The Apple MacBook Air is typically recognized for sleek design, strong build quality, and a high-resolution display, making it well-suited for professionals who value those attributes and are frequently on the move. It stands out in performance, especially for multimedia tasks, but this comes at a premium price. On the other hand, the Lenovo Flex 5 14 offers versatility with its 2-in-1 design, allowing for use as a laptop or tablet, which can be beneficial for presentations or creative work. It's more affordable, but its performance may not match the MacBook Air's, especially for more demanding tasks. If on a tighter budget and you need a versatile device, the Flex 5 could be a smart choice. However, if performance and a premium build are top priorities and cost is less of an issue, the MacBook Air would be recommended. 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
Very good for content creation
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the Lenovo Flex 5 14
The Lenovo Flex 5 14 has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023).
Key differences
Engineering and Design
7.6/10
7.0/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.9/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and Lenovo Flex 5 14 are both good for engineering and design, though the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is somewhat better.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) excels in engineering and design due to its high-quality CPU and GPU integrated into the Apple M2 chip, ample RAM, and an excellent display with high brightness and color accuracy. In contrast, the Lenovo Flex 5 14, while offering a larger storage capacity and more RAM for multitasking, has a lesser quality screen and relies on an integrated GPU, but it gains an edge with its 2-in-1 convertible design, making it versatile for different work environments.
Software Development
8.1/10
7.4/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
10.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is very good for software development, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 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
7.8/10
6.4/10
15.3in
SIZE
14.0in
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
501.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
277.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Air 15 has a better screen than the Lenovo Flex 5 14 for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Air with its high-resolution display and exceptional brightness offers a vivid and sharp visual experience for browsing, watching media, and productivity tasks, ensuring that text and images are crisp and colors pop. For engineering and design professionals, its superior color accuracy with wide color gamuts makes detailed work like photo editing, CAD, and rendering precise and true to life. However, for 3D applications and gaming, where fast-paced visuals are key, its lower refresh rate can lead to less fluid motion and responsiveness compared to specialized gaming laptops.
Battery
15.0 Hours
11.5 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air 15 has 15 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Flex 5 14 has 11.5 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
Very Good
Very Good
15.3in
SIZE
14.0in
3.3 lbs
WEIGHT
3.4 lbs
0.4in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and Lenovo Flex 5 14 both have very good portability, though the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has best in class build quality, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,299
$470
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) has a price of $1,299 and the Lenovo Flex 5 14 costs $470.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and Lenovo Flex 5 14 are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) with an M2 processor and high screen quality offers long battery life and silent operation, making it highly portable and suitable for general use, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 boasts a larger storage capacity and more RAM, coupled with a touch screen, convertible design for added versatility in general use despite its relatively lower screen color coverage and shorter battery life. Both provide good portability and keyboard quality, but the MacBook stands out in display and speaker quality, and the Flex 5 offers better heat management and a backlit keyboard, catering to different user preferences.
Gaming and AI
6.5/10
6.2/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and Lenovo Flex 5 14 are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) is equipped with an Apple M2 GPU which supports fair 3D performance, however, its MacOS can be a limitation as many popular games are not compatible. In contrast, the Lenovo Flex 5 14 also provides fair 3D and gaming capabilities with its AMD Ryzen 7 7730U Vega 8 GPU, and the Windows 11 OS expands its gaming compatibility, but its screen refresh rate and GPU may not satisfy the demands of high-end gaming.
Content Creation
8.0/10
7.6/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.9/10
2880 x 1864
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) to be very good for content creation, while the Lenovo Flex 5 14 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.
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How the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) and the Lenovo Flex 5 14 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."
"The highlight of the latest IdeaPad Flex 5 14 is clearly its AMD CPU. The octa-core Ryzen 7 5700U is insanely fast even when compared to the best Tiger Lake Ultrabooks in the market or even Core H CPUs in many gaming laptops. It's a lot of raw processing power for what is supposed to be a budget 14-inch convertible. If your daily workloads can benefit from extra multi-thread CPU performance, then look no further than the inexpensive AMD-powered Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 14. For regular on-the-road browsing or video streaming, however, a slimmer and lighter 10th gen Core Yoga, Spectre, or XPS would be a more balanced option."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) or the Lenovo Flex 5 14
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.
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Joe Golden, Ph.D
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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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