Advantages of the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019)
Good for general use
Good for engineering and design
Good for software development
Very good for content creation
Good overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Very good battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the HP 17" Laptop
The HP 17" Laptop has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019).
Key differences
General Use
7.8/10
6.6/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
477.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
274.0 nits
12.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.5 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
7.7/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.1/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) is good for general use, while the HP 17" Laptop is only fair.
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.
Engineering and Design
7.5/10
6.1/10
4.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
4.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) is good for engineering and design, while the HP 17" Laptop 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
8.0/10
6.9/10
4.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) is very good for content creation, while the HP 17" Laptop is only fair.
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
6.7/10
4.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) is good for software development, while the HP 17" Laptop is only fair.
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
7.8/10
6.4/10
16.0in
SIZE
17.3in
3072 x 1920
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
477.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
274.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the HP 17" Laptop for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
PerfectRec’s screen quality scores take into account various important factors that are relevant for different use cases.
Battery
12.0 Hours
5.5 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 12 hours of battery life. The HP 17" Laptop 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
Good
Good
16.0in
SIZE
17.3in
4.3 lbs
WEIGHT
4.6 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) and HP 17" Laptop both have good portability, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) has somewhat better portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
6.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) has best in class build quality, while the HP 17" Laptop has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) to be only fair for gaming and AI, while the HP 17" Laptop is poor.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Cost
$496
$480
$200
$300
$400
$500
$600
$700
$800
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) has a price of $496 and the HP 17" Laptop costs $480.
Give feedback
We’re constantly working to improve.
How the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) and the HP 17" Laptop 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."
"As far as starter laptops go, the HP Laptop 17 is a sound investment. Sure, it might not be the lightest of options, but what you get for the price is a well-rounded machine that fits multiple niches. Whether it be office duties that require you to multi-task between multiple programs, or study tasks in which you’ll spend hours browsing online, this laptop does it all. Plus, when it's time to unwind, you can watch your favorite shows or movies on a super-wide display. What's best of all is that you can do all this for about half a day on a single charge."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2019) or the HP 17" Laptop
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 HP
HP, also known as Hewlett-Packard, is an American technology company that develops personal computers and computer peripherals. In the laptop industry, HP is known for its entry level Essential series laptops, its mid-range Pavilion, Envy, and Victus series, and high-end Omen and Spectre series, in addition to its business-oriented EliteBook, ProBook, and Dragonfly series laptops. HP laptops generally undercut other mainstream competitors in terms of price, placing itself as the value-oriented mainstream brand.
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.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
150,495
Recommendations made
32,608
Consumer hours saved
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.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
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.
Craig Russell
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.