The Apple MacBook Air is a better choice if you prioritize portability, a higher quality keyboard, and a quiet, fanless design, along with a longer battery life for on-the-go use. Its performance is sufficient for general tasks, and its display offers great color accuracy, which is good for media consumption. In contrast, the ASUS ZenBook Pro has a more powerful CPU and GPU, making it suitable for intensive tasks like 3D rendering, machine learning, or engineering software. It also features more RAM and storage, a touchscreen, and a higher refresh rate OLED display, which enhances on-screen motion and is ideal for creative work. However, it is heavier, which may affect portability, and its battery life is shorter than the MacBook Air’s. Give Feedback
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Advantages of the Apple MacBook Air (2022)
Best in class overall build quality
Excellent portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Key differences
General Use
7.9/10
8.6/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
486.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
357.0 nits
15.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
9.4/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.9/10
The ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo is very good for general use, while the Apple MacBook Air (2022) is good.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) with its efficient M2 chip and fanless design offers silent operation and great battery life, highly suitable for general use due to its portability and strong screen quality, but it has less storage and RAM compared to the ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo that boasts an OLED touchscreen, more storage, a higher resolution, and significantly more memory, making it very capable for general use as well as multitasking and media-rich tasks, although it has a lower battery life.
Engineering and Design
7.5/10
8.5/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
4.1/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo is very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Air (2022) is good.
The ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo is rated very good for engineering and design use primarily because it offers a higher amount of RAM and a more advanced CPU than the Apple MacBook Air (2022), which translates to better multitasking and processing power necessary for complex software used in those fields. Additionally, the ASUS features an OLED screen with higher screen resolution and touchscreen capability, but the MacBook Air is lighter and offers silent operation, which may benefit users prioritizing portability and a quiet working environment.
Content Creation
7.9/10
8.6/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
The ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo is very good for content creation, while the Apple MacBook Air (2022) is good.
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.
Screen Quality
7.6/10
8.6/10
13.6in
SIZE
14.5in
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
486.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
357.0 nits
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 14 Duo has a better screen than the Apple MacBook Air for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The MacBook Air offers a high-resolution display with bright and vivid colors that make it excellent for everyday activities; however, its lower refresh rate is less ideal for 3D applications which require smoother motion. The ASUS ZenBook Pro's high-resolution dual screens offer expansive color gamuts, catering to precision tasks in engineering and design, but gamers may find the refresh rate lacking for fast-paced gaming. Both laptops prioritize color accuracy and brightness over the higher refresh rates needed for optimal 3D rendering and gaming experiences.
Battery
15.0 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The ASUS Zenbook Pro 14 Duo 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
Excellent
Good
13.6in
SIZE
14.5in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
3.7 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has excellent portability, while the ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.6/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has best in class build quality, while the ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$849
$1,299
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has a price of $849 and the ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo costs $1,299.
The ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo and Apple MacBook Air (2022) are both only fair for gaming and AI.
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.
Software Development
8.0/10
8.2/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
2880 x 1800
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo and Apple MacBook Air (2022) are both very good for software development.
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.
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How the Apple MacBook Air (2022) and the ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo 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."
"The Zenbook Pro 14 Duo OLED is a well-tuned instrument for content creators, excelling at a range of general office tasks as well as tasks that require a little more grunt like encoding and 3D rendering. The big attraction is the laptop’s dual displays. They’re the best ones we’ve used in an Asus Zenbook Duo laptop to date with a spate of year-on-year improvements that make the visuals more striking and the cross-screen integration easier than ever before."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2022) or the ASUS ZenBook Pro 14 Duo
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 ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
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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About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
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Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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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Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.