First Look: Gigabyte Unveils New Aorus & Aero Gaming Laptops With RTX 50 GPUs

LAS VEGAS –Like all major laptop manufacturers at CES 2025, Gigabyte evaluated its line of gaming laptops in sync with the latest components released by AMD, Intel and Nvidia. Gigabyte, however, took the opportunity to overhaul and rebrand its entire line of laptops — not just to spruce up the parts inside.

We looked at updated 16-inch and 18-inch systems at Gigabyte’s CES show, continuing with the Aorus Master 18, Aorus Master 16, Aorus Elite 16 and Aero X16. These laptops feature a mix of Nvidia’s newly announced RTX 50 series GPUs paired with Intel Arrow Lake HX or AMD Ryzen CPUs. You can watch our overview of each system in the video above and find more details below.

Aorus Master: Ultimate performance in 18 and 16 inches

The first is the Aorus Master 18, a brand derived from the Gigabyte motherboard line of the same name. This high-end system runs on performance-focused Arrow Lake HX processors and up to the all-powerful GeForce RTX 5090.

Gigabyte Aorus Master 18 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

Gigabyte Aorus Master 18 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

The 18-inch display should replicate a desktop-like experience, especially with the power potential of this system. Its mini LED panel has a 240 Hz refresh rate and HDR 1000 support.

Gigabyte Aorus Master 18 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

We also checked out the Aorus Master 16, which shares the same underpinnings but has a few differences. In addition to the smaller screen size, the 16-inch screen may be an OLED panel with a 240 Hz refresh rate and HDR 500 support.

Gigabyte Aorus Master 16 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

The Master 16 also runs on the RTX 50 series up to the RTX 5090 and is built on Arrow Lake HX CPUs. Both systems support Thunderbolt 5, which should be especially appealing to media professionals who might consider this system for non-gaming needs.

Gigabyte Aorus Master 16 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

Aorus Elite and Aero: At 16 inches, do you prioritize power or portability?

Next up is the Aorus Elite 16, another laptop with a household name derived from Gigabyte’s motherboard offerings. This is a slightly toned down version of the Master, as it also tops out at the RTX 5090 and runs on Arrow Lake HX.

Gigabyte Aorus Elite 16 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

The panel is again a 240 Hz OLED with HDR 500 support and the laptop again includes Thunderbolt 5. The design is toned down to a level compared to the flagships above, without as many exciting features, but mainly aimed at the same enthusiast users as the Master.

Finally, we come to an Aero X16. This line of laptops, which we’ve previously reviewed on PCMag, doesn’t come from Gigabyte’s motherboard brands. The name Aero implies something a little lighter and more portable; indeed, this is a thinner laptop with a lower power ceiling. The Aero X16 is 0.66 inches thick and weighs 4.18 pounds, which is more portable than average for a 16-inch gaming machine.

Gigabyte Aero X16 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

It also differs internally from the Elite 16. While Intel Arrow Lake HX is available here, you can opt for AMD Ryzen processors as an alternative. Ryzen options will also be PC-compatible Copilot+ chips.

Given the trim design, it’s not surprising that the RTX 50 series GPUs don’t perform at the top of the pack in Aero, maxing out at the RTX 5070. While we haven’t tested any of these mobile GPUs yet, they should still offer powerful performance for hardcore gamers and should serve well enough for professional content creation and heavy media workloads for users who connect gaming and content worlds.

Gigabyte Aero X16 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

The Aero 16’s keyboard design is also noteworthy. Gigabyte emphasized what it calls its “Golden C” key design, which we found to have a particularly nice feel for a laptop keyboard. The keys are tactile and you’ll feel a bit of a bump on them as you type.

Gigabyte Aero X16 (Credit: Mark Stetson)

It’s a great looking machine and we look forward to testing it alongside the Master and Elite laptops when the units are available.

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I’ve been a technology journalist for more than 30 years, and I’ve covered just about every type of computer hardware—from the 386SX to 64-core processors—in my long tenure as an editor, writer, and advice columnist. For almost a quarter of a century, I worked at the foundation, the giant Computer buyer magazine (and later, its digital counterpart), known as the PC buyer’s phone book and every mailman’s nemesis. I was Computer buyers editor-in-chief for the past nine years, after which most of its digital content was folded into PCMag.com. I also served, briefly, as editor-in-chief of the well-known hardcore tech site Tom’s Hardware.

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