The Gigabyte Gaming A16 RTX 5050 gaming series laptop delivers strong performance, good heat dissipation, and smooth AAA gaming, making it worth upgrading for the price range. This laptop ranks among the first to feature the latest RTX 5050 graphics card. With a price under $1,000, does this laptop deliver the performance expected for its price range? Let’s see the Gigabyte Gaming A16 review below!
Gigabyte Gaming A16 Review
Design
The Gigabyte Gaming A16 RTX 5050 version features a design that is almost identical to the previous RTX 4050 version. The manufacturer uses sturdy plastic for the entire case. Although plastic doesn’t feel as premium as metal, it offers a good finish and significantly reduces the overall weight. Weighing 2.2kg, this gaming netbook remains compact enough for easy daily trips.
The minimalist design on the A side has a professional look with a Black Steel color scheme, a neat design, and is not too bulky to suit many usage needs. The futuristic style brings an elegant look, highlighted by unique accents from the A side logo to the patterns on the C and D sides. The GIGABYTE logo on the A side features a unique finish, displaying many vivid colors at different viewing and lighting angles. Meanwhile, the D side of the laptop is more bulky and cooler, featuring many air vents that increase cooling efficiency.
Gigabyte Gaming A16 weighs 2.2 kg, with a body that measures 19.45 mm at its thinnest point and 22.99 mm at its thickest point. The device features a 180-degree Lay Flat hinge, so you can open it flat and easily share content with friends and colleagues. You can easily open the screen with just one hand, bringing a sense of luxury and quality. This screen has thin borders on 4 sides, and the screen-to-body ratio reaches 90%.
Overall, the designers have completed the A16 series design quite well. They have carefully crafted everything from the back to the bottom using modern lines, creating an eye-catching, gaming-like feel. However, I still hope that Gigabyte will consider upgrading the back from plastic to metal in future versions, which will not only make the device more luxurious but also increase durability and overall heat dissipation.
Connectivity
The connection ports of a high-refresh-rate gaming laptop are pretty diverse, including: DC power port, RJ45 Gigabit network port, HDMI 2.1, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type A, USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type C (DisplayPort Alt Mode 1.4, Power Delivery 3.0). The right side of the device has 1 USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type A port, 1 USB 2.0 Type A port, and 1 3.5 mm audio port. The highlight is the USB-C port that supports Power Delivery 3.0, allowing users to charge the device with compact GaN chargers or compatible backup batteries, increasing mobility, without having to carry a 150 W DC charger. The laptop features a 76 Wh battery, and you can quickly charge it to 50% in 30 minutes using the included 150 W DC charger.
Keyboard and Touchpad
The most noticeable difference is in the C-side area, where the keyboard and touchpad are located. The keyboard on the RTX 5050 version still provides the same typing feel as the previous version. Still, the laptop features a single-zone RGB backlight system, which lets users customize the lighting to their liking and adds personality to the overall design.
The Gigabyte Gaming A16’s keyboard is optimized for a better typing experience. The redesigned keycap, known as the Dish Key, features a concave design with a depth of 0.15 mm, resulting in a key area that is 106% of the standard size. The concave design of the Dish Key helps improve typing accuracy, hugging the user’s fingers. The key has a travel of 1.7 mm, with a pressing force of about 55-60 grams, providing more precise feedback when typing without being too hard. The keystroke noise is controlled below 30 dBA, providing a quiet space when concentration is needed.
The Touchpad on the A16 makes good use of the space in the palm rest area, providing a comfortable mouse gliding and multi-touch experience.
Display and Webcam
Our Gigabyte Gaming A16 review model with RTX 5050 features a 16-inch IPS display with wide viewing angles and accurate colors. The display has a refresh rate of 165 Hz, a maximum brightness of 400 nits, and 45% NTSC. The display features a 1920 x 1200 resolution and a 16:10 screen ratio, enhancing the reading and content consumption experience by limiting page scrolling. In addition, the screen is coated with an anti-glare coating, making it easy to use the laptop in a variety of conditions.
