The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is excellent for general use, while the Gigabyte Aero 17 is very good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Gaming and AI
6.7/10
7.9/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Gigabyte Aero 17 is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Air (2022) 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
8.2/10
8.8/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
24.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aero 17 and Apple MacBook Air (2022) are both very good for engineering and design, though the Gigabyte Aero 17 is somewhat better.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Software Development
8.7/10
7.9/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
24.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) is very good for software development, while the Gigabyte Aero 17 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
7.6/10
9.2/10
13.6in
SIZE
17.3in
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2160
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
486.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
368.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the Gigabyte Aero 17 for software development, and content creation, while the Gigabyte Aero 17 has a better screen for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
15.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The Gigabyte Aero 17 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
Excellent
Fair
13.6in
SIZE
17.3in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
5.7 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has excellent portability, while the Gigabyte Aero 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has best in class build quality, while the Gigabyte Aero 17 has very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Gigabyte Aero 17 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.
Cost
$2,129
$2,071
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has a price of $2,129 and the Gigabyte Aero 17 costs $2,071.
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How the Apple MacBook Air (2022) and the Gigabyte Aero 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."
"Not only is the Aero 17 a very good laptop for gamers but also for content creators. With the upgrade to the Intel Core i9-11980HK, Gigabyte particularly improved the system performance. In addition, the hardware package is rounded by the extremely fast SSD and 32 GB of working memory in dual-channel mode. Compared to the predecessor, the battery life is reduced only moderately, and the 4K display also basically keeps its good qualities."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2022) or the Gigabyte Aero 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.
By the numbers
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About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.