If you prioritize a smooth experience and high build quality with a preference for MacOS and don't mind a higher price, choose the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020). It offers a longer battery life and a better display but is more expensive. However, if you're on a budget and looking for a good value Windows laptop, the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 is less costly, with decent performance for everyday tasks and portability, but it has shorter battery life, a lower-quality display, and reduced performance for intensive tasks compared to the MacBook Pro. 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)
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Good for software development
Good for content creation
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Best in class battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS Vivobook Go 14
The ASUS Vivobook Go 14 has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020).
Key differences
General Use
7.7/10
6.2/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
491.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
250.0 nits
20.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
8.9/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is good for general use, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 is only fair.
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.
Gaming and AI
6.3/10
5.7/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.5/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is only fair for gaming and AI, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 is poor.
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
7.3/10
5.9/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.1/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is good for engineering and design, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 is poor.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 excels in engineering and design with a significantly more powerful proprietary CPU and GPU combo and a high-resolution display that offers wide color coverage and bright visuals essential for detailed work, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 14, with a less powerful AMD processor and lower-end GPU, falls short in providing the necessary performance and screen quality for such tasks. Additionally, the MacBook Pro's superior build quality, silent operation, and premium keyboard bolster its standing as a machine better catered to these demanding environments compared to the ASUS Vivobook's relatively lower build and keyboard quality.
Content Creation
7.8/10
6.5/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is good for content creation, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 is only fair.
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
6.4/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is good for software development, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 is only fair.
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
6.2/10
13.3in
SIZE
14.0in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
491.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
250.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has a better screen than the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has a high-resolution Retina display with bright and vibrant colors, making it excellent for general use and engineering design due to its wide color gamut and sharp image clarity. However, its standard refresh rate limits its effectiveness for 3D applications that benefit from smoother motion. On the other hand, the ASUS Vivobook Go 14, while offering fair resolution and brightness for everyday tasks and fair color representation for design work, does not meet the high standards required for professional engineering and its lower refresh rate also makes it less suitable for gaming and 3D purposes.
Battery
20.0 Hours
7.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has 20 hours of battery life. The ASUS Vivobook Go 14 has 7 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.
Build Quality
10.0/10
6.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has best in class build quality, while the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,249
$450
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has a price of $1,249 and the ASUS Vivobook Go 14 costs $450.
"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 lack of a backlit keyboard in this price segment shouldn't sway the buyer the other way. However, it still comes down to user preference. The Vivobook Go 14 is a decent laptop in an extremely competitive price segment. A few omissions are a part of the balancing to reach the price segment. The Asus Vivobook Go 14 is a rare find when it comes to the price to performance ratio."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) or the ASUS Vivobook Go 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 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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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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