Gigabyte surprise-released the new Aorus 17 gaming laptop at Gamescom this weekend. The new flagship laptop has a trio of claimed 'firsts', making it rather newsworthy. According to Gigabyte this is; the world's first laptop with Omron mechanical key switches, the world's first Microsoft Azure AI notebook, and the world's only "all Intel inside" laptop. I think at least a couple of those firsts need some explanation.
PC enthusiasts probably know Omron well, as it is the maker of premium mouse switches in productivity and gaming mice from the likes of Corsair, Acer, HyperX, Thermaltake, Cooler Master, Razer and more. As per the intro, the Aorus 17 makes use of Omron's Japanese made mechanical key switches.
These keys have several attractive qualities as follows
- 2.5mm key travel with 1.6mm actuation point
- Operating force of 55g with 70g tactile force
- 'Blue' type feel for positive input feedback
- Gold plated contacts
- Concentric transparent design for even backlighting (laptop has RGB Fusion 2.0)
- Lifespan of 15 million key presses
Microsoft Azure AI for gaming has been mentioned before in the HEXUS news pages. It was a highlighted feature of the Gigabyte Aero 15-X9 and -Y9 laptops with RTX graphics which were announced during CES 2019. To recap, Azure AI is said to dynamically set the best CPU and GPU wattage setting for optimal gaming performance on a per-game basis.
Another thing that might need clearing up is the peculiar sounding "world's first and only all Intel inside" claim. Gigabyte suggests that the combination of Intel CPU, Intel SSD, Intel Killer Wi-Fi and Thunderbolt 3 interface qualify this laptop for this claim. Of course there are lots of key components not made by Intel, such as the (Nvidia) GPU, (Samsung) RAM, (ESS) Sabre audio, (AUO) display panel etc etc.
Key specs of the new Aorus 17 are:
- Up to 9th Generation Intel Core i9-9980HK (2.4Ghz~5.0Ghz)
- 17.3-inch Thin Bezel AUO FHD 1920x1080 240Hz Anti-Glare Display, 3ms response, factory X-Rite Pantone calibrated
- Samsung 8GB/16GB/32GB DDR4 2666MHz, 2 slots (Max 64GB)
- Intel UHD Graphics 630
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 GDDR6 8GB
- AorusFusion RGB Per-Key Mechanical Keyboard with Omron Blue Switch
- Ample ports and connectivity including Killer Ethernet E2600, Killer Wi-Fi 6 AX1650 (powered by Intel), Bluetooth V5.0 + LE
- A Li Polymer 94Wh battery
- Measuring 396(W)x 293(D)x 38(H)mm and weighing 3.75kg
Also worth mentioning is the Windforce Infinity cooling system in the laptop. It leverages twin 12V 51-blade fans and an additional "gigantic laptop base fan" with large area air mesh, as well as Gigabyte's super heat conductor (vapour chamber).
For related review content, earlier this year HEXUS reviewed the Aorus 15 gaming laptop with a Core i7-8750H processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 6GB graphics against a wide range of competitors.
I don't have pricing information for the Aorus 17 at the time of writing but it will become available during September in various pre-built configurations.
