High-Efficient Creator Laptop - GIGABYTE AERO 15 OLED (9980HK/RTX 2080)

A place to give your thoughts on our reviews!
Post Reply
User avatar
windwithme
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 604
Joined: Tue Jul 14, 2009 12:27 am
Contact:

High-Efficient Creator Laptop - GIGABYTE AERO 15 OLED (9980HK/RTX 2080)

Post by windwithme »

There are 2 of GIGABYTE laptop brands, AORUS and AERO. AORUS, the premium gaming brand, is focusing on “gaming enthusiasts”;on the other hand, the AERO series laptops are targeting at content creators.
AERO 15, launched last year 2018, was the first laptop targeting at creatives which has high performance as well as ultra-thin screen bezel.
In 2018, the biggest laptop trend is thin bezel, and this year, 2019, the biggest highlight has to be the OLED display which is launched by only 3 brands by now.
In this article we will take a look at one of these 3, AERO 15 OLED, the latest model from GIGABYE AERO series.
Image

First thing we saw was the packaging. With the new “AERO” logo, black and orange color combination, the packaging looks very stylish.
The AERO 15 OLED comes in 2 different colors, black and silver. The one we got is a black one.
Image

This chassis is made of aluminum with a technique called CNC. Most part of it is matte, and there’s a V-shaped decoration with a satin finish below which makes the whole design doesn’t seem too boring.
The AERO logo on the cover will light up when the laptop is on.
The dimension of 15.6” model: 356(W) x 250(D) x 20(H) mm, and the weight is around 2229g.
Considering its solid build quality, the AERO 15 OLED did very well on keeping a portable form factor.
Image

AERO 15 OLED B and C side design. The 2 hinges are on the left and the right.
The biggest opening angle is around 130 degree.
The hinge and overall build quality feels very solid.
The cover will close automatically when the opening angle is less than 30 degree.
Image

B side (display) is one of AERO 15 OLED’s most attractive features.
This 3-side ultra-thin bezel design is the only design currently available that is closest to bezel-less.
There’s a rubber bumper attached to the bezel that protects the display from rubbing against keyboard.
The Samsung AMOLED panel AERO adapted is the high-end spec available now.
AERO 15 OLED is certified with VESA Display HDR 400 True Black as well as Xrite Pantone color calibration certification.
Each and every AERO gets Xrite Pantone color calibration before it leaves the factory to provide you the most accurate colors of Delta E<1.
This display also has TÜV Rheinland Eye Comfort Certification.
All these functions are added to AERO in order to offer best visual performance no matter colors or details.
Image

Dell, Razer and AERO are the first 3 brands that launched OLED laptops. Since these laptops are very new, customers may concern about the burn-in issue.
The AERO 15 OLED applies a special cover on the back of the panel to decrease the using temperature so as to lower the chance of burn-in.
From this we can tell GIGABYTE is a brand that very much focuses on details.
As for the finish, a glossy display may cause noticeable reflections but is able to produce more intense and saturated colors; on the other hand, a matte finish may look plain but certainly not going to reflect.
GIGABYTE goes for the glossy one in order to show the nice details of AMOLED.
Image

Besides the keyboard, on the C side the AERO uses the same matte black aluminum as the cover.
The island style keyboard supports GIGABYTE RGB Fusion 2.0 and per-key RGB backlight.
This keyboard is collaboration GIGABYTE and world’s largest keyboard provider Sunrex.
Considering it’s a membrane keyboard, It acrually offers a nice tactile feedback.
Comparing to GIGABYTE’s other laptop – AORUS 15, this keyboard feels better, almost like the one on Alienware’s high end gaming models.
Image

The webcam is beneath the display, shooting from a lower angle but not too much focusing on your chin…
The camera works smoothly but the resolution could be improved. GIGABYTE designs a cover for it which is rare on laptops and is able to help keep the user’s privacy.
Further beneath the camera is the power button, on its left and right sit the thermal vents.
Image

Below the keyboard is the touchpad which works accurately.
On the upper-left there’s a fingerprint sensor.
There are also stickers for features and hardware specs here.
The one on the left says this laptop is made in Taiwan and the one on the right is about AERO 15 OLED’s features. These stickers are thick and easy to remove.
Image

I/O ports on the left.
From the left: Thermal vent/ HDMI 2.0/ DP1.4 & USB3.1 Gen1/ Audio combo jack/ RJ45 Ethernet port (which supported by Killer Ethernet E2600 and Killer Wi-Fi 6 AX1650.
The AX1650 supports the latest 802.11AX, Wi-Fi 6, that can achieve up to 2.4Gbps.
Image
User avatar
windwithme
Legit Extremist
Legit Extremist
Posts: 604
Joined: Tue Jul 14, 2009 12:27 am
Contact:

Re: High-Efficient Creator Laptop - GIGABYTE AERO 15 OLED (9980HK/RTX 2080)

Post by windwithme »

I/O ports on the right.
From the left: 2x USB3.1 Gen1/ Thunderbolt 3/ SD Card Reader (UHS-II)/ DC-in/ Thermal Vent
AERO has a built-in SD card reader that supports a higher transmitting speed of up to 300 MB/s.
Image

The rear side
Between the 2 hinges is the thermal vent as well as a small “AERO” tag.
The thermal system is called “Supra Cool 2”, which carries dual 71-blade fans, 5 heat pipes and 11 inhale and exhale vents.
According to GIGABYTE the overall cooling performance is 30% better than the former generation.
Image

AERO 15 OLED comes in with 2 different CPU, i7-9750H and i9-9980HK.
The one with “YA” carries RTX 2080 Max-Q and “XA” is RTX 2070 Max-Q.
In this article we are going to test the “XA”: with i9-9980HK, 8 cores, 16 threads, TDP 45W, 2.4GHz base frequency and 5.0GHz max turbo frequency.
This frequency is a single core highest frequency. Here are some benchmarks with AI functioning and other default settings.
We compared it to the AORUS 15, i7-9750H/ GTX 1660Ti.
Image
Post Reply