The gaming laptop with webcam cluster has also been significantly upgraded to 1080p resolution, a notable improvement over the 720p resolution of the RTX 4050 version. In addition, this webcam also supports Windows Hello facial security to increase the security of this model.
Gigabyte Gaming A16 review test
Specifications
Our Gigabyte Gaming A16 review model still uses the same Intel Core i5-13420H CPU as the previous version. However, the most valuable upgrade is in the GPU when the device is equipped with an RTX 5050 graphics card with 8GB of GDDR7 VRAM. This is a significant upgrade from the RTX 4050, promising to deliver more impressive gaming performance, especially in AAA games or heavy graphics environments.
In addition, the 16 GB RAM for gaming laptops, pre-installed with 1x 16GB stick and 1x empty slot, supports a maximum upgrade of up to 64GB, making it very suitable for users who need to multitask or run heavy software.
The 512GB PCIe Gen 4 SSD hard drive provides fast read/write speeds, allowing the gaming netbook to boot up and open applications almost instantly. In addition, the device also supports expansion with 2 M.2 SSD slots, allowing for a maximum upgrade of up to 4TB, ensuring ample storage space for both games and work data.
It comes with MUX Switch technology – an indispensable feature on modern gaming laptops. MUX Switch allows users to directly convert the output signal from the discrete GPU to the screen, bypassing the integrated GPU, thereby minimizing latency and maximizing gaming performance. Conversely, when you need to prioritize battery life, you can switch to Optimus mode so that the system automatically uses the integrated GPU for light tasks, increasing battery life.
Benchmark Tests
CPU Performance (Cinebench R23, Cinebench R24, Geekbench 6):
This Gigabyte Gaming A16 review model is equipped with an Intel Core i5-13420H chip with 8 cores (4 Performance cores, 4 Efficient cores), 12 processing threads, clocked at 4.6 GHz. In the Cinebench R23 test, the device achieved 1,637 points in single-core and 11,686 points in multi-core, showing its ability to handle heavy tasks such as graphics, light rendering, or AAA gaming.
In Geekbench 6, performance continues to be impressive with 2,222 single-core points and 9,149 multi-core points, enough to smoothly meet both multitasking needs and specialized software at medium to high levels.
GPU Performance (3DMark, PCMark10, Geekbench 6):
The upgraded RTX 5050 8GB GDDR7 is a new generation graphics card that offers significantly improved performance compared to the RTX 4050. In the 3DMark test, the device scored 9,285 points in Time Spy and 4,370 points in Time Spy Extreme, showing good graphics processing capabilities, especially in AAA game environments or GPU-demanding tasks such as 3D modeling, rendering, and gaming at high settings.
In addition, the PCMark 10 score of 6,222 reflects stable overall performance when used in real-life everyday tasks. Meanwhile, Geekbench 6 Compute (OpenCL) recorded 92,337 points, an impressive score that demonstrates the GPU’s strength not only in gaming but also in tasks related to graphics, AI, and image processing.
SSD Performance (3DMark Storage Benchmark):
The Gigabyte A16 is equipped with a PCIe Gen 4 SSD with a capacity of 512GB. Through the 3DMark Storage Benchmark test, this SSD scored 1,386 points, with an average speed of about 238 MB/s. Although this score is not too outstanding compared to high-end PCIe Gen 4 SSDs, it is still enough to ensure fast data retrieval, smooth booting, and applications.
When I tested copying the Black Myth Wukong game file (over 100GB in size), the initial transfer speed was breakneck, exceeding 600 MB/s. However, after reaching around 70GB, the SSD started to fluctuate in speed.
This is a common phenomenon in many mid-range SSDs when the SLC cache is temporarily full. However, the copying process is still stable, without errors or freezes. With files under 70GB, the transfer speed is maintained much more smoothly and stably.
