When considering the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) versus the Gigabyte Aero 16, if you prioritize premium build quality, excellent speakers, and an operating system that integrates well with other Apple products, you’ll find the MacBook Pro a superior choice, and it also offers a longer battery life. However, it comes at a higher price, and while excellent for general use, it's not the best fit for intensive gaming or high-end Windows-specific engineering software. On the other hand, the Gigabyte Aero 16, which is more affordable, excels in gaming and engineering thanks to its powerful graphics card, making it better for 3D rendering and machine learning tasks. It is slightly heavier and offers a shorter battery life. Both have similar screen sizes and high-quality displays, but keep in mind the MacBook's higher refresh rate versus the Aero's OLED panel for deep blacks and contrast. 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 (2023)
Excellent for general use
Very good for software development
Excellent 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 Gigabyte Aero 16
The Gigabyte Aero 16 has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023).
Key differences
General Use
9.1/10
8.0/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
487.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
368.0 nits
17.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.1/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is excellent for general use, while the Gigabyte Aero 16 is very good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) provides an exceptional general use experience with its powerful M2 Pro CPU, ample RAM, and a high-quality Mini LED screen known for its brightness and color accuracy, all wrapped in a highly portable design with a long battery life. While the Gigabyte Aero 16 offers similar RAM and a vibrant OLED display with high resolution, the presence of a powerful dedicated GPU and additional storage space make it more suited for specialized tasks, even though it's slightly less portable and has shorter battery life.
Content Creation
9.1/10
8.2/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is excellent for content creation, while the Gigabyte Aero 16 is very 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
7.9/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is very good for software development, while the Gigabyte Aero 16 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
9.3/10
8.4/10
16.2in
SIZE
16.0in
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
487.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
368.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the Gigabyte Aero 16 for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16's screen offers a high resolution and brightness, along with robust color accuracy, making it ideal for general use and professional design tasks where color precision is key. However, its standard refresh rate is less optimal for 3D applications where smoother motion is crucial. In contrast, the Gigabyte Aero 16 also boasts a high-resolution display with excellent color coverage, suited for detailed engineering work, but like the MacBook, its screen may fall short for gaming or 3D tasks due to a less favorable refresh rate.
Battery
17.5 Hours
7.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 17.5 hours of battery life. The Gigabyte Aero 16 has 7 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
7.8/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) has best in class build quality, while the Gigabyte Aero 16 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$2,423
$1,260
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) has a price of $2,423 and the Gigabyte Aero 16 costs $1,260.
The Gigabyte Aero 16 and Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) 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.
Engineering and Design
8.8/10
8.6/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
5.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) and Gigabyte Aero 16 are both very good for engineering and design.
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.
Portability
Good
Good
16.2in
SIZE
16.0in
4.7 lbs
WEIGHT
5.0 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.8in
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) and Gigabyte Aero 16 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 (2023) and the Gigabyte Aero 16 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 Gigabyte Aero 16 is a workstation laptop for light gaming. It's design is still muted, with a silver chassis alongside a black keyboard and trackpad that provides some contrast. The Gigabyte Aero’s full-size chiclet-style keyboard is enjoyable to type on thanks to its snappy feel and responsiveness. The 4K+ AMOLED display is good, but it could be better. It doesn’t handle true black very well and suffers from strong reflections and glare. The Gigabyte Aero excels at productivity performance and can keep up with other gaming laptops in 1080p. But it has very few ports and its refresh rate leaves a bit to be desired."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) or the Gigabyte Aero 16
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 Gigabyte
Gigabyte is a Taiwanese computer hardware manufacturer. While Gigabyte mainly focuses its business on desktop hardware, Gigabyte is known for its value-oriented G series laptops, thin and light Aero series, and performance-oriented Aorus series. Gigabyte laptops offer a strong value proposition to compete with mainstream alternatives.
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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