If you prioritize a high-quality display and long battery life for tasks like video editing or professional work, the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) outshines the MSI Katana 15. It also offers more ports, including Thunderbolt connections, and is better tailored for premium business use with its sleek design and MacOS operating system. On the other hand, if price is a concern and you seek a machine with a dedicated gaming-grade GPU, better suited for graphically intensive tasks like gaming, 3D rendering or machine learning, and you don't mind the tradeoff in screen quality and shorter battery life, the MSI Katana 15 is a worthy consideration that comes with Windows 11 Home and a backlit keyboard with RGB lighting. Keep in mind, though, that it's slightly heavier and thicker, which might affect portability. 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 engineering and design
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Excellent overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Good portability
Best in class battery life
Best in class speakers
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the MSI Katana 15
The MSI Katana 15 has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021).
Key differences
General Use
9.0/10
7.5/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
497.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
258.0 nits
17.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
4.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.9/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is excellent for general use, while the MSI Katana 15 is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) stands out for general use with its superior screen quality, high-quality keyboard and speakers, a longer battery life, and more effective heat management, reflected in higher assessments across these categories.
Gaming and AI
7.0/10
7.6/10
5.0/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
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
7.0/10
The MSI Katana 15 and Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) are both good for gaming and AI, though the MSI Katana 15 is somewhat better.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is good for 3D tasks due to its robust GPU and high-quality Mini LED screen, but its MacOS limits the variety of games available. The MSI Katana 15, with a high-refresh-rate screen and a dedicated Nvidia GPU, is optimized for gaming and 3D performance on Windows 11 Home, which supports a broader range of games.
Engineering and Design
8.7/10
7.7/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
5.0/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is very good for engineering and design, while the MSI Katana 15 is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) stands out for engineering and design thanks to its powerful CPU, abundant RAM, high-performance integrated GPU, and superior Mini LED screen quality, coupled with its remarkable battery life. In contrast, the MSI Katana 15, while offering a dedicated GPU and ample storage, has a lower-tier CPU, less RAM, an IPS display with lower screen quality, and significantly shorter battery life, which could limit its performance and mobility for engineering and design tasks.
Content Creation
8.8/10
7.4/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
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 MSI Katana 15 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
7.0/10
7.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.6/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) is very good for software development, while the MSI Katana 15 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
6.8/10
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
258.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the MSI Katana 15 for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a high-resolution display with exceptional brightness and color accuracy, making it excellent for general use and engineering tasks, where vibrant colors and sharp images are crucial. However, its typical refresh rate is less ideal for 3D applications, where smoother motion through higher refresh rates is key. The MSI Katana 15, while offering adequate resolution and brightness for everyday tasks and engineering designs, does not provide the advanced color accuracy needed for professional design work, nor the high refresh rates sought after by gamers and those working with 3D graphics.
Battery
17.5 Hours
4.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 17.5 hours of battery life. The MSI Katana 15 has 4 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
Fair
16.2in
SIZE
15.6in
4.7 lbs
WEIGHT
4.9 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) has good portability, while the MSI Katana 15 has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
7.2/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) has best in class build quality, while the MSI Katana 15 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,949
$949
$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 MSI Katana 15 costs $949.
"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 MSI Katana 15 B12 combines a Gen12 CPU with an RTX 4050, which is actually not a bad idea for a budget gamer. The CPU is anything but bad and the GPU in the Katana 15 proves to be significantly more efficient than last year's models. However, our main point of criticism for budget gamers is the price: while you can get budget laptops with RTX 3060 from around US$800, you pay a whole US$1,499.99 here! The efficiency advantages of the RTX 4050 do not justify this price premium."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) or the MSI Katana 15
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 MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
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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