The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) offers a higher price with top-tier build quality, speaker and webcam, a very bright and high-contrast mini LED display, and long battery life, ideal for general use and work within the Apple ecosystem. The ASUS ROG Flow X16, while more economical and includes a touch screen with a very high refresh rate, is better suited for intensive gaming and engineering thanks to its powerful AMD processor and Nvidia GPU. It is heavier and has a shorter battery life, making it less portable than the MacBook Pro. Choose the MacBook for premium experience and longer use without charging, or the ASUS if you need a gaming-capable device with more storage at a lower 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 14 (2023)
Very good for software development
Excellent overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Very good portability
Excellent battery life
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS ROG Flow X16
The ASUS ROG Flow X16 has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023).
Key differences
General Use
8.5/10
8.0/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
489.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
502.0 nits
13.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
8.5/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.4/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) and ASUS ROG Flow X16 are both very good for general use, though the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) is somewhat better.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Gaming and AI
7.0/10
7.6/10
5.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.2/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The ASUS ROG Flow X16 and Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) are both good for gaming and AI, though the ASUS ROG Flow X16 is somewhat better.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) with its Apple M2 Pro GPU and 120Hz screen refresh rate offers excellent 3D capabilities that suit professionals, while the ASUS ROG Flow X16 with a higher-refresh-rate display of 165Hz and an Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU is better tuned for the high frames per second demanded by gaming, and it also runs the wide range of popular games available for Windows that aren't compatible with macOS.
Content Creation
8.5/10
8.0/10
7.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.1/10
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) and ASUS ROG Flow X16 are both very good for content creation, though the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) is somewhat better.
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
8.4/10
7.7/10
7.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) is very good for software development, while the ASUS ROG Flow X16 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
8.5/10
14.2in
SIZE
16.0in
3024 x 1964
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
489.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
502.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has a better screen than the ASUS ROG Flow X16 for general use, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
For general use, the MacBook Pro's vivid colors, high resolution, and strong brightness levels make it an excellent choice for daily tasks and media consumption. For engineers and designers, its wide color gamut ensures accurate color representation, essential for professional design work and color grading. However, for 3D and gaming, the Asus with its high refresh rate offers smoother visuals, which is crucial for fast-paced action, although the MacBook Pro's screen doesn't support these activities as well.
Battery
13.5 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 has 13.5 hours of battery life. The ASUS ROG Flow X16 has 5.5 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
Good
14.2in
SIZE
16.0in
3.5 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) has very good portability, while the ASUS ROG Flow X16 has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) has best in class build quality, while the ASUS ROG Flow X16 has very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,700
$1,300
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) has a price of $1,700 and the ASUS ROG Flow X16 costs $1,300.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) and ASUS ROG Flow X16 are both very good for engineering and design.
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) offers a high-quality Mini LED display and a powerful integrated Apple M2 Pro GPU suited for demanding engineering and design tasks, but it is less portable and has no touchscreen compared to the convertible ASUS ROG Flow X16, which combines an AMD Ryzen CPU with a discrete Nvidia RTX GPU for strong performance and comes with a high-refresh-rate IPS touchscreen, albeit with louder operating noise.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) and the ASUS ROG Flow X16 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."
"Above all else, the Asus ROG Flow X16 is one thing - versatile! It is a thin, mobile work device, it's a 2-in-1, tablet, a powerful workstation and even a gaming PC. But something even more surprising: It does all of these things really well without making any big blunders. It's anything but a lazy compromise. Because, despite its compact dimensions and 2-in-1 functionality, the hardware isn't throttled and boasts, at least in turbo mode, above-average performance."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) or the ASUS ROG Flow X16
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 ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
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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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.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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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.