During a CES 2019 press conference, Gigabyte pulled the curtain back on a brand-new Aero 15 with Nvidia’s RTX graphics and a complete suite of Intel components inside.
The laptop is identical to the previous model in terms of chassis design. Instead, Gigabyte is focused on not only updating the hardware inside the laptop but ensuring as much of it is Intel-made as possible – from the processor to the SSD and the modem.
There’s a reason for this: Gigabyte has partnered with Intel and Microsoft to bring cloud-based, artificial intelligence-driven (AI) hardware optimization to the Aero 15.
This is how it works: upon setup, a user can opt-in to share processor, graphics, fan, keyboard and audio usage data with Microsoft’s Azure AI cloud service. Microsoft’s servers will then take that data and use it to optimize the hardware inside the laptop for the given use case, whether it be gaming or content creation or something else entirely.
Of course, being a machine learning tool, this feature is expected to only grow more accurate and impactful as you use it.
What’s inside, and how much will it cost?
The new Gigabyte Aero 15 includes the Intel Core i7-8550H processor to start, which you can upgrade to the Intel Core i9-8950HK for some extra cash. Either processor will come paired with an Intel 760p SSD at an unknown capacity, Thunderbolt 3 connectivity and a Killer 1550 802.11ac Wi-Fi modem powered by Intel Wi-Fi.
As for graphics, the Aero 15 will house Nvidia RTX chips inside, but the specific models of GPUs are currently unknown.
All of these performant parts are accessed through a 15.6-inch, Full HD (1,920 x 1,080) screen with a 144Hz refresh rate. This can be upgraded to a 4K (3,840 x 2,160) display with a standard refresh rate, if you want that extra sharpness but care less about speed.
We'll update this story as soon as we learn the Gigabyte Aero 15's pricing and availability.
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