The Gigabyte Aorus 15 is significantly more expensive and offers high-end performance suitable for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering tasks, thanks to its powerful processor and graphics card; it also has a larger, higher-resolution screen with a higher refresh rate which is great for fast-moving visuals. However, it is heavier, thicker, and has shorter battery life, making it less portable. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is much more affordable, lightweight, and offers long battery life, making it highly portable. Its touchscreen and 3:2 aspect ratio could be better for general use and productivity tasks, but its lower-powered processor and integrated graphics aren't suited for demanding applications. 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 Aorus 15
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Very good keyboard
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
Excellent portability
Key differences
General Use
7.9/10
7.0/10
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
316.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
401.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
6.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
9.2/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 and Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 are both good for general use, though the Gigabyte Aorus 15 is somewhat better.
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 is better suited for general use due to its powerful CPU and ample RAM, which facilitate smoother multitasking and more demanding applications, along with a high-quality screen that provides crisp visuals and color accuracy for a range of tasks. However, it's less portable due to its weight and has shorter battery life, in contrast to the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2, which offers excellent portability and longer battery life but is hampered by a less powerful CPU, less RAM, and a smaller storage capacity, making it less suited for intensive tasks despite its good screen quality and lightweight design.
Gaming and AI
8.0/10
6.0/10
8.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 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
8.4/10
6.5/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
8.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 is very good for engineering and design, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is only fair.
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 is equipped with a high-performance processor, ample RAM, powerful dedicated GPU, and a high-quality screen, making it well-suited for engineering and design tasks that require demanding graphics and processing power. In contrast, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2, while more portable and having a high-quality screen, has a less powerful processor, less RAM, and an integrated GPU, making it less optimal for intensive engineering and design work that might involve complex computations and graphics rendering.
Content Creation
8.0/10
7.1/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 is very good for content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 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
7.6/10
7.0/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 and Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 are both good for software development, though the Gigabyte Aorus 15 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
8.0/10
6.9/10
15.6in
SIZE
12.4in
2560 x 1440
RESOLUTION
1536 x 1024
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
165Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
316.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
401.0 nits
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 has a better screen than the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 likely has a high-resolution display with good color accuracy, making it ideal for tasks that require visual detail such as engineering and design, but its lower refresh rate hampers the gaming experience. Conversely, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 provides a balance of respectable resolution and brightness suitable for everyday tasks and professional work but lacks the higher refresh rates and color range demanded by gaming and high-end design applications. Ultimately, while both laptops offer quality displays for everyday and professional use, neither is optimized for the high refresh rates required for smooth gameplay or advanced 3D work.
Battery
6.0 Hours
8.0 Hours
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 has 6 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has 8 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
Excellent
15.6in
SIZE
12.4in
5.2 lbs
WEIGHT
2.4 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 has excellent portability, while the Gigabyte Aorus 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$1,500
$565
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Gigabyte Aorus 15 has a price of $1,500 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 costs $565.
"The Gigabyte Aorus 15 is a power-hungry gaming beast. The Aorus 15 is designed to run games at QHD and high to max settings. But it also cuts a good figure in other demanding applications such as video editing and rendering. This is made possible by the Core i7 12700H and GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop inside the machine. A lightning-fast PCIe 4.0 SSD (1 TB) allows for short loading times."
"The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 review is a compact companion with old hardware. The Surface Laptop Go 2 shows some weaknesses. Microsoft didn't really develop the second generation of the Surface Laptop Go 2 any further but has only equipped it with a slightly more powerful Core i5 processor. However, the performance still remains at a fairly low level overall, but for many users, it definitely should still be sufficient for everyday tasks."
Get a great deal on the Gigabyte Aorus 15 or the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2
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 Microsoft
Microsoft is an American technology corporation. Microsoft is best known for their Windows operating system and Surface laptop series. The Surface Laptop is their standard notebook offering, while their Surface Go, Surface Pro, and Surface Studio are their 2-in-1/tablet offerings in order of increasing capability. Although Microsoft charges a premium price tag for their laptops, buyers can expect a well integrated and packaged device since Microsoft develops the Windows operating system.
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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