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Updated January 10, 2024·
For those seeking top-notch performance for engineering tasks, graphics-based work, or gaming, the Apple MacBook Pro 16 is a superior choice, plus it offers a longer battery life. However, it's heavier and more expensive. On the other hand, the Acer Swift 14 is more affordable, very portable due to its lighter weight, and has a higher storage capacity out of the box. Its performance is suitable for general use and lighter engineering tasks. Keep in mind, though, that the Swift 14 has a less vibrant display and lower overall build quality compared to the MacBook Pro. 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 Swift 14
- Excellent portability
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023)
- Very good for engineering and design
- Good for gaming and AI
- Excellent 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
8.2
8.8
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3456 x 2234
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
458.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
487.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
17.5 Hours
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
9.0/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.6/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and Acer Swift 14 are both very good for general use, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is somewhat better.
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.
Gaming and AI
6.7
7.5
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.2/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3456 x 2234
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.7/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is good for gaming and AI, while the Acer Swift 14 is only fair.
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.
Engineering and Design
7.9
8.9
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.2/10
16.0 GB
RAM
18.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is very good for engineering and design, while the Acer Swift 14 is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 excels in engineering and design use largely because of its more powerful CPU and GPU, combined with a superior screen quality that offers higher resolution and brightness, which are crucial for intricate design work. On the other hand, the Acer Swift 14, though it has adequate performance and good screen quality for engineering tasks, falls behind the MacBook Pro 16 in terms of raw computing power and display fidelity, but offers greater portability due to its lighter weight and smaller size.
Content Creation
8.2
8.9
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3456 x 2234
16.0 GB
RAM
18.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and Acer Swift 14 are both very good for content creation, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) 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
8.2
8.9
9.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
18.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3456 x 2234
7.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and Acer Swift 14 are both very good for software development, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) 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
7.6
9.3
14.0in
SIZE
16.2in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
3456 x 2234
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
458.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
487.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the Acer Swift 14 for general use, AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Acer Swift 14 offers a display that satisfies the resolution, brightness, and panel quality needed for clarity and color accuracy in general use and engineering, but its lower refresh rate can hinder the immersive and responsive experience sought in gaming and 3D applications. The Apple MacBook Pro 16's screen excels for general use and professional design work due to its high-resolution, bright display and wide color gamut support, yet for gaming and 3D work, the lower refresh rate compared to dedicated gaming laptops may not provide as fluid visuals.
Battery
9.0 Hours
17.5 Hours
The Acer Swift 14 has 9 hours of battery life. The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 17.5 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
Excellent
Good
14.0in
SIZE
16.2in
2.6 lbs
WEIGHT
4.7 lbs
0.5in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Acer Swift 14 has excellent portability, while the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4
10.0
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) has best in class build quality, while the Acer Swift 14 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,400
$3,099
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The Acer Swift 14 has a price of $1,400 and the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) costs $3,099.
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How the Acer Swift 14 and the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Acer Swift 14 | Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,400 | $3,099 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | March 1, 2023 | November 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 12.2'' x 8.4'' x 0.59'' | 14'' x 9.8'' x 0.66'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 2.65 lbs | 4.7 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 12.22" | 14.01" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 8.4" | 9.77" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-13700H | Apple M3 Pro (12C) | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 18 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 1024 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9 Hours | 17.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 56 Wh | 99.6 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 14" | 16.2" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | Mini LED | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 2560 x 1600 | 3456 x 2234 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 120Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 458 nits | 487 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.4/10 | 10/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 9.1/10 | 7.6/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | Yes | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 8.8/10 | 8.8/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 7/10 | 9.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 10/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1440p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 0 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 3 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 2 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 4 | |
Shopping
Acer Swift 14
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Rtings
Olivier Martin, Ryan Lim, John Peroramas | April 2023
"The Acer Swift 14 is good for school use. Its compact design makes it easy to carry around, and its battery lasts easily through a typical school day. You can configure the laptop with an FHD+ or QHD+ display; both look sharp and get bright enough to combat glare. The keyboard feels tactile but can be a little tiring to type on over an extended period, and while the touchpad is small, it's responsive to all movements and gestures. Its Intel 13th Gen. CPU can handle nearly every type of workload; however, its integrated graphics perform poorly, so it isn't ideal for students in technical fields like 3D graphics."
Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023)
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | February 2023
"The Apple MacBook Pro 16 2023: M2 Max challenges GeForce RTX 3080 Ti. The new MacBook Pro 16 2023 with the M2 Max SoC is the most powerful laptop Apple has on sale right now. While we do not get the expected performance and efficiency improvements from completely new 3 nm chips, which we expected ahead of the launch, the 2023 model is still a solid update. The CPU of the M2 Max can be up to 20 % faster than the old model and we also see an advantage of 25-30 % for the GPU with 38 cores. However, both components also consume more power, so the efficiency did not change that much under maximum load."
Get a great deal on the Acer Swift 14 or the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023)
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.
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Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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