Gigabyte announces new Aero 15

I just checked Scans website and seems they're getting the Black back in stock tomorrow and have also reduced the price an additional £40!

 

I'll certainly be purchasing tomorrow or midnight tonight all being well - the refund for my Dell laptop has just come through so fingers crossed it clears in the bank for tomorrow

Liam.

 

Funny you say that I got my refund from Dell today as well lol I've asked yoyotech if they'll match price or better it so hoping they will seeing as I should had the laptop this time last week.

 

I think it's suffice to say that YoYoTech should honour your request to price match it as well, have they confirmed to you yet when stock will be coming back in? It would be nice if they also had stock coming in tomorrow just in case I need to fall back on them in the event that Scan's pre-orders max out by tomorrow.

Liam.

 

Nothing yet unfortunately. I'm still waiting for them to respond to my price match request. Here's hoping! If scan is getting stock tomorrow though seems quite hopeful that the issues are sorted out now though!

 

Aahhh I see, fingers crossed for you mate.

Yeah I think to think that the issues have now been resolved - though going by the reports on here during the past 24 hours it seems that the batteries themselves are not the issue, but the Smart Manager program itself on the laptop which is apparently out of date out of the box and seems to conflict with the batteries operation.

Other people report that Gigabyte themselves have confirmed that there is nothing wrong with the units at all, but something from the laptops packaging is missing a vital notice that is to do with the health & safety of the hardware.

Liam.

 

Thanks!

I've messaged Scan now to see about their stock levels and what other deals they might potentially be able to do as well while I wait for a response from Yoyotech. Would rather just have the laptop now though tbh! I feel this could have probably been dealt with better by Gigabyte as there's been too many conflicting comments. They should have just said what the issue was and given a proper ETA.

 

Good thinking with messaging Scan to see what the stock levels are like.

The way their pre-ordering system works is that you still have to make payment in full up front and then they will give priority to them customers who pre-ordered once stock arrives. So say if they get a batch of 100 Aero 15's come in and say 40 customers pre-order beforehand, only 60 will make it up online as per the live stock.

Liam.

 

I notice that Newegg removed it's Aero 15 product pages earlier today sometime. The links now show Aero 14 product pages.

 

@agent_pires Any further update on how you're getting on with Scan? I decided to do a live chat with them this morning and the member of staff couldn't confirm how much stock is coming in but they've got much more quantity of new stock arriving in when compared to the pre-orders they've received up to now. However he couldn't confirm for sure if they will definitely be in stock by the end of play today but it looks promising.

...And I'm still waiting for my Dell refund to clear in the bank this morning

Liam.

 

No response from either Yoyotech or Scan. Figures...

 

Yep... it certainly does

Either way I'm still in a catch 22 as if I am able to order later on, one part of me wants to pay the extra for Saturday delivery in the event that stock does arrive and they can ship immediately for delivery tomorrow but on the flip side of the coin, if I do that and stock does not come in - I will be paying Saturday delivery for no reason (Unless of course, they refund the difference).

Liam.

 

You'd think they'd would want to make a sale but no response from their scan sales team.

I think just wait. If I've learn't anything from trying to get this laptop I could have paid less for slower shipping after ordering all these other things and then being screwed over when it hasn't been stocked. Just make sure you get your order in.

 

Model listing is gone from HIDevolution site?

 

I'll post here if mine melts my face tomorrow. If I don't post, it's because I'm too busy jizzing.

 

Exactly - as it stands they are pretty much the only retailer in the UK stocking this laptop at the moment, I can see them selling the entire lot in a short space of time & making a real killing in sales. Like you say, I know if I was for instance in charge of Scan's online sales then I would be as cooperative with potentially new customers as much as possible to secure new sales.

Like you said about YoYoTech as well and with them being silent regarding your order, I would be having kittens if I was in your position right now with them also holding onto nearly £2000 of your money to top it off.

Liam.

 

Don't expect Scan to do any deals... finally replied...

"The current price has been reduced to £ 1859.48, shipping with the Black Casetec 15122 15.6" Laptop Backpack"

lol

 

My goodness lol. It reminds me of the live chat I had with them this morning -

Me: Gigagyte Aero 15 that is on offer & reduced to £1859 that you are due to take stock of today - how much stock do you anticipate to arrive? I want to place a pre-order but I'm concerned in case you've already taken enough pre-orders that will cover all the new stock.

Scan: We don't provide stock levels, which one are you talking about as we stock more than one model...

Me: The one that's priced at £1859.48...

Lol...

Liam.

 

geez

 

CCL Computers are also advertising the same model on their website for the same price as Scan - though again it's pre-order but with no ETA.

Liam.

