5 laptops to buy instead of the M4 MacBook Pro

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5 laptops to buy instead of the M4 MacBook Pro

The M4 MacBook Pro is pretty stellar. Apple made it far better than the previous generation — without increasing the cost. That includes bumping up the memory of the base configuration to 16GB, improving the webcam, and unlocking the max brightness of the screen.

But maybe you don’t love macOS. Or maybe you’re just an Apple hater. Either way, I feel ya. Fortunately, there are some good choices these days that make for a solid alternative to the M4 MacBook Pro.

My only warning is that we’re expecting Nvidia to launch new RTX 50-serues mobile GPUs early next year, so some of these devices may get an upgrade in a few months.

Asus ProArt P16

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

There’s never been a MacBook competitor quite like the Asus ProArt P16. In many ways, it’s the Windows version of a MacBook Pro that I’ve always wanted. It’s powered by AMD’s latest Zen 5 chip and up to an RTX 4070, which are definitely competitive with what the M4 Pro and M4 Max can do. I don’t have direct comparisons with the M4 Max yet, but I know the ProArt P16’s RTX 4070 outperforms the M4 Pro in many benchmarks.

But really, it’s the chassis design that makes this such a compelling alternative to the MacBook Pro. At 0.68 inches thick, it’s only marginally thicker than the 16-inch MacBook Pro — and yet its over a half a pound lighter.

There’s a lower-tier version sold at Best Buy that starts at just $1,900 and gets you 32GB of RAM, 1TB of storage, and an RTX 4060. That’s a solid deal. Meanwhile, the high-end model with the RTX 4070 comes with 64GB of RAM and 2TB of storage.

Asus ROG Zephyrus G14

Jacob ****** / Digital Trends

Another one from Asus. What can I say? It seems like this 14-inch gaming laptop is, in many ways, the inspiration for the ProArt P16, so it’s fitting to include it here. Asus doesn’t currently have a 14-inch version of that laptop, either. So if you’re looking for an alternative to the 14-inch MacBook Pro, this is it.

The ROG Zephyrus G14 is a remarkably minimalist gaming laptop. It doesn’t completely do away with all the trappings of gamer aesthetic, but takes a big step in that direction. You still get RGB backlighting on the keyboard, as well as the distinctive “slash” on the lid. But all in all, this is pretty tame. And the white ****** option, extra large trackpad, and thin bezels make it an extremely attractive little device.

Of course, it’s all about performance when it comes to gaming laptops. And as an alternative to the 14-inch MacBook Pro, what you get here is an OLED display and more performance for less money. You can pick up an RTX 4070 configuration for $2,000 at Best Buy, but the real value comes in the previous-gen models, which will get you the same RTX 4070 for as low as $1,600. Apple just can’t compete at that price.

Dell XPS 14

Luke Larsen / Digital Trends

The Dell XPS 14 has received a lot of undue backlash since it launched. People really don’t like the glowing capacitive touch buttons that have replaced the function keys. Look, I don’t either. It’s a futuristic look, but just not very practical.

But there’s no getting around the fact that this is an absolutely gorgeous laptop. I adore how this laptop looks, and appearances are a big part of what draws people to the MacBook Pro, too. Dare I say that the Dell XPS 14 is prettier. Now, it has a number of downsides when you compare it directly to the base M4 MacBook Pro. The speakers aren’t as good, you get less ports, and the base model comes with a worse screen — it’s even slightly thicker. That’s a lot to compromise on.

You can, however, configure it with an RTX 4050 for $1,700, which gets you some decent performance at a more affordable price than the M4 Pro MacBook Pro.

Razer Blade 14

Jacob ****** / Digital Trends

The Razer Blade led the pat hin many ways for laptops like the Zephyrus G14 by attempting to be a laptop that takes some direct inspiration from the MacBook Pro. The Razer Blade 14 does that amazingly well. The sleek all-****** look blends in great, with the only giveaway that it’s a gaming PC being the green snake logo on the lid.

With the Blade, you have your choice between 14-inch, 15-inch, and 16-inch — but the 14-inch really is something special. It has a 1600p 240Hz screen, paired with an RTX 4070 GPU and a Ryzen 9 8945HS processor. While the Blade 14 won’t stay as quiet and cool as a MacBook Pro or last as long on battery, you’ll certainly get higher frame rates in games.

Asus Zenbook S 14

Luke Larsen / Digital Trends

All the rest of the laptops on this list have discrete GPUs — and that’s to compete with the incredible performance of the M4 Pro and M4 Max chips. I wanted to include one option, however, that was more of a direct competitor with the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro, a laptop that doesn’t have quite as much on the GPU front. That laptop is less of a performance-driven device and more for someone who’s looking for something that’s top of the line.

That’s where the Asus Zenbook S 14 comes into play. It’s a stunning-looking laptop that is thinner than the MacBook Pro and a bit less chunky overall. It doesn’t give up any port selection to reach those highly compact sizes either, unlike something like the MacBook Air. The 14-inch 120Hz OLED screen is fantastic too. The speakers can’t compare with those of the MacBook Pro, nor can the trackpad, which is not a smooth haptic feedback one.

It gets incredibly good battery life too. So, while the performance isn’t up to snuff with the M4, it’ll likely get you by on the types of tasks this laptop should be used for.

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