Choosing between the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) and the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 depends on your priorities. If you're looking for a more budget-friendly option, the MacBook Pro is often significantly less expensive and still offers solid performance for general use and light creative tasks. The MacBook's battery life and high-resolution display also make it suitable for on-the-go productivity. However, the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 provides much higher performance, especially for intense tasks like 3D rendering, machine learning, and gaming, thanks to its more powerful processor and graphics card. It's a newer model with a higher refresh rate screen, which is beneficial for gaming, but it's also heavier and usually costs more. If portability and price are your main concerns, go with the MacBook Pro; if you need top-tier performance for demanding applications, the Zephyrus M16 should be your choice. 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 16 (Late 2019)
Best in class overall build quality
Very good battery life
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Excellent overall display quality
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.4/10
8.5/10
4.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.9/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.2/10
The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) is only fair.
The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 houses a high-performance Nvidia RTX 4070 graphics card with a screen refresh rate of up to 240Hz, making it very good for gaming and 3D applications; on the other hand, the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) comes with an AMD Radeon Pro 5300M GPU and a lower refresh rate of 60Hz, resulting in fair performance for 3D tasks, with the added limitation that many popular games do not run on its MacOS operating system.
Engineering and Design
7.5/10
8.8/10
4.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
4.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 is very good for engineering and design, while the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) provides a balance between a high-quality display and performance suitable for engineering and design, accompanied by a quieter operation and superior speakers, making it a reliable choice for environments where less noise and excellent audio are valued.
Screen Quality
7.8/10
9.0/10
16.0in
SIZE
16.0in
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
477.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
627.0 nits
The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 has a better screen than the Apple MacBook Pro 16 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, and software development.
For general use, the MacBook Pro 16's high-resolution Retina display promises vivid colors and sharp detail facilitated by its brightness, while the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 offers similar features, catering to everyday tasks with its crisp display. In engineering and design, both laptops provide wide color coverage, delivering accurate colors crucial for professional editing and modeling work. However, for 3D applications where smooth motion is key, both the MacBook Pro and Zephyrus M16 fall short due to their lower refresh rates, which might not be as suitable for gaming or highly dynamic 3D work compared to models specifically designed with faster screens.
Battery
12.0 Hours
4.5 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 12 hours of battery life. The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 has 4.5 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.
Build Quality
10.0/10
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) has best in class build quality, while the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 has very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$540
$2,059
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) has a price of $540 and the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 costs $2,059.
The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 and Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) are both good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 from late 2019, with a high-quality screen, excellent keyboard, good battery life, and efficient heat management, is a solid choice for general use, alongside its lightweight design which enhances portability. In contrast, the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16, while also offering a great screen and keyboard, superior storage, and more advanced CPU, is less portable and has significantly shorter battery life but is better suited for more demanding tasks like gaming or intensive applications due to its powerful GPU.
Content Creation
8.0/10
8.2/10
4.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 and Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) are both very 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.
Software Development
7.9/10
7.7/10
4.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) and ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 are both good for software development.
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.
Portability
Good
Good
16.0in
SIZE
16.0in
4.3 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) and ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 both have good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) and the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 compare to other laptops
"The Apple MacBook Pro 16 2023: M2 Max challenges GeForce RTX 3080 Ti. The new MacBook Pro 16 2023 with the M2 Max SoC is the most powerful laptop Apple has on sale right now. While we do not get the expected performance and efficiency improvements from completely new 3 nm chips, which we expected ahead of the launch, the 2023 model is still a solid update. The CPU of the M2 Max can be up to 20 % faster than the old model and we also see an advantage of 25-30 % for the GPU with 38 cores. However, both components also consume more power, so the efficiency did not change that much under maximum load."
"The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 is not yet as optimised as its predecessor. Compared to the previous gen, performance and efficiency have improved significantly. What's more, the wonderful, Mini-LED Nebula display is a contender for the main highlight and almost manages to put the CPU and GPU in the shade. We already found its predecessor to be a well-rounded and well-optimised gaming machine. Generally, but not unequivocally, that also applies to the new Asus M16. Similar to most of the current, new laptops, we are dealing with a double generational leap in terms of the CPU and GPU. However, this change doesn't always run smoothly."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) or the ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16
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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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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