 

Spoke again to Scan they won't better the price that's on their website at all.

Also got a reply from Yoyotech...

"Just got off the phone with Gigabyte. Scan have not got any new stock. and have chosen to drop the price so they can get pre-orders and clear the stock they have got on the shelf of current stock. they will not be able to send any units out until Gigabyte give the all clear which they have not done yet. I have asked if we are able to give you a refund of the difference to match scans price and will let you know once I have an answer."

This will explain why Scan wouldn't answer about their stock levels.

EDIT: CCL replied saying they'll get stock end of next week.

 

I did wonder if Scan were getting new stock in all along... now this all makes sense. I just fail to grasp how they are able to get new stock in such a short space of time when compared to other retailers who are still waiting on stock altogether since the beginning.

So therefore Scan all along still had original stock but then took what they had left off sale due to Gigabyte's word on the matter? Saying that as well, this is still rather confusing - Scan state that Gigabyte reported to them regarding the fault and to take them all off sale, yet it was reported elsewhere (I think it was the original Reddit user who reported about the recall, and also had a follow up phone call from Gigabyte) that Scan got the wrong end of the stick and Gigabyte in fact did not start a recall and there is nothing wrong with the units & sales should resume again.

Another member on here who I think is part of HIDevolution also reported that Gigabyte stated to them that no recall is taking place, and also as per the above.

It really beggars belief as to who to really believe with all this, YoYoTech gave an explanation that makes sense but at the end of the day I can still see them potentially bending the truth to some extent in order to avoid loosing a sale. However if Scan's motive as per noted by YoYoTech is true, this is making me think twice about ordering from Scan altogether.

Edit - just seen your edit regarding CCL, if they're getting stock at the end of next week then I reckon they'll be up for sale the following Monday thereafter - the 22nd, which also falls on the same day that Scan are due to take delivery of the Green & Orange variants.

Liam.

 

CCL have just emailed me to tell me they have the CF1 black in stock but now they've put the price back up to £1899. Also this contradicts their previous email saying late next week. If you check the site it does say it's in stock now. Not sure I'd believe that though.

 

Hhmmm... Just my luck but it depends. Reason being is that I placed my pre-order on Scan an hour or so ago to get the ball rolling (despite that they are still "due stock today") - I wonder if CCL's price has anything to do with Scan as they have now put it back to £1899 as well for some reason (I paid the same price, sods law as my refund didn't clear until 16:30PM).

However if you want my opinion on CCL - proceed with caution. The reason why I mention this is that someone I know at work purchased what he thought was was a brand new & sealed Aero 14 7700K from their eBay shop the other day, and the cheapest than anywhere else in the UK as well - £1710 delivered. However when he got it the next day he noticed that the Gigabyte seal on the box had already been torn & it was covered up with a white sticker.

He sent them a stern message, a photo of the box and they replied with an apology explaining that it was in fact part of a cancelled order that had been returned. They asked him to open it to check it over and to see if he was happy to keep it or outright return it, and to be fair it still looked as new apart from one or two finger prints on the chassis - though he still opted to return it for a refund. Various of their negative reviews online also state that they are known for pushing out customer returns as new & sealed stock.

Edit - looks like they are already sold out now, more stock expected on the 19th.

Liam.

 

So I ordered mine from Xotic PC on May 6. It shipped Tuesday and was expected to deliver today.
Yesterday I got a call/email from Xotic saying that they accidentally sent me the Aero 14 and will thus be calling back the delivery themselves.They will ship me an Aero 15 when their stock arrives, which they said is currently estimated to be "end of May".

While I'm hugely disappointed by the tease and have felt down for a solid day now (I've been researching and looking forward to this laptop for a while ), I do really appreciate the customer support Xotic provided. Hope the stock comes in sooner rather than later...

 

That's pretty disappointing really If I were you I'd push onto them for a discount due to inconvenience - you never know they maybe willing to compensate you for 10% of what you paid for it in order for them to avoid loosing the sale.

Liam.

 

I did ask about compensation and I'm actually in need of a laptop backpack so I'm trying to get one to make up for the "tease"

 

Hi-Tech Gazette reports Gigabyte "has issued a global withdrawal order for all units of this gaming laptop model, both sold and stored" and "the failure is serious enough to endanger the safety of its users."

However, the report also states that "Gigabyte has not given any details" and it does not cite any other sources, leading to me wonder if they actually know any more than we do.

http://hitechgazette.com/2017/05/11/gigabyte-recalls-its-aero-15-gaming-notebook-after-just-one-week

 

Interesting...I will point out though that the article continues that "endanger safety" sentence to say that that's just an assumption:

"From what we have been able to find out, the failure is serious enough to endanger the safety of its users. Or at least that’s what the brand thinks because if not that then I do not understand why they would be making a global withdrawal."

