Associate
- Joined
- 1 Jul 2017
- Posts
- 2
Hey all thought I'd post my short review on the Aero 15 after having it for a few weeks now for those who might potentially be looking at this machine and others.
Gigabyte is a brand that is known for computer components and gaming laptops. However this machine is more geared towards content creation. This is not to say it can't game because it can. It has a powerful NVidia 1060 (6GB) graphics card inside.
For my uses (digital design) I wanted something that covered the following points:
- Powerful
- Great screen with colour reproduction (high sRGB coverage)
- Lightweight at 2.1kg (2.3kg with power brick)
- Large selection of ports
- Small footprint
- Thin bezels
- Quiet
- Great battery life
There were a few machines that fit this spec. The Dell XPS 15 9560, Razer Blade and the Alienware R13. I did originally have the XPS 15 but after some quality control issues I decided to return it. The Razer Blade was much more expensive and had thicker bezels and limited upgrade options.
The Alienware R13 looked great. But the weight of the laptop and smaller screen with large screen bezels put me off (2.6kg to 3.2kg with powerbrick). The Gigabyte instead had ticked all of the above boxes so I settled on it.
It is an expensive machine so you'd expect it to be great and it excels in many areas.
Screen - The screen is factory calibrated to give excellent colour reproduction and helps when editing photos or doing any design work. 1920x1080 is a good balance for a 15" screen and with windows 10 scaling set to 100% with small icons on the taskbar and desktop you have enough real estate. Combined with the 5mm thin bezels it’s a delight to use.
Build Quality - The machine is put together very well. It feels quite solid haven't experienced any flex or issues. It is mostly aluminium but some parts are high grade plastic. It doesn't feel cheap and lives up to the premium. I originally had the black version of the laptop which looks professional but decided to change it for the orange. Which is even better the finish doesn’t look garish in any light and is a refreshing change from the typical silver and black laptops you see.
Keyboard - You have per key RGB keyboard lighting which at first does sound gimmicky (it is to a degree) but can be useful as you can configure it to highlight shortcuts and other access you might want in your favourite applications. The keyboard is a little stiff compared to other keyboards and did find I had to hit some keys twice or harder to make it register properly but nothing major.
Performance - Is very good am able to play most games and edit videos without issues.
Quiet - The laptop comes with software that lets you control the fan profiles on the laptop when you run it in 'Silent' mode you literally can't hear it at all. It's brilliant it's as quiet as a fanless machine. This is great if you're surfing the web etc or doing light 2D work. In gaming mode though you can expect the fans to ramp up as you would in any gaming laptop.
Connectivity – Compared to the XPS 15 you’re getting a much better selection of ports:
3 x USB 3.0 Type-A ports
USB-C Gen 2 Thunderbolt 3
Ethernet LAN port
SD Card slot
Mini Displayport 1.3 (supports 5K)
HDMI 2.0 (4k @ 60Hz)
The fact you can drive 4K @ 60 Hz screens out of the box without dongles or adapters is a big bonus. The dell only had an HDMI 1.4 port and half speed Thunderbolt 3 ports. For such an expensive machine that’s a joke. No issues with this one though everything runs full speed!
Weight – For a 15” laptop in a 14” chassis I think it is very well balanced especially when you consider it’s thin (19mm) and weighs 2.3kg with it’s powerbrick. Many people forget to consider the whole package weight and this is one of the most portable 15” machines with such powerful components in it. The powerbrick is a 150W unit and comes along with a 2.1a USB port for additional device charging.
Battery Life – For someone that intends to use this machine unplugged for extended periods of time you can safely be assured this machine delivers very well. In light use (web browsing and a few videos) I’ve exceeded 7 hours easily. On average you can get 8-9 hours. If you push it a bit harder you can expect around 5 hours of moderate use. This is pretty good considering how powerful the components are.
Cons – While I personally don’t think these are major it may affect some of your purchasing decisions.
Webcam position – It’s a chin camera so like the XPS 15 is positioned at the bottom of the screen. This could be an issue but don’t feel it’s a deal breaker. If you use your laptop on a stand it won’t pose much of an issue if raised to eye level.
Keyboard – As mentioned before the keys are require much harder presses to activate. After extended typing sessions you might want to take a break. Don’t expect to be typing quietly with this laptop. While you can, but you might likely miss a few keystrokes because of the pressure required to activate the key. It’s a matter of getting used to it but found the longer I use the keyboard the less of an issue it becomes but still worth mentioning it.
Trackpad – Uses ELAN drivers which aren’t the best. The trackpad isn’t fantastic out of the box but with a few tweaks to sensitivity it’ll become lovely to use. I further enhanced it by finding Microsoft Precision drivers. This made the experience much better than the using the factory drivers.
Price – It’s an expensive machine at nearly £2k there are other machines out there that might have more RAM or HDD space etc but if you’re after something that satisfies the categories of lightweight, powerful, great screen and a small footprint your choices are limited and this machine excels in these areas very well. If you shop around though you can get better deals than seen on here. (Game bundles etc thrown in).
Overall if you’re looking for a powerful lightweight portable laptop for work and games that just works out of the box then the Gigabyte Aero 15 is one of the best choices you can make right now on the market. There are few that can compare to it’s footprint, specifications, range of ports and screen combination.
