A big two-in-one laptop like this is just asking to be folded back into tablet mode and used with a stylus as some kind of digital sketchbook. Windows 11 still has some drawbacks as a touchscreen operating system compared to iPadOS or Android, but a canvas of this size has advantages for all kinds of photo work, from editing your images to displaying to clients.

The form factor also makes it a versatile machine for all kinds of other uses, from office work to video calls to watching movies in bed, and while the 16in screen here has its drawbacks in terms of colour accuracy, it’s a well made example of what a two-in-one laptop can do.

Specifications

Price

One look at the price of the OmniBook X Flip 16 and you’ll know it has a lot of competition. Most major manufacturers will sell you something for the kind of money HP is asking, and in the case of something like the MacBook Air or gaming laptops from Asus or Acer you’ll get an excellent machine. It’s the screen size and two-in-one functionality that make this laptop stand out, however, and you won’t find that combo in too many other places.

Design & Handling

The HP Omnibook X Flip 16 is built around flexibility, and that shows throughout its design and feature set. At first glance, it looks understated and businesslike. The aluminium chassis and minimal HP branding give it the appearance of an enterprise laptop rather than a flashy creative machine, but that restraint has an upside: the build feels solid and dependable, with no flex in either the body or the screen, whether you’re using it as a laptop or tablet, making it reassuring to carry in a camera bag alongside other gear.

The defining design feature is the Flip’s hinge that can fold all the way back into a tent or full tablet mode. This flexibility is particularly useful for photographers who need to review images with clients, sketch lighting setups using the (optional, rechargeable, pressure-sensitive) stylus, or make quick brush-based edits. In tablet or tent mode, the keyboard automatically disables, so you don’t have to worry about accidental key presses. Despite its large 16‑inch display, the laptop weighs less than 2kg, making it surprisingly manageable for extended sessions away from a desk. It also makes it into a much larger tablet than you’ll get from the usual suspects, the screen providing plenty of real estate for your stylus to roam across.

The 16‑inch 1920x1200 IPS touchscreen uses a 16:10 aspect ratio, which is well suited to photo grids and tool-heavy editing interfaces. While its colour display is limited (managing only 62.5% of the sRGB gamut), it’s bright at 400 nits and highly responsive, making it comfortable for image selection, rough edits, and stylus-based adjustments. Other laptops in the Omnibook range get OLED panels that can display most of the DCI-P3 colour gamut, making this IPS a bit of a disappointment.

Port selection has been well thought through. The Omnibook X Flip 16 features Thunderbolt 4, plus enough extra ports to make it easy to connect external drives, card readers, or a monitor without adapters. Both USB‑C ports support charging, and HP’s usual excellent 65W USB-C charger is in the box.

Performance

This HP Omnibook X Flip 16 combines an Intel Core Ultra 7 256V processor (with eight cores, and capable of processing eight threads simultaneously), plus 16GB RAM, a 1TB SSD, Intel Arc 140V integrated graphics, and an Intel AI Boost NPU that contributes to its Copilot+ status. In testing, that CPU/NPU package sits around the lower‑middle of its price class: Geekbench and Cinebench results place it slightly ahead of some thin-and-light laptops but behind heavy hitters like the MacBooks.

For stills work, the most relevant datapoint is that Photoshop runs pretty well, helped by fast SSD storage and the now-baseline 16GB memory for demanding creative use. Where the OmniBook can feel snappier than its CPU class suggests is in AI operations: these tools get a nice boost from the NPU, but you’re not going to get the kind of performance you’d get from something with a larger GPU. If you find yourself upscaling for prints or tight crops, that acceleration can be genuinely useful.

The biggest performance constraint is the graphics performance for heavier workloads like video effects. Even if you primarily edit photos, this matters because many modern enhancement tools (denoise, super‑resolution, complex effects) increasingly lean on GPU acceleration, so the heaviest steps in your pipeline may take longer.

Display performance also affects editing speed, because colour confidence reduces second‑guessing. The touchscreen is bright enough and very responsive, but its limited colour coverage will be a compromise for colour‑critical work. Practically, that means you may want a calibrated external monitor for exporting files for print or anything that requires accurate colour, while using the built-in panel for selects, rough grades, and preview delivery.

Mobility is a genuine strength of the OmniBook. Battery life reached nearly 15 hours in our tests, opening up the possibility of long editing sessions on location or away from plug sockets. Connectivity helps a photo desk setup too: Thunderbolt 4 with DisplayPort plus HDMI makes it easy to run an external display, and the USB-A/USB-C mix supports fast external SSDs (charging uses up one USB‑C port, and a Thunderbolt dock is a useful thing to have here).

Verdict

Devices like this with 16-inch screens often get lumped into the ‘desktop replacement’ category - a machine that’s a little too large to slip into your bag but easy enough to tidy away when someone comes to visit. The OmniBook X Flip 16 changes this perception by creating a large two-in-one laptop with a touchscreen that can be folded back to make it a kind of pseudo-tablet, with stylus compatibility. The model we have here uses an IPS screen that’s not ideal for perfect colour reproduction, but shows how good a screen this big can be for photo editing and digital painting.

Is it possible these days to buy a laptop that’s too powerful? Chances are that photographers will be rocking mid-level machines capable of running Photoshop while video types are lugging something more potent around with them, but this? This knocks just about every laptop ever tested into second place. The Vanilla M5 version of the MacBook Pro was already pretty good, supplying some of the fastest single-core performance the benchmarking apps had ever seen, but was left behind in multi-core and graphics performance by Windows PCs with more physical cores and discrete graphics chips.

In response, Apple has done what it’s done for every generation of M-series CPUs, and released a version with more of everything. That’s what we’ve got here, and it’s so good it’s almost scary. There are already two MacBook Pros in the big list of the best laptops for video editing, will this knock the M4 Pro off the top?

Specifications

Price & Availability

You’ll have to part with $5,699 (£5,699/A$8,949) to get the spec we’re reviewing here. That’s an awful lot of money, considering the MacBook Pro with the normal M5 chip starts at $1,599, and is certainly not an impulse purchase. If you’re willing to make the investment, you’ll get a laptop that can do anything, and do it quickly, but whether it’s a sound purchase depends very much on whether you think it will accelerate your professional workflows to a point that you can’t imagine life without it. Luckily, Apple’s build-to-order system means you don't have to max out every spec, so you can lower the price that way.

Design

The MacBook Pro hasn’t changed its design for a few generations now. You get a choice of two colours - black and silver - and two sizes, 14 and 16 inches. There's the option of a Nano Texture screen coating, to cut reflections when working around strong lighting, but the Liquid Retina display isn’t a particularly reflective panel even without it, and Apple’s apparent reluctance to embrace OLEDs, which have a reputation for being mirrors when looked at from the right angle or in the wrong lighting, may have something to do with this.

So you get a flat-sided laptop with softly rounded corners, the MacBook Pro name engraved into the base, and an Apple logo on the lid that doesn’t light up. It’s sleek and professional, as well as instantly recognisable. There are certainly thinner laptops out there - Apple makes one itself in the MacBook Air - but also many that are fatter, and it’s a remarkably compact package for the sheer amount of computing power the company has managed to pack inside. There are two fans for cooling, but they never get very loud, and any hot air is vented out of two small slits in the sides, as well as being absorbed into the aluminium frame. In testing it never got particularly hot, but it’s easy to imagine that a day spent churning through 8K video will cause it to warm up.

It’s worth noting that chargers are now optional extras when buying a new MacBook. The 96W USB-C power adapter is a £79 add-on, though there's a MagSafe adapter in the laptop’s box so you can use any USB-C brick you already have to juice it up, and you can also charge it through any of its Thunderbolt ports, which is handy if you’ve got it connected to a dock or a monitor with Power Delivery.

Performance

The M5 chip was already a strong performer when it came out in 2025. That model was a 10-core chip, with four of them Apple’s newly christened ‘Super’ cores and the other six ‘Efficiency’ cores for background tasks. The M5 Max introduces a new category, the ‘Performance’ core, which is a bit confusing, as Super cores used to be called Performance cores, but they now occupy a middle ground between Super and Efficiency. The M5 Max has six S and 12 P cores, with no E cores at all, and it all makes a difference to its benchmark scores.

Apple’s M5 chips are the only CPUs to score more than 4,000 points in Geekbench 6’s single-core test (as of early 2026, anyway), and the M5 Max continues the trend. What’s far more exciting is the multi-core test, in which the M5 Max pulls away, putting 6,000 points, or 23%, between it and the M4 Pro from the previous generation. Intel’s Core Ultra 9 275HX is around 30% slower than the M5 Max in this test.

Having 40 graphics cores against the vanilla M5’s 10 gives the Max a big advantage too, and it produces results that are approximately the same as a mid-range Nvidia card, though comparing different graphics architectures on computers running different operating systems is a difficult task. The MacBook Pro being reviewed also has an advantage from its 128GB of fast DDR5 RAM, something that accounts for a large chunk of its price.

What all this means in practice is that it absolutely flies along. It completed tasks in Photoshop and Premiere Pro extremely quickly, and while it’s not the absolute best out there at running AI tasks - that honour goes to machines with top-end GPUs - it’s no slouch either.

With all that processing power, you might expect the battery life to be measured in minutes rather than hours, but the efficiency of the ARM-based Apple Silicon means that, when asked to do light tasks, you can see as much as 17 hours of life out of a charge. While it’s probably true that a laptop like this is likely to spend a lot of its life plugged in and working hard, it’s good to see that taking it into the field is a possibility, even if the endurance will decrease when you make it work harder.

Final Verdict

This 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 Max processor is a remarkable machine, and it should be, considering the price Apple is asking for it. You’ll need to go through the online configuration process to get a laptop with this spec, and once you’re finished, it’s almost the most expensive Mac you can buy (that accolade goes to the Mac Studio with a 32-core M3 Ultra processor, into which you can put 256GB of RAM and 16TB of storage).

For most photo and video users, however, a laptop of this spec will be overkill, and while the excitement of simply owning one may be worth the price, something lower down the hierarchy will do just as well, especially when you consider that you’ll undoubtedly need extras like a Thunderbolt dock, Magic Mouse or Trackpad, and an external monitor such as the Apple Studio Display to go with it. Buy one, however, and you’ll have the kind of portable workstation that once we could only have dreamed of.

Alternatives

Apple has unveiled the MacBook Neo, a new entry-level laptop designed to bring the Mac experience to a broader audience with a significantly lower starting price. Starting at $599 / £599 / AU$899, the MacBook Neo is now the most affordable Mac laptop Apple has ever produced, positioning it directly against budget Windows laptops and even Chromebooks.

The MacBook Neo represents an interesting shift for Apple. Its MacBooks have always sat at the more premium end of the laptop market, starting with the MacBook Air, but with recent MacBook sales growth stagnating, Apple has clearly seen the entry-level market as the way forward. Introducing a new tier below the Air offers the familiar macOS experience in a cheaper, far more stripped-back package, but with so much work done now in the browser, this might be all many people need.

Apple's cost savings start with the processor. The MacBook Neo uses Apple’s A18 Pro chip, originally designed for phones; it's also not Apple's most recent processor, and was previously seen in last year's iPhone 16 Pro lineup (this year's iPhone 17 Pro uses a newer A19 Pro chipset).

However, Apple says the processor delivers more than enough performance for everyday tasks such as web browsing, video calls, photo editing, and even running AI-powered apps. Apple also rather boldly claims that the Neo can be up to 50% faster for common tasks than an (unspecified) best-selling PC with an Intel Core Ultra 5 processor, three times quicker for AI-related processing, and two times faster photo editing. The iPhone does have incredible performance, but it'll be interesting to see if this phone's processor can stretch to a bigger screen and heavier multitasking.

Despite its lower price, the MacBook Neo still carries much of the familiar MacBook DNA. The laptop uses a recycled aluminium enclosure, includes Apple’s excellent Magic Keyboard and large multi-touch trackpad, and offers connectivity via two USB-C ports and a 3.5mm headphone jack, alongside WiFi and Bluetooth.

The MacBook Neo is available in four colors – Silver, Blush, Indigo, and Citrus – each with colour-matched keyboards, giving the Neo a slightly more playful look than Apple’s traditional MacBook palette.

The Neo features a 13-inch Liquid Retina display with support for one billion colors and up to 500 nits of brightness, as well as a 1080p camera for FaceTime video calls. Audio comes from dual side-firing speakers with support for Dolby Atmos and spatial audio, and a dual-microphone array should isolate your voice during calls. And according to Apple, battery life is rated for up to 16 hours.

The base MacBook Neo features 256GB of storage, but does miss out on Apple's TouchID; however, jumping up to 512GB of storage restores TouchID to the power button (which, honestly, is a feature I would really struggle to live without).

Pre-orders are open now, and in-store availability starts from March 11. The Neo starts at $599 / £599 / AU$899 with 256GB of storage, or $699 / £699 / AU$1,099 with 512GB – and you can knock a further $100 off these prices with Apple's student discount.

Buyers of Apple's entry MacBook Pro model have had access to the newer chips via the MacBook Pro M5 since October, but serious users have been directed to the M4 Pro and M4 Max devices. Until today, when new M5 versions of these machines were finally unveiled.

