The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) offers silent, fanless operation perfect for general use and tasks that benefit from a high-resolution, color-accurate screen, while being lightweight and portable with a strong battery life. The Dell Alienware m15 R7, on the other hand, has superior hardware capable of handling intensive gaming, 3D rendering, and machine learning tasks with a high refresh rate screen and dedicated graphics card, but it is heavier, less portable, and consumes more battery, making it less suitable for on-the-go use. If you prioritize portability and battery life for everyday productivity, choose the MacBook Pro, but if you need top performance for demanding applications and gaming, the Alienware will serve you better, albeit with a premium price. 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 (2022)
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 Dell Alienware m15 R7
Very good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Very good overall display quality
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.5/10
7.8/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Alienware m15 R7 is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022), with its less powerful integrated GPU and a standard screen refresh rate, is only fair for 3D tasks and games, which are further limited by the incompatibility of many popular titles with MacOS. In contrast, the Dell Alienware m15 R7, equipped with a high-end dedicated Nvidia GPU and a high refresh rate screen, offers good performance for gaming and 3D tasks, making it a superior choice for those specific applications.
Engineering and Design
7.5/10
8.2/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
4.3/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.7/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Dell Alienware m15 R7 is very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) is good.
The Dell Alienware m15 R7 offers superior performance for engineering and design use thanks to its more powerful AMD Ryzen CPU and Nvidia RTX GPU compared to the Apple MacBook Pro 13's less powerful M2 chip. While the MacBook Pro 13 offers a higher-quality screen and is more portable, the Alienware's superior hardware makes it better suited for intensive tasks that require more processing power and memory.
Software Development
7.8/10
7.3/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) and Dell Alienware m15 R7 are both good for software development, though the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) is somewhat better.
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
8.2/10
13.3in
SIZE
15.6in
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
497.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
300.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has a better screen than the Dell Alienware m15 R7 for software development, and content creation, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 has a better screen for gaming and AI.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 offers a high-resolution display with bright, vibrant colors suited to everyday tasks, and it covers a wide color gamut, making it accurate for engineering and professional design work. The Dell Alienware m15 R7 ensures similar benefits in display clarity and color for day-to-day use and technical applications; however, its focus on gaming typically means it would also excel in higher refresh rates needed for 3D work. Both laptops may not offer the high refresh rates desired for 3D modeling and gaming, which can impede the smoothness and responsiveness needed in those fields.
Battery
20.0 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 has 20 hours of battery life. The Dell Alienware m15 R7 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
5.9 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) has very good portability, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) has best in class build quality, while the Dell Alienware m15 R7 has very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,219
$2,200
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) has a price of $1,219 and the Dell Alienware m15 R7 costs $2,200.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) and Dell Alienware m15 R7 are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) offers a balance suitable for general use, with its strong CPU, high-quality screen, lightweight form factor for better portability, and long battery life; additionally, it has a silent operation for a comfortable experience. Contrastingly, the Dell Alienware m15 R7, though less portable and with shorter battery life, boasts a more powerful CPU and GPU combo, twice the RAM, and a larger, high-refresh rate screen, making it ideal for intensive applications and users who require more multitasking and gaming capabilities.
Content Creation
7.9/10
7.5/10
6.7/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.5/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) and Dell Alienware m15 R7 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.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) and the Dell Alienware m15 R7 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 Alienware M15 offers solid gaming and leading endurance. It makes the most of its CPU and GPU while delivering stellar battery life for a gaming laptop. Opening the lid presents a full-size keyboard with honeycomb cutouts above it on the deck. An oblong RBG lightning element surrounds the entire rear panel and can be color-synced with the other lights on the laptop. There’s not a lot to dislike about the M15 Its productivity performance lagged in some areas, particularly in the storage benchmark, and it’s a bit heavy. Alienware has a clear winner here with the M15 based on its strong overall performance and endurance."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) or the Dell Alienware m15 R7
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 Dell
Dell is a highly recognizable American technology company, and is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. Their laptops are very popular for both personal and professional use, and they also own the Alienware brand which makes mid to high end gaming laptops. Their premium XPS range of laptops offer great build quality and portability, while Latitude and Precision laptops are known for reliability, repairability and performance for business users.
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
103,095
Recommendations made
22,338
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.