Any questions I'm happy to answer. Thanks
Gigabyte is a brand that is known for computer components and gaming laptops. However this machine is more geared towards content creation. This is not to say it can't game because it can. It has a powerful NVidia 1060 (6GB) graphics card inside.
For my uses (digital design) I wanted something that covered the following points:
- Powerful
- Great screen with colour reproduction (high sRGB coverage)
- Lightweight at 2.1kg (2.3kg with power brick)
- Large selection of ports
- Small footprint
- Thin bezels
- Quiet
- Great battery life
There were a few machines that fit this spec. The Dell XPS 15 9560, Razer Blade and the Alienware R13. I did originally have the XPS 15 but after some quality control issues I decided to return it. The Razer Blade was much more expensive and had thicker bezels and limited upgrade options.
The Alienware R13 looked great. But the weight of the laptop and smaller screen with large screen bezels put me off (2.6kg to 3.2kg with powerbrick). The Gigabyte instead had ticked all of the above boxes so I settled on it.
It is an expensive machine so you'd expect it to be great and it excels in many areas.
Screen - The screen is factory calibrated to give excellent colour reproduction and helps when editing photos or doing any design work. 1920x1080 is a good balance for a 15" screen and with windows 10 scaling set to 100% with small icons on the taskbar and desktop you have enough real estate. Combined with the 5mm thin bezels it’s a delight to use.
Build Quality - The machine is put together very well. It feels quite solid haven't experienced any flex or issues. It is mostly aluminium but some parts are high grade plastic. It doesn't feel cheap and lives up to the premium. I originally had the black version of the laptop which looks professional but decided to change it for the orange. Which is even better the finish doesn’t look garish in any light and is a refreshing change from the typical silver and black laptops you see.
Keyboard - You have per key RGB keyboard lighting which at first does sound gimmicky (it is to a degree) but can be useful as you can configure it to highlight shortcuts and other access you might want in your favourite applications. The keyboard is a little stiff compared to other keyboards and did find I had to hit some keys twice or harder to make it register properly but nothing major.
Performance - Is very good am able to play most games and edit videos without issues.
Quiet - The laptop comes with software that lets you control the fan profiles on the laptop when you run it in 'Silent' mode you literally can't hear it at all. It's brilliant it's as quiet as a fanless machine. This is great if you're surfing the web etc or doing light 2D work. In gaming mode though you can expect the fans to ramp up as you would in any gaming laptop.
Connectivity – Compared to the XPS 15 you’re getting a much better selection of ports:
3 x USB 3.0 Type-A ports
USB-C Gen 2 Thunderbolt 3
Ethernet LAN port
SD Card slot
Mini Displayport 1.3 (supports 5K)
HDMI 2.0 (4k @ 60Hz)
The fact you can drive 4K @ 60 Hz screens out of the box without dongles or adapters is a big bonus. The dell only had an HDMI 1.4 port and half speed Thunderbolt 3 ports. For such an expensive machine that’s a joke. No issues with this one though everything runs full speed!
Weight – For a 15” laptop in a 14” chassis I think it is very well balanced especially when you consider it’s thin (19mm) and weighs 2.3kg with it’s powerbrick. Many people forget to consider the whole package weight and this is one of the most portable 15” machines with such powerful components in it. The powerbrick is a 150W unit and comes along with a 2.1a USB port for additional device charging.
Battery Life – For someone that intends to use this machine unplugged for extended periods of time you can safely be assured this machine delivers very well. In light use (web browsing and a few videos) I’ve exceeded 7 hours easily. On average you can get 8-9 hours. If you push it a bit harder you can expect around 5 hours of moderate use. This is pretty good considering how powerful the components are.
Cons – While I personally don’t think these are major it may affect some of your purchasing decisions.
Webcam position – It’s a chin camera so like the XPS 15 is positioned at the bottom of the screen. This could be an issue but don’t feel it’s a deal breaker. If you use your laptop on a stand it won’t pose much of an issue if raised to eye level.
Keyboard – As mentioned before the keys are require much harder presses to activate. After extended typing sessions you might want to take a break. Don’t expect to be typing quietly with this laptop. While you can, but you might likely miss a few keystrokes because of the pressure required to activate the key. It’s a matter of getting used to it but found the longer I use the keyboard the less of an issue it becomes but still worth mentioning it.
Trackpad – Uses ELAN drivers which aren’t the best. The trackpad isn’t fantastic out of the box but with a few tweaks to sensitivity it’ll become lovely to use. I further enhanced it by finding Microsoft Precision drivers. This made the experience much better than the using the factory drivers.
Price – It’s an expensive machine at nearly £2k there are other machines out there that might have more RAM or HDD space etc but if you’re after something that satisfies the categories of lightweight, powerful, great screen and a small footprint your choices are limited and this machine excels in these areas very well. If you shop around though you can get better deals than seen on here. (Game bundles etc thrown in).
Overall if you’re looking for a powerful lightweight portable laptop for work and games that just works out of the box then the Gigabyte Aero 15 is one of the best choices you can make right now on the market. There are few that can compare to it’s footprint, specifications, range of ports and screen combination.
Any questions I'm happy to answer. Thanks