Why the delay? The Pro and Max versions of the chips have more CPU and GPU cores and more memory; so higher end computing needs – like a lot of 4K video work, or photography editing.

It's also noteworthy that Apple has raised the prices on all the MacBook Pros, including the existing M5 by $100 / AU$200, perhaps reflecting the increasing component costs known in the trade as 'RAMageddon', though the lowest storage option is now 1TB rather than 512GB, and twice as fast, so the jump isn't quite as bad.

The new MacBook Pro M5 Pro will start at $2,199 / AU$3,499 ($200 / AU$200 up on its predecessor) and boasts a 15 CPU cores and a 16 GPU cores, and that for the 14-inch model. Want the 16-inch version and you'll need $2,699, but the bigger frame also allows for 18 CPU cores and a 20 GPU cores. In both cases the lowest storage spec is 24GB of RAM and 1TB.

Spec up to the Max variant of the chips and $3,599 / AU$5,799 will be needed for 14-inches or $3,899 / AU$6,299 for 16-inch. Both fit in 18 CPU cores and 32 GPU cores.

According to Apple, customers will see up to a 4x jump in AI image generation performance compared to equivalent M4 chipsets, and 8x against the M1 equivalents.

The tiny world of Apple gamers were even mentioned by Apple, who noted that there will be 1.6x faster gaming performance in ray tracing versus the M4 in games like Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition. More usefully for professionals, that should be 1.4x faster 3D rendering in Maxon Redshift (5.2x faster v M1).

The Apple N1 wireless chip is included, and Bluetooth 6, while the webcam is 12MP Center Stage camera in a notch cut from the Liquid Retina XDR 1600 nits peak HDR display.

Apple say the new MacBook Pro gets up to 24 hours of battery life (noting that if you've not upgraded since Intel days, thats 13 additional hours, though I'd like to note that my last Intel Mac could rarely manage an hour with more than a couple of tabs open in Chrome).

Apple also surprised punters by announcing the MacBook Air will see the new M5 chip at the same event.

All new computers will be available for pre-order tomorrow, March 4, and in stores from next week.

There is also two new Apple Studio Displays, which we cover separately.

GoPros are meant to go where most cameras can’t – and now laptop giant Asus is taking inspiration from the popular action camera. The Asus ProArt PX13 GoPro Edition, launched during CES 2026, is a laptop with military grade durability, a 360-degree hinge touchscreen, and a dedicated GoPro shortcut key.

Originally teased in December, the special edition laptop is a collaboration between Asus and GoPro. The GoPro Edition shares several specs with the new standard edition ProArt PX13, including a touchscreen with a 360-degree hinge so the laptop can also be used like a tablet, or the screen can be turned around for sharing video previews on site. Both laptops also share specs like an AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 processor, up to 128 GB of memory, a 1TB SSD hard drive, and what the company calls “military-grade durability.”

But the GoPro Edition carries a Black Metal finish with ridges and CNC engravings inspired by the action cam. It comes with a matching laptop sleeve with a bungee for attaching accessories. The box it comes in is designed for collectors and uses a custom foam insert so that it can be repurposed to also hold GoPro gear.

The GoPro collaboration goes beyond the design, however. The ProArt PX13, including the non-GoPro Edition, has a microSD card port, so no adapters are necessary to plug in a GoPro’s memory card. The laptop supports GoPro Cloud for syncing footage without touching the memory card. A GoPro shortcut on the keyboard brings up the action camera giant’s Player software. Asus’ StoryCube software, meanwhile, helps organize and tag footage using AI – including support for 360 footage.

Both the GoPro Edition and standard version of the laptop have Asus Dialpad, although the GoPro Edition uses cyan blue in keeping with the color of the keyboard’s backlighting. Designed for creators, the laptop also supports using a stylus on the 3K, 13-inch OLED screen.

The laptop is tested to the military-grade MIL-STD-810 H standards – which means it’s designed for extreme temperatures, shock, vibration, dust, and sand. That list doesn’t include GoPro-level waterproofing, sadly, but extends the laptop’s use to outdoor, dry conditions. The laptop weighs 1.39 kg / 3 lbs and has a 15.8mm / .62 inch profile.

Do photographers, videographers, and content creators need a laptop that matches their camera? Well, no, probably not, but the set of features speaks to an increasingly mobile, flexible workstation.

Asus has not yet shared the pricing or availability for the GoPro Edition.

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I was already looking forward to seeing what GoPro has in store for next year – but it looks like 2026 will also bring another unusual product with the GoPro name: a laptop. Asus is teasing a ProArt x GoPro collab that’s expected to be unveiled in 2026.

In a teaser shared to the laptop-maker's social channels, Asus shared that “the ProArt GoPro Edition is about to break cover,” along with a save-the-date for January 6 at 9 AM PST, which is during the Consumer Electronics Show or CES.

In the teaser video, Asus shares a few hints, including a close-up of a GoPro shortcut key. The video also hints at a laptop with a textured front and what looks like the Asus DialPad included in some models.

A ProArt and GoPro collab makes sense – in fact, the two companies have worked together before, bringing the GoPro Cloud to the StoryCube media management app earlier this year. The previous collab also brought a complimentary GoPro Premium+ subscription with some ProArt purchases.

But, if the teaser is any indication, the upcoming ProArt x GoPro launch looks like the action-camera maker will be integrated in more than just software. There’s that GoPro key on the keyboard, for starters, and in the final image, there’s something boxy behind the laptop that’s also GoPro-branded.

The teaser leaves a lot of questions. Will the upcoming laptop borrow GoPro’s durability? Some ProArt models, like the P16, undergo tests for sand, dust, drops, extreme temperatures, and vibrations, so the idea doesn’t seem terribly far-fetched. What’s sitting behind the laptop in that teaser video?

GoPro fans won’t have to wait too long, as Asus says the livestream airs on January 6 at 9 AM PST / Noon EST / 5 PM GMT.

That’s not the only GoPro to look forward to, either. CEO Nicolas Woodman has indicated to investors that the company plans to launch a pro-grade low-light camera, which could come as early as 2026.

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There was a time when people suggested that tablets would wipe the floor with notebooks, but that unsurprisingly didn’t happen. Creatives need processing power to run photo and video editing software smoothly. The Asus ProArt P16 2025 is the latest upgrade to the product line, delivering familiar processing power alongside a new and more powerful graphics card.

The design, build and specs remain pretty much the same as previous models, but it’s still one of the best laptops for photo editing by far. This is a notebook with desktop-level performance, meaning you can have one device for every situation. But most importantly, you get a notebook that can tackle the most demanding tasks wherever you are.

The ProArt P16 is crafted to a high specification with its tough all-metal body. The screen is a wide-gamut HDR 4K OLED touchscreen, which produces crisp and vibrant images, while the Asus Dial on the touchpad delivers tactile control of some features of creative software. This is just the tip of the iceberg, but with all this and more, it’s an expensive laptop.

I’ve reviewed several ProArt P16 notebooks, and all three, including this one, use the same AMD Ryzen processor. The design and features remain the same for each, while it’s the discreet Nvidia GPU that sees the most significant upgrade. The model tested is the most powerful available.

Asus ProArt P16 H7606WX: Specifications

Asus ProArt P16 H7606WX: Price

The Asus ProArt P16 H7606WX is the most expensive ProArt model available, with an eye-watering price of $3999 / £4800. This is a huge amount of money, but it is priced as you’d expect for a high-end notebook with the level of hardware on offer and the excellent build quality. What’s more, it’s priced similarly to equally powerful notebooks.

This notebook is almost identical to previous models, but we did test the most powerful model available, so all the hardware was maxed out, including the GTX 5090 discrete graphics card. The processor used is the same as the previous two P16 models.

Asus ProArt P16 H7606WX: Design & Handling

The ProArt P16 is a 16-inch laptop, so its footprint is quite large despite its svelte thickness, which is a slight wedge shape. This version of the laptop is 100g / 3.53oz and marginally thicker than the previous model at the rear of the notebook. The total weight of the notebook is 1.95kg / 4.30lbs. The ProArt otherwise looks the same as previous models and includes much of the same hardware.

If it ain't broke, don’t fix it springs to mind here, and this version looks every bit as good as the last. This is thanks to the all-aluminium chassis in textured nano black, which includes the outer shell and the keyboard bed. Rigidity remains excellent, but as before, the black finish is a fingerprint and smudge magnet despite claims to the contrary.

Build quality is excellent overall, and the ProArt looks and feels like the premium product it is. Asus claims the P16 exceeds the MIL-STD 810H military standard for durability and says it has been tested for sand, dust and humidity resistance, up to 95% relative humidity. As always, I didn’t put this to the test because it would mean damaging the review unit, so this claim is hopefully true. It does mean that the laptop can, in theory, be used in almost any location.

As a notebook aimed at creatives, there’s the Asus Dial situated on the trackpad. This provides a level of control similar to control consoles. The Asus Dial can be configured with the desired functions, but these are limited to a list of options rather than allowing you to assign any control you wish. What’s available is useful, and it’s a useful feature overall. The Dial can also be switched on and off as required, so it doesn’t get in the way when you don’t need it.

When it comes to connectivity, there are 2x USB-C, 2x USB-A, 1x HDMI, 1x DC-in, 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack and an SD card reader on the sides of the notebook. This is a great level of physical connectivity which allows you to connect the accessories you need, whether external drives, input devices or a monitor, for example.

The speakers also produce great sound quality for a laptop, but they’re unsurprisingly not as good as larger external speakers. That said, most people will use the built-in speakers when on the move, and they are undoubtedly clear enough for video editing with sound.

Asus ProArt P16 H7606WX: Performance

The 16-inch, 4K (3840x2400) OLED touchscreen has a refresh rate of 120Hz with 10-bit color and produces up to 400-nits of brightness. The glossy display is lovely and bright, making it a pleasure to use for photo and video editing, but it does pick up reflections in some situations. Being touchscreen, you can use your fingers to control the pointer or use the Asus Pen, available separately, for more control.

The screen is sharp and packed with fine detail – it’s a pleasure to use, and the large size is so much better than 13-inch notebooks. Blacks are deep while colours are realistic. Asus claims the ProArt P16 can display 100% of the P3 colour space, and when calibrated using a Spyder X Pro, it was able to display 99% P3, 95% Adobe RGB 1998 and 100% sRGB. This is excellent for a notebook and makes the ProArt ideal for color-critical workflows.

This latest ProArt model uses the same processor as the previous two models, which is the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 2.0GHz, with AI-enhanced efficiency when using AI-powered software features. It’s a fantastic processor and helps to create an incredibly smooth experience when working with demanding applications. Then there’s 64GB of DDR5 RAM, a 2TB SSD and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 24GB GDDR7.

This GPU is fantastic for all creative software, but is perfect for video editing in particular. The 50 series GPUs not only support 4:2:0 chroma sampling in H.264 and H.265 video, but they also can encode and decode 4:2:2 chroma-sampled video with 8-bit and 10-bit video output available. A powerful graphics card is also essential for software such as Adobe Premiere and Davinci Resolve.

I predominantly tested the ProArt with Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom and Davinci Resolve, and it handled every task incredibly well. I also installed Steam and ran a few demanding games to see how well it handles these, and it didn’t miss a beat. The 120Hz refresh rate is also a great new improvement if you intend to use the ProArt for gaming.

To test performance, CineBench and Geekbench were installed, and the laptop was plugged into the mains during testing. When tested with Cinebench, the Single Core score was 116, which is 1^st place on the ranking list for performance. With Multi-Core, it scored 1130, which is 4^th place on the list. Turning to Geekbench, the Single Core score was 15343, Multi-Core was 2880 and the GPU came in at 181521.

The ProArt does come with a ton of bloatware aimed at creatives, and whether or not it’s useful to you will be a matter of personal opinion and choice. You get Storycube for managing digital assets, ProArt Creator Hub for controlling settings and performance and MuseTree for AI image generation that’s presented in a tree format. For me, ProArt Creator Hub is the most useful software bundled on the ProArt.

Asus ProArt P16 H7606WX: Verdict

The Asus ProArt P16 is, like its predecessors, an incredibly high-performance notebook with desktop-level performance. This makes it a great solution for photographers, videographers and designers. This model uses the same powerful processor as the previous two models, with the Nvidia GTX 5090 graphics card being the main upgrade. The ProArt P16 remains an excellent choice for creatives, but it’s one of the more expensive Windows notebooks available.

This notebook is an absolute powerhouse with incredible hardware specs, making it an amazing option for creatives. This all comes at considerable cost, although pricing is similar to competitor notebooks with similarly high specs. For this desktop-level performer, you’ll have to dig deep for the $3999 / £4800 price tag. But, if you can afford and justify it, you won’t be disappointed.

Alternatives

Apple has unveiled its latest silicon, the M5 chip – and with it a new flagship laptop that’s as much as 6x faster than devices with the older M1 chip. The Apple MacBook Pro M5 focuses on improved performance through Apple’s newest silicon, but the MacBook Pro M5 delivers more than just a new AI-focused chip, including faster SSD performance for a noticeable improvement in importing RAW files and the longest battery life yet in MacBook’s history.

The headlining feature is Apple’s new M5 chip, which uses a 10-core GPU design with a Neural Accelerator in each core. Apple says that translates to dramatically faster AI workloads with up to 3.5x faster AI tasks compared to the M4 chip and up to 6x compared to the older M1 chip.

