The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is significantly more expensive but offers higher performance for engineering tasks, better screen quality, and longer battery life, making it suitable for professionals who need power and reliability and can benefit from its high-resolution Mini LED display. The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i, on the other hand, provides good value with strong performance for general use and a decent screen at a much lower price point. It has a dedicated graphics card that can handle gaming and 3D work well, though it trails behind the MacBook in terms of display quality and battery life. If portability is a priority, both laptops are fairly similar in weight and size, though the MacBook Pro offers a slightly better portability experience due to its longer battery life. Choose the MacBook Pro if budget is less of a concern and you need top-tier performance and screen quality, or the IdeaPad Pro 5i if you are looking for a cost-effective laptop for general use, gaming, and 3D tasks. 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 Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021).
Key differences
General Use
9.0/10
7.7/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
497.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
409.0 nits
17.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
6.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is excellent for general use, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) offers better general use performance due to its more powerful CPU, double the amount of RAM, and superior screen quality with higher brightness and color accuracy compared to the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i, which still provides good general performance with a capable CPU and adequate RAM. However, the MacBook Pro excels in portability with longer battery life and slightly less weight, making it a better choice for those who need to work on the go, while the IdeaPad Pro 5i, with its good keyboard, speaker quality, and effective heat management, offers a solid experience at a potentially lower price point.
Engineering and Design
8.7/10
8.1/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.0/10
5.0/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.7/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) and Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i are both very good for engineering and design, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is somewhat better.
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
8.8/10
7.7/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.0/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
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 Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i 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
7.7/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.0/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is very good for software development, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i 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
7.8/10
16.2in
SIZE
16.0in
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
497.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
409.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) excels in screen quality for general use and engineering due to its high-resolution Retina display offering brilliant brightness and strong coverage of DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB color gamuts, providing rich and accurate colors essential for detail-oriented work. For 3D applications, however, it falls short as it does not prioritize a high refresh rate, which is vital for smooth rendering and an immersive experience. The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i, with a very good display for general computing and sufficient color gamut coverage for engineering tasks, also lacks a high refresh rate screen, making it less ideal for gaming and 3D tasks that require quick on-screen movements.
Battery
17.5 Hours
6.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 17.5 hours of battery life. The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i has 6 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
7.6/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) has best in class build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,949
$860
$0
$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 Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i costs $860.
The Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i and Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) are both good for gaming and AI.
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.
Portability
Good
Good
16.2in
SIZE
16.0in
4.7 lbs
WEIGHT
4.3 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) and Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i both have good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Give feedback
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How the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) and the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i 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."
"Lenovo’s IdeaPad Pro 5i represents an impressive opening salvo for Meteor Lake in the ultraportable space against familiar foes from AMD and Apple. Not only does the Core Ultra 5 125H processor provide good performance across the board, but battery life remains a strong point against the Acer Swift Edge 16 with its AMD Ryzen 7 7840U processor. It can’t quite match the endurance of the 15-inch MacBook Pro, but the gap is shrinking."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) or the Lenovo IdeaPad Pro 5i
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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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.