The Lenovo Legion 5 15" is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) 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
7.7/10
8.2/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.0/10
4.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 5 15" is very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) is good.
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
8.0/10
7.4/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.0/10
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) is very good for content creation, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" 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.
Software Development
8.1/10
7.3/10
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.0/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) is very good for software development, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" is good.
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
7.6/10
8.0/10
13.6in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1664
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
486.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
350.0 nits
The MacBook Air 13 has a better screen than the Lenovo Legion 5 15" for engineering and design, software development, and content creation, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" has a better screen for gaming and AI.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
15.0 Hours
4.0 Hours
The MacBook Air 13 has 15 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion 5 15" has 4 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
Fair
13.6in
SIZE
15.6in
2.7 lbs
WEIGHT
5.3 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) has excellent portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.6/10
The Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) has best in class build quality, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
The Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) and Lenovo Legion 5 15" are both good for general use.
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.
Cost
$999
$999
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
The Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) has a price of $999 and the Lenovo Legion 5 15" costs $999.
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How the Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) and the Lenovo Legion 5 15" compare to other laptops
"The Lenovo Legion 5 15 is an affordable gaming laptop with a lot of power. The new AMD processor Ryzen 7 5800H offers plenty of performance and it is also very efficient. The combination with the fast 130W version of the GeForce RTX 3060 ensures high gaming performance. We also like the fast 165 Hz display with the 1080p resolution. The automatic graphics switching causes some problems with stutters, which are very annoying. If you do not need long battery runtimes, you should definitely deactivate the hybrid graphics mode in Lenovo's Vantage app. The Legion 5 15 is never silent."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) or the Lenovo Legion 5 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 Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
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.
By the numbers
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Recommendations made
27,148
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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
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
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.
Craig Russell
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.