But while the M5 and AI performance demands much of the attention surrounding the new launch, the October 15 announcement hides a few features that could be significant for photo and video editing, not text-to-image generation.

That same M5 chip behind the AI speed improvements also delivers up to 1.6x faster graphics compared to the M4. Multi-tasking in creative apps, Apple says, is also boosted with the new chip, along with performance boosts to the most demanding workflows, like working with 4K in Adobe Premiere Pro.

Apple says the new laptop’s SSD performance is up to twice as fast, which means a significant improvement in working with RAW photos and large video files.

The M5 MacBook Pro also brings the best battery life yet of any previous MacBook, with Apple giving the laptop up to 24 hours of juice. Photographers and videographers will also be eager to know that the M5 edition still has an SDXC memory card reader, along with multiple Thunderbolt ports and an HDMI port with support for up to two external displays. (Apple removed the SD card slot in the Pro in 2016, but brought it back in 2021).

The newest MacBook Pro M5 is only available in a 14-inch size, and continues the Liquid Retina XDR display found in the M4 models, which includes 1 billion colors, refresh rates up to 120Hz, and a one-million-to-one contrast ratio for a wide dynamic range.

While the M5 delivers some performance enhancements over the M4 models, the most noticeable difference will be coming from users upgrading from an M1 chip introduced in 2020 as well as older Intel-based models. Intel upgraders can expect as much as 30x faster GPU, 5.5x faster CPU, and up to 86x faster AI performance, along with as much as 14 more hours of battery life. M1 upgraders can expect up to 6.8x faster GPU performance, and up to 2x faster CPU, with an additional four hours of battery life.

The 14-inch MacBook Pro M5 comes in at the same starting price as the previous model – which is $1,599 / £1,599 / AU$2,499 / CA$2,099 for 16GB of memory and 512GB of storage. The laptop will also be available in configurations with 24GB or 32GB of memory and up to 4TB of internal SSD storage, as well as upgrades like a nano-texture display.

Pre-orders have already opened, with shipping expected to begin on October 22.

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Take a deep dive into the best laptops for photo editing or the best laptops for video editing.

Not so long ago if you wanted a performance Windows laptop that could handle serious or image editing, your best bet would have been a gaming laptop. But nowadays there's a growing range of machines aimed specifically at creators: they blend the outright performance of a gaming laptop with more conservative styling. The MSI Creator A16 AI+ is just such a device. It packs a high-performance 12-core AMD Ryzen™ AI 9 HX 370 processor, a generous 32GB of RAM, and a fast 1TB NVMe SSD. What's more, the dedicated NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 graphics processor provides plenty of GPU-accelerated video rendering speed, while still being relatively power-efficient and cost-effective.

As is the way with seemingly all aspects of the tech world now, the Creator A16 is designed with AI firmly in mind. Its full name is the Creator A16 AI+ A3XVFG Copilot+ PC, and as such it ships with Windows 11 and Microsoft Copilot pre-installed, while the laptop itself gets a dedicated keyboard button to launch the AI assistant. That high-end AMD Ryzen 9 CPU has also been developed to make light work of AI-driven workloads.

A laptop aimed at creators needs a decent screen, and the specs of the A16's display look promising. Its 16-inch size is large enough to view reasonably comfortably while, still keeping the laptop easily portable. The IPS LCD panel is rated to display an impressive 100% of the wide-gamut DCI-P3 color space, and is also capable of a fast 240Hz refresh rate. Though the 2560x1600 resolution is some way short of 4K, it's still more than crisp enough for a screen of this size, so you won't see individual pixels at a typical viewing distance. But unlike some creator-focussed laptops, MSI doesn't make any color accuracy claims for the A16's display.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Specifications

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Design & Handling

The Creator A16 is surprisingly thin and light for such a powerful laptop. It uses a magnesium alloy chassis to help keep weight down to a bearable 2.1kg, while thickness is just 20mm. But although it's not inconveniently heavy or bulky, this is still a machine built for speed not outright portability, so don't expect MacBook Air / Ultrabook PC levels of lightness.

The AC adaptor brick is also quite bulky and heavy, but that's a price you have to pay to power a high-performance laptop. MSI claims the A16 meets the MIL-STD-810H military standard for reliability and durability. While I don't doubt that, and the laptop feels well made, it does squeak/creak when the chassis is flexed even slightly, which detracts from the otherwise premium feel.

One advantage to choosing a slightly larger, performance-orientated laptop over a thin and light, power-efficient model is that you usually get more physical connectivity. However, the A16 is a mixed bag in this respect. While there is a handy pair of USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type A ports, along with an HDMI socket (supporting up to 8K at 60Hz) and even an ethernet port, there's only one USB-C connection. Thankfully this is an ultra-fast USB4 revision that also supports DisplayPort, Power Delivery 3.0 and Thunderbolt 4, but a single Type-C port on a laptop of this size and performance just isn't good enough. Thankfully the AC adapter has its own dedicated socket, so doesn't connect to the sole Type C port. This feels robust, but it's almost identical in size and shape to a USB Type-A socket, so expect some fumbling when trying to connect the charger.

Though not marketed at gamers, the A16's keyboard features key-specific RGB backlighting. It can perform animated rainbow lighting effects, which is fun, but obviously not an essential requirement for most creatives. The brightness is easily adjustable though, or can be completely disabled. The size of the laptop also means there's (just) room for a dedicated number pad, albeit one with keys around two thirds normal size. Think of this more like a pocket calculator than a full-size keyboard num pad and it's more acceptable.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Performance

I found the Creator A16 made light work of all the image editing tasks I threw at it. Even super-high resolution, multi layer stitched panoramas caused very little slowdown, and I was still able to move around and perform typical edits with no noticeable delay. Opening and editing multiple image files was similarly snappy, helped by the lighting-fast SSD.

I also ran several performance benchmarks on the Creator A16: Geekbench and Cinebench to assess general speed, Geekbench AI to determine AI-specific performance, and CrystalDiskMark to test the SSD storage:

Both the Cinebench and Geekbench scores are very respectable. What's more, even during these highly intensive tests, though the Creator A16's fans did spin up to audible levels, the noise was never distracting. You will need to keep the laptop on a hard surface to ensure sufficient cooling though, as the large air intake vent is on the base of the machine, with thick rubber feet maintaining a sufficient gap for airflow.

The 1 terabyte PCIe Gen4 SSD performs very well, and while this is some way off the fastest write speed I've seen from a laptop SSD, it's plenty quick enough to max out even the fastest CFexpress 4.0 memory cards when ingesting images and video from your camera.

I also evaluated the A16's audio quality. The Dynaudio-branded 6-speaker system is claimed to "exceed the highest acoustic expectations". While I appreciate this is obviously overenthusiastic marketing - any device measuring only 20mm thick will never offer audiophile levels of sound quality - I was nonetheless disappointed by the A16's audio performance. Music sounds surprisingly thin, and even when playing electronic music with limited bass (which doesn't tend to expose the limitations of small speaker drivers as much as some music genres) the A16 still delivered relatively weak sound. I compared the A16 alongside a Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura - a far thinner, lighter laptop which doesn't make such bold claims about sound quality, yet the Yoga delivered substantially richer, more enveloping sound, with better bass.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Screen quality

A laptop designed for creators needs to have a reliably accurate display that can do justice to your images or video. At first glance the A16's display looks the part. At maximum brightness it's plenty bright enough, while colors are vibrant and contrast is very good. However, to objectively assess a screen's performance you need a specialist device called a colorimeter - more commonly know as a monitor calibrator. Our Datacolor Spyder Pro is also able to measure the image quality of an uncalibrated display, so I can determine if the A16's screen performs in line with its advertised specifications.

Color gamut

MSI claims 100% coverage of the P3 color space. I recorded 97% coverage - not quite as advertised, but not enough of a deviation to be concerning. MSI doesn't state the display's Adobe RGB coverage - I measured 86%, which is a fairly respectable score.

Color accuracy

Some laptops designed for creators feature factory color calibration, so you can be confident the screen will display accurate color right out of the box. There are no such guarantees with the A16, but I measured a Delta-E deviance from perfect color accuracy of 1.48. That's a good result, but it could be better, as I've previously recorded deviances as low as 0.48 from a laptop screen.

Screen uniformity

If color accuracy is good but not great, color uniformity is downright bad. A difference of Delta-E 10.3 between the most and least color-accurate regions of the screen is one of the worst results I've ever recorded. Thankfully if you drop the screen brightness from 100% down to a more comfortable 67%, color uniformity is substantially improved.

However, it doesn't matter how you adjust the screen brightness, luminance (brightness) uniformity across the screen is poor. The lower-right portion of our laptop's display was a whopping 36-37% dimmer than the upper-middle portion. Ordinarily when the colorimeter records brightness uniformity issues, they tend not to be obvious to the naked eye. But in this case, when you display a solid color, the brightness irregularities are easily visible. What's more, in the extreme bottom right of the screen is a strip of obvious backlight bleed, which can be distracting.

The photo below isn't quite an accurate depiction of the backlight irregularities, but it gives you an impression.

Brightness & contrast

A peak brightness of 580 nits and a maximum 1510:1 contrast ratio are both highly commendable scores.

MSI Creator A16 AI+: Verdict

The MSI Creator A16 AI+ A3XVFG promises a lot: high performance, great screen and audio quality, solid build, and comprehensive connectivity. I was impressed by its sheer processing power - it's easily able to handle demanding photo- or video-editing workloads, or even some fairly intensive gaming when work time's over. The generous amount of RAM and high-capacity SSD are also welcome, as is the super-fast USB4/Thunderbolt 4 connectivity. The A16's (relative) thinness and lightness are another bonus for such a high-performance laptop.

But a laptop for creatives needs to be more than just a processing powerhouse, and there are too many key areas where the A16 just doesn't live up to expectations. The most concerning issue is screen quality, where brightness uniformity simply isn't good enough for a premium laptop. Color uniformity is also disappointing when the screen is set to maximum brightness, and general color accuracy, while good, is far from class-leading. When it comes to connectivity, USB4 / Thunderbolt 4 is great, but there's just a single USB-C port that can deliver this performance. Lastly, audio fidelity is surprisingly weak, especially considering the bold claims made about the A16's 6-speaker sound system.

Don't get me wrong, the Creator A16 AI+ isn't a bad laptop. Its problem is that there are plenty of other creator-focussed laptops available for similar money that don't have these shortcomings, making the A16 difficult to recommend.

Last time I chose a laptop, I thought I was being thorough. Hours of research, poring over spreadsheets of specs. Watching YouTube reviews from around the world. Checking each model's processor, its RAM, its storage, its display quality. 

What I didn't check—because it never crossed my mind—was whether I could plug the darned thing in from both sides.

Seems obvious now, doesn't it? But there I was, unboxing my shiny new MacBook Air, ready to replace my struggling, ageing machine, and super-excited. I placed it on my desk with care, reached for the charger, and then it hit me.

This model came with two USB-C ports, just two. Both on the left side. Mocking me. Because my previous laptop had plugged in from the right. And the cable from my new one wouldn't reach the single plug in my home office.

As far as I could tell, there were three potential solutions. I could snake a lengthy cable across the space; not great. I could rearrange my home office, so I was facing away from the window not towards it; not great at all. Or I could use my MacBook on battery power all day, then charge it at night. Which felt…. well, just ridiculous really.

Litany of frustration

And it wasn't just a problem using my MacBook at home. Worse still was working in a coffee shop, a railway station waiting room, the foyer of a hotel… anywhere where power outlets are in short supply, basically. 

Inevitably, I'd find the perfect spot, only to discover the power outlet was on the wrong side. I'd then face the choice of stretching my cable across the walkway, where people would trip over it with abandon; sit twisted at an unnatural angle; or give up and try another place entirely.

What's maddening is that none of this should have been an issue; plenty of laptops have charging ports on both sides. Yet too many manufacturers have decided, in their infinite wisdom, that most people don't need this. It's like you've bought a car, then discovered the steering wheel only works when you sit in the back seat.

As a result, there's now an extensive market of dongles, hubs and extension cables to make up for this oversight. Which basically means companies are profiting from selling solutions to a problem they created.

Oh well. Six months later, I've adapted. I've got a 3m cable permanently snaked around my desk like electronic ivy. I've memorized the best seats in every local cafe and pub for using a laptop. I've developed an unconscious habit of checking power outlets before sitting anywhere in public. But I shouldn't have to. This is 2025, not 1995. Come on, people!

So here's my advice if you're hunting for a new laptop. Tune out the sales rep as they talk excitedly about the neural processing unit, the graphics card, the amount of RAM. And ask yourself... how exactly does this thing plug in?

Check out our review team's guide to the best laptops for video editing, and our rundown of the best Macbooks

I've been reviewing laptops for over two decades now. So I know my stuff; from thermal throttling under heavy workloads to the subtle differences between IPS and OLED panel technologies. 

I also try to pay attention the real-world stuff that actually matters in the day-to-day. Such as… Can you plug the charging cable in from either side? Does the laptop open smoothly with one hand? These little niggles, in my experience, are more important than manufacturers think.

