When choosing between the Gigabyte Aero 17 and the MSI GP66 Leopard, consider your primary needs. The Gigabyte Aero 17 is a high-end option, usually offering superior performance which might be significant for tasks like video editing, 3D rendering, or heavy multitasking; this can justify its higher price. However, it may also be heavier and have a shorter battery life, which can affect portability. The MSI GP66 Leopard, while more budget-friendly, will usually have less powerful specs. So, if your tasks are more general use or mid-level gaming, and portability and longer battery life are crucial for you, it may be the better choice. 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 Gigabyte Aero 17
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for content creation
Excellent overall display quality
Advantages of the MSI GP66 Leopard
The MSI GP66 Leopard has no clear advantages over the Gigabyte Aero 17.
Key differences
General Use
8.1/10
7.5/10
3840 x 2160
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
368.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
362.0 nits
5.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
6.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The Gigabyte Aero 17 is very good for general use, while the MSI GP66 Leopard is good.
The Gigabyte Aero 17 and MSI GP66 Leopard both cater to general use with strong CPUs and ample RAM, ensuring snappy performance for everyday tasks. The Aero 17 boasts a higher-resolution mini LED screen, providing better screen quality and vivid colors, making it ideal for content creation, while the GP66 Leopard, being lighter with excellent heat management, offers better portability and gaming performance with a slightly more powerful GPU.
Engineering and Design
8.8/10
7.9/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
7.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aero 17 is very good for engineering and design, while the MSI GP66 Leopard is good.
The Gigabyte Aero 17 stands out for engineering and design use due to its high-resolution Mini LED screen which offers superior color accuracy and brightness, making it excellent for detailed design work, and it comes equipped with a powerful CPU, ample RAM, and a high-performing GPU that smoothly handle engineering applications. In comparison, the MSI GP66 Leopard also delivers solid performance with a robust CPU and GPU and has enough RAM for engineering tasks, but its lower-resolution IPS display is less optimal for precision design work, although it compensates with slightly better portability and heat management.
Content Creation
8.4/10
7.4/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
3840 x 2160
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Gigabyte Aero 17 is very good for content creation, while the MSI GP66 Leopard 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
7.9/10
7.2/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3840 x 2160
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Gigabyte Aero 17 and MSI GP66 Leopard are both good for software development, though the Gigabyte Aero 17 is somewhat better.
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
9.2/10
7.5/10
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
3840 x 2160
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
368.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
362.0 nits
The Gigabyte Aero 17 has a better screen than the MSI GP66 Leopard for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Gigabyte Aero 17 boasts a high-resolution display and exceptional brightness, making for crisp and vivid visuals that enhance general use and detailed engineering work, complemented by wide color gamuts that benefit precision in design tasks. On the other hand, the MSI GP66 Leopard provides a similarly good viewing experience for everyday tasks and engineering applications with its competent resolution and brightness, although its color range might not be as extensive. However, both laptops fall short for 3D applications and gaming due to lower refresh rates, which is crucial for smooth motion rendering in fast-paced environments.
Cost
$2,071
$1,400
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
The Gigabyte Aero 17 has a price of $2,071 and the MSI GP66 Leopard costs $1,400.
The Gigabyte Aero 17 and MSI GP66 Leopard are both good for gaming and AI.
The Gigabyte Aero 17 stands out for its high-resolution Mini LED screen ideal for gaming and 3D work, paired with an Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti GPU that ensures excellent graphics performance, although with a lower refresh rate than the MSI GP66 Leopard, which offers a slightly more powerful Nvidia RTX 3080 GPU and a higher screen refresh rate for very smooth gaming at the cost of lower screen resolution and quality. Both laptops are equipped with potent CPUs, with the Aero 17 featuring a newer model, contributing to its suitability for demanding tasks, but this may also affect pricing and battery life decisions.
Battery
5.5 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Gigabyte Aero 17 has 5.5 hours of battery life. The MSI GP66 Leopard has 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
Fair
Fair
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
5.7 lbs
WEIGHT
5.2 lbs
0.9in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The MSI GP66 Leopard and Gigabyte Aero 17 both have only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
8.0/10
8.0/10
The Gigabyte Aero 17 and MSI GP66 Leopard both have very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Gigabyte Aero 17 and the MSI GP66 Leopard compare to other laptops
"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."
"The MSI GP66 Leopard is a good budget high-performance gamer. The MSI also does a lot right outside of the pure performance despite it's low price. For example, the adaptive cooling system really surprised us positively, even in Extreme Performance Mode. And the display is not a budget panel either, but at least outshines the competition in terms of brightness. Of course, you also have to accept a few compromises in this price category. These include the Leopard's poor battery runtimes and the less than optimal build quality, which is also noticeable in the more complicated maintenance."
Get a great deal on the Gigabyte Aero 17 or the MSI GP66 Leopard
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.
About MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
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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