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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated June 22, 2024·
For a balance of performance and portability, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" is a strong choice with its midrange price, excellent battery life, and a high-quality touchscreen display with a unique 3:2 aspect ratio, making it ideal for general use and light engineering tasks. Its compact size and lightweight design enhance its portability, and it offers a comfortable typing experience with a backlit keyboard. However, if your needs lean towards intensive gaming or demanding engineering work, the Gigabyte Aorus 17G, despite its premium price and bulkier design, delivers superior performance with its powerful Nvidia RTX 3070 graphics card and Intel i7 processor, though at the cost of battery life and portability. It also features a larger 17.3-inch screen with a higher refresh rate, which is beneficial for fast-motion content and 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 17G
- Good for gaming and AI
- Very good overall display quality
- Excellent keyboard
Advantages of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
- Very good portability
- Very good speakers
Key differences
Gaming and AI
7.5
6.6
7.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
300Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 17G is good for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" 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.
Software Development
7.2
7.7
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" and Gigabyte Aorus 17G are both good for software development, though the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" 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
7.8
17.3in
SIZE
13.5in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
300Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
282.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
The Gigabyte Aorus 17G has a better screen than the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has a better screen for general use, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
6.0 Hours
9.0 Hours
The Gigabyte Aorus 17G has 6 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has 9 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
Very Good
17.3in
SIZE
13.5in
5.9 lbs
WEIGHT
3.0 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" has very good portability, while the Gigabyte Aorus 17G has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$2,329
$1,200
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
The Gigabyte Aorus 17G has a price of $2,329 and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" costs $1,200.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.5
7.7
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
282.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
6.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
9.0 Hours
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
6.0/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.6/10
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" and Gigabyte Aorus 17G are both good for general use.
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.
Engineering and Design
7.8
7.7
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
7.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aorus 17G and Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" are both good for engineering and design.
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.
Content Creation
7.5
7.7
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2256 x 1504
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" and Gigabyte Aorus 17G are both 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.
Build Quality
7.4
7.4
The Gigabyte Aorus 17G and Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" both have good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
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We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Gigabyte Aorus 17G and the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Gigabyte Aorus 17G | Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5" |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$2,329 | $1,200 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | April 1, 2021 | June 1, 2024 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.9'' x 10.8'' x 1'' | 12.1'' x 8.8'' x 0.66'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 5.95 lbs | 3.04 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.9" | 12.13" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.8" | 8.78" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-11800H | Intel Core Ultra 7 135H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 256 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 6 Hours | 9 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 99 Wh | 47 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 13.5" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 2256 x 1504 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 300Hz | 120Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 282 nits | 400 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.4/10 | 7.4/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 6.1/10 | 8.7/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | Yes | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 6.8/10 | 8/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 9/10 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7.5/10 | 8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 3 | 1 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | No | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 1 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 4 | |
Shopping
Gigabyte Aorus 17G
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | June 2021
"The Aorus 17G isn't among the top RTX 3080 laptops due to its relatively low TGP of 105 watts. The device's gaming performance is average for an RTX 3080. For maximum performance, competitors like the Lenovo Legion 7 or the Alienware m17 R4 are recommended With the Aorus 17G, Gigabyte delivers a well-rounded gaming laptop. However, the device generates a high noise level. Throttling is not an issue. The CPU and GPU can develop their performance uniformly. Nevertheless, the device produces a lot of noise under load - more than many competitors."
Get a great deal on the Gigabyte Aorus 17G or the Microsoft Surface Laptop 6 13.5"
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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