On which note, something's recently been driving me a little barmy: how to turn the blooming things off.

Why's it so hard?

I'm not talking about sleep mode or hibernate. I mean switching it off for real. And it can't be just me who finds this tricky. Search YouTube for "how to turn off" followed by virtually any laptop model, and you'll find thousands of instructional videos. Thousands! 

Take the Honor Magicbook Pro 14, which I'm currently reviewing. This YouTube video takes just under a minute to explain how to power it down, and that's a minute of my life I'm never getting back. But if there wasn't genuine demand for this information, these videos wouldn't exist. People are clearly struggling with what should be a basic operation.

On Windows 11, you typically have to hunt through complex menus in order to find the right option. Imagine if that was the case for your kettle, your TV or your light switch. Admittedly, those who've signed up for a "smart home" experience might have the latter problem, but that's a choice they've purposely made. Most people who buy a laptop, in my view, would prefer a nice, clearly marked button on the screen that says 'Off'. Why can't that come as standard?

I expect most people would also like a physical button too. One that you press, and then the laptop powers off. In most cases though, such buttons simply put the laptop into Sleep mode… although often there's no obvious way of telling either way. 

Weird omission

This omission seems pretty weird, given that manufacturers seem to agonize over the tiniest details: the precise curve of a trackpad edge, the exact shade of silver for an aluminum chassis. They certainly seem to love telling me about these things in press releases, anyway. But when it comes to the fundamental act of powering down? Apparently, that's not worth their attention.

And yet the fix should be embarrassingly simple. Every laptop should have a clearly labeled power button that, when pressed and held for two seconds, shuts the machine down completely (and tells you it's doing so). No menus, no confirmations, no hunting through settings panels that seem designed by someone who's never actually used a computer.

So why doesn't this happen? 

Cockup vs conspiracy

If I were being generous, I'd assume this is simply an oversight – a collective brain fade across the entire industry. Everyone's so focused on making laptops boot faster, wake from sleep instantly and maintain connectivity that they've forgotten some of us occasionally want to turn them off.

The cynical part of me, though, wonders if it's more deliberate. Are these laptops purposely designed to be always-on devices, constantly syncing, updating, and phoning home with telemetry data? Are their makers deliberately focused on keeping them connected, keeping that data flowing, keeping us all locked into the ecosystem, 24 hours a day?

Either way, here's my humble request. Give us a physical switch that unambiguously shuts our laptop down. Or at the very least, put the shutdown option somewhere easier to find in the interface. Is that really too much to ask?

Check out guides to the best laptops for photo editing, and to the best laptop for video editing

My laptop is fantastically powerful. Not the one my employer expects me to cope with, mind, which is now better suited to frying eggs than computing. But the one I bought for myself so I could edit videos and photos.

My problem is that, when I’m shopping for a device, I tell myself it’s best to spend more now and have the best for a while – and I always want the biggest screen available on my laptop.

That meant a 16-inch M3 MacBook Pro for me. And I should think myself lucky that, as a longtime MacOS user, I’m reluctant to switch to Windows, which offers even physically bigger choices in the form of massive gaming rigs with 18-inch screens.

They, no doubt, would give my back even more to complain about (because I am one of those folk who likes to keep a lot of gear in a good backpack).

The solution is an iPad?

After watching the announcement of iPadOS26 at WWDC25, I let myself think that perhaps the iPad could finally be the solution. I mean it isn’t yet, of course, because only developers have access to the new version of iPadOS. But I can finally be confident that the M4 iPad Pro in stores now is capable of being a lightweight workhorse.

Such is my addiction to the ‘best and most powerful’ that, as I headed into the Apple Store to put real money behind this theory, I still found myself looking very hard at the bigger iPad Pro 13-inch (it comes in 11-inch and 13-inch sizes). How mad is that? I’m looking to get the lightest most portable device and I’m already being lured by bigness. 

In the end I resisted (and I am typing this article on an iPad Pro M4 11-inch, in fetching Space Gray). I did “invest” (an odd word for something that will depreciate) in the keyboard, despite my irritation at the cost, because the goal here is a laptop replacement – and typing on a screen is never going to cut it in terms of speed.

So, is the iPad ready yet?

In a word, no. But, since I'm still waiting on the beta of the Apple software shown at WWDC and I'm confident that will come in a few months, that is much less of a concern for me now.

Because it is a lot more ready than I expected, to be honest. And there are real advantages, too. Which I had grown used to not thinking about, because of all the moaning about iPadOS "not being a proper computer" or "being deliberately designed to stay different from MacOS so you have to buy both".

In practice, as it exists now (before iPadOS26), the iPad is pretty keen to make me work in one app at a time, like my phone. This isn't the massive irritation I assumed it would be, but actually seems to help me.

I'm not diagnosed with ADHD, but I'm definitely prone to switching to new tasks before the one I'm working on is complete, and having a full-screen workflow is not actually a terrible thing.

The touchscreen is very natural, too, and I do already, after just a few days, find myself trying to touch things on the screen on my Mac. That might get more problematic over time (especially with the glass interface getting more consistent). But it is a nice thing to have, and it's nice to be able to swipe through my photos.

It doesn't hurt having a decent outward-facing camera on the device, either.

It's lighter, but that's not even the best thing…

For some reason, I've increasingly found that sharing my phone's 5G connection is problematic on my older 2019 MacBook Pro (no problem on the M3). The iPad, meanwhile, can either use its built-in 5G or my phone's connection incredibly easily, meaning work on the move doesn't involve 10-15 minutes of fruitless setup.

Why don't all Apple computers have touchscreens and cellular connections? I don't know. But if they did, I'd only end up buying the heaviest one again. For a spell, at least, my back can rejoice!

Check out our guides to the best iPads for photographers, and to the best Macbooks for photo editing

Windows laptops can be just as good for creatives as MacBook Pros, and they can also be arguably much more powerful. I’ll leave that contentious statement to sit for a moment. The Asus ProArt P16 2025 is a laptop with incredible speed and processing power, not to mention a great build quality, easily making it one of the best laptops for photo editing.

The Asus ProArt P16 2025 is an absolute powerhouse with the speed and performance you’d expect from a much larger desktop computer. For creatives on the go, this is fantastic because the laptop can handle any task you throw at it with ease. Plus, the wide-gamut 4K OLED touchscreen is a pleasure to view. It’s also compatible with the Asus Pen, although the review unit I received didn’t have one included.

I reviewed the previous Asus ProArt 16 model last year, and one thing I have to say from the outset is that in terms of hardware and specs, they’re the same. There are some subtle new design flourishes, but there’s nothing more that’s new, except for a newer GPU option, which is a surprise. One thing that has changed is that the price has reduced slightly, and the ProArt 16 2025 remains a formidable Windows laptop for creatives.

Asus ProArt P16 2025: Specifications

Asus ProArt P16 2025: Price

The Asus ProArt P16 2025 is a premium laptop with a price that you’d expect for something of this level. In terms of build quality and performance, it’s undoubtedly a laptop that could provide years of faithful service running demanding creative software.

As previously mentioned, the laptop is pretty much identical to the previous model in terms of specs and hardware. The main difference is that the 2025 model is available with the RTX 5070 GPU, which was unavailable at the time of the previous release.

Asus ProArt P16 2025: Design & Handling

The ProArt P16 is a 16-inch laptop that’s built like a tank, as well as being a premium product. Asus claims the P16 exceeds the MIL-STD 810H military standard for durability and has been tested for sand, dust and humidity resistance, up to 95% relative humidity. To test this, I’d effectively have to drag the laptop through the dirt, so we’ll just have to take Asus’s word on this. But it should mean that creatives can confidently use the laptop in pretty much any location.

The chassis is all-aluminium in textured nano black, including the outer shell and the keyboard bed. This provides pleasing rigidity with no flex of the keyboard during typing. The chassis is claimed to be fingerprint resistant, and it does a reasonable job here, but inevitably picks up the odd fingerprint. The trackpad is also solidly constructed, and between this and the keyboard, operation is extremely comfortable.

Adding to the creative credentials of the laptop is the Asus Dial. This provides control similar to a wheel on a control console such as the TourBox Elite, although it’s a much simpler design that’s built into the trackpad.

The Asus Dial can be configured with the desired functions, although these are limited to a list of available options rather than anything you might want to apply. The Dial can also be switched on and off as required, so it doesn’t get in the way when typing, for example.

The speakers produce good sound quality for a laptop, but they’re unsurprisingly not as good as larger external speakers. However, they are certainly good enough for working on the go.

In terms of ports, there's plenty on offer with 2x USB-C, 2x USB-A, 1x HDMI, 1x DC-in, 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack and an SD card reader. These are all on the sides of the ProArt P16 rather than having some on the rear, which can be useful, although the design of the screen/lid would never allow for this.

Asus ProArt P16 2025: Performance

The first thing you look for on any laptop aimed at creative use is the screen, and the ProArt P16 certainly doesn’t skimp in this department. The 16-inch 4K (3840x2400) OLED touchscreen is made of Corning Gorilla Glass 11, and provides 4086 pressure levels with MPP2.0 stylus support when paired with the Asus Pen.

The image produced by the screen is sharp and packed with fine detail. Blacks are deep while colours are vibrant and realistic. Asus claims the ProArt P16 can display 100% of the P3 colour space, and when calibrated using a Spyder X Pro, it was displaying 97% P3, 97% Adobe RGB 1998 and 100% sRGB. This is still pretty close and is a fantastic colour gamut for colour-critical work.

Moving onto the internal hardware to drive performance, there’s an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 2.0GHz with AI-enhanced efficiency when using AI-powered software features, which is an incredibly fast processor.

This is paired with up to 64GB of DDR5 RAM and up to a 2TB SSD, depending on the discrete GPU you opt for. The less expensive of the two is the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 8GB GDDR6, while the top-end model takes advantage of an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 8GB GDDR7 GPU.

With this kind of power, and a highly effective cooling system, the ProArt P16 was able to easily and briskly handle every task I threw at it in Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom and Davinci Resolve.

This isn’t a gaming laptop, but with the specs on offer and the cooling system, it was able to handle demanding games with ease when I installed Steam. Of course, this isn’t why we’re reviewing the laptop, but it shows what it’s capable of.

To test performance in a standardised way rather than simply relying on real-life use and opinion, the ProArt P16 was installed with CineBench and Geekbench. The laptop was also plugged into the mains during the tests.

When tested with CineBench, the Single Core score came in at 116, which is 1^st place on the ranking list for performance. With Multi-Core, it scored 1146, which is 4^th place on the list. Moving onto Geekbench, the Single Core score was 2819, Multi-Core was 15528 and Graphics (OpenCL) was 122996. All in all, an impressive performance.

In terms of battery life, I was able to work for a full day using the ProArt P16 with a mixture of typing, web browsing and video editing. This was with the laptop set to Standard mode, where the ProArt P16 switches between the integrated and discrete GPUs automatically, depending on the task. Other modes may work better for you, but I found Standard mode to be the most useful.

While most, if not all, creatives will install their preferred creative software, the ProArt P16 also comes loaded with Storycube for managing digital assets, ProArt Creator Hub for controlling settings and performance and MuseTree for AI image generation that’s presented in a tree format. It works reasonably well and could be useful for idea generation and other creative thought processes.

Asus ProArt P16 2025: Verdict

The Asus ProArt P16 2025 is an amazingly fast laptop like its predecessor, making it a stunning option with fantastic performance for photographers, videographers and designers, etc. In terms of specs and hardware, the new model is the same, with the only real difference being some design tweaks on the premium laptop body and a new GPU option. It’s also slightly less expensive, which is great, but it’s still a high-end and expensive laptop.

That said, performance is still outstanding, and if you want the most powerful version, you can opt for the model that has an RTX 5070 GPU. The screen remains fantastic with excellent image quality and a wide colour gamut for colour-critical creative work. Plus, you can pair it up with the Asus Pen for pen display-style functionality.

Alternatives

If you're shopping for a new computer, you've probably seen retailers shouting about their "Copilot+" laptops, which come with dedicated Copilot keys.

For the uninitiated, Copilot is Microsoft's AI assistant, which the company is currently cramming into practically everything they make: Windows, Edge, Office apps and even Bing search. You can chat with it, ask it to summarize documents, generate images or help write your emails. And while you don't actually need a Copilot+ laptop to use it, it will run faster and more efficiently on one.

Before you shell out hard-earned cash, though, let's take a step back.

Remember the Metaverse? That virtual world, which was supposed to change everything about how we work and socialize? Companies poured billions into it, and now... crickets. Well, I'm already getting the same vibes from Copilot.

The main problem: it isn't actually very good at its job yet.

Frequent mistakes

One IT executive in this Gartner Peer Discussion put it bluntly: Copilot is "frustrating to use, makes frequent mistakes" and doesn't really deliver the seamless integration across Microsoft's products that it should. Ouch.

I've played with it myself, and while it occasionally does something impressive, more often than not it delivers information that sounds plausible but is flat-out wrong. Not exactly confidence-inspiring when you're trying to get work done.

Plus, even its fans can only point to basic use cases. In the aforementioned discussion, people praised it for "summarizing Teams chats," "creating initial PowerPoint drafts," and "drafting SMART goals". Handy? Sure. Revolutionary? Not even close.

