GIGABYTE Launches the AORUS X9 Gaming Laptop: GTX 1070 SLI and i7-7820HK
by Joe Shields on October 19, 2017 4:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- Gigabyte
- SLI
- AORUS
- Mechanical Keyboards
- DoubleShot Pro
GIGABYTE has announced a powerful all-new extreme gaming laptop in the AORUS X9. The X9 comes with a 7th generation Intel i7-7820HK overclockable processor, two GTX 1070s in SLI, four DDR4 slots supporting up to 64GB of DDR4-2400 memory, and an option of either a 17.3” 4K UHD IPS monitor or QHD (2560 x 1440) 120 Hz WVA panel. Additionally, the X9 offers an ESS Sabre HiFi audio DAC, ‘quad’ audio setup with two speakers and two woofers, a laptop mechanical keyboard, RGB lighting, and the Killer DoubleShot Pro functionality via Rivet Network's networking.
According to GIGABYTE, the laptop chassis has an exotic design based off of supercars and fighter jets for its design, and uses a ‘maximum’ amount of aluminum. At the nose is a LED AORUS Falcon while the other side is the AORUS HUD. The RGB HUD can show information such as CPU/GPU temperatures, battery level, volume level and others. It can also synchronize with the surrounding RGB chassis lighting. RGB LED accent lighting can be found on the front and back sides as well as in the AORUS RGB Fusion mechanical keyboard (quoted as 'brown' type keys, although the manufacturer isn't listed).
One feature many will notice is the depth of the laptop. It uses two GPUs but comes in at 1.18” thick at its peak. Inside the aluminum chassis is a quad fan cooling solution using a total of eight heatpipes to dissipate the heat output of the dual GPUs, the CPU, and the chipset. Cool air is sucked in through the Falcon shaped vents on the base and exhausted out the back away from the user, leading to a substantial rake on the keyboard, but this could be beneficial on the wrists for extended periods of use.
The i7-7820HK quad-core processor comes in at a base clock of 2.90 GHz with a maximum turbo frequency of 3.90 GHz, all in a 45W package. The X9 is able to overclock the CPU as well, with GIGABYTE saying up 15% increases possible. Memory capacity is up to 64GB due to its four DIMM slots and it is able to support speeds up to DDR4-2400, although exact capacity will vary depending on the retailer. Internal storage by two 1TB NVMe M.2 SSDs with bulk storage handled by a 2TB 7200RPM HDD.
The two NVIDIA GTX 1070s GPUs in SLI drive one of two monitors; users are offered a choice of high-resolution gaming or high-refresh rate monitors. The first a 17.3" 4K UHD IPS Panel with an Anti-Glare coating and 100% Adobe RGB, or a 17.3 QHD 2560x1440 120Hz WVA panel with an Anti-Glare Display.
There is a slew of modern connectivity on the device, starting from Thunderbolt 3 (1 x Type-C), USB 3.1 Type-C (10 Gbps), three USB 3.1 (5 Gbps) ports, a Mini-DisplayPort (v1.3), and a HDMI 2.0 output. It also includes a single 3.5mm Headphone out, a 3.5mm Microphone input, and a single SD Card Reader. Network functionality is handled by a Killer E2500 Ethernet port and a Killer AC 1535 dual-band Wi-Fi card, supporting Killer's Doubleshot Pro functionality which can route traffic to either the hardwired or wireless Killer adapters depending on priority.
There will be two configurations available in the US by the end of October. The first SKU is the X9-KL4K4M which has the i7-7820HK CPU, 17.3” UHD IPS screen, GTX 1070 SLI, 2 x 16GB DDR4-2400, 1 x 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD and 1TB HDD with an MSRP of $3,649. The second SKU is a Newegg exclusive which adds another 512 GB PCIe NVMe drive for a total of 2 x 512GB and removes the 1TB HDD.
