The Apple MacBook Air with its lightweight design and fanless operation provides excellent portability and silent use, making it ideal for general purposes and light to moderate workloads. It also offers a high-resolution screen with great colors, but for those focused on intensive engineering tasks, heavy 3D rendering, or gaming, the MSI Bravo 15 is a stronger choice with its higher refresh rate display and dedicated graphics card, although it is heavier and may not be as portable. The MSI also tends to be slightly more expensive but provides double the storage. Each laptop operates on a different ecosystem, with the MacBook running MacOS and the MSI featuring Windows 11 Home, so consider which operating system better suits your needs. 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 Apple MacBook Air (2020)
Good for software development
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Very good portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the MSI Bravo 15
Good for gaming and AI
Key differences
General Use
7.6/10
7.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
395.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
267.0 nits
15.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
8.9/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.9/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and MSI Bravo 15 are both good for general use, though the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is somewhat better.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is praised for its excellent portability, silent operation, and remarkable battery life; plus, its superior screen quality delivers excellent colors and sharpness for everyday use. Conversely, the MSI Bravo 15, while offering more storage and higher refresh rates which could be beneficial for gaming, falls short in portability due to its heavier weight and bulkier design, and its battery life is limited compared to the MacBook Air.
Gaming and AI
6.2/10
7.2/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The MSI Bravo 15 is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has an integrated GPU within its M1 chip, which can handle basic 3D tasks but is outperformed by the MSI Bravo 15's dedicated Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU, better suited for gaming and more demanding 3D applications. Additionally, the MacBook's screen refresh rate is a standard 60Hz, which is fine for general use, while the Bravo 15 boasts a higher 144Hz refresh rate, providing a smoother visual experience crucial for gaming.
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.1/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.0/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and MSI Bravo 15 are both good for content creation, though the Apple MacBook Air (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
7.7/10
6.8/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.0/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good for software development, while the MSI Bravo 15 is only fair.
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
7.5/10
6.9/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
395.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
267.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air has a better screen than the MSI Bravo 15 for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The MacBook Air boasts a high-resolution Retina display with bright and precise colors, making it suitable for general use and engineering tasks that require accurate color representation, but the lack of a high refresh rate limits its effectiveness for 3D applications. The MSI Bravo 15 offers a decent resolution and brightness for day-to-day tasks, but its limited color range can be a drawback for engineering and design work requiring a wide color gamut. Moreover, for gaming and 3D work, the MSI's screen may underperform due to a lower refresh rate, which is crucial for a smooth visual experience in fast-paced scenarios.
Battery
15.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The MSI Bravo 15 has 6 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
Fair
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2.8 lbs
WEIGHT
4.9 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has very good portability, while the MSI Bravo 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
6.7/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has best in class build quality, while the MSI Bravo 15 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,000
$862
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has a price of $1,000 and the MSI Bravo 15 costs $862.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and MSI Bravo 15 are both good for engineering and design.
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) with its efficient M1 chip and high-resolution screen is excellent for engineering and design due to its silent operation and the ability to natively run macOS applications, while the MSI Bravo 15 offers a dedicated Nvidia RTX 4050 graphics card suitable for intensive 3D tasks, but it is heavier and louder, which can affect portability and use in quiet environments.
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How the Apple MacBook Air (2020) and the MSI Bravo 15 compare to other laptops
"The Apple MacBook Air M2 Entry is a very good, but too expensive daily MacBook. The new MacBook Air M2 is undoubtedly once again a very good mobile companion, but we are still a little bit disappointed on a very high level, which is definitely connected with the increased price point. The new chassis is extremely slim and the front edge is no problem during typing, but the bezels are pretty wide for a modern device and in addition with the vertical space required for the notch, the new Air has larger footprint than some Windows rivals."
"Overall, the MSI Bravo 15 C7U is a great gaming device for the masses that isn’t too pricey. The capable hardware (for the price range), the 144Hz display, and the comfortable keyboard are one of the things that should attract buyers who don’t want to spend a fortune on a new gaming laptop."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2020) or the MSI Bravo 15
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.
About MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
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 is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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