GIGABYTE AORUS A 17G
Strong, mean, desktop rivaling machine?
SINCE GIGABYTE debuted the world’s first RTX-based laptop in 2020, it’s been pushing the boundaries of performance in this form factor. With the new Aorus line-up comes high-performance GeForce RTX 3000-series laptop GPUs, and in this 17G model, we’re blessed with an RTX 3070. Should be interesting.
First we have to address the elephant in the room: The 17G is huge. But is that such a bad thing? Its large size and chunkier body provide more airflow, resulting in better cooling. And the build quality is superb, with a unibody design that feels incredibly rigid and reassuringly solid, though it’s a little heavy.
You wouldn’t want to sling this in a backpack on your commute—even if you could fit it in; it’s more of a “put it anywhere and play” size. The battery is 99Wh, lasting most of the day, but you’ll need to plug it into the grid for the best gaming experience.
The 17G has been designed with competitive gaming in mind, and you can tell. The panel is a 17-inch FHD IPS LCD model, with an impressive 300Hz refresh rate. It’s super-snappy and responsive, with very good color management. Sure, it’s not perfect for productivity, as it’s not UHD, but it’s no slouch when it comes to gaming. Games feel silky smooth, ensuring the gamer has the best advantage when playing.
The graphics card and screen aren’t the only standout features on offer, though. With the Aorus 17G model comes a much welcomed mechanical keyboard that features the world’s first Omron B3KL switches on a laptop. The keys are very clicky, with deep travel, bringing you that desktop mechanical experience on the go. It’s a joy to write with these keys, especially for long durations. The keyboard is also RGB backlit, with tons of customization options. Sitting below the keyboard is an equally solid trackpad. It responds sharply, and clicking on either side is satisfyingly tactile.
It also features a fingerprint sensor to keep your pesky peers away, and there’s more security features on offer when it comes to the design of the webcam, as it has an integrated slider to cover it. Unfortunately, the placement of the webcam is not ideal, because it’s under the screen, which causes your face to appear from a rather unflattering angle. We assume the reason is to create tighter bezels around the sides and top of the screen, which is an unnecessary compromise, seeing as tiny webcams have been integrated into tight bezels before.
We had to save the best till last: Performance. The RTX 3070 with Max-Q Design GDDR6 8GB is paired with the 17G’s 32GB of RAM, and to top that off, it houses a 10th-gen i7 processor inside, too—anything you dare to challenge this laptop with, it deals with spectacularly. Games are exactly what this was made for; running on ultra results in over 60fps, which is the ideal goal for a good gaming experience, and the fact that the machine is portable is the icing on the cake. It’s a behemoth of power.
The Gigabyte Aorus 17G is exactly what you need if you want to take a solid gaming machine with you on the go. For people transitioning from console gaming to the PC side of things, this works very well paired with a 4K TV, too, running solid detail at over 60fps—better than the likes of the Xbox One or PS4, and it still offers better performance even unplugged.
So, performance is great, the screen is top-notch, and the keyboard is excellent, yet there are a few things holding this back from perfection. The bulk, slightly outdated aesthetics, oddly positioned webcam, and only 512GB of storage, plus the fact that it isn’t the most portable laptop, all work against it. But on the whole, and at this price, it will deliver a great gaming experience.