The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) would serve well if you prioritize a high-resolution display, better battery life, lighter weight for portability, and a preference for MacOS, along with solid build quality and premium design, but it comes at a higher cost. On the other hand, the Lenovo Legion 5 15" is more affordable and is better suited for gaming or intensive tasks with its high-performance graphics card and a higher refresh rate display, although it is heavier and may not have as long-lasting a battery, making it less portable and more suited for stationary use. Consider the MacBook if you value portability and battery, and the Legion if you prioritize gaming and graphical performance at a more accessible price point. 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 Lenovo Legion 5 15"
Good for gaming and AI
Key differences
General Use
8.4/10
7.5/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
479.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
350.0 nits
13.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
8.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.8/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for general use, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) exceeds in terms of general use due to its superior screen quality with higher brightness and color coverage, along with better battery life and portability, propelled by its efficient M1 Pro processor and lightweight design. On the other hand, the Lenovo Legion 5 15" provides ample general-use capability with a powerful AMD processor and dedicated Nvidia graphics, great for occasional gaming or demanding tasks, but sacrifices some portability and battery efficiency due to its gaming-oriented design and heavier build.
Gaming and AI
6.8/10
7.9/10
4.7/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.5/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 15" is good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is only fair.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is well-suited for 3D tasks due to its powerful GPU tailored to handle graphic-intensive applications, along with a high-quality Mini LED display that provides excellent color accuracy and brightness, which is vital for visual work.
Content Creation
8.4/10
7.4/10
6.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.0/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
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 Lenovo Legion 5 15" 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
8.0/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) is very good for software development, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" 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
8.0/10
14.2in
SIZE
15.6in
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1440
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
479.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
350.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has a better screen than the Lenovo Legion 5 15" for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
When considering a laptop for general use, the MacBook Pro is superior due to its higher resolution and brighter display, enhancing visibility and clarity. For engineering and design, the MacBook's wider color gamut ensures more accurate color representation, crucial for detailed work. However, for 3D tasks that demand rapid image changes, the Lenovo Legion's higher refresh rate provides smoother visuals even though it might lag in resolution and panel quality compared to the MacBook Pro.
Battery
13.5 Hours
4.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has 13.5 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion 5 15" has 4 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
14.2in
SIZE
15.6in
3.5 lbs
WEIGHT
5.3 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) has very good portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.6/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) has best in class build quality, while the Lenovo Legion 5 15" has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,905
$999
$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 Lenovo Legion 5 15" costs $999.
The Lenovo Legion 5 15" and Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) are both very good for engineering and design.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) stands out for engineering and design uses thanks to its high-performance Apple M1 Pro processor and GPU, top-tier mini LED screen with exceptional color coverage and brightness, and a portable and premium build. In comparison, the Lenovo Legion 5 15" excels with its powerful AMD Ryzen CPU and Nvidia RTX GPU, a high-refresh IPS screen for smooth visuals, and hardware features like ray tracing and DLSS, trading off some portability and speaker quality for superior gaming performance.
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How the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) and the Lenovo Legion 5 15" 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."
"The Lenovo Legion 5 15 is an affordable gaming laptop with a lot of power. The new AMD processor Ryzen 7 5800H offers plenty of performance and it is also very efficient. The combination with the fast 130W version of the GeForce RTX 3060 ensures high gaming performance. We also like the fast 165 Hz display with the 1080p resolution. The automatic graphics switching causes some problems with stutters, which are very annoying. If you do not need long battery runtimes, you should definitely deactivate the hybrid graphics mode in Lenovo's Vantage app. The Legion 5 15 is never silent."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2021) or the Lenovo Legion 5 15"
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 Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
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
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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
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