Especially considering the most useful features are locked behind subscriptions, costing up to $20/month for individuals or $30/month per user for businesses.

What's telling is that even Microsoft seems to be cooling on its AI investments. Reports suggest they've cancelled plans for significant data center expansions; a sign they're not seeing the AI demand they expected. Across industries, AI adoption rates have slowed dramatically according to recent studies.

Is there a killer app?

Just to be clear, I'm not anti-AI. There are genuinely useful AI tools out there. But paying a premium for a Copilot+ computer right now feels like buying a 3D TV in 2012; a technology searching for a purpose that might never arrive.

Microsoft is admittedly working hard to change that, recently launching Copilot Vision, which it hopes will become the killer app for Copilot. It will be launched in stages, but the basic idea is the AI assistant can "see" what you're doing on your screen and provide intuitive, visual guidance.

It argues that an AI that can show you how to perform complex tasks within software, without breaking your workflow to search online or decipher confusing menus, could be a productivity revolution. I'm not so sure.

Personally, I'd rather just use software that was intuitive to start with, and didn't have any confusing menus in the first place. I'm also not keen on having a chatbot literally record every single thing I do on my laptop.

In conclusion, if you're seeking out the best laptops right now, I'd advise you focus instead on what matters: a good screen, fast enough performance for your needs, decent battery life, and build quality that won't fall apart in a year. Sure, if there's a Copilot+ key on there, that's not necessarily a bad thing. But I wouldn't be paying extra for it.

Looking at where you can pre-order the new Apple MacBook Air M4? You've come to the right place as this page is dedicated in finding where it is available to pre-order now!

The newly announced MacBook Air M4 is now twice as fast in Photoshop compared to the original M1 chip. Revealed on March 5, the latest MacBook Air improves both processing power and camera capabilities while also launching at a lower starting price.

Where to order: 13" MacBook Air M4 (2025)

Where to order: 15" MacBook Air M4 (2025)

Announced alongside the Mac Studio M4 Max and M3 Ultra, the MacBook Air M4 is a moderate upgrade from the M3 model but delivers impressive performance gains. Apple claims it’s up to twice as fast as the first Apple silicon MacBook Air, with double the speed in Photoshop and iMovie. Users upgrading from an Intel-based MacBook Air can experience up to 23x overall performance improvements, with Photoshop running up to 3.6x faster.

Apple Intelligence is a key focus of the latest releases, and the MacBook Air M4 fully integrates AI-powered features. The new M4 chip’s neural engine delivers up to three times the speed for AI tasks compared to the M1, enhancing photo and video editing with Apple Intelligence tools like Image Playground and Genmoji.

The built-in camera also sees an upgrade, now featuring a 12MP sensor with Apple’s “Center Stage” technology, which keeps users framed in video calls. Desk View support allows users to share a top-down view of their workspace during meetings. While the display remains unchanged from the M3 model, the new MacBook Air now supports up to two external monitors, connected via its two Thunderbolt 4 ports (which also support USB-C).

Despite these enhancements, the MacBook Air M4 retains the same size, weight, keyboard, speakers, aluminum body, and battery life as its predecessor. It also launches at a more affordable price, with the 13-inch model starting at $999 / £999 and the 15-inch at $1,099 / £1,199. A new sky blue color joins the lineup alongside the existing finishes.

The switch to Apple silicon brought enhanced speed to Apple’s Air series, but the 2025 model is now twice as fast inside Photoshop compared to the original M1 chip. Announced on March 5, the Apple MacBook Air M4 upgrades the processor and camera while dropping the list price for the brand’s more affordable compact laptop series.

Announced alongside the desktop Mac Studio M4 Max and M3 Ultra, the MacBook Air M4 is a moderate update compared to the 2024 variant with the M3 chip. But, the company says the new MacBook Air M4 is up to twice as fast as the first Air with Apple silicon, the M1 variant, including doubling speeds in Photoshop and iMovie. Users that upgrade from an older MacBook Air with an Intel processor can see as much as 23x faster performance overall and up to 3.6x faster performance inside Photoshop.

Most of Apple’s recent launches include Apple Intelligence, and the MacBook Air M4 is no exception. Apple says the neural engine on the M4 chip delivers up to three times more speed at AI tasks compared to the M1 chip, including using AI to edit photos and videos. That focus on Apple Intelligence also includes the Image Playground software and Genmoji.

The built-in camera for videoconferencing also sees an upgrade. The 12MP camera includes a new “Center Stage” design. Center Stage is an Apple feature that keeps the user centered in the video when using FaceTime. Support for Desk View will allow users to share a top-down view of their desk during video calls as well.

While the specs for the laptop’s display remain the same as on the M3 variant, Apple says the new model now supports up to two external monitors. The laptop uses two Thunderbolt 4 ports (which also support USB-C connections). The new MacBook Air M4 also shares the same size, weight, keyboard, speakers, aluminum enclosure and battery life as the model released last year.

The new MacBook Air M4 comes with a starting list price that’s $100 less than the M3 version. The new laptop will be available in a 13-inch or 15-inch size and four different colors, including a new sky blue option. The 13-inch MacBook Air M4 starts at $999 / £999 / AU$1,699, with the 15-inch starting at $1,099 / £1,199 / AU$2,099.

Pre-orders are already open, with shipping and retail store availability beginning March 12.

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Apple also announced the new iPad Air yesterday, and the new Mac Studio M4 Max today. While you're reading, browse the best laptops for photo editing or the best MacBooks for photo editing.

Apple is gearing up to release a new product this week, according to a teaser shared by CEO Tim Cook. In a post on X, The Apple CEO says that “something is in the air” along with a video graphic with the word AIR. While Cook’s post doesn’t even classify what category the new launch falls under, the word Air and the fact that the MacBook Air M3 was launched in March of 2024 has some Apple fans hoping that a MacBook Air M4 launch could be imminent.

Cook shared the post with the simple caption of “this week,” along with a video. The video says “there’s something in the AIR,” then something thin and silver slices through the word air, but moves too quickly to see what the device is.

While Cook’s post reveals little outside of the fact that a launch is coming this week, the word Air is leading many fans to speculate that the brand’s thinner laptop lineup is getting a refresh. The current model MacBook Air uses the now outdated M3 chip while the higher-end MacBook Pro model carries the new M4 chip. With the current model launched roughly a year ago, it wouldn’t be out of character for the brand to be bringing the M4 chip to the Air lineup.

While the word air in the teaser feels like an obvious hint, other fans commenting on Cook’s post are less sure, with some pointing out the AirPods line also features that key word and others asking for an “iPhone Air,” despite Apple unveiling the new iPhone 16e just last month.

But, some analysts have predicted the launch of an M4 MacBook Air before the latest teaser dropped. Still, with the lack of details on the teaser, fans can only place an educated guess on what new Apple product is poised to launch this week.

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The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura is a 15.3-inch Windows laptop that aims to give respectable performance as well as excellent battery life, all from a device that's super-thin and light, weighing only around 1.5kg. It also boasts a very highly-specified screen, completing what should be an ideal laptop for photo editing on the go. Think of it as a Windows rival to the MacBook Air. Lenovo also produces a Yoga Pro. No prizes for guessing what that's pitched against.

The Yoga Slim 7 has been around a while, with the latest version being the 9th generation - look for 'Gen 9' in the model name when comparing products. It's available with AMD or Intel processing power: our review sample is equipped with an Intel Core Ultra 7 258V processor (8 cores, 4.8GHz max) and 32GB of RAM - this particular spec has the Lenovo model code 15ILL9.

The Core Ultra 7 258V is one of Intel's AI-optimized CPUs, designed to work flawlessly with Windows Copilot AI assistant, and this should also make it faster at dealing with other AI workloads. We'll see how well this translates to real-world use in Photoshop later.

The Yoga Slim 7 can be had with 16GB or 32GB of RAM, but I'd recommend the latter to stay future-proofed as sadly, like recent MacBooks, the Slim 7's RAM is soldered to the motherboard and cannot be user-upgraded later down the line.

Graphics processing is done by the main processor, so there's no separate graphics chip. This is to be expected for such a thin and portable device, but does mean the Slim 7 might not be the best choice if you regularly render lots of video footage which would otherwise benefit from graphical hardware acceleration.

Possibly the most appealing feature of the Yoga Slim 7 for photo editing is its screen. You can choose from an IPS LCD touch-sensitive display, or an OLED non-touch screen. Both are 15.3" in size, and both run at a high 2880 x 1800 resolution. Our test laptop came equipped with the LCD touch screen. This is capable of 500-nit maximum brightness, earning it HDR400 certification, and it covers an advertised 100% of the wide-gamut DCI-P3 color space. Both the LCD and OLED screens are factory calibrated to an accuracy of Delta E <1. I'd be hugely impressed to see a standalone color-critical monitor with this accuracy, so for a laptop display to offer such high image quality is phenomenal.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura: Specifications

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura: Design & Handling

The Yoga Slim 7 looks and feels pretty much like any other premium thin and light laptop. It's surprisingly compact for a 15.3" model though, with the slim screen bezels and overall svelte design making it handle more like a 14" device from a few years ago.

Build quality is very good, and while there is a little flex evident in the main section, it's not concerning. The large trackpad is smooth, responsive and easy to use, and though the keyboard keys inevitably have a short travel due to the restricted chassis thickness, they're tactile and give good feedback.

Moving to the edges of the Yoga Slim 7 and on the left there's an HDMI output, one USB-C port and a 3.5mm combined headphone/microphone socket. On the right edge is a second USB-C socket, a single USB-A port, the power button and a slider to turn the webcam off and on. Both USB-C sockets run at Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 speed, so you'll get the fastest possible USB performance available right now.

This is great if you own a fast portable SSD, or use a camera that takes CFexpress cards, as the latter will require USB4 if you want to max out the card's read/write speeds. We also appreciate the inclusion of an older Type-A port, as many people - myself included - still have plenty of Type-A devices, and adapters aren't always convenient. There is one slight catch though: you don't get a separate charging port. Instead the charger connects to one of the two USB-C sockets, so you'll be down to just a single Type-C socket when you need to plug in and charge.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura: Performance

In general use the Yoga Slim 7 feels snappy and responsive. The 8-core Intel Core Ultra 7 258V CPU in our test machine isn't designed for all-out speed - it's meant to balance speed with efficiency - but I found it handled high-resolution image files in photoshop with no issue. To see how its AI credentials stack up in real-world use, I loaded a 1.4GB, 852-megapixel stitched panorama TIFF file and attempted to enlarge it vertically by around 500 pixels using Generative Expand. This took the Slim 7 45 seconds. For reference, my personal tower PC equipped with a 6-core AMD Ryzen 5 5600G (a CPU not designed with AI in mind) took 1 minute 23 seconds to complete the same task - nearly twice as long as the Slim 7.

I also ran several performance benchmarks on the Slim 7 - Geekbench and Cinebench to assess general speed, and CrystalDiskMark specifically to test the SSD storage:

The Cinebench score of 549 seems relatively underwhelming, but you have to remember this is a compromise laptop that has to balance speed with efficiency - it's not designed to break Cinebench records. The benefit of this low power consumption is that even after intensive benchmarking, the Slim 7 didn't feel particularly hot and its fans never spun up to distracting noise levels.

The 1 terabyte PCIe Gen4 SSD performs admirably, recording hugely impressive read and write speeds in CrystalDiskMark, meaning you can comfortably max out even the fastest CFexpress 4.0 memory cards when ingesting images and video from your camera.

Sound quality from laptop speakers is never going to send you to aural nirvana, but I was pleasantly surprised by the audio performance from the Slim 7. You get stereo speakers, each containing a separate woofer and tweeter, and they're Dolby Atmos certified. Obviously with a device this slim, those 'woofers' don't actually generate any meaningful bass, but the overall soundscape is surprisingly expansive, with good stereo separation. Push the volume past about 80% and high notes sound coarse, but listen to music at a more sensible volume and there's enough clarity and punch from the midrange that the lack of high- and low-end definition isn't distracting.

Battery life is supposed to be a highlight of the Slim 7, with Lenovo advertising a whopping 13.5 hours of web browsing and 22 hours of 1080p local video playback from the 70Wh battery. I tested that 22 hour video playback claim by looping a Full HD movie of my own and recorded an astounding 21 hours 48 minutes, with the Windows Power Mode set to Best Power Efficiency, and screen brightness set fairly low.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura: Screen quality

You can have all the processing power in the world, but it won't mean much if you're editing your images on a screen with poor image quality. To the naked eye, the Slim 7's 2.8K (2880x1800) display is a joy to behold. Contrast is very good, with decent black depth, and if you crank up the brightness, the screen is easily visible outdoors. Color is also beautifully vibrant and seems accurate, but to assess that objectively, you need to measure the screen's output with a specialist device called a colorimeter - more commonly know as a monitor calibrator. Our Datacolor Spyder Pro is also able to measure the image quality of an uncalibrated display, so I can verify if Lenovo's image quality claims are correct.

Color gamut

Lenovo's advertised 100% sRGB color coverage proved to be bang-on. The screen is also supposed to cover 100% of the far wider DCI-P3 gamut. My testing 'only' produced a result of 96%, but that's still very respectable. AdobeRGB coverage isn't stated, but the Spyder determined it to be 85%.

