razer Blade 15 thanks to one of its best features, the mechanical keyboard. The OMRON switches provide a crunchy tactile feel that is perfect for games like first-person shooters and MOBAs, as well as an auditory click when we press down on a key. Not only did the mechanical crunch produce a more satisfying sensation, but we also never had to question whether a key had actually hit its actuation point because we could immediately feel the ‘click’. Mechanical switches do have a drawback, though, and that is the noise they make. In fact, the keys are so loud that we advise against using this laptop in the workplace unless you don’ mind having your coworkers hate you. We also had some other issues with the keyboard. First off, entering passwords is a complete nightmare because there is no on-board CAPs lock light indicator. Second, there are some unexpected restrictions on RGB lighting in Gigabyte’s Aorus Control Center. There are just two presets that allow you to add more than two colours to the board at once, putting products like the Razer Synapse several steps ahead. You may create a red ripple RGB effect or a blue wave pulsating under your fingertips. At least the Control Center allows you to establish macro keys, albeit it’s more difficult to configure than the Razer. Not a lot can be said about the trackpad. Even though it is on the small side, it is responsive enough for daily work. But if you want to play games, you should use a special gaming mouse. However, we do appreciate the fingerprint scanner’s inclusion, which makes logging into Windows much simpler.
Gigabyte Aorus 17G review: Display
The Aorus 17G’s 300 Hz IPS-level display is yet another significant advancement, in addition to its GPU. We put this screen through two different tests. We used it to play Overwatch after first watching a Wandavision trailer. Although we were impressed by the color richness and even the depth of the blacks in Wandavision, we discovered that viewing angles and reflections were major issues. Although the screen’s image washed out whenever we moved more than 45 degrees away from it horizontally, viewing angles up and down were nearly complete. Nevertheless, glare was a bigger issue. Even with ideal viewing angles, our image would still reflect back at me, so we had to make sure that our screen was oriented away from light. We had fallen in love with Overwatch. High refresh rates just feel responsive and attractive to the eyes, yet we have our doubts that refresh rates exceeding 144 Hz can actually improve one’s performance in a game if they haven’t trained for professional esports. We enjoy being able to view as many frames of Overwatch’s exquisitely realistic animation as possible and enjoying the sensation that our screen is responding to us practically immediately. However, compared to the 240 Hz display we saw on the previous Aorus we reviewed, we’re not sure we really noticed much of a difference. However, the ability to distinguish between different frame rates is typically very subjective. We were startled to learn from our benchmarking results that the Aorus 17G actually covers less of the DCI-P3 color range than rivals. Its highest score is 79%, falling short of the Scar 17’s 88.5%, the Razer Blade Pro 17’s 84.1%, and the massive Alienware m15 R4’s 149.5%. (thanks to a slower OLED screen). While our colors didn’t appear to be flat or especially vivid in practice, we didn’t pay much attention to this issue either.
Gigabyte Aorus 17G review: Audio
Two bottom-firing speakers, one on each side of the Aorus 17G, tend to create accurate sound but struggle with volume. We put these speakers to the test by playing Olivia Rodrigo’s Driver’s License. The song wasn’t heard until we reached about 30% volume, and it didn’t get comfortable until we reached about 55 to 60% volume, which was the most obvious problem we experienced. you will read our article on Gigabyte Aorus 17G review. That music, played at maximum volume, could fill our entire office but not much of our 2-bedroom apartment. During the test, the sound quality was full-bodied, with distinct voices and bass and no indication of tininess. The song did, however, also sound a little muffled throughout the entirety of our test, as if the laptop were having trouble pushing it out.
Graphic and gaming
Within the parameters established by Nvidia, the maximum TGP that the laptop manufacturer has selected will determine the actual performance of an RTX 3000 graphics core. In the case of the GeForce RTX 3080 laptop GPU installed here, Gigabyte has continued to choose the lower end of possibilities with a TGP of 105 watts (90 watts + 15 watts of Dynamic Boost). Comparing the 3DMark scores to the RTX 3080 laptops we have tested thus far, they fall somewhere between average and below average. The MSI GP76 Leopard 10UG, which is outfitted with the ostensibly weaker GeForce RTX 3070 laptop GPU, defeats the 17G due to the low TGP. The higher TGP more than makes up for the RTX 3070’s technical shortcomings in comparison to the RTX 3080. All of the most recent games load smoothly on the screen thanks to the supplied hardware. In most cases, the highest quality setting and full HD resolution can be chosen. The GPU can also handle resolutions higher than Full HD, though sometimes at a reduced quality setting (an appropriate monitor must be connected for this). The 17G performs admirably in comparison to the RTX 3080 laptops tested up to this point and offers average to slightly subpar frame rates.
