Aorus X7 DT Packs Desktop GPU, Avermedia Capture Card, G-Sync

By Niels Broekhuijsen
published

The Aorus X7 DT promises to be a high-performance gaming notebook with a big screen, desktop GPU, a capture card, and is for all intents and purposes, VR-Ready.

Aorus is a relatively new player in the gaming notebook space, but as a subdivision of Gigabyte, it appears to know what it's doing. Its new Aorus X7 DT was first shown at Computex and is now unleashed onto the market. 

The X7 DT packs a fairly lavish amount of power in order to craft a mobile VR-Ready machine, featuring either an Intel Core i7-6700HQ or an i7-6820HK paired together with a desktop-class Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 graphics card.  

From the factory, Aorus fits 16 GB of 2133 MHz DDR4 memory using two 8 GB modules, but if you feel that’s not enough, you can easily up that to 64 GB by populating the four SODIMM slots with 16 GB modules. Storage is handled by one 2.5” bay, together with three M.2 slots. Of those three, two have access to four PCI-Express 3.0 lanes, whereas one offers access to only two lanes. Standard, the system comes with one 512 GB SSD and one 1 TB HDD.

The display is a 17.3” IPS panel with a Full-HD resolution and G-Sync support.

Connectivity consists of a Mini-DisplayPort, HDMI 2.0, VGA, gigabit Ethernet, three USB 3.0 ports, USB 3.1 Type-C, a headphone jack (with SPDIF out), mic-in, an SD card reader (that runs over PCI-Express, so you can expect speedy transfers from faster cards), and a power jack. The gigabit Ethernet port is powered by a Killer NIC, and naturally there is 802.11ac Wi-Fi together with Bluetooth 4.1 with LE support.

An interesting option on the notebook is the ability to install an AverMedia Live Stream Engine, which can capture, compress and stream gameplay video on the fly without affecting system performance. The catch, however, is that this card takes up one M.2 slot.

The keyboard is backlit and supports 30-key rollover, and its left column has a series of five macro keys. The top “G” key allows you to switch between macro profiles, enabling you to create a total of 25 macros.

The X7 DT weighs 3.2 kg and measures a sizable 305 x 428 x 25.4 mm, although at its thinnest point it measures just 22.9 mm. Pricing starts at $2,699.

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Niels Broekhuijsen
Niels Broekhuijsen

Niels Broekhuijsen is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware US. He reviews cases, water cooling and pc builds.

9 Comments Comment from the forums
  • TechyInAZ
    I love that you can put desktop gaming graphics performance into these laptops. But I can almost guarantee you that when gaming, that laptop is going to be incredibly hot.
    Reply
  • sillynilly
    With G-Sync? Wow - wonder how they did that since there appears to be no room for the necessary module and heat sync.
    Reply
  • gunbust3r
    Cant consider because of that logo. On the lid: Body building eagle? On the touchpad just looks like what Walmart would spec for a house brand, and the rest of the machine is a generic black plastic slab. Gigabyte needs to step up their game with this spin-off brand.
    Reply
  • problematiq
    18156970 said:
    Cant consider because of that logo. On the lid: Body building eagle? On the touchpad just looks like what Walmart would spec for a house brand, and the rest of the machine is a generic black plastic slab. Gigabyte needs to step up their game with this spin-off brand.

    Holy Crap your right! it does look like a body building Eagle hahaha!
    Reply
  • mrmotion
    That's a pretty amazing entrance into a market that has been so far underwhelming.
    Reply
  • hitman400
    18156970 said:
    Cant consider because of that logo. On the lid: Body building eagle? On the touchpad just looks like what Walmart would spec for a house brand, and the rest of the machine is a generic black plastic slab. Gigabyte needs to step up their game with this spin-off brand.

    They stated the body is aluminum, not plastic.

    My question is, how did they fit a 980 into a laptop? Modification done to the GPU or just slapped that in that laptop?
    Reply
  • TechyInAZ
    18156309 said:
    With G-Sync? Wow - wonder how they did that since there appears to be no room for the necessary module and heat sync.

    Actually, laptops use a different type of G-Sync. NOT the same G-Sync you'll find in gaming monitors.

    Their is no module in G sync laptops. It works identically like FreeSync/Adaptive Sync. Which also means it has the same cons as freesync and adaptive sync since the module does more than most people realize.

    18158903 said:
    18156970 said:
    Cant consider because of that logo. On the lid: Body building eagle? On the touchpad just looks like what Walmart would spec for a house brand, and the rest of the machine is a generic black plastic slab. Gigabyte needs to step up their game with this spin-off brand.

    They stated the body is aluminum, not plastic.

    My question is, how did they fit a 980 into a laptop? Modification done to the GPU or just slapped that in that laptop?

    Yeah I was quite surprised aswell. They are using the gtx 980 designed for laptops though, so it is possible. But in such a thin form factor is surprising, I've only seen 980s in the thicker gaming notebooks.
    Reply
  • sillynilly
    18161544 said:
    18156309 said:
    With G-Sync? Wow - wonder how they did that since there appears to be no room for the necessary module and heat sync.

    Actually, laptops use a different type of G-Sync. NOT the same G-Sync you'll find in gaming monitors.

    Their is no module in G sync laptops. It works identically like FreeSync/Adaptive Sync. Which also means it has the same cons as freesync and adaptive sync since the module does more than most people realize.

    18158903 said:
    18156970 said:
    Cant consider because of that logo. On the lid: Body building eagle? On the touchpad just looks like what Walmart would spec for a house brand, and the rest of the machine is a generic black plastic slab. Gigabyte needs to step up their game with this spin-off brand.

    They stated the body is aluminum, not plastic.

    My question is, how did they fit a 980 into a laptop? Modification done to the GPU or just slapped that in that laptop?

    Yeah I was quite surprised aswell. They are using the gtx 980 designed for laptops though, so it is possible. But in such a thin form factor is surprising, I've only seen 980s in the thicker gaming notebooks.

    Thanks for the insight - I am well versed with the GSYNC module for monitors, need to look into what sounds like an inferior version for laptops (possible Hz limitations ala freesync then?)
    Reply
  • TechyInAZ
    I don't think it's a Hz limitation. However I've heard the G sync module does help with keeping stuff buttery smooth when compared to freesync. But it's still only a small difference.
    Reply