Selecting between the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 depends on your primary use case. The MacBook Pro offers a sleek design, excellent build quality, and long battery life, making it ideal for professionals and students who need a reliable machine for general use and productivity software, particularly those invested in the Apple ecosystem. On the other hand, the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 is bulkier but equipped with robust hardware tailored for gaming, 3D rendering, and intensive computational tasks. If your priority is gaming or demanding engineering software, the ASUS might better meet your needs, but it would compromise on portability and battery life. It typically also comes with a more attractive price compared to the MacBook Pro, so if budget is a concern, this could sway your decision towards the ASUS. 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 Pro 13 (2020)
Best in class overall build quality
Very good portability
Best in class battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS TUF Gaming A16
Good for gaming and AI
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.3/10
7.4/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.7/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.7/10
The ASUS TUF Gaming A16 is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) 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.
Screen Quality
7.6/10
7.5/10
13.3in
SIZE
16.0in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
491.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
294.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has a better screen than the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation, while the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 has a better screen for gaming and AI.
For general use, the MacBook Pro 13 offers a high-resolution Retina display with excellent brightness and color accuracy, making it ideal for browsing, media consumption, and productivity tasks. In the realm of engineering and design, this MacBook's display covers a wide color gamut, ensuring that professionals who work with color-sensitive applications can trust the screen output for their projects. However, for 3D applications like gaming or animation, the MacBook Pro's standard refresh rate can be a limitation compared to specialized gaming laptops, which offer higher refresh rates for smoother visuals in fast-paced scenes.
Battery
20.0 Hours
12.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has 20 hours of battery life. The ASUS TUF Gaming A16 has 12 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
13.3in
SIZE
16.0in
3.0 lbs
WEIGHT
4.8 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has very good portability, while the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.2/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has best in class build quality, while the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,249
$838
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has a price of $1,249 and the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 costs $838.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and ASUS TUF Gaming A16 are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) with its high-resolution screen, silent operation, and long battery life enhances portability and convenience for general use, whereas the ASUS TUF Gaming A16, with its larger screen, more RAM and better graphics capabilities is suitable for more demanding tasks but is heavier and has a shorter battery life, making it less portable.
Engineering and Design
7.3/10
7.7/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The ASUS TUF Gaming A16 and Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) are both good for engineering and design.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is favored for engineering and design because of its sharp IPS display, efficient Apple M1 CPU and GPU that allow for silent, fanless operation, complemented by high screen quality and a very good portability score.
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.6/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and ASUS TUF Gaming A16 are both 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
7.8/10
7.3/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1200
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and ASUS TUF Gaming A16 are both 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.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 compare to other laptops
"The MacBook Pro 13 is still a very good subnotebook. The 2022 MacBook Pro 13 might look like recycling at first, because the device is completely identical to the old model expect for the new M2 SoC. We have to admit that we were surprised to see another iteration of the MBP 13 as well. The laptop is obviously familiar, but this does not change the fact that it is still a very good subnotebook. You get an excellent chassis with good stability, a very good display, good input devices and the new M2 chip is very powerful and efficient."
"The A16 makes an excellent case against more expensive laptops like the Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo 16 and the MSI Katana GF76, especially if you’re into 1080p gaming. However, although its affordable, it doesn’t skimp on performance or a robust chassis. But for me, the biggest factor that sets it apart from these options is its incredible battery life. In my time reviewing laptops, I can’t remember when I last saw a gaming laptop lasted 11 and a half hours on a single charge, which makes the A16, in my book, truly outstanding."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) or the ASUS TUF Gaming A16
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.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
103,395
Recommendations made
22,403
Consumer hours saved
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.