 

I came across that article earlier on and I couldn't help think that with the way it's written, the questions they seem to ask themselves on it and also with the assumptions quote as highlighted above - I feel that it isn't a credible article to follow. They seem to be loosely reporting on the other assumption articles that stem solely back from the Reddit post.

They haven't even linked a source to back up what they are reporting either - I think if this is the case that something like this was truly official, it would of already come from the horses mouth and google alone would be filled well over ten fold with the likes of "Gigabyte Aero 15 recall" search results. Up to now we only have a handful of speculation reports from various places.

Liam.

 

Totally FAKE NEWS.

They have no source for that because it is simply not true.

My source if Gigabyte itself. Gigabyte has confirmed there are no issues with the battery, and that there has not been a recall issued by them.

 

Seems like a lot of fake news and rumour all starting with one Reddit post based on an inaccurate retailer email.

Still odd that various retailers have pulled product pages. I wonder why all the misinformation and secrecy over a midrange gaming notebook launch. New products have issues. It happens. Gigabyte could just put up a simple press release and clear it all up if there is no issue at all.

 

The reason we have put it up, then down, then back up is that in the USA Newegg has an exclusive until May 25th or so, but even they ran out, and Gigabyte has to restock. Huge demand for this unit, not enough to go around. Same thing is going on Globally.

Come June it will settle down and supplies should be enough to satisfy demand.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

 

Newegg usually just shows items out of stock and has an email notify button instead of an add to cart button. This time they redirected to aero 14 which seemed unusual. Those original links are now just broken.

Not a big deal, just somewhat amusing given what people had been told by Newegg and the UK retailer. I intend to keep my preorder unless there is some official bad news or long delay.

Glad to hear it's just a supply issue. Thank you for the information!

 

I just posted this Reply at HI-TECH GAZETTE - Trusted News Source.
http://hitechgazette.com/2017/05/11...-aero-15-gaming-notebook-after-just-one-week/

Note that it says "Your comment is awaiting moderation"...let's see if they have the courage to let it go public.

" Donald Stratton

May 13, 2017 at 4:19 am

Your comment is awaiting moderation.

This is totally FAKE NEWS…with absolutely no truth to it.

Notice there is no source stated other than “From what we have been able to find out…”. Really! From what source?

You would think as a journalist, this author would spend some time looking for the truth from at least two reliable sources (er…did you miss that class??), instead of repeating gossip and misinformation.

My source if Gigabyte itself. Gigabyte has confirmed there are no issues with the battery, and that there has not been a recall issued by them. "

 

So they haven't published my comments, but now, your Trusted News Source has published 'Sources'...nothing more than other rags publishing the same FAKE NEWS. Republishing FAKE NEWS ... pure gossip ... does not make it real, or a credible source.

So, here I go again...let's see if this ever gets published...

"

Donald Stratton

May 13, 2017 at 6:24 am

Your comment is awaiting moderation.

Those are not sources…that is just spreading ‘gossip’ from various forums.

Even Newegg got caught doing the same thing…see
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/gigabyte-announces-new-aero-15.804148/page-29#post-10524327

Ah, but then, Newegg at least corrected themselves…by the Vice President of Customer Service…see
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/gigabyte-announces-new-aero-15.804148/page-30#post-10524757

It is simply not true…just give it a little more time and you will be embarrassed that you too are spreading FAKE NEWS…gossip, and nothing more."

 

I can also confirm that HDMI connects directly to the GPU. I would assume DP will as well.

 

Hmm but it could be possible that Gigabyte is to cover up with new batches ofcourse.

 

Sorry, but that doesn't make sense when you realize there has been no recall. If there really was a problem, they would HAVE to recall, and yet they have done no such thing.

No conspiracy theories allowed!

 

Hey, did you receive AERO 15 stocks yet ?

 

Not until late May or early June.

 

Thank you Donald for your help in trying to clear this up. Hi-Tech Gazette's "reporting" seems irresponsible and you're right to call them out on it. And I'm glad you reached out to a source at Gigabyte and told us what they told you.

As a day 1 owner, I am still highly frustrated in trying to understand what has happened here. It is clear Gigabyte is disputing the word "recall." It's equally clear no one is disputing the first hand accounts of two users who had their units if not "recalled" then "taken away", one after already receiving it and one just prior to shipment, both who posted documentation of their vendor interactions. I understand Gigabyte is disputing the word "recall" and apparently pressured New Egg to back away from the word as well, but I don't care about the word, I care about the substance of laptops being taken back without explanation.

