The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) offers a high-performance experience suitable for intensive engineering tasks, creative work like 3D rendering and video editing, with strong battery life and a high-quality display that excels in color accuracy and brightness. However, it is less portable due to its weight and is typically more expensive. On the other hand, the Dell Latitude 5330 is more affordable and lighter, making it highly portable, and offers good performance for general use and business applications, with decent battery life. It lacks the high-end display qualities and raw power for intensive tasks found in the MacBook Pro. Choose the MacBook Pro for demanding workloads and better screen quality, or the Latitude for cost savings and portability. 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 engineering and design
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Excellent overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Excellent battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the Dell Latitude 5330
The Dell Latitude 5330 has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021).
Key differences
General Use
8.4/10
7.5/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
479.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
286.0 nits
13.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
9.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
8.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
8.8/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for general use, while the Dell Latitude 5330 is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has a high-quality Mini LED screen, a powerful Apple M1 Pro CPU, and offers exceptional battery life, making it very good for general use; however, it's heavier than the Dell Latitude 5330. The Latitude 5330, on the other hand, is lighter and still has a solid Intel i5 CPU and a good IPS screen, with a decent battery life making it good for general use, but it cannot match the MacBook Pro's superior display, performance, and battery longevity.
Gaming and AI
6.8/10
6.2/10
4.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) and Dell Latitude 5330 are both only fair for gaming and AI, though the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is somewhat better.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 with the M1 Pro GPU and a high screen refresh rate excels in 3D tasks, but its MacOS might limit game compatibility, whereas the Dell Latitude 5330's Iris Xe graphics and standard refresh rate offer fair game and 3D performance, with better game availability on its Windows OS.
Engineering and Design
8.2/10
6.9/10
6.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.9/10
4.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for engineering and design, while the Dell Latitude 5330 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Content Creation
8.4/10
7.4/10
6.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.9/10
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 Latitude 5330 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
7.3/10
6.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for software development, while the Dell Latitude 5330 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
6.3/10
14.2in
SIZE
13.3in
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
479.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
286.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has a better screen than the Dell Latitude 5330 for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) excels in screen quality for general use and engineering due to its high-resolution display with bright, vibrant colors covering a wide color gamut, ensuring sharp images and accurate color reproduction that professionals need. However, its lower refresh rate makes it less suitable for 3D applications where smooth motion is critical. In contrast, the Dell Latitude 5330 offers moderate screen quality, with sufficient resolution and brightness for general tasks and engineering work, but its limited color range and refresh rate mean it's not ideal for gaming, 3D modeling, or design work where color fidelity and fluid visuals are crucial.
Battery
13.5 Hours
9.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has 13.5 hours of battery life. The Dell Latitude 5330 has 9 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
7.4/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) has best in class build quality, while the Dell Latitude 5330 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,905
$849
$0
$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 Latitude 5330 costs $849.
"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."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) or the Dell Latitude 5330
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 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.
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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
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