Color accuracy

Lenovo says that the Yoga Slim 7's screen is pre-calibrated to an accuracy of Delta-E <1 - a bold claim, as most color-critical monitors tend to be calibrated to within Delta-E <2 from perfect accuracy. However, the Spyder revealed Lenovo's claims to actually be fairly conservative, with the display on our sample laptop being accurate to 0.48 (zero being perfect accuracy). That's exceptional color accuracy, and one of the best scores I've ever recorded from any display.

Screen uniformity

Brightness uniformity is very good, deviating by a maximum of 9% from the brightest, central region. Color uniformity is even better, only varying by a maximum 2% across the whole screen.

Brightness & contrast

Lenovo states that the Yoga's screen brightness is 500 nits - I recorded an even brighter 617 nits. Our review sample laptop managed a contrast ratio of 1480:1 - close enough to the claimed 1,500:1.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura: Verdict

If you want to edit images or video on the go, and prioritize compactness, light weight and long battery life over the fastest possible performance, the Lenovo Slim 7 15 Aura is a great laptop. It's fast enough to deal with heavy workloads, while still staying cool and quiet, and all the while you get to edit your content on a gorgeous screen with terrific color accuracy.

Port selection is lacking, but sadly that's now par for the course with a laptop this thin. At least the two USB-C ports you do get are extremely fast, and able to max out even the very best memory cards and external SSDs you can buy.

At the time of writing a Yoga Slim 7 15 Aura configured to the same spec as our review sample (product code 15ILL9) retails for around $1,400/£1,260. A 15-inch MacBook Air specced with 24GB of memory and a 1TB SSD, would cost $1,899/£1,899. While the M3 SoC in the MacBook will be faster than the Slim 7's Intel hardware, that's still a heck of a price gap, making the Yoga Slim 7 a bit of a bargain.

Lenovo has revealed a new laptop at this year's CES trade show that features an under display camera. Under display cameras have long been the holy grail for phone and laptop manufacturers, as they eliminate the need for screen notches or punch holes. However, implementing such a camera design is inherently difficult, as placing a semi-opaque screen directly in front of a camera severely impacts its recording quality. The multiple thin-film layers that constitute an OLED display, along with its pixel grid, not only diffract light passing through to the under display camera, they also cause potential color casts. Furthermore, the screen's partial opacity restricts light entering a camera, leading to increased image noise.

Read more:
The best laptops for video editing
The best photo-editing laptops

But Lenovo, in conjunction with Visionary.ai and Intel, has managed to overcome these hurdles to create the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i: the world's first CUD (camera-under-display) laptop, with a 14" 4k 120Hz PureSight Pro OLED display and super-slim screen bezels. The secret to successfully implementing an under display camera has been to create real-time AI video enhancement algorithms that compensate for the image quality issues caused by positioning the camera behind the screen. The laptop's Image Processing Unit in its Intel Core Ultra 200V series processor is able to enhance the under display camera's video recording in real time, with no perceivable lag in video calls or while streaming. This includes applying AI de-noising technology to compensate for the low light transmission reaching the camera sensor, which would otherwise be particularly problematic in dimly lit environments.

"Delivering sharp imaging with a camera under the display was a challenge that seemed impossible just a few years ago. Our breakthrough in leveraging AI to achieve real-time, stable denoising under challenging conditions has made it a reality."

Yoav Taieb, Visionary.ai CTO

We don't yet know when the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i will go on sale, or how much it is likely to cost.

Until recently, it was all so clear. I vowed never to spend my money on anything made by Apple. Why? Two reasons. 

The first was that I believed Apple kit to be overpriced. Not because they aren't excellent computers, phones or tablets. I've spent many years reviewing them as a journalist, so I know they're good. But essentially because I believe you're paying a signifcant markup for something that's as much a fashion item as a Gucci handbag or a Hermès T-shirt. And that just isn't me.

The second, equally powerful dissuader was that I didn't want to buy into Apple's ecosystem. The moment any of my friends had bought an Apple device, it seemed like they'd joined some sort of cult, with all their in-crowd talk of "Airdrop me this" and "iMessage me that". Plus everything they did seemed to require extra spend, compared with Windows or Android. They couldn't even use a USB phone charger!

So I continued on avoiding Apple, happy in my smug bubble. But every now and again, something would threaten to burst it. 

Why I was tempted

There were those lengthy and unwanted Windows updates, which shut down my machine for hours, and usually screwed everything up. There were apps, such as Microsoft Teams, that would refuse point blank to work, despite me using Microsoft's own software to run them. There was the tendency of Windows Media Player to either delete or duplicate songs. At times like this, I'd think about Apple devices and how, as the cliche goes, they "just work".

All, this came to a head when my Dell Latitude laptop died, and a salesman in Harvey Norman told me had a 2020 MacBook Air going for a song. Admittedly, this model is now discontinued, but it does feature the much-famed M1 chip: the first of a new era of Apple-made processors that has revolutionised its computing capabilities. 

It was an offer I couldn't refuse. The low price nullified my first objection, and the issue of the ecosystem… well, I was sure I could learn to live with it. 

So I took my shiny new MacBook home, opened it up, and felt I'd made the right decision. It felt fast, smooth, responsive. I loved the screen, and the audio was fantastic. Plus it was super-light. Fabulous.

But then, two days later, my freelancing world came crashing down around me.

How it all went wrong

I typed what I firmly believed to be my password into the opening screen, but it wouldn't accept it. I did it so many times, it locked me out for a few minutes, then 10 minutes, then 20... Panic started to bubble up within me. 

I used the "recover password" option, and Apple said it was sending me a verification email, but none arrived. The same thing happened with the text it said it was sending my phone. I tried other email addresses and phone numbers, and none of them worked either. I tried booting into Recovery Mode but typing the Command + R shortcut got no response. Whatever happened to "just works"?

I clicked through the Apple help and support pages and got a message saying my only options were (a) to visit an Apple Store, (b) borrow someone else's Apple device or (c) embark on some complex verification over the phone that would take "up to several days". 

The problem was, I was on my travels and staying in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere, New Zealand. I didn't know anyone there, and it was the sort of place where knocking on strangers' door and asking to borrow their iPhone might not go down too well. Plus the nearest Apple Store was 1,529 miles away in Brisbane, Australia. Yes, there are no Apple Stores in New Zealand.

As a freelancer, I'm certainly not in a financial position to just take "several days" off work. Plus if missed my deadlines, my editors wouldn't be at all happy.

It's not like I've never been locked out of a computer or web service before. But normally, recovery is a pretty straightforward process. Yet when I called up Apple's helpline, the (admittedly very helpful and kind) guy on the other end of the phone kept saying things like "this shouldn't happen…" and "hmmm… that should have worked", which only increased my panic.

All of which made me think about how Apple has made their devices so secure that even the FBI can't break into them. Indeed, nor could Apple itself when the Feds have asked them to help. Which is great to know if someone has stolen your device; but not so great when you're locked out yourself. Why, I screamed at myself inwardly, did I ever choose Apple?

Back for good?

Thankfully, after about two and half hours on the phone with support staff, I managed to get back into my laptop. My brain was so scrambled by this point, I couldn't even tell you what fixed it. All I can tell you is the people I spoke to went above and beyond to fix my problem, and never stopped being polite, friendly and positive. Top marks.

And two weeks later, I've had no issues to date. On balance, I love my MacBook Air and am still glad I bought it. And if you can afford one of the best MacBooks released in the last few years, I'd say go for it. 

Just be aware that Apple's security procedures are very tight and, in my experience, more of a hindrance than a help. So even if it goes everything you've been taught, make a physical note of the password you set up with, put it in a safe place, and be very, very careful about typing it in.

Are you having trouble keeping up with Apple’s generational processor developments? The original Apple silicon, the M1 processor, arrived in late 2020. Since then we’ve had the M2 (2022), the M3 (2023) and now the M4 (2024). Each of these comes in regular, Pro and Max versions – the Pro and Max version are more powerful and support larger amounts of RAM. Not all of the computers in the Apple range get the latest processors at the same time, and the Pro and Max versions are often phased in later too.

As a result, while Apple certainly makes some of the best laptops you can buy, it’s not always easy to figure out which is the best Macbook to get at any one time, and it can sometimes look as if whatever you choose will be out of date within a year anyway. Not helpful.

On the other hand, I’m still using a 2013 Intel 13-inch MacBook Pro, and I only retired my 2017 Intel iMac last year, so I believe old Macs can still run pretty well in today’s world. The other thing to note is that Apple’s M4 performance claims still compare it to the original M1 processor, not the M2 or M3 in between – so we’re looking at generational improvements here, not overnight revolutions in computing technology.

Though the latest M4 processor does have some neat features. It supports on-device Apple Intelligence, for a start, via a Neural Engine that can also handle AI upscaling, AI video caption creation and many other AI advances.

The M4 chip also offers dynamic caching for optimized GPU use, which Apple claims will offer a huge performance boost for games and professional applications, and ‘second-generation’ hardware-accelerated ray tracing which also should benefit games.

It brings some more practical day to day benefits too. Apple claims the ‘longest ever’ battery life in a Mac of up to 24 hours, with a fast charge capability that can offer 50% capacity in just 30 minutes. That’s great for anyone who needs a computer for commuting/remote working, as is the integrated 12MP Center Stage camera that can follow you as you move around – plus a rather remarkable Desk View for showing documents to others in a video call, say.

The display on the 14-inch model is a Liquid Retina XDR panel with up to 1,600 nits brightness for HDR and 1,000 nits for SDR. It’s not 16:9 or 4K UHD, but with 3024 x 1964 resolution in a 14-inch display, it looks ultra-sharp. You can connect up to two external monitors, or four if you opt for the M4 Max model.

The new M4 MacBook is pretty well stacked up with ports, too, including three Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports (you can get Thunderbolt 5 on the Pro and Max models), and HDMI port (handy for some monitors) an SD card slot, headphone socket and a MagSafe power socket.

Apple MacBook Pro 14 M4 Pro: Specifications

This is where it gets messy. The MacBook Pro M4 14-inch Apple sent us for review was specced-up with the M4 Pro processor, 48GB RAM and a 2TB SSD, which made it considerably more expensive than the base model. This will affect the benchmarking figures we achieved – you can expect the base M4 model to be slower and the M4 Max to be faster. These things are relative, however, and the regular M4 chip is still very fast and powerful.

Our table below splits the specs into what’s available for the regular M4, M4 Pro and M4 Max variants. Our test machine falls roughly in the middle of the performance range but is a lot more expensive than the base model.

Apple MacBook Pro 14 M4 Pro: Price

The starting price for the MacBook Pro M4 14-inch is $1,599 / £1,599, which seems pretty reasonable for a laptop with this much performance and this level of build quality. The base model has the same excellent display and battery life as the other M4 14-inch variants, and comes with 16GB RAM and a 512GB SSD. That’s not bad, and certainly better than the miserly 8GB and 256GB we’ve seen before in base models. Is it enough for photographers and video editing? It might well be.

The model we tested had the M4 Pro chip, 48GB RAM and a 2TB SSD, which pushes the price up to a pretty terrifying $3,199 / £3,199 – almost double. This is why you have to be very careful when choosing your extras. And be aware too that Apple’s highly efficient on-chip memory and internal design optimizations mean that you can’t upgrade later. The RAM and storage you specify when you buy is what you will have for ever. (Thank goodness for external SSDs.)

If you want a real shock, a maxed-out MacBook Pro M4 Max 14-inch, with the fastest M4 Max variant, 128GB RAM and an 8TB SSD will cost $6,899 / £6,899, which sounds pretty insane – but then you are getting high-level production hardware in a laptop, which is pretty impressive in itself.

Our recommendation? To keep costs under control but still get usable storage and performance, we’d go for a regular M4 upgraded with 32GB RAM and a 1TB SSD. That pushes the price up to $2,199 / £2,199, but that seems pretty reasonable for a laptop of this quality and performance, and should keep you going for a good few years.

Apple MacBook Pro 14 M4 Pro: Design and operation

The MacBook Pro is not a cheap option. There are plenty of Windows laptops that cost way less than this while appearing to offer comparable specifications. What you get with a MacBook though is a combination of design and build quality that’s hard to give up when you’ve got used to it.

There are no creaky or easily scratched plastics, and no trip-hazard power bricks and cables. You get a quiet, backlit keyboard with positive, short-travel keys that have raised bars on the ‘f’ and ‘j’ keys, ‘home’ keys for touch-typists. Top right, there’s a fingerprint/sleep button for hiding your screen if you step away at work – or you can just close the lid. Everything is simple, stripped back and just works.

The power cable does deserve a special mention. There’s no separate power brick here because the power supply is built into the wall plug. This means you just have a slim, flexible, fabric-covered cable to the MacBook’s MagSafe 3 port. This has a magnetic plug that shows an amber lamp when charging or a green lamp when charging is complete. If anyone kicks the cable as they walk past, it just disconnects; it doesn’t drag your laptop off your desk.

