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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is a premium laptop that offers a larger storage capacity, more RAM, and a higher resolution OLED touchscreen, suitable for intensive tasks such as engineering, 3D rendering, and machine learning. However, it is significantly more expensive, heavier, and has a low portability score. If you require strong performance for professional work and budget is less of a concern, this may be a great choice. On the other hand, the MSI Prestige 15, while less expensive and more portable, has less storage, lower RAM, and a lower resolution IPS screen, which makes it good for general use and casual creative tasks but less ideal for intensive computational 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 Lenovo ThinkPad Z16
- Very good for general use
- Very good for engineering and design
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Very good overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Best in class speakers
- Excellent keyboard
Advantages of the MSI Prestige 15
- The MSI Prestige 15 has no clear advantages over the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16.
Key differences
General Use
8.6
7.5
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
393.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
298.0 nits
7.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.5 Hours
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
7.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.7/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for general use, while the MSI Prestige 15 is good.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Engineering and Design
8.4
7.2
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.1/10
4.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for engineering and design, while the MSI Prestige 15 is good.
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 offers a superior CPU, double the RAM, a high-quality OLED screen with better resolution, and a more capable GPU, making it very good for engineering and design tasks which demand high performance and visual clarity. While the MSI Prestige 15 is lighter and thus more portable, its lower-tier CPU, GPU, and standard IPS screen with a lower resolution mark it as good but less optimal for engineering and design use where power and screen quality are crucial.
Content Creation
8.5
7.5
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.1/10
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for content creation, while the MSI Prestige 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
8.2
7.2
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.1/10
32.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
9.0/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is very good for software development, while the MSI Prestige 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
8.5
6.8
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
OLED
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
393.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
298.0 nits
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has a better screen than the MSI Prestige 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, software development, and content creation.
When considering screen quality for general use, the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 likely excels due to its high resolution and superior brightness, making text and images clear and vivid, whereas the MSI Prestige 15 offers respectable clarity and brightness, but may not match the ThinkPad's display qualities. For engineering and design, the ThinkPad Z16 probably boasts a wider color gamut, covering a broader spectrum like DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB, essential for precision in color-critical tasks, while the Prestige 15 provides good color accuracy, but may fall short for the most demanding design work. In the realm of gaming and 3D applications, both laptops may disappoint due to lower refresh rates, which are crucial for smooth motion and gameplay, although their resolutions and panel types provide a decent visual experience for less refresh-rate-sensitive tasks.
Build Quality
8.0
7.4
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has very good build quality, while the MSI Prestige 15 has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,120
$1,044
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has a price of $1,120 and the MSI Prestige 15 costs $1,044.
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Key similarities
Gaming and AI
6.7
6.3
4.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.2/10
3840 x 2400
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
8.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.0/10
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 and MSI Prestige 15 are both only fair for gaming and AI.
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 is equipped with a more powerful AMD RX 6500M GPU and has a high-resolution OLED screen, which are very important for gaming and 3D performance compared to the MSI Prestige 15's Nvidia GTX 1650 Max-Q and an IPS screen with a lower resolution. Although both laptops have the same screen refresh rate, the better GPU and screen quality of the Lenovo make it more suitable for such tasks.
Battery
7.0 Hours
7.5 Hours
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 has 7 hours of battery life. The MSI Prestige 15 has 7.5 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
Good
16.0in
SIZE
15.6in
4.2 lbs
WEIGHT
3.7 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 and MSI Prestige 15 both have good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
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How the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 and the MSI Prestige 15 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 | MSI Prestige 15 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,120 | $1,044 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | May 1, 2023 | January 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 14'' x 9.4'' x 0.62'' | 14.1'' x 9.2'' x 0.74'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 4.27 lbs | 3.73 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 13.95" | 14.05" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 9.35" | 9.2" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 7 6850H | Intel i5-1240P | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 32 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | 4 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 0 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 2048 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 7 Hours | 7.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 72 Wh | 82 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 16" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | OLED | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 3840 x 2400 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 393 nits | 298 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 8/10 | 7.4/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.9/10 | 7.8/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | Yes | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 8/10 | 7/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 9/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 9.6/10 | 8.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 1080p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | No | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 0 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 3 | 2 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 3 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | N/A | 4 | |
Shopping
Lenovo ThinkPad Z16
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Dig into reviews and images
PCWorld
Matthew S. Smith | September 2022
"Lenovo’s ThinkPad Z16 tries has some success in its effort to tweak the ThinkPad formula. The laptop is attractive, yet still tame, and material quality is on par with the best Windows competition. I also like the smooth, responsive haptic touchpad and the wide range of modern connectivity. Yet the Z16 doesn’t fix ThinkPad’s typical weakness: value. Starting around $1,550, and more typically near $1,700, the Z16 finds itself facing alternatives that have better performance or an improved display for the same price, or less."
MSI Prestige 15
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Mario Petzold | December 2022
"The MSI Prestige 15 offers a dazzling 4K image quality, and solid performance. The MSI Prestige 15 appears to consistently implement the guiding principle of throttling the solid and efficient hardware to such an extent that content creation succeeds perfectly. Performance-hungry tasks, on the other hand, are slowed down a little by the reduced power consumption. Conversely, this means that the case remains relatively cool and the dual fan subdued. The battery life also benefits somewhat. So the losses aren't really dramatic because full performance is still available for short bursts."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 or the MSI Prestige 15
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.
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.
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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
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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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