Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021)
Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021)
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GENERAL USE: Very Good—8.6/10
GAMING/AI: Good—7.0/10
ENG/DESIGN: Very Good—8.4/10
SOFTWARE DEV: Very Good—8.6/10
CONTENT CREATION: Very Good—8.6/10
PORTABILITY: Good—7.6/10
BATTERY: Best in Class—9.5/10
OVERALL SCREEN QUALITY: Best in Class—9.5/10
OVERALL PERFORMANCE: Good—7.7/10
SIZE: 16.2"
Evaluation
Pros
- High-resolution display
- Long battery life
- Excellent build quality
- Superb speaker quality
- Premium business laptop
Cons
- Higher price point
- Limited portability
- No touchscreen
- Heavy at 4.7 pounds
Ratings by Category
Build Quality:5.0
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, chassis rigidity, and overall reliability.
Our assessment of build quality includes many details that are difficult to quantify.
Our laptop experts use their best judgment to produce the final score.
Battery Life:4.9
PerfectRec’s Battery Life rating is based on hours of battery life in typical usage scenarios.
General Use Screen Quality:4.9
The general use screen score is based on the screen technology, contrast ratio, resolution, brightness, color gamut and color accuracy. This score does not take into account specialized display features for specific use cases, such as high refresh rate for gaming.
Keyboard Quality:4.9
The Keyboard Quality score is based on the PerfectRec experts’ assessment of tactile feedback, typing comfort, keyboard reliability and typing noise.
General Use:4.6
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.
The most important factors in this score include CPU performance, amount of RAM, screen quality, storage, and battery life.
Keyboard quality, speaker quality, low fan noise, heat management, and to a lesser extent webcam quality are all moderately important factors for this score.
Software Development:4.6
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software development.
In addition to a strong emphasis on overall performance, this score also places very high importance on screen quality. Heat management, storage, keyboard and speaker quality are also incorporated, with fan noise rounding out this score.
Content Creation:4.6
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, and video editing work.
In addition to a strong emphasis on overall performance, this score also places very high importance on screen quality. Heat management, storage, keyboard and speaker quality are also incorporated, with fan noise rounding out this score.
Operating Noise:4.6
PerfectRec’s Operating Noise Score is based on fan noise measurements. Laptops with a fanless design, such as Macbooks, receive the maximum score.
Engineering & Design:4.5
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021) excels in engineering and design use due to its powerful Apple M1 Pro CPU and GPU, substantial RAM, and high-quality Mini LED screen, which together deliver exceptional performance and vivid visuals necessary for demanding tasks.
Portability:4.2
PerfectRec’s portability rating takes into account the volume and thickness of the laptop as well as its weight.
Gaming & AI:4.0
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability as well as AI performance, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
While performance (especially graphics performance) is the most important factor determining this score, we also give modest weight to screen quality, heat management, keyboard quality, and storage.
Full Specs
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
| Price | $1,149 | ||
Release Date | October 1, 2021 | ||
Overall Dimensions | 14'' x 9.8'' x 0.66'' | ||
Weight | 4.7 lbs | ||
Width | 14.01" | ||
Depth | 9.77" | ||
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | Apple M1 Pro (10C) | ||
RAM | 16 GB | ||
DDR Memory Version | 5 | ||
RAM Slots | 0 | ||
Storage | 512 GB | ||
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | 17.5 Hours | ||
Battery Capacity | 99.6 Wh | ||
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | 16.2" | ||
Display Technology | Mini LED | ||
Resolution | 3456 x 2234 | ||
Refresh Rate | 120Hz | ||
Display Brightness | 497 nits | ||
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score  | 10/10 | ||
Portability Score | 7.6/10 | ||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | ||
Premium Business Laptop | Yes | ||
Fan Noise Score | 8.8/10 | ||
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | 9.5/10 | ||
Speaker Quality Score | 10/10 | ||
Webcam | 1080p | ||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | ||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | ||
Number Pad | No | ||
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | 0 | ||
USB-C ports | 3 | ||
USB-C Charging | Yes | ||
Display Outputs | 2 | ||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | ||
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Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2021)
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Andreas Osthoff | February 2023
"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."
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About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
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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
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
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.
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