If you prioritize top-notch performance for intensive engineering tasks and can afford a higher price, the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) stands out, offering superior battery life and a display with high brightness and wide color coverage, making it ideal for design and multimedia work. However, it's heavier and has a larger form factor, affecting portability. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio, being more wallet-friendly, provides a touchscreen with flexible form factors suited for drawing or presenting and includes dedicated graphics suitable for moderate gaming or 3D work. This model is more portable due to its smaller size and lower weight, but its battery life is shorter than the MacBook's. 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 engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
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 Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio
The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio has no clear advantages over the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023).
Key differences
General Use
9.1/10
7.4/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
487.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
491.0 nits
17.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
7.6/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.8/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is excellent for general use, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) excels in general use because of its powerful Apple M2 Pro CPU, substantial RAM, high screen quality with Mini LED technology, and extended battery life, but it is less portable due to its size and weight. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio offers good general use capabilities with a capable Intel CPU and discrete Nvidia graphics, a touchscreen with flexible hinge, and solid RAM, yet it trails with shorter battery life and sufficient but lower storage, making it suitable for users requiring versatility and moderate portability.
Gaming and AI
7.4/10
6.6/10
5.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.9/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.7/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is good for gaming and AI, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio is only fair.
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
7.3/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
5.8/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is very good for engineering and design, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio is good.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) stands out in engineering and design due to its higher capacity storage, powerful Apple M2 Pro processors, and superior Mini LED display, which offers vivid colors and higher brightness. In contrast, the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio, while still capable for engineering tasks with its Intel CPU and Nvidia GPU, offers a more versatile touchscreen with a flexible hinge, though with less storage and an IPS display that doesn't match the color and brightness performance of its competitor.
Content Creation
9.1/10
7.4/10
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is excellent for content creation, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio 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
8.5/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
5.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is very good for software development, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio 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
8.0/10
16.2in
SIZE
14.4in
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
2400 x 1600
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
487.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
491.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16's screen offers exceptional resolution and brightness, alongside a high-color gamut, providing vivid and precise visuals ideal for engineering, design, and general use, but its standard refresh rate is less suitable for 3D work, where fluid motion is key. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio also boasts a high-resolution display with excellent color reproduction, making it a strong candidate for both general use and creative professionals in design and engineering fields. However, similar to the MacBook, its average refresh rate makes it less optimal for gaming and 3D applications that benefit from smoother, more responsive visuals.
Battery
17.5 Hours
8.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 17.5 hours of battery life. The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio has 8 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
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) has best in class build quality, while the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio has very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$2,423
$1,700
$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 Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio costs $1,700.
"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."
"There’s no doubt that the Surface Laptop Studio is groundbreaking. We’ve come to expect such things from the Surface lineup, so it’s always nice to see a product that exceeds our expectations. The pull-forward laptop-screen concept has been tried before, but never in a device that’s so stylish and packed with innovative features like a haptic touchpad and robust digital stylus support."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) or the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio
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 Microsoft
Microsoft is an American technology corporation. Microsoft is best known for their Windows operating system and Surface laptop series. The Surface Laptop is their standard notebook offering, while their Surface Go, Surface Pro, and Surface Studio are their 2-in-1/tablet offerings in order of increasing capability. Although Microsoft charges a premium price tag for their laptops, buyers can expect a well integrated and packaged device since Microsoft develops the Windows operating system.
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.
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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.
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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.