Gaming Tests
Wuthering Waves
Wuthering Waves is a popular open-world action game. With settings in Balanced mode, Ray Tracing off, DLSS 65 (Balance) on. The machine reached 157 FPS, a respectable number for such a graphics-heavy game.
However, because the system only runs single-channel RAM, plus the game uses a lot of RAM (up to 95%), there are still occasional slight lags when loading or switching regions. It is recommended to install another 16GB RAM stick to activate dual-channel, for an even smoother experience.
PUBG
Coming to the survival game PUBG. At the highest setting, Gigabyte Gaming A16 reaches 110 FPS, a good level for a survival shooter game that requires high hardware. Notably, the CPU, GPU, and RAM are all exploited to their maximum performance, but the temperature does not exceed 82 degrees Celsius. This proves that the WindForce cooling system works effectively, helping the machine maintain stable performance even in long, intense battles.
Black Myth: Wukong
Finally, the 2024 AAA title is Black Myth: Wukong. With the lowest settings (Low) at Full HD resolution, Ray Tracing off, Motion Blur off, and DLSS on at 65 (Balance), the A16 still achieved a stable 268 FPS.
This is an astonishing number for a newly released game with top-notch graphics. DLSS 4.0 technology on the RTX 50 series effectively maintains high frames while significantly reducing the GPU load.
Cooling System
The Windforce heatsink used for Gigabyte Gaming A16 includes 2 high-performance fans, each with 74 ultra-thin blades, combined with 4 heatpipes that directly contact the GPU and CPU, conducting heat to the metal fins. The 3D VortX airflow design creates a 3-dimensional airflow, sucking in from above the keyboard and the bottom, blowing out 4 vents on the side of the laptop. This design maximizes the air flow through the fins, helping to cool quickly.
“Icy Touch” technology is the highlight of A16. The cooling system is arranged to prioritize cooling the palm rest area and WASD key cluster, keeping the main interaction area of gamers at a comfortable temperature. In our Gigabyte Gaming A16 review test, even when the device was operating at high intensity and heavy tasks, the left palm rest area and WASD key cluster were always cool, not causing discomfort for a long time.
0dB Ambient Experience – a feature controlled by AI GIMATE software. When the computer performs light tasks such as surfing the web or doing office work, the system will automatically reduce the fan speed to the minimum or turn it off completely, providing a tranquil working environment (0dB).
GiMATE AI Assistant
GiMATE AI software allows you to monitor and control the Gigabyte Gaming A16 features easily. It has AI-based laptop optimization capabilities such as:
- Performance & Smart Cooling: Intelligently monitors system usage and adjusts CPU/GPU performance and fan speeds in real time, optimizing both power and noise levels.
- Power: Seamlessly switches between different power modes to maximize battery efficiency.
- Creator & Chatbox: Features AI-powered tools for natural language interaction and visual content creation, enabling users to communicate and produce creative work effortlessly.
- Meeting & Audio: Utilizes AI to filter out background noise during video calls, ensuring clear and uninterrupted communication.
- Privacy: Automatically safeguards users’ personal environment and sensitive information.
Final Line
After this Gigabyte Gaming A16 review with RTX 5050, this is a gaming series laptop that balances performance, cooling, and portability well. The design is still plastic, but it’s well-finished. The WindForce cooling system works effectively, and the CPU and GPU handle everything from eSports games to heavy AAA games well. The most notable upgrade is the RTX 5050 GPU with 8GB GDDR7, bringing a clear step forward in graphics performance compared to the previous generation.
With its current performance, the Gigabyte Gaming A16 RTX 5050 is definitely worth upgrading if you are using older gaming laptops (RTX 3050, GTX 1650 or lower), or are looking for a device that is both good for gaming and meets creative work needs.
Also see: Asus TUF Gaming F16 2025 Review
Priced under $1,000 on Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk, this is the right gaming netbook for gamers, graphic design students, engineers, or office workers who need high performance but still prioritize mobility and a reasonable budget.