Gigabyte is preparing to launch the AORUS X3 gaming laptop at Computex in Taipei tomorrow and have previewed the laptop today for press. AORUS is the gaming brand Gigabyte owns and has been operating for a few months now and this is the biggest surge into the market.
AORUS is not a well known brand, before the X3 and X7 the subsidiary only worked on mice and keyboards for gamers. This is there first step into the market and the AORUS X3 will be offered to high-end “hardcore gamers” who want the best a gaming laptop can offer.
AORUS X3 Design
The design of the AORUS X3 definitely appeals to those who do not want a standard Dell PC look, the back end vents give the laptop a futuristic look, like a sports car or stealth bomber. Coming in black adds to the stealth affect, making it more viable for people who want eccentrics on the design. 
The 13-inch display comes with a 3200 x 1800 resolution display, higher than the average 2K display but still not quite 4K. This comes with advantages and drawbacks and we would say the advantages outweigh the drawbacks, considering how incredible the display looks.
AORUS has added a glass trackpad and it adds to the premium design the X3 has to offer. The keyboard also comes with a backlight and the color can be configured. For gamers, AORUS has added five macro keys to the laptop, which can be programmed for different games.
Internals
AORUS split the X3 into two models, the X3 and X3 Plus. The X3 Plus is the one that comes with the 3K display, while the X3 has a 2K QHD display. The internals are the same between the two devices, with the X3 Plus only receiving the 3K upgrade.
The CPU on the AORUS X3 is an 4th Generation Intel Core i7 clocked at 3GHz, alongside 8GB of DDR3L RAM. Storage goes from 128GB to 512GB SSD and both the RAM and storage offer space for double the amount.
Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 870M comes inside the AORUS X3 with 6GB of GDDR5 RAM. The GPU is rather impressive for a 13-inch laptop and AORUS claims it is the most powerful gaming laptop under 15-inches.
Release Date
The release date for the AORUS X3 and X3 Plus is still not confirmed, but Gigabyte has said they will start shipping in the third quarter to the United States, no confirmation on other markets.
Price wise, the X3 comes for $2,099 and the X3 Plus comes for an extra $100 at $2,199. For $100 more, the X3 Plus is a better buy in our opinion, the 3K display offers a lot more depth, especially in games optimised for the higher-resolution.
Comparing the X3 to other gaming laptops on the market, the price is quite reasonable but still too expensive if you are fine with sitting at a desk playing on a PC. The internals would price this machine at around $1,200 and AORUS doesn’t have any previous customer feedback to make them a good choice against Razer and Alienware.