Meanwhile I'm feeling pretty lonely here and in other forums. Where are all the other excited owners of this hot new product that sold out on day 1? I know of a few posters only, which feels too small.

Probably more telling than all that though is we have a major retailer with a US exclusive window of a hot product who is not promoting the product, does not return it in search results*, and is not monetizing their exclusivity window by taking wait list orders. This does not feel like "business as usual." (*If you are very specific and search for "Gigabyte Aero 15", you will get to a page for an open box variant that says not currently in stock and not known whether it will ever be in stock - language which may be boiler plate for open box items vs. specific to Aero 15?)

So here's my "conspiracy theory" which I'm stating up front is only my best guess at trying to fit all these facts together into a coherent picture. I'm guessing there is a not-yet fully validated safety concern about the unit. Gigabyte's internal data is unclear and perhaps their internal strategy was as well for an initial few hours, leading to the first batch of unfiltered communications and the start of news spreading. They clawed back all unsold inventory which they can do relatively privately. They are trying to keep things quiet until they reach an internal determination over what the situation is. The lack of certainty on situation and dates could explain why New Egg is backing away; it's hard to believe that if they were confident they had more stock coming in say 1-2 weeks they wouldn't just say that. Obviously no manufacturer wants a big public headache and if they can pretend whatever it was never happened they will. Or if it's a relatively minor fix the existing stock will get fixed silently and returned to shelves asap (which is the case that concerns me - as an early owner I don't want to be left in the dark and at risk.) Or if it's major we'll finally get proper communication.

I think Gigabyte is still relatively new to consumer communications in the U.S. especially as to a more mainstream audience that might buy a finished, multipurpose notebook vs. their traditional more targeted audience of enthusiast PC builders. I could see where silence is tempting to them but it generally does not work over the long haul. Gigabyte and their current exclusive US distributor need to be communicating, not going dark.

 

You might be overthinking it.

I have just one easy question for you. Has your vendor reached out to you to call yours back?

 

They had not within the first ~48 hours of ownership, which is at the point where I requested a RMA # due to my concern over whatever caused the taken back units, the panel not being the same one in the XPS 9560 as advertised, and the keyboard not able to type ctrl + shift + n.

I wish all of this was clearer. #3 might be a simple software fix although Gigabyte is estimating that will come only after my option window has expired so I'd be risking it. #1 might not be battery/safety at all, but it was something because no one claws a unit out of a satisfied customer's hand without darn good reason and not communicating that reason is I think Gigabyte's most concrete failure here. #2 is a definite bummer since "panel + battery capacity + almost size of 9560 with 1060 instead of 1050" is precisely what caused me to click purchase. On other hand - if not the Aero 15, what's my other option?

Bigger picture, I had already been on the fence for weeks when I ordered, I'm still on the fence now cause of these issues, I'm leaning towards just giving up on the form factor and going back to desktop replacement where at least there's no mystery in achieving the "working computer" part.

 

I opened a support ticket about the with jiggabyte 5 days ago and they didn't respond yet

 

I ordered and received an Aero 15 but ultimately had to return as one of its fans was making a clicking sound, and there was also a problem with the RGB keyboard. I'd rather wait then risk a machine with issues. 2 days later despite requesting a replacement newegg refunded and the Aero 15 mysteriously disappeared from their website.

I did get to play with the laptop for a couple hours before making the decision to return, and outside the issues noted I was pleased with the package.

I agree with brucek2, there really aren't many laptops in this class to choose from. The Aero 15 definitely is a well rounded machine that fits a sweet spot. I hope Gigabyte gets this machine back out on the market.

 

What version is the mini displayport?
Also, can I use the 1060 GTX from mini displayport or is for the integrated graphics?

 

Its v1.3 afaik most of those connectors are all connected to the GPU.

 

Excuse my ignorance but doesn't nvidia optimus set minidisplayport to use integrated graphics rather than dedicated graphics?

 

Not sure about that to be honest but don't think so.

Also just to update people I had a nice long call with Gigabyte UK and asked quite a few questions about the whole fiasco with stock of the Aero 15 etc. So just to be clear there was never any issues with the laptops battery. Gigabyte held stock so they could update the smart software on the machines. As they didn't have an exact number of which machines needed updating they decided to hold all orders to verify.

If you hear otherwise that's false. Also they've confirmed the chassis is ALUMINIUM it's not plastic as you will find in some mention in reviews. Also there is only ONE type of panel that is shipping with the laptop. Mentions of it using SHARP etc are false. It's the same Innolux panel that's been mentioned in the Notebookcheck review.

Stock will be arriving this week in the UK and at the latest be available early next week for people to buy.