The Acer Aspire Go 14 is a budget-friendly option with a lower price point, offering decent performance for everyday tasks with its AMD Ryzen 3 processor and Radeon 610M GPU. It has a 14-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1920 x 1200, which is suitable for general use. The laptop is lightweight and portable, making it a good choice for those who need to carry their device around frequently. However, it has a lower pixel density and colorspace coverage, which might not be ideal for color-critical work or high-intensity gaming. Its battery life is decent, providing around 9 hours of typical usage.
On the other hand, the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is a midrange priced laptop that comes with Apple's powerful M1 chip, which delivers excellent performance for general use, as well as impressive capabilities in 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering tasks, thanks to its 8-core GPU. The MacBook's 13.3-inch Retina display boasts a higher resolution of 2560 x 1600 and superior colorspace coverage, making it ideal for professionals who require color accuracy. It also offers a fanless design for silent operation, a backlit keyboard, and advanced security features like Touch ID. The MacBook has a longer battery life of about 20 hours, but it's heavier and less portable than the Acer.
In summary, if you prioritize portability, are on a tighter budget, and mainly use your laptop for general tasks, the Acer Aspire Go 14 is a solid choice. However, if you're looking for superior performance, a better display, longer battery life, and are willing to pay a premium and carry a slightly heavier device, the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) would be the better investment, especially for more demanding tasks like 3D rendering, machine learning, and engineering work. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Acer Aspire Go 14
The Acer Aspire Go 14 has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020).
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020)
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Best in class battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.7/10
7.7/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
280.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
491.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
20.0 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
8.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.9/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is good for general use, while the Acer Aspire Go 14 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Engineering and Design
6.2/10
7.3/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.0/10
3.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is good for engineering and design, while the Acer Aspire Go 14 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Content Creation
7.1/10
7.8/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.0/10
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and Acer Aspire Go 14 are both good for content creation, though the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is somewhat better.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.0/10
7.8/10
4.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.0/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and Acer Aspire Go 14 are both good for software development, though the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is somewhat better.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Screen Quality
6.7/10
7.6/10
14.0in
SIZE
13.3in
1920 x 1200
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
280.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
491.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has a better screen than the Acer Aspire Go 14 for general use, AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
9.0 Hours
20.0 Hours
The Acer Aspire Go 14 has 9 hours of battery life. The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has 20 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Very Good
Very Good
14.0in
SIZE
13.3in
3.2 lbs
WEIGHT
3.0 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and Acer Aspire Go 14 both have very good portability, though the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4/10
10.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has best in class build quality, while the Acer Aspire Go 14 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$350
$1,249
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Acer Aspire Go 14 has a price of $350 and the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) costs $1,249.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) to be only fair for gaming and AI, while the Acer Aspire Go 14 is poor.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
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We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Acer Aspire Go 14 and the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) compare to other laptops
"The MacBook Pro 13 is still a very good subnotebook. The 2022 MacBook Pro 13 might look like recycling at first, because the device is completely identical to the old model expect for the new M2 SoC. We have to admit that we were surprised to see another iteration of the MBP 13 as well. The laptop is obviously familiar, but this does not change the fact that it is still a very good subnotebook. You get an excellent chassis with good stability, a very good display, good input devices and the new M2 chip is very powerful and efficient."
Get a great deal on the Acer Aspire Go 14 or the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020)
About Acer
Acer is a prominent Taiwanese electronics brand which makes a wide range of laptops, with multiple product lines catering to personal use, gaming, and business use. They are renowned for having exceptional value for money, as they frequently offer good specifications at a lower price than other manufacturers.
About Apple
Apple, an American technology company, is one of the world’s largest company in terms of market capitalization. Their MacBook laptops feature a slim, minimalistic design, class-leading battery life, and premium display and speaker quality. In 2020 Apple switched from using Intel processors to their own silicon chips which have excellent performance and efficiency. The macOS operating system is the second most widely used OS, after Windows.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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Joe Golden, Ph.D
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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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