The display is pretty spectacular too. It’s neither a 1080 display nor a 4K display, but a kind of 3K display somewhere in the middle – but on a 14-inch screen, this produces such a fine pixel pitch that you just never see any pixels. It’s a shame it’s an odd ratio closer to 16:10 than 16:9, and this could be irritating if you want to do any 16:9 screen recording or playback. The notch at the top for the camera looks as if it could be irritating too, but in practice, it’s usually obscured by the menu bar when you’re working. If you’re tapping away outdoors in daylight, the 1,600-nit maximum brightness is invaluable or, if you’re typing the in the dark, this can be lowered to an incredible 1-nit.

Should you get the 14-inch MacBook Pro M4 or the 16-inch? The larger screen might be tempting, but it can also be a liability on planes, in trains or on buses where there’s often not much room to get the screen open. The 14-inch screen is a nice compromise between size and practicality.

Will you actually get Apple’s claimed 24-hour battery life? That depends on what you’re doing – probably not. But the battery capacity really pays off on a daily commute, where you can just shut the lid when you arrive at the office and open it up to start work again later. You might go a couple of days, maybe a week, before you need to plug it in again, depending on how often you use it and for how long.

It’s worth mentioning the speakers, too, as the audio performance is pretty remarkable for a laptop. It lacks a little bass, not surprisingly, and it doesn’t go super-loud… but loud enough! It’s great for streaming a movie while you’re working in the kitchen, for example, and there’s always the headphone port when you’re in the office or commuting.

The MacBook Pro M4 is a fairly expensive device, but the quality of the materials and operation constantly remind you that you’re not just paying for the brand, but for design finesse too.

Apple MacBook Pro 14 M4 Pro: Performance

We’ve included benchmarking scores for our review machine, which uses the M4 Pro chip rather than the regular M4 processor, so keep that in mind. We’ve also including results from the previous MacBook Pro M3 14-inch and MacBook Air M3 13-inch (still current).

It’s significant that Apple’s published speed improvements of up to 3-3.4x are against the original M1, M1 Pro, and M1 Max processors. That speed gain doesn’t seem quite as impressive when two intermediate M2 and M3 processor generations have been skipped.

Our benchmarking tests do favor the test machine, which was equipped with the M4 Pro chip rather than the regular M3 processor in the other models in our table. Even so, the single-core speed gain is pretty modest and, while the multi core score shows a bigger gap, it may not be enough to sway existing users considering upgrading. The greatest gain for the new M4 processor appears to be for graphics-intensive applications and processes.

Keep in mind that a faster processor won’t make your external drives spin any faster or make web pages or web-based processes run any faster. In everyday use, your laptop’s processor is rarely going to be a processing bottleneck.

Apple MacBook Pro 14 M4 Pro: Verdict

Is it worth upgrading an existing M3, M2 or even M1 MacBook to the latest M4 version? Possibly, in a couple of scenarios. The first is that your old MacBook is worn out or its battery is near the end of its life. The second is that with hindsight you underspecced your old machine and now you need one with a lot more performance or, more likely, more RAM or a bigger SSD.

The fact is, though, that the original Apple Silicon, the M1 processor family, was the big step-change in performance for Apple; everything generation since then has been faster, but not in the same game-changing way.

If you’re upgrading from an older Intel MacBook, the M4 MacBook is the logical upgrade, and the difference in performance is likely to leave you pretty spellbound. And while the MacBook M4 is expensive, you do get a lot for your money – not just in specifications, but in design, operation and build quality. The screen and the battery life alone are exceptional.

Something else has changed too. The base MacBook Pro M4 model now comes with 16GB RAM rather than the borderline useless 8GB RAM in its predecessor. You also get a 512GB SSD in the base model so, unlike previous MacBooks, even the cheapest M4 model has enough grunt for most creatives – certainly enough for photography, and probably enough for mid-range video editing.

Alternatives

Another year another round of Apple processor upgrades, and it’s the turn of one of Apple’s most iconic products – the iMac – to get the M4 treatment. The iMac has had a bit of an unusual run in the update cycle. After the iMac was boldly redesigned for the M1 chip, it was then skipped over for the M2 update, before being upgraded to the M3 last year – and many expected the same pattern to repeat. However, the quintessential desktop computer was included in Apple’s big October event this year alongside the MacBook Pro and Mac Mini to get the latest in-house Apple silicon.

Like in previous generations, there are still two different versions of the iMac with the base model being held back by limited ports and configutation options – I still think it's a confusing move from Apple, but the specs below might clear things up a little.

Apple iMac M4: Specifications

Apple iMac M4: Price

For what you get, the iMac isn’t hugely expensive, with prices starting at $1,299 for an 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 16GB RAM, and a 256GB SSD – although for this price you for some reason miss out on two Thunderbolt ports, an ethernet port and Touch ID on the keyboard which just feels stingy. To get both of these things, plus an upgrade to a 10-core CPU/GPU will cost $1,499 – which is the only version of the iMac I would actually recommend considering.

iMacs aren't upgradable once they leave the factory, so if you want to future-proof yourself as much as possible – a fully specced out iMac, still with a 10-core CPU/GPU, but with nano-textured glass, 32GB of RAM, and 2TB SSD will cost $2,899.

This would all be fine, if Apple didn’t also release the smaller-than-ever Mac Mini, which can be configured to a much higher spec, including an M4 Pro chip, all for comparatively less money. And while you still need to buy a screen, you can choose from one of the hundreds of available Apple or non-Apple options and you have the freedom to upgrade your system in a more modular fashion.

Apple iMac M4: Design & Handling

The iMac is probably the most beautiful aesthetically minimal computer money can buy. Coming in several colors, as well as a more demure grey/white, it can fit in amongst almost any decor while making your desk setup look ready for a spread in a design mag.

On the outside, not much has changed in the design of the iMac this year, with Apple sticking doggedly to the big redesign that launched alongside the M1 chip. For those holding out for the return of the 27-inch iMac, this isn't it.

The screen is the same 24 inches, and the resolution is the same 4.5K with 500 nits of brightness. There are two screen coating options though, Apple will sell you a model with the standard screen coating, or the newer fancy nano-textured glass coating which reduces reflections, kind of like a matte display, but also not. But it is very effective, although I think it's limiting for use inside unless you have quite glare-y overhead lights. However, the nano-texture glass will add an additional $200 to the price of the unit, and isn't available as an upgrade to the base model.

While I personally think 24 inches is slightly too small for a monitor, I can’t argue with the quality of Apple’s display. The screen is sharp, bright, and colorful, with a nicely balanced contrast. I did really enjoy using it, especially to edit photos on, where I was just confident that my colors were how they should be seen. You can’t control the screens others use, but there is some comfort in knowing that this screen will perfectly match the look of your images at least on iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks.

My biggest gripe with the iMac is the stand that Apple includes – as beautiful and minimal as it is, I find it far too limiting. The stand lets you tilt the screen back and forth by around 45º, although that’s it. There is no height adjustment and no way to spin the screen into a portrait orientation – admittedly maybe niche pursuits for coders or editors, but these are features even some of the cheapest non-Apple monitors offer. You can however buy a VESA adapter for the iMac from Apple, which will let you mount the screen on a different stand or an articulating arm.

Around back, there are either two or four ThunderBolt 4 USB-C connections depending on the model you pick – sorry anyone still rocking USB-A accessories, but you’ll have to find a dongle. I think that two on the base model is no where near enough, and again this feels like a classic Apple move of subtley trying to nudge you into going for a higher spec model with a couple of annoying shortcomings – at least the base model has 16GB RAM this year.

Also not really the iMac's fault, but these ports might quickly ruin your minimal aesthetic if you need to leave accessories with trailing wires plugged in. I pretty much always have a portable SSD connected to my computers, which I can sweep the wire away through the cable tidy in the stand, the SSD still just sits awkwardly at the base of the stand.

The iMac has a six-speaker system that supports spacial audio, and Dolby Atmos – and the speakers sound really good, but didn’t blow me away. The speakers are perfectly capable when it comes to listening to music and watching a movie, but I got a much richer and bolder sound from the Google Nest Audios that sat beside the iMac on my desk. For casual listeners, this is totally fine, but for audiophiles, there are limits to what you can squeeze into an 11.5mm frame.

The iMac also has a 12MP camera, with center stage to keep you framed in the middle as you move around (although this is limited to apps that actually support it). The webcam allows you to record and stream in 1080p, which is fine, I don’t think my colleagues need to see me in the morning in 4K. There are also three studio-quality mics for video calling, audio recording, dictation, and chatting to Siri which I found super clear, although there wasn’t much background noise to cut through alone in my office.

Thanks to the included mouse and keyboard being wireless, there are no trailing wires from the iMac across your desk. Both the keyboard and mouse also take on hints of color to match the color of the iMac you choose which is a lovely touch and keeps the whole package looking for cohensive. Both keyboard and mouse have also been moved over to USB-C instead of the outdated Lightning connection for charging, which should make life much simpler – except for the fact that the charging port is still on the bottom of the mouse, which prevents it from being charger and used at the same time. Come on Apple!

The keyboard is a classic Apple shallow one, which I quite like typing on, but others might prefer the big capped keys of a mechanical model. The Apple Mouse is also divisive, I don’t love it or hate it, but I think I prefer a physically tactile scroll wheel rather than the touch-sensitive one on the Apple Mouse. You can also buy an Apple Magixc Trackpad if you prefer.

One minor frustration is you cannot remove the keyboard and mouse when buying the iMac and save money. I already own an Apple Keyboard and Apple Mouse which I am happy with, and many others might be upgrading from older M1 or M2 iMacs. For a company that claims to put a lot of thought into its environmental impact, this seems like an area that could use a little more thought.

Apple iMac M4: Performance

Apple has continued to deliver time after time on performance improvements with its in-house silicon. The M4 chip is Apple’s fastest yet – although don’t get overly excited if you already have an M1 to M3 equipped Apple computer as the speed increases are becoming increasingly marginal between generations, and I think you’d struggle to notice them day-to-day. However, against older Intel machines, there is a much more dramatic difference.

From the off, everyday tasks are just so much faster. A simple thing like opening software takes nearly no time at all. Photoshop which would sometimes take up to a minute to open and load a large image on my older Intel i7 MacBook takes seconds now on the M4. Pulling photos into Lightroom and building previews is also a job that used to send my laptop nearly into a full meltdown, but again is quicker and less resource-intensive on M4.

But the iMac also handles tougher jobs too. I have been editing a lot of 4K videos with a high bitrate for a project in Adobe Premiere. Where I am used to my playback window stuttering as it struggles to render the edited video on older devices, this is now smooth. If you are editing a lot of 6K or 8K streams then you probably want to look at a Mac Mini with M4 Pro, or Mac Studio, but for most creators, the M4 will do the job.

Below you can see the benchmarks from the iMac M4 versus some of Apple’s older chips in previous generations of iMac.

One area I am going to pull up Apple though is with its heavy marketing around the iMac of Apple Intelligence. Here in the UK, we are not due to get Apple Intelligence until next year, and even then, there is still some question of if and what Apple Intelligence will be able to do. It’s great that the iMac will support upcoming AI features, but I am not convinced by selling products now based on future updates.

Apple iMac M4: Verdict

The M4 iMac remains the sleekest designed desktop on the market, despite an unchanged design, it's still an enviable thing to have on your desk – especially complemented by vibrant new color options.

Internally, the introduction of the M4 chip provides a noticeable performance boost over any older Intel model, although gains on recent models aren't as substantial. The iMac easily handles multitasking and demanding tasks like photo editing and light video editing with aplom though. Features such as the updated 12MP Center Stage webcam and optional nano-texture glass on the display also add some new catnip for upgraders.

However, the iMac isn't without shortcomings. The limited upgradability is an issue, the days of upgradeable components in desktops seem long in the rearview mirror. I also find the stand frustratingly limited and wish there was more height adjustment and rotation. Despite a USB-C update, the Magic Mouse's charging port still remains on the bottom, sort it out Apple.

Ultimately, the iMac M4 is an excellent choice for users seeking a stylish, powerful, and all-in-one desktop – but only if you definitely don't want to consider the cheaper and more powerful Mac Mini.

Alternatives

Hot on the heels of the iMac M4 and Mac Mini M4, Apple has announced the MacBook Pro M4 in 14- and 16-inch guises. And while the next-gen silicon chip is undoubtedly the headline news for the average consumer, Cupertino is also shouting about the Pro's 12MP Center Stage camera – a marked improvement over the previous gen's built-in 1080p device – which could turn out to be the best laptop webcam.

Previously, Center Stage was only available on the latest iPads, and Macs via the Apple Studio Display, which is a serious investment if you’re only interested in upgraded video calls. The new iMac M4 and Macbook Pro M4 are the first Apple computers to feature standalone Center Stage compatibility, making them a tantalizing prospect for professionals who rely on video calls.

As the name suggests, Center Stage centers the user as they move around and is compatible with the likes of FaceTime and Zoom. Apple has stated the Center Stage camera "delivers enhanced video quality in challenging lighting conditions." And with Desk View support – a long-time staple of the best iPhones – you can present to the camera while displaying a top-down view of your desk, too.

Details on the tech behind the 12MP camera are thin on the ground, but if the Studio Display's 12MP camera is anything to go by, you can expect an ultra-wide camera with a 122-degree field of view or similar. But the big selling point for most users will be those shiny new M4, M4 Pro and M4 Max silicon chips. It's hard not to be wooed by talk of the "world's fastest CPU core,"...

