The choice between the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 depends on your priorities. The MacBook Air is generally less expensive, more portable, and offers a higher quality display and better scores for general use, with a longer battery life and a silent operation due to its fanless design. It is well-suited for everyday tasks and light creative work. However, the Zenbook Pro has significantly more storage and RAM, a more powerful CPU and dedicated GPU, and better performance for 3D work, engineering, and machine learning tasks. Despite this, it has lower portability and battery life, which may be a drawback if mobility is crucial for you. Choose the MacBook Air for general use and portability or the Zenbook Pro for more demanding, performance-intensive tasks. 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 15 (2023)
Very good for software development
Best in class overall build quality
Very good portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Key differences
Screen Quality
7.8/10
7.2/10
15.3in
SIZE
17.3in
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
501.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
400.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air 15 has a better screen than the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 for general use, AI, engineering and design, and software development, while the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 has a better screen for software development.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 has a high-resolution display that is bright and color-accurate, which is essential for general use and detail-oriented engineering and design tasks but lacks a high refresh rate that limits its performance for 3D applications. The ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 also offers a good resolution and color accuracy making it suitable for general tasks and professional design work; however, for gaming and 3D rendering, it falls short due to a less optimal refresh rate. Both laptops will serve well for everyday tasks and professional design, but neither is ideal for high-frame-rate 3D gaming or modeling.
Battery
15.0 Hours
9.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air 15 has 15 hours of battery life. The ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 has 9 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
Good
15.3in
SIZE
17.3in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
5.1 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has very good portability, while the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.2/10
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has best in class build quality, while the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,299
$1,500
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has a price of $1,299 and the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 costs $1,500.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 to be very good for general use, while the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is good.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 with its M2 processor, lightweight design, and long battery life is well-suited for general use, offering portability and efficiency. On the other hand, the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17, despite being less portable due to its larger size and weight, provides a significantly more powerful AMD Ryzen 9 processor, more RAM, and a higher storage capacity, making it better for demanding tasks and heavier usage.
Gaming and AI
6.5/10
6.9/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
5.1/10
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 and Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023), with its integrated Apple M2 graphics, offers basic performance suitable for lighter 3D tasks but might struggle with the demands of intensive 3D applications and many popular games which are not compatible with macOS. In contrast, the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 is equipped with an Nvidia RTX 3050 dedicated graphics card, allowing for better gaming and 3D performance, catering to a wider range of games available on Windows, despite both laptops having the same screen refresh rate.
Engineering and Design
7.6/10
8.1/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
5.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 to be very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is good.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is equipped with the efficient Apple M2 processor and integrated 10-core GPU, making it suitable for engineering tasks and design work, while its high-resolution IPS display supports a wide range of colors and boasts impressive brightness, enhancing visual fidelity for design applications; it's also lighter and thinner, enhancing portability.
Content Creation
8.0/10
8.2/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 and Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) are both very good for content creation.
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
7.9/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.7/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) to be very good for software development, while the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 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.
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How the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17 compare to other laptops
"The Apple MacBook Air 15 is boringly good. The new MacBook Air 15 is a very good, but also boring device, because apart from the larger screen and the higher price, there are no differences compared to the smaller MacBook Air M2 from last year. No new processor, no additional ports, just the usual basic hardware - but the overall package is extremely good and it simply works. Above all, the lack of fans is an aspect that should not be underestimated in everyday use. In our opinion, the Air could be a lot better, but Apple goes easy on itself here."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) or the ASUS Zenbook Pro 17
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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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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