Choosing between the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and the Dell XPS 13 Plus largely depends on your needs and preferences. The MacBook Pro has a larger screen, longer battery life, higher screen refresh rate, and is equipped with an Apple silicon that excels in battery efficiency and integrated graphics performance, making it well-suited for tasks like video editing, music production, and software development. The XPS 13 Plus has a smaller, yet higher resolution OLED touchscreen and is lighter, enhancing its portability. It runs on an Intel processor with Iris Xe graphics and excels in its own right with performance and display quality for general use and media consumption. The MacBook Pro could command a higher price, so if budget is a concern and portability is key, the Dell XPS 13 Plus may be the more appealing option. 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 (Late 2023)
Good for gaming and AI
Excellent overall display quality
Best in class overall build quality
Best in class battery life
Best in class keyboard
Advantages of the Dell XPS 13 Plus
Excellent portability
Key differences
Gaming and AI
7.5/10
6.4/10
6.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.8/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.7/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is good for gaming and AI, while the Dell XPS 13 Plus 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
8.9/10
8.2/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
6.2/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.8/10
18.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and Dell XPS 13 Plus are both very good for engineering and design, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is somewhat better.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is well-equipped for engineering and design tasks with its Apple M3 Pro CPU and GPU, ample RAM, and a high-quality 16.2-inch screen, but it is less portable due to its larger size and weight. The Dell XPS 13 Plus also excels in these fields with a robust Intel i7 CPU, double the RAM for complex tasks, and a good quality, smaller 13.4-inch screen which makes it more portable, but might have a compromise in graphical performance due to Intel Iris Xe graphics compared to the Apple's dedicated GPU.
Content Creation
8.9/10
8.3/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
18.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and Dell XPS 13 Plus are both very good for content creation, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is somewhat better.
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
8.3/10
9.1/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
18.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and Dell XPS 13 Plus are both very good for software development, though the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) is somewhat better.
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
13.4in
3456 x 2234
RESOLUTION
3840 x 2400
Mini LED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
OLED
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
487.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
374.0 nits
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has a better screen than the Dell XPS 13 Plus for general use, AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16's screen excels in general use and engineering thanks to its high resolution, brightness, and wide color gamut, providing crisp images and accurate colors needed for detailed design work. The Dell XPS 13 Plus also offers a high-resolution display with great color accuracy, making it suitable for engineering and general tasks where visual precision is key. However, for 3D applications which demand a high refresh rate, neither laptop's display is ideal, as they prioritize resolution and color depth over the smoother visuals that a higher refresh rate would provide.
Battery
17.5 Hours
10.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 has 17.5 hours of battery life. The Dell XPS 13 Plus has 10 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
Excellent
16.2in
SIZE
13.4in
4.7 lbs
WEIGHT
2.7 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Dell XPS 13 Plus has excellent portability, while the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
8.5/10
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) has best in class build quality, while the Dell XPS 13 Plus has very good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$2,499
$1,849
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) has a price of $2,499 and the Dell XPS 13 Plus costs $1,849.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and Dell XPS 13 Plus are both very good for general use.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) delivers a robust general use experience with its high-capacity battery and large and high-quality Mini LED screen, complemented by powerful integrated graphics and a substantial amount of RAM, making it suitable for demanding tasks but less portable due to its size and weight. In contrast, the Dell XPS 13 Plus offers exceptional portability with its significantly lighter weight and smaller form factor, an OLED touchscreen with high pixel density, and a performance geared CPU with plenty of RAM for multitasking, although its battery life is shorter compared to the MacBook Pro.
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How the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) and the Dell XPS 13 Plus 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 XPS 13 Plus is powerful, but has its drawbacks. Dell did not only update the processor generation, but also decided to offer two completely different models from now on. The XPS 13 Plus gets the faster Intel Alder Lake-P chips, and the Core i7-1260P in our review unit offers good performance figures. However, the device once again shows the problems of the current Intel CPUs, because the high performance requires a lot of power. This affects the battery runtime as well as temperatures, so the new model (even with the Optimized power profile) is louder than the older model."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Pro 16 (Late 2023) or the Dell XPS 13 Plus
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 Dell
Dell is a highly recognizable American technology company, and is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. Their laptops are very popular for both personal and professional use, and they also own the Alienware brand which makes mid to high end gaming laptops. Their premium XPS range of laptops offer great build quality and portability, while Latitude and Precision laptops are known for reliability, repairability and performance for business users.
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
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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.