The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is more affordable, lightweight, and has longer battery life, making it ideal for general use and portability. It operates silently with no fans but is not suitable for intensive gaming, 3D/machine learning tasks, or demanding engineering software. On the other hand, the Gigabyte Aorus 17 is more expensive, heavier, and tailored for gaming, with a high-refresh-rate display and powerful graphics. It's better for 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering work but has a shorter battery life and is less portable. Choose the MacBook Air for everyday tasks and mobility, or the Aorus 17 for performance-intensive applications and gaming. 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 Apple MacBook Air (2020)
Best in class overall build quality
Very good portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the Gigabyte Aorus 17
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
8.1/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
7.3/10
8.4/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 is very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good.
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 is better for engineering and design due to its higher performing CPU and GPU, more RAM, and larger screen, which enhances intensive tasks like 3D modeling and simulations. In contrast, the Apple MacBook Air (2020), while offering excellent screen quality, is more portable and operates silently—which is advantageous for on-the-go use or environments where low noise is appreciated.
Screen Quality
7.5/10
8.0/10
13.3in
SIZE
17.3in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
395.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
267.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the Gigabyte Aorus 17 for engineering and design, while the Gigabyte Aorus 17 has a better screen for gaming and AI, and software development.
The Apple MacBook Air delivers clear and vibrant visuals suitable for general tasks and engineering due to its high resolution and bright display, which also covers a wide color gamut, ensuring precise color accuracy for design work. However, its refresh rate isn't high enough for optimal 3D performance, where smoother motion via a higher refresh rate is crucial. On the other hand, the Gigabyte Aorus 17 offers a display that's crisp and bright for general use and has the color range needed for engineering and design, but for gaming and 3D work, its screen falls short as it does not provide the rapid refresh rates required for the best experience.
Battery
15.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The Gigabyte Aorus 17 has 6 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
Very Good
Fair
13.3in
SIZE
17.3in
2.8 lbs
WEIGHT
5.9 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has very good portability, while the Gigabyte Aorus 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.4/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has best in class build quality, while the Gigabyte Aorus 17 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,000
$1,700
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has a price of $1,000 and the Gigabyte Aorus 17 costs $1,700.
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) excels in portability and has a high-quality screen, making it perfect for general use, especially with its long battery life and silent operation. The Gigabyte Aorus 17 offers powerful performance with its superior CPU and more RAM, which is great for more demanding tasks, but it's less portable and has a shorter battery life, making it less suited for on-the-go usage.
Content Creation
7.8/10
8.0/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Gigabyte Aorus 17 to be very good for content creation, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good.
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.
Software Development
7.7/10
7.5/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Gigabyte Aorus 17 are both good for software development.
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.
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How the Apple MacBook Air (2020) and the Gigabyte Aorus 17 compare to other laptops
"The Apple MacBook Air M2 Entry is a very good, but too expensive daily MacBook. The new MacBook Air M2 is undoubtedly once again a very good mobile companion, but we are still a little bit disappointed on a very high level, which is definitely connected with the increased price point. The new chassis is extremely slim and the front edge is no problem during typing, but the bezels are pretty wide for a modern device and in addition with the vertical space required for the notch, the new Air has larger footprint than some Windows rivals."
"The Gigabyte Aorus 17 is a powerful high-end gaming machine. The Aorus 17 is a potent gaming notebook in a 17.3-inch format designed for FHD gaming at maximum settings. A Core i7-12700H processor and GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU make this possible. A lightning-fast PCIe 4 SSD (1 TB) provides the necessary storage space and ensures short loading times. With the Aorus 17 XE4, Gigabyte delivers a well-rounded, high-performance gaming notebook."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2020) or the Gigabyte Aorus 17
About Apple
Apple, an American technology company, is one of the world’s largest company in terms of market capitalization. Their MacBook laptops feature a slim, minimalistic design, class-leading battery life, and premium display and speaker quality. In 2020 Apple switched from using Intel processors to their own silicon chips which have excellent performance and efficiency. The macOS operating system is the second most widely used OS, after Windows.
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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