Is black the new white? It certainly seems that way this month if you look at the Gigabyte P55KV5 laptop and the Lenovo Ideapad Y700. From a distance, both laptops appear almost identical. Like the Lenovo laptop, the Gigabyte P55KV5 is also shrouded in black with clean angular edges.
It is not often that we receive a complete system from Gigabyte which is better known for their range of motherboards and graphics cards. Considering that their rival MSI is now heavily promoting laptops, Gigabyte’s foray into the same space is hardly surprising.
CLEAR DIFFERENCES
On closer inspection, the differences between the Gigabyte and Lenovo laptops are very noticeable. The edges on the Gigabyte P55KV5 are slightly less angular than the Y700 and it also does not have the prominent JBL speakers and large subwoofer at the base.
SIMILAR HARDWARE
The hardware specifications of the two laptops are also eerily similar. The Gigabyte P55KV5 has a full HD 1080p screen which is very bright and clear. The screen also has a built-in blue light killer to protect your eyes.
It is powered by the Intel Core i7 ‘Skylake’ CPU and an additional Nvidia GTX 965M with 2GB VRAM. The laptop also has 8GB of main memory.
Our version of the Gigabyte laptop came with a 192GB SSD drive for the Windows 10 OS and a 1TB data drive. SSDs up to 512GB are available with the P55KV5. In addition to the expected array of USB ports, the P55KV5 also has a HDMI port. One of the USB ports is also USB 3.1 Type C.
In a nod to gamers, Gigabyte has included an adjustable backlit keyboard. Although easy enough for regular use, even with the backlight, it is not quite in the same class as the SteelSeries keyboards that come with the MSI laptops.
AVERAGE AUDIO
The Gigabyte P55KV5 includes Dolby Digital Plus Home Theater for surround audio. But to be honest, like many consumer devices with just stereo speakers, the ‘surround’ effect was not very noticeable. Also, compared to the Lenovo Ideapad’s speakers, the quality of audio was also not that impressive.
GOOD PERFORMANCE
In light of the hardware similarities, the Gigabyte P55KV5 has almost identical performance to the Ideapad. It is certainly fast enough for regular office work and adequate for gaming without all features turned on. The laptop is also quiet even when performance is at maximum.
Overall, we have no complaints about the Gigabyte P55KV5. But we cannot help wonder if it has enough to stand out in a crowded field.
Benchmark Scores
Unigine Heaven: 495
Unigine Valley: 870
Value: 8/10
Features: 9/10
Performance: 8/10
Design: 8/10
Usability: 9/10
Total: 8.4
