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Aorus 17
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Surface Laptop Studio
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What we think

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The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·

For better performance in intensive engineering tasks and gaming, and if you prefer a laptop with a much larger screen, the Gigabyte Aorus 17 will be suitable. However, it is heavier, less portable, and has shorter battery life. Alternatively, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio, with its smaller size and lighter design, offers greater portability and longer battery life, ideal for general use and it features a touchscreen with a higher resolution and aspect ratio beneficial for multitasking and creative work. The Surface Laptop Studio is also slightly less expensive and still capable of handling moderate engineering tasks and some 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 Gigabyte Aorus 17
  • Very good for engineering and design
  • Very good for gaming and AI
  • Very good for content creation
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio
  • Very good overall build quality
  • Good portability

Key differences

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Gaming and AI

8.1
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
6.6
8.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
360Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.7/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio is only fair.

Engineering and Design

8.4
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
7.3
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
8.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 is very good for engineering and design, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio is good.

Content Creation

8.0
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
7.4
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 is very good for content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio is good.

Screen Quality

8.0
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
8.0
17.3in
SIZE
14.4in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
360Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
267.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
491.0 nits
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 has a better screen than the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio for gaming and AI, and content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio has a better screen for general use, and engineering and design.

Battery

6.0 Hours
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
8.0 Hours
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 has 6 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio has 8 hours of battery life.

Portability

Fair
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
Good
17.3in
SIZE
14.4in
5.9 lbs
WEIGHT
4.0 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio has good portability, while the Gigabyte Aorus 17 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.

Build Quality

7.4
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
8.5
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio has very good build quality, while the Gigabyte Aorus 17 has good build quality.
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Key similarities

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General Use

7.9
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
7.4
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
267.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
491.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
6.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.8/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 and Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio are both good for general use.

Software Development

7.5
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
7.3
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
8.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 17 and Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio are both good for software development.

Cost

$1,700
Aorus 17
Surface Laptop Studio
$1,700
Product imageProduct image

$500

$1,000

$1,500

$2,000

$2,500

$3,000

The Gigabyte Aorus 17 has a price of $1,700 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio costs $1,700.

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How the Gigabyte Aorus 17 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio compare to other laptops

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Spec Comparison

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Gigabyte Aorus 17Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio
Gigabyte Aorus 17Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio

GENERAL

Price
$1,700
$1,700
Release Date
February 1, 2022September 1, 2021
Overall Dimensions
15.7'' x 10'' x 1.02''12.7'' x 9'' x 0.75''
Weight
5.95 lbs4 lbs
Width
15.7"12.72"
Depth
10"8.98"

INTERNAL

Processor
Intel i7-12700HIntel i7-11370H
RAM
16 GB16 GB
DDR Memory Version
44
RAM Slots
20
Storage
1024 GB512 GB

BATTERY

Battery Life
6 Hours8 Hours
Battery Capacity
99 Wh58 Wh

SCREEN

Diagonal Size
17.3"14.4"
Display Technology
IPSIPS
Resolution
1920 x 10802400 x 1600
Refresh Rate
360Hz120Hz
Display Brightness
267 nits491 nits

RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS

Build Quality Score
7.4/108.5/10
Portability Score
6.2/107.9/10
Gaming Laptop Appearance
YesNo
Premium Business Laptop
NoNo
Fan Noise Score
6.5/106.8/10

HARDWARE FEATURES

Keyboard Quality Score
8/108/10
Speaker Quality Score
8/108/10
Webcam
720p1080p
Fingerprint Reader
NoNo
Backlit Keyboard
YesYes
Number Pad
YesNo

CONNECTIVITY

USB Type-A
20
USB-C ports
12
USB-C Charging
NoYes
Display Outputs
32
Thunderbolt Version
44

Shopping

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Gigabyte Aorus 17

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Dig into reviews and images

NotebookCheck

Sascha Mölck | April 2022
"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."

Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio

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Dig into reviews and images

PCMag

Tom Brant | October 2021
"There’s no doubt that the Surface Laptop Studio is groundbreaking. We’ve come to expect such things from the Surface lineup, so it’s always nice to see a product that exceeds our expectations. The pull-forward laptop-screen concept has been tried before, but never in a device that’s so stylish and packed with innovative features like a haptic touchpad and robust digital stylus support."

Get a great deal on the Gigabyte Aorus 17 or the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio

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.

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Why trust us

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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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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.

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