Based on the information provided, the ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 comes at a higher price but offers superior performance for intensive tasks like gaming, 3D rendering, and engineering due to its high refresh rate display and powerful processor. It is heavier with a larger screen but has less impressive color accuracy compared to the Gigabyte Aero 16. The Gigabyte Aero 16, priced lower, offers a more portable solution with a lighter build and better color accuracy, thanks to its OLED display, making it ideal for tasks like photo and video editing where color fidelity is crucial. Both laptops have similar battery life; however, the Aero has double the storage capacity and a higher portability score, which might be more appealing for users in need of mobility and space for media and documents. 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 ROG Strix Scar 17
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good overall build quality
Very good speakers
Excellent keyboard
Advantages of the Gigabyte Aero 16
Very good for general use
Good portability
Key differences
Gaming and AI
8.4/10
7.8/10
8.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
360Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.7/10
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Gigabyte Aero 16 is good.
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 is excellent for gaming and 3D due to its powerful Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti GPU and very high refresh rate of 360Hz, crucial for smooth gameplay. Meanwhile, the Gigabyte Aero 16 also has the Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti GPU for high graphics performance, but with a lesser refresh rate of 60Hz, it is more suited for gaming that doesn't rely as much on extremely fast screen updates.
Screen Quality
8.1/10
8.4/10
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
360Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
292.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
368.0 nits
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 has a better screen than the Gigabyte Aero 16 for gaming and AI, while the Gigabyte Aero 16 has a better screen for general use, engineering and design, and content creation.
For general use, the Gigabyte Aero 16's high resolution and brightness offer crisp and vivid visuals, whereas the ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17, while also having a good display, may fall short in comparison due to slightly lower brightness or resolution. In engineering and design, the Aero 16 stands out with wider color gamuts, providing more accurate color representation which is essential for precise work, while the Strix Scar 17 has a good display but doesn't quite match the color fidelity of the Aero. When it comes to 3D and gaming, both laptops have poorer screens due to lower refresh rates, lacking the smooth motion clarity required for fast-paced visuals despite their acceptable resolutions and panel types for such activities.
Portability
Poor
Good
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
6.3 lbs
WEIGHT
5.0 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The Gigabyte Aero 16 has good portability, while the ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.5/10
7.8/10
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 has very good build quality, while the Gigabyte Aero 16 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$2,499
$1,260
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 has a price of $2,499 and the Gigabyte Aero 16 costs $1,260.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Gigabyte Aero 16 to be very good for general use, while the ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 is good.
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 excels in general use thanks to its more powerful CPU and high refresh rate screen, advantageous for smooth multitasking and responsiveness, but it's less portable and has a lesser quality display compared to the Gigabyte Aero 16, which offers a higher-resolution OLED screen with better color accuracy for superior visual experiences, and is lighter with better portability, yet it has a slightly less robust CPU. Both laptops have similar battery lives and amounts of RAM and storage, where the ASUS leans more on performance and the Gigabyte on portability and screen quality.
Engineering and Design
8.6/10
8.6/10
9.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
8.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aero 16 and ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 are both very good for engineering and design.
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17, armed with a robust CPU, a high-performance GPU, and a fast refresh-rate screen, is well-suited for demanding engineering tasks and design work that might benefit from quick display updates, yet its larger size and weight reduce its portability.
Content Creation
8.2/10
8.2/10
9.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
The Gigabyte Aero 16 and ASUS ROG Strix Scar 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.
Software Development
7.5/10
7.9/10
9.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Gigabyte Aero 16 and ASUS ROG Strix Scar 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.
Battery
7.0 Hours
7.0 Hours
The ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 has 7 hours of battery life. The Gigabyte Aero 16 has 7 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.
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How the ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 and the Gigabyte Aero 16 compare to other laptops
"Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 laptop review: liquid metal 7 nm AMD Zen 3 is stunning. The raw performance increase is absolutely bonkers if you're upgrading from a laptop on Coffee Lake-H or older. The 45 W Ryzen 9 5900HX is neck-to-neck with the thicker, heavier, and hotter Schenker Ultra 17 running on a desktop-class Core i9-11900K despite their wide TDP differences. The performance-per-watt advantages can make Intel Rocket Lake feel like a last generation platform at times. As for the chassis itself, it's a huge light show with RGB LEDs on almost all sides of the system."
"The Gigabyte Aero 16 is a workstation laptop for light gaming. It's design is still muted, with a silver chassis alongside a black keyboard and trackpad that provides some contrast. The Gigabyte Aero’s full-size chiclet-style keyboard is enjoyable to type on thanks to its snappy feel and responsiveness. The 4K+ AMOLED display is good, but it could be better. It doesn’t handle true black very well and suffers from strong reflections and glare. The Gigabyte Aero excels at productivity performance and can keep up with other gaming laptops in 1080p. But it has very few ports and its refresh rate leaves a bit to be desired."
Get a great deal on the ASUS ROG Strix Scar 17 or the Gigabyte Aero 16
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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