| GIGABYTE AORUS X9 | |||
| Max Specifications | X9-KL4K4M | Newegg Exclusive | |
| Warranty Period | 2 Year Warranty | ||
| Product Page | N/A | ||
| Price ($US) | Starting at $1749 | $3649 | $$$$ |
| Type | Gaming Laptop | ||
| Processor Family | 7th Generation Intel Core i7 | ||
| Processors | i7-7820HK (2.9 GHz base, 3.9 GHz Turbo) | ||
| Memory | 4x16 GB DDR4-2400 | 2 x 16 GB DDR4-2400 | |
| Network Connectivity | Rivet Networks E2500 NIC Killer Wireless AC 1535 |
||
| Internal Storage | 2 x M.2 PCIe SSD 1 x 2.5" HDD |
1 x 512GB SSD 1 x 1TB HDD |
2 x 512GB SSD |
| Graphics | 2 x NVIDIA GTX 1070 SLI GDDR5 8GB | ||
| Expansion Slots | 1 x SD card reader (UHS-II, PCIe) | ||
| Display | UHD IPS or QHD 120Hz WVA |
17.3" UHD 3840x2160 IPS | |
| Ports and Connectors | 1 x Thunderbolt 3 (Type-C) 1 x USB 3.1 (10 Gbps) Type-C 3 x USB 3.1 (5 Gbps) Type-A 1 x Mini-DisplayPort (v 1.3) 1 x HDMI (v2.0) 1 x 3.5mm Headphone (HiFi, SPDIF) 1 x 3.5mm Mic-In 1 x SD Card Reader (UHS-II, PCIe) |
||
| Input Device | RGB Mechanical Keyboard (Brown keys) | ||
| Camera | HD Camera | ||
| Power | 330W External AC Power adapter, 94.24Wh Battery, Li-Po |
||
| Dimensions | 16.9" x 12.4" x 0.9-1.18" | ||
| Weight | 7.9 lbs+ | ||
Related Reading:
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- Clevo Announces P870TM Laptop: First DTR with Coffee Lake-S
- Best Laptops: Q3 2017
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- EVGA Launches SC17 1080 Laptop: Core i7-7820HK, Geforce GTX 1080, TB3
Source: GIGABYTE
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TheWereCat - Thursday, October 19, 2017 - link
Why SLI 1070 and not single 1080ti? Wouldn't that leave more room for better cooling? Also better performance in most games since SLI has issues...RaichuPls - Thursday, October 19, 2017 - link
There's no mobile 1080Ti yet, and 2 spread out chips means heat is easier to dissipate than concentrating all the heat onto one spot.Flunk - Thursday, October 19, 2017 - link
Single 1080 would still be better in most current games. SLI scaling is really bad in everything but the biggest titles now.Fallen Kell - Friday, October 20, 2017 - link
Yes, but as already stated, it is most likely an issue with localized heat. The mobile 1070 only uses 115 watts, but the 1080 uses 165. In such a small space, having 230 watts of heat disapated over double the area may actually be easier to handle than 165 watts. Remember, this laptop also has mechanical keyboard which means a lot more space is being taken up to have those mechanical switches, causing the heatsinks to be not as tall, making it more difficult to deal with localized heat sources.Manch - Saturday, October 21, 2017 - link
They're a low profile mechanical switch. 2mm of travel. I seriously doubt this impacts the cooling in a any way.quorm - Thursday, October 19, 2017 - link
Chances of me buying another gigabyte laptop are just about zero. My current one has already gone through 2 batteries. Each one lasted about a year and a half before they swelled up.SilthDraeth - Sunday, October 22, 2017 - link
Feel free to buy whatever you want, but the batteries swelling, has little to do with the laptop, unless it is faulty circuitry or faulty battery. But, heat and lithium ion batteries, do not work well together, and I assume you left the battery plugged in, even when running on AC power, which isn't a good idea, that shortens the life of a lithium ion battery as well. Of course, some laptops, like my Sager np8157, the battery is installed in the chassis. Sure I could take it apart and remove the battery, but that is actually a hassle and I understand I will need to replace it in about a year, to two max, because it won't be much good, beyond 20 minutes max by then.(a lot of speculation on my part)
But if the overall laptop has been good, and just the battery is failing you, I wouldn't write the company off.
quorm - Sunday, October 22, 2017 - link
Yeah, nothing against gigabyte in general.Overall build quality on the laptop isn't great, but nothing else has broken.
As far as the battery goes, it's internal and you have to remove ~10 screws to disconnect. Gigabyte won't sell you a battery to let you replace it yourself. You have to send it in and have them do it. So, either you go without for a couple weeks or you buy a possibly counterfeit battery online.
quorm - Sunday, October 22, 2017 - link
Let me just add, given the common use of these types of laptop (plugged in 90% of the time), what I'd really love to see is some sort of utility from the manufacturer to control the maximum level of battery charging.Being able to limit it to 40% battery charging when using an adapter should really help these battery life issues.
Ej24 - Monday, October 23, 2017 - link
Lenovo used to have an energy management program that charged the battery to a max of 70% and then let it fluctuate between 60 and 70% if you left it plugged in for a long time. Genius. I wish all Lithium ion powered devices had energy management like this.