Choosing between the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) and the Dell Alienware m17 R5 depends on your needs. The MacBook Pro offers better portability, higher screen quality, and excellent build quality and is ideal for general use, with good performance for 3D and engineering tasks, but at a higher price. The Alienware m17, on the other hand, is a great choice for gaming and offers superior performance for 3D and machine learning applications and engineering tasks at a lower price, but is heavier and not as portable, with a lower screen resolution and shorter battery life. 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 14 (2021)
Very good for general use
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Excellent overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Very good portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the Dell Alienware m17 R5
Good for gaming and AI
Key differences
General Use
8.4/10
7.8/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
479.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
301.0 nits
13.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
8.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
5.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for general use, while the Dell Alienware m17 R5 is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) offers excellent portability and a high-quality Mini LED screen suitable for a range of tasks with its efficient CPU and long battery life, making it very good for general use. On the other hand, the Dell Alienware m17 R5, while having a larger screen and more storage, is less portable due to its size and weight, and it has a shorter battery life, yet it provides ample power for demanding applications, positioning it as a good option for general use as well.
Gaming and AI
6.8/10
7.7/10
4.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.7/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
480Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Dell Alienware m17 R5 is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14, with its Apple M1 Pro integrated GPU, is good for 3D tasks and offers a Mini LED screen with a high refresh rate and excellent screen quality, while the Dell Alienware m17 R5 comes with a high-performance Nvidia RTX 3060 dedicated GPU and a much higher refresh rate, which coupled with a larger screen, benefits gaming but at the cost of macOS compatibility for many popular games.
Content Creation
8.4/10
7.8/10
6.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.1/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for content creation, while the Dell Alienware m17 R5 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.
Software Development
8.3/10
7.4/10
6.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for software development, while the Dell Alienware m17 R5 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
9.2/10
8.1/10
14.2in
SIZE
17.3in
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
480Hz
479.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
301.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has a better screen than the Dell Alienware m17 R5 for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 boasts a high-resolution display with vibrant colors and excellent brightness, making it ideal for general use and tasks requiring color accuracy, like engineering and design. Conversely, its lower refresh rate compared to some gaming-oriented laptops means it's less suitable for 3D applications where smooth motion is key. The Dell Alienware m17 R5, while offering a decent screen for everyday and professional tasks, falls short for gaming and 3D due to its subpar refresh rate, despite having reasonable resolution and panel quality.
Battery
13.5 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has 13.5 hours of battery life. The Dell Alienware m17 R5 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
Poor
14.2in
SIZE
17.3in
3.5 lbs
WEIGHT
7.3 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) has very good portability, while the Dell Alienware m17 R5 has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.8/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) has best in class build quality, while the Dell Alienware m17 R5 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,905
$1,100
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) has a price of $1,905 and the Dell Alienware m17 R5 costs $1,100.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) and Dell Alienware m17 R5 are both very good for engineering and design.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021), with its efficient Apple M1 Pro chip paired with integrated GPU, offers a balance of CPU and GPU performance suitable for most engineering and design tasks; it's also lighter and offers a high-quality Mini LED screen, making it more portable with excellent visual fidelity.
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How the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) and the Dell Alienware m17 R5 compare to other laptops
"In the Apple MacBook Pro 14 2023, the M2 Pro is slowed down. From the improved 5nm process, the new M2 Pro is a very solid upgrade. Graphics performance has increased by about 25% in tandem with a clear improvement in efficiency. The processor has also seen a performance leap of up to 20%, but this is accompanied by an increase in consumption of up to 25%. Fundamentally, Apple its maintaining its advantage over AMD and Intel, particularly in optimized applications where the results are very good in view of the comparatively low power consumption."
"Overall, the all-AMD system in the Alienware m17 R5 is impressive, especially the graphics performance. However, various driver issues and unnecessary inconsistencies prevent us from truly enjoying such a potent gaming machine. In addition to strong 3D performance, we particularly like the build quality, the fairly bright UHD display with high color space coverage, and the fact that the gamer is often quiet when not under load and also rather quieter than some competitors under load."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) or the Dell Alienware m17 R5
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.
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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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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.
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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.