Gigabyte Aorus 17G review: Performance
One of the first gaming laptops to use an Nvidia 30-Series GPU, the Gigabyte AORUS 17G (2021) is one of the most intriguing products we’ve tried in a while. we received a review device from Gigabyte with a 32GB RAM, Intel Core i7-10870H, and Nvidia RTX 3070 GPU. Even though it’s not the most potent configuration, it still has more power than any laptop that came before it (though an RTX 3080 model is also up for grabs). In order to better understand the laptop’s performance, we ran a series of benchmark tests while maximizing the CPU and GPU through the Aorus Control Center. The Aorus completely destroyed its competitors in the PCMark 10 benchmark, suggesting the laptop is very effective at maintaining a high CPU performance over an extended period of time. The Geekbench 5 results, which measure CPU performance, were fairly unspectacular compared to the high-end Legion 7 and Zephyrus Duo gaming laptops. According to the 3DMark Timespy results, the integrated RTX 3070 is even more potent than the RTX 2080 Super that drives the Legion 7 and Zephrus Duo. In order to confirm that this performance carried over to contemporary AAA video games, we also used in-game benchmark tests. Average performance for both was more than 80 frames per second with the AORUS 17G. When using 1080p resolution and “extreme” graphical settings, Horizon Zero Dawn and Borderlands 3 are recommended. That marks a higher mark than any other gaming laptop we’ve examined before. The AORUS 17G averages about 150 frames per second in Apex Legends and Dirt Rally, giving competitive players a lot to be excited about as well. Even though that doesn’t fully utilize the 300Hz refresh rate, it is still extremely quick. It’s also important to keep in mind that the RTX 3080 GPU provides advanced capabilities like ray tracing and DLSS. Advanced lighting and shadow effects can be displayed in compatible games thanks to the first, while DLSS can increase the frame rate of games that support it. The Aorus 17G was how loud? It was slightly noisier with the fans running in the background when “Boost mode” was engaged, but it was still significantly quieter than the gaming laptops we’ve tested in the past.
Gigabyte Aorus 17G review: Battery life
For a gaming laptop, the Gigabyte Aorus 17G’s battery life is really quite good, allowing for about six hours of operation without a power supply. It lasted six hours and four minutes in the PCMark 10 battery test and six hours and 32 minutes in the battery test at home. This is superior to competing products like the Asus ROG Strix SCAR 17 G733, which only managed four hours and 43 minutes in our home battery test, so at least you’re getting some respectable longevity in exchange for the Gigabyte offering’s sheer bulk. also you will learn our article on Gigabyte Aorus 17G review. Our own gaming time held up as well, with multiple Rust sessions easily averaging five hours and twenty minutes. Given that a typical gaming session lasts between three and five hours, you shouldn’t be concerned about playing away from a wall socket despite the fact that gaming laptops aren’t known for being able to run on battery for extended periods of time. As was already mentioned, this beast isn’t the best option for people looking for a portable gaming laptop due to its weight, so you’ll probably spend the majority of your time plugged into the wall due to the energy required to lug it around.
Gigabyte Aorus 17G review: Heat
After 15 minutes of YouTube video streaming, we put the Aorus 17G through a heat test to see if it would still be cool. The laptop’s touchpad, which had a temperature of 71.4 degrees Fahrenheit (21.89 degrees Celsius), was the coldest touchpoint, while the Centre of the keyboard (between the G&H keys) had a slightly higher temperature of 75.2 degrees Fahrenheit (24 degrees Celsius). The laptop’s bottom typically reached 81.9 degrees Fahrenheit (27.72 degrees Celsius), but the center, which is immediately below the vents, did reach 85.5 degrees Fahrenheit.
Configuration options
The configuration of the Gigabyte Aorus 17G that we examined is currently on sale for $2,099, £2,199, or AU$3,599. This is hardly a cheap laptop, but if you have the cash, you can upgrade to the more potent RTX 3080 model for the pitiful amount of $2,699, £2,699, or AU$3,999. This places it in the same price range as the Alienware m17, which has a similar spec build and starts at $2,149 (roughly £1,570, AU$1,770). However, it also makes it a more cost-effective option when compared to laptops like the Asus ROG Strix SCAR 17 G733 at $2,999.99 / £2,499 (roughly AU$3,900) or the Razer Blade Pro 17 ($2,399.99 / £2,24. The GPU and CPU of the different configurations offered are the only components of this laptop that require real consideration when choosing one, so it’s important to keep in mind that some components can be upgraded in the future. The laptop’s back can be opened with a screwdriver to reveal two M.2 slots for storage and two DDR4 slots for RAM upgrades, giving you some flexibility to add more hardware if necessary.
Conclusion
How much performance you’re willing to give up for quiet depends on whether the Gigabyte Aorus 17G is the right gaming laptop for you. In games, it will depend on how GPU- or CPU-bound the game is. Performance decreases compared to laptops of comparable size and weight have ranged from 2 to 25 percent. The disparities between the 155-watt and the 105-watt RTX 3080 for content creation apps, including GPU-based rendering or computing, reduce to 10 to 15%. That still represents a significant performance hit, but we can understand if you must if your ears are simply no longer able to handle it. Even today, the Gigabyte Aorus 17G is one of the fastest gaming laptops available, and it is also far from being the noisiest.
