If you prioritize a light and extremely portable laptop with an OLED screen, the ASUS Zenbook S 13 offers good performance for general use with impressive color coverage, making it excellent for media consumption. However, its internal graphics are less suitable for 3D, machine learning tasks, or intensive gaming. On the other hand, the Gigabyte Aorus 15X, with its powerful processor and dedicated Nvidia graphics, excels in gaming, 3D rendering, and engineering work, but it's significantly heavier, making it less portable. Additionally, while both laptops have the same storage capacity, the Aorus has a bigger battery, yet shorter battery life, possibly due to its more powerful components. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the ASUS Zenbook S 13
Very good for general use
Very good for software development
Best in class portability
Very good battery life
Very good speakers
Very good keyboard
Advantages of the Gigabyte Aorus 15X
Very good for gaming and AI
Key differences
General Use
8.6/10
7.8/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
365.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
301.0 nits
11.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
9.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.0/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for general use, while the Gigabyte Aorus 15X is good.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 excels in general use due to its lightweight design, strong CPU performance for everyday tasks, generous RAM, and vibrant OLED screen which offers excellent color coverage and contrast, coupled with solid battery life for mobility. On the other hand, the Gigabyte Aorus 15X also provides a good general use experience with a high-performance CPU, sufficient RAM, and quality IPS display, but it is less portable and has a shorter battery life, making it more suitable for stationary use where its superior gaming capabilities can be fully utilized.
Gaming and AI
6.5/10
8.5/10
3.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.9/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 15X is very good for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Zenbook S 13 is only fair.
The Gigabyte Aorus 15X offers superior gaming and 3D performance due to its powerful Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU and a high screen refresh rate of 240Hz, which are more conducive for fast-paced games and smooth graphics rendering. Conversely, the ASUS Zenbook S 13, while still suitable for gaming and 3D applications, is limited by its Intel Iris Xe GPU and a standard refresh rate of 60Hz, which may not be as smooth or detailed for intensive gaming sessions.
Software Development
8.3/10
7.7/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is very good for software development, while the Gigabyte Aorus 15X is good.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Screen Quality
8.1/10
8.2/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
365.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
301.0 nits
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a better screen than the Gigabyte Aorus 15X for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation, while the Gigabyte Aorus 15X has a better screen for gaming and AI.
When considering the ASUS Zenbook S 13 and the Gigabyte Aorus 15X for general use, the Zenbook's display offers superior resolution and brightness, enhancing daily activities like browsing and video streaming. For engineering and design tasks, the Zenbook again stands out with a wider color gamut, providing better color accuracy crucial for detailed work. However, for gaming and 3D applications, both laptops fall short due to their lower refresh rates, which are critical for smooth visuals and fast-paced gaming experiences.
Battery
11.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has 11 hours of battery life. The Gigabyte Aorus 15X has 5.5 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Best in Class
Good
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2.2 lbs
WEIGHT
5.7 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has best in class portability, while the Gigabyte Aorus 15X has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$1,400
$1,600
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 has a price of $1,400 and the Gigabyte Aorus 15X costs $1,600.
The Gigabyte Aorus 15X and ASUS Zenbook S 13 are both very good for engineering and design.
The ASUS Zenbook S 13, with its high-resolution OLED display and 32 GB of RAM, offers outstanding visual clarity and multitasking capability for design and engineering tasks; however, it's more portable but has less raw computing power compared to the Gigabyte Aorus 15X, which boasts a superior processor and dedicated high-end GPU, making it exceptionally capable for demanding engineering software but less convenient to carry around.
Content Creation
8.5/10
8.0/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
2880 x 1800
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 and Gigabyte Aorus 15X are both very good for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Build Quality
7.6/10
7.4/10
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 and Gigabyte Aorus 15X both have good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
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How the ASUS Zenbook S 13 and the Gigabyte Aorus 15X compare to other laptops
"The Asus Zenbook S 13 is the slimmest OLED ultrabook worldwide struggles with annoying fans. The new Zenbook S 13 leaves us with mixed feelings, particularly since last year's model was so good. Asus has completely reworked the device, making the laptop noticeably slimmer. The result also looks good and the case makes a great impression, particularly also in terms of the stability. The new plasma ceramic surface feels great, and there are no problems with fingerprints. In addition, it now includes some of the known connections such as an HDMI port and a regular USB-A connection, which is a good achievement in such a slim device."
"The Gigabyte Aorus 15X is a strong showing of Raptor Lake and RTX 4000 series. While the Aorus had trouble keeping up in older games like Grand Theft Auto V, it nudged past the competition in Shadow of the Tomb Raider. It also flexed its next-generation muscle in Far Cry 6 and Borderlands 3. While we were impressed with the overall build quality and design of the Aorus 15X, the keyboard lacked good tactile feedback. The display performed well in real-world testing despite its on-paper shortcoming with brightness, but the speakers are lackluster at best."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Zenbook S 13 or the Gigabyte Aorus 15X
About ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
About Gigabyte
Gigabyte is a Taiwanese computer hardware manufacturer. While Gigabyte mainly focuses its business on desktop hardware, Gigabyte is known for its value-oriented G series laptops, thin and light Aero series, and performance-oriented Aorus series. Gigabyte laptops offer a strong value proposition to compete with mainstream alternatives.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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