The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) offers excellent portability, longer battery life, and a high-resolution display and excels in general use, but it's not suited for intensive gaming or engineering software that requires a powerful dedicated graphics card. On the other hand, the Gigabyte Aorus 5 is a better fit for gaming, 3D modeling, and engineering tasks due to its powerful processor and dedicated Nvidia RTX graphics, but it's heavier and has a shorter battery life, making it less portable. Choose the MacBook Pro for everyday tasks and portability, or the Aorus 5 for more demanding applications. 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 Gigabyte Aorus 5
Very good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall display quality
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.3/10
7.9/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.2/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Gigabyte Aorus 5 is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has an integrated GPU that is less powerful for 3D applications and gaming compared to the dedicated Nvidia RTX 3070 in the Gigabyte Aorus 5, and while the MacBook Pro's screen offers high color accuracy, it's limited to a 60Hz refresh rate which makes the Aorus 5 with its 360Hz refresh rate more suitable for fast-paced gaming.
Engineering and Design
7.3/10
8.2/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.2/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Gigabyte Aorus 5 is very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) with its high screen resolution and quality, combined with an efficient CPU and good portability makes it suitable for engineering and design, but its performance is outpaced by the Gigabyte Aorus 5 which offers a more powerful CPU, double the RAM, a superior dedicated GPU, and a higher refresh rate screen, making it very good for more demanding engineering and graphics tasks despite being less portable and potentially noisier.
Screen Quality
7.6/10
8.0/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
360Hz
491.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
280.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has a better screen than the Gigabyte Aorus 5 for general use, engineering and design, and software development, while the Gigabyte Aorus 5 has a better screen for gaming and AI.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) boasts a high-resolution Retina display with bright and vibrant colors, making it excellent for general tasks and engineering design, due to its wide color gamut coverage, ensuring accurate color representation. However, its refresh rate is lower, which isn't ideal for 3D applications where smoother motion is critical. In contrast, the Gigabyte Aorus 5, while providing good resolution and decent brightness, falls short on both color accuracy for professional design and the high refresh rates desired for seamless 3D rendering and gaming.
Battery
20.0 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has 20 hours of battery life. The Gigabyte Aorus 5 has 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
Fair
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
3.0 lbs
WEIGHT
5.0 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has very good portability, while the Gigabyte Aorus 5 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.4/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has best in class build quality, while the Gigabyte Aorus 5 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,249
$2,359
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) has a price of $1,249 and the Gigabyte Aorus 5 costs $2,359.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and Gigabyte Aorus 5 are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) with its M1 processor, ample memory, and high-quality Retina display provides efficient performance for general tasks, and it stands out for its portability with a lightweight design and a long-lasting battery. In contrast, the Gigabyte Aorus 5, equipped with a potent Intel i7 processor and a dedicated Nvidia graphics card, offers more power, which is good for demanding tasks, but it's bulkier and has a shorter battery life, making it less ideal for on-the-go use.
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.6/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and Gigabyte Aorus 5 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
9.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and Gigabyte Aorus 5 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.
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How the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) and the Gigabyte Aorus 5 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 Gigabyte Aorus 5 SE4 is a capable mainstream gaming notebook that will run the latest PC games with aplomb. However, it's not your stereotypical flashy gaming PC. Gigabyte has added some interesting tweaks. For example, the webcam placement and its Microsoft Azure AI tool — to automatically switch between power modes — are unusual for this genre. But more importantly, the pricing is fairly competitive and reasonable."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2020) or the Gigabyte Aorus 5
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 Gigabyte
Gigabyte is a Taiwanese computer hardware manufacturer. While Gigabyte mainly focuses its business on desktop hardware, Gigabyte is known for its value-oriented G series laptops, thin and light Aero series, and performance-oriented Aorus series. Gigabyte laptops offer a strong value proposition to compete with mainstream alternatives.
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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