If you prioritize a high-quality display, long battery life, and a lightweight device suitable for general use, design, or media work, choose the Apple MacBook Pro 16. It excels in these areas, but comes with a higher price. Conversely, the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 offers better performance for 3D rendering, machine learning, and intensive gaming at a lower cost, but with a more standard display and shorter battery life. It is also slightly heavier and thicker, which could impact portability. Consider how crucial gaming or engineering tasks are for you compared to everyday portability and screen performance when making your decision. 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 (2021)
Excellent for general use
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Excellent overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Best in class battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the ASUS TUF Gaming F15
Very good for gaming and AI
Key differences
General Use
9.0/10
7.6/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
497.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
257.0 nits
17.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
5.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.1/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is excellent for general use, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is rated very good for general use primarily due to its superior CPU and screen quality, which together offer a smooth and visually appealing experience, along with great portability and long battery life. The ASUS TUF Gaming F15, while rated good for general use, leans more towards gaming needs with robust performance specs but trades off some portability and battery longevity.
Gaming and AI
7.0/10
8.0/10
5.0/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.9/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.7/10
The ASUS TUF Gaming F15 is very good for gaming and AI, while the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a high-quality screen and powerful GPU suitable for 3D rendering tasks but isn't ideal for gaming due to limited game compatibility with macOS. The ASUS TUF Gaming F15, on the other hand, offers a high refresh rate screen and a robust GPU that provides smoother visuals, making it a preferred choice for gaming as well as 3D applications, with the added benefit of broad game support on Windows.
Engineering and Design
8.7/10
8.2/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
5.0/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.9/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) and ASUS TUF Gaming F15 are both very good for engineering and design, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is somewhat better.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is adept for engineering and design due to its powerful Apple M1 Pro CPU and GPU, substantial RAM, and superior screen quality with high resolution and color coverage, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 stands out with a high-performing Intel i7 CPU and Nvidia GPU, more storage, and a robust build suitable for engineering tasks but with a less impressive screen. The MacBook offers longer battery life and a lighter build enhancing portability; the ASUS, however, provides additional ports and upgradeability at the cost of heavier weight and shorter battery usage time.
Content Creation
8.8/10
7.7/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is very good for content creation, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 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
8.9/10
7.3/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is very good for software development, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 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
9.4/10
6.9/10
16.2in
SIZE
15.6in
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
497.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
257.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro has a high-resolution display that renders sharp text and images, making it excellent for general use, and its wide color gamut ensures accurate color representation for engineering and design work. However, its standard refresh rate is less optimal for 3D work, where higher refresh rates are preferred for smoother visuals. In contrast, the ASUS TUF Gaming F15's general use experience is good due to decent brightness and resolution, but its color accuracy might not be as precise for professional design tasks, and despite being a gaming laptop, the display's poor refresh rate might not deliver the best experience for fast-paced 3D games and content.
Battery
17.5 Hours
5.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 17.5 hours of battery life. The ASUS TUF Gaming F15 has 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
7.2/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) has best in class build quality, while the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,949
$1,399
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) has a price of $1,949 and the ASUS TUF Gaming F15 costs $1,399.
"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."
"Aside from all the chassis updates, the new TUF Gaming is most notable for its much higher TGP target of 140 W compared to only 95 W on the previous generation. PC makers everywhere are using the same GeForce GPUs this year since Nvidia has yet to launch the successor to the mobile RTX 3000 series. The more demanding processors of the new TUF Gaming has directly impacted battery life and the size of the AC adapter. Don't expect runtimes to be longer than on the previous generation under most conditions and be prepared to carry around an even larger AC adapter than before."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) or the ASUS TUF Gaming F15
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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