The Standard M4 boasts a 10-core CPU and GPU, with a Neural Engine with triple the power of the M1 and Unified Memory that maxes out at 32GB. Apple has clocked the M4 working with Affinity Photo and quoted it as being "up to 1.8x faster when compared to the 13-inch MacBook Pro with M1." As well as Adobe Premiere Pro's scene edit detection, with the chip working "up to 1.7x faster when compared to the 13‑inch MacBook Pro with M1."

The M4 Pro and Pro Max now sit at the top of the silicon food chain and they boast statistically significant improvements, too. The M4 Pro gets a 14-core CPU and up to 20-core GPU, with up to 48GB of Unified Memory, while the M4 Max gets a 16-core CPU and up to a whopping 40-core GPU and 128GB of Unified Memory. The M4 Pro is said to be "up to 3x faster than models with M1 Pro," while the M4 Max boasts "up to 3.5x the performance of M1 Max".

All of this sounds very tasty indeed, but I think it's telling that Apple keeps referring back to the first generation of its silicon chips for comparison. The tech giant has kind of backed itself into a corner when it comes to processing power, thanks to its own ingenuity. After all, the M1 was a game changer and every silicon chip since has been building on its incredible legacy.

The problem is, the previous generation is already blisteringly fast and how much M3 users will notice the M4's advancements day-to-day remains to be seen. This is one of many reasons why the new Mac Mini M4 really shines. There was no Mac Mini M3 – skipping a silicon generation makes the upgrade much easier to justify.

Big news for M4 Pro and M4 Max users regardless of processing power is access to three Thunderbolt 5 ports. But while faster data transfer (much faster) is obviously a huge boon for content creators, the tech is still very much in its infancy and it's going to take a while for the industry to catch up. Do you have a Thunderbolt 5 card reader? Exactly…

Upgrades to the Liquid Retina XDR display will please photo and video editors. The MacBook Pro M4 can display 4K Standard Dynamic Range content at 1,000 nits, a notable upgrade over the previous gen's 600 nits. While HDR content is still capped at an exceedingly bright 1,600 nits. What's new is Apple's nano-texture display, which is said to "dramatically reduce glare and distractions from reflections," which should help those editing or working in bright lighting conditions.

The battery life is another worthy advancement, with up to 24 hours of juice, making the MacBook Pro M4 Apple's longest-lasting Mac. Good news for content creators on the go. And finally, the MacBook Pro M4 is compatible with the recently announced Apple Intelligence alongside macOS Sequoia 15.1. AI features include a redesigned Siri and Writing Tools, with additional features set for release in December.

Overall, I'm looking forward to the inevitable Digital Camera World MacBook Pro M4 review. But I suspect – as is often the case with Apple's penchant for incremental upgrades – whether or not it's an essential buy will depend on what generation of silicon you're currently using. Center Stage is a nice quality-of-life upgrade, but probably not essential unless you're glued to VCs all day. And while Thunderbolt 5 is evidently a great advancement for content creators shifting large amounts of data, the accessories market is still playing catch up.

But, if you're current Apple Mac setup isn't delivering the goods anymore and you're hankering for an upgrade. I'm sure any one of the M4 family will feel like a lightning rod up the Thunderbolt port! Review pending...

The 14-inch Macbook Pro M4 starts at $1,599 / £1,599 and the 16-inch MacBook Pro M4 starts at $2,499 / £2,499. The 14-inch MacBook Pro M4 is available in all M4 chips, while the 16-inch model is only available with the M4 Pro and M4 Max.

If you're interested in everything Apple, check out the best iMac for photo and video editing and the best MacBook screen cleaners.

You might have missed it if you blinked, but right at the end of another slick pre-recorded product launch from Apple – this time for the M4 MacBook Pros – Apple's Jon Ternus managed to throw in the fact that all future M2 & M3 MacBook Airs will come with a minimum of 16GB memory, not that paltry 8GB they've been offering until now.

The prices remain unchanged – and so do the processors (no gleaming new M4, unlike the iPad Pro or the new MacBook Pros).

As far as I'm concerned, that's tantamount to an admission from the SVP of Hardware Engineering that 8GB is inadequate for a consumer laptop. 8GB is what the iPhone 15 Pro and later has had, so, sure, it's enough to run a high-end phone, but a serious laptop? I'm not so sure – especially one pitched at Apple's crowd!

If you don't see it straight away, that's understandable – you're looking for a very brief comment at about 13:30. The MacBook Air might sell better than the MacBook Pro but this announcement is all about the Pro series and the new M4 chips.

If I sound unreasonably frustrated about this, it's because locking memory has been something Apple has led, especially with the M-series architecture. Memory was upgradeable until relatively recently – as I pointed out when I said goodbye to my last iMac.

I also happen to know that – deep down in the ARM chip design – it isn't set in stone that memory be fixed because I had one of the first ever ARM computers, the Acorn Archimedes, and the memory is upgradeable, not soldered onto the board and sealed in. (ARM, in case you didn't know, originally stood for Acorn RISC Machine before the British computer company Acorn spun off ARM which had a much longer and more successful legacy than the the computer it was created for – about which I'm still quite sad.)

Anyway, that's history. Apple's lack of generosity when it comes to RAM has long been a matter of irritation to many users, as has the pricing to the next scale.

Apologists have defended Apple – arguing that the "Unified" memory and relative efficiency compared to Windows make things OK, but Apple buys memory from the same market and these more expensive, admittedly, chips are marked up even more (it was $300 for the next tier) by Apple so specifying more on day one is prohibitive.

All this serves to make computers more 'disposable' – which would seem to fly in the face of Apple's own supposed care for "Mother Nature," as introduced so awkwardly in 2023. Clearly it doesn't seem to extend to the idea of people not being forced into an upgrade cycle!

I'm not saying that the MacBook Air isn't a beautifully designed computer – and I just spoke to my partner who uses an M3 MacBook Air for work every day and she's a big fan. it's worth noting that her employers didn't skimp on the RAM either, going for 16GB when that was an upgrade rather than the default as it finally is.

Now, the Air is an even better choice for the best laptop for photographers. What I wonder about is why Apple seemed so coy about the memory upgrade. I can only assume it's because a lot of folk, deep down, know it's ridiculous to be selling a serious computer with a starting price of $999 with memory of 8GB when the same memory is included in a $200 HP portable, or – more fairly – most laptops in the $500 space. Certainly, Asus managed to find 16GB for their TUF A16 which we call a budget offering.

The upshot of all this is that Apple users are constantly forced to justify Apple's higher prices when we know, deep down, we know no one benefits from having less memory. I've seen it called "tyranny" on Reddit (and there are many, many discussions along the lines of "Is 8GB enough?"

It's good to know that this is finally being put to bed for the MacBook Air and, as reported yesterday, the MacBook Mini. The lack of fanfare says even more about how long this has been coming. Reading even deeper, it suggests that – however long Apple has protested it can manage memory – the AI tools it is now promoting need more RAM.

Welcome to the present, Apple!

You can start pre-ordering the new MacBook Pros and MacBook Airs from Apple right now (remember to scour any deals you see in the next week or so to check you're getting all the memory you need).

👻 Fun related geeky halloween fact – if you watch Ghostbusters Frozen Empire this halloween, you just might spot a BBC Micro in the Q-branch like lab. This is also from Acorn. Without that computer's success in Britain, there isn't a path to the ARM chips that lead to the low-energy A-series chips which power the iPhone and Apple's M series (or the Apple Newton on the way!)

When it comes to the best mouse for video editing and photo editing, most Apple users will tell you that you've got to have an Apple Magic Mouse. Based on my use, I wonder if a lot of the recommendation comes because the mouse looks great rather than because its nice to use.

Creative editing takes a lot of keyboard and mouse adjustments with a lot of repetition. You therefore need a mouse that can handle that without putting too much strain on the hand, wrist, and arm. I don't think the Magic Mouse delivers on that front.

But maybe I'm being too harsh. It's fair to say that a lot of the ergonomics around mouse use is subjective. You might find that you'll have no problems at all. Heading down to your local tech shop could give you an initial idea of what type of mouse would suit you best.

One of the main benefits when working with the likes of Photoshop or Premiere is the gesture functionality. The mouse makes it possible to click, scroll, zoom, and swipe, which is ideal for moving around timelines or creative projects.

For those looking to move into an all-USB-C future, Apple just this week announced a new Magic Mouse with USB-C charging instead of the outgoing Lightning connector.

Apple Magic Mouse 2 Specifications

Apple Magic Mouse 2 Key features

Responsive clicking is made possible through the invisible buttons located at the top end of the mouse. Alongside this standard functionality, the Magic Mouse 2 also provides a range of advanced gestures, such as scrolling, moving between media, and even swiping between applications. It is this functionality that sets Apple's offering apart from many of its competitors. You can think of the Magic Mouse 2 as a hybrid between a mouse and a trackpad.

Connection is via Bluetooth so it's 100% wireless. This means you can connect it with Apple Macintosh desktop and laptop computers running macOS or Mac OS X versions 10.11 and higher and iPad tablets running iPadOS 13.

Unfortunately the charging port is located underneath the mouse so there's no way of using the mouse while its charging. Thankfully the battery life is pretty long so as long as you plan ahead you won't have any problems.

Apple Magic Mouse 2 Build & Handling

Material

The Apple Magic Mouse 2 is made of plastic, although it is possible to purchase 'skins' that are made of other materials, including carbon fibre, brushed metal, natural stone, and even wood. These skins can be positioned, stretched, and even re-lifted with a hair dryer.

Durability

My Magic Mouse 2 is a few years old now and it's showing signs of wear and tear but nothing that hampers functionality. There are visible marks on the top see-through panel, round the edge of that same panel, as well as scratches on the underside protector pads. All of this is to be expected. The grey underside has coped surprisingly well with no marks to note.

Size

The Magic Mouse 2 is one of the most compact offerings on the market. It's width, depth, and height are 5.71 x 11.35 x 2.16cm respectively. The shallow depth is something that sets this Apple mouse apart from others. it also means your hand will sit a lot flatter. The 99g weight makes it easy to move around or throw in your bag.

Apple Magic Mouse 2 Performance

The best thing about the Magic Mouse 2 are the gestures. These are ideal for photo and video editors because they make common tasks more natural to execute. There are a range of gestures, including 360-degree scrolling, which enables users to scroll or pan in any direction. it is also possible to zoom in and out by scrolling with one finger.

The mouse is responsive to all gesture types and they do make creative workflows significantly more efficient. The mouse can also be set up with specific programmable profiles that are tailored for specific apps, including Photoshop.

Unfortunately, it's not all good news. I find the shallow depth and invisible scrolling particularly taxing upon my hand and wrist, to the point that I can't actually use the mouse anymore without problems. This is partly subjective though and the vast majority of users won't have any problems at all. Some of this would be mitigated by also using a Magic Trackpad.

Apple Magic Mouse 2 Verdict

The Magic Mouse 2 is for photographers and videographers who use Apple desktops or laptops for their editing. The customisable gestures are perfectly suited to creative workflows, making the process of moving through media and performing edits as natural as it could be.

Alongside impressive gesture functionality, the mouse also looks fantastic. Invisible buttons and scrolling keep the overall mouse looking sleek and minimalist. I didn't personally get on with the hand positioning required to operate the mouse but not all users will have this problem.

The latest iteration of the Mac Mini has launched and I think it boasts some pretty stellar specs that could make it the best desktop computer for photo editing. Crucially, it fixes my biggest gripe with the Mac Mini M2. It finally comes with 16GB of Unified Memory (RAM) as standard.

It's also skipped a silicon generation, from the 2023 models’ M2 to the M4, and if you plump for the M4 Pro model, you get a set of brand new Thunderbolt 5 ports. That's right, the Mac Mini M4 is Apple's first computer to feature Thunderbolt 5. Honestly, I'm a little surprised Cupertino chose the utilitarian Mini and not a sexier device – like the new M4 iMac or an M4 MacBook that's surely on the horizon – to debut this much-anticipated feature.

The spec upgrades don't stop there. While the 16-core Neural Engine remains across the board, M4 models still include a 10-core GPU, but 2023's 8-core CPU has been upgraded to ten cores. M4 Pro users fare similarly, with a 12-core CPU upgrade (from ten), while retaining 16 cores for the GPU.

A small but welcome quality-of-life upgrade for the M4 models is an additional Thunderbolt 4 port, totaling three over last year's two. But while the M4 Pro boasts that juicy Thunderbolt 5 upgrade, you only get three ports (the M2 Pro model featured four Thunderbolt 4 ports).

The biggest immediate difference is the machine's form factor. Apple is saying the Mac Mini M4's "footprint is less than half the size of the previous design." The Mac Mini M2 was 1.41 x 7.75 x 7.75in (3.58 x 19.70 x 19.70cm), while the M4 clocks in at 2.0 x 5.0 x 5.0in (5.0 x 12.7 x 12.7cm). So, it's thicker, making it look a little like a diddy version of the Mac Studio, but it’ll take up less space on your desk.

My biggest gripe with the Mac Mini M2 was the base model's 8GB of Unified Memory. Personally, I thought it was ridiculous that anybody should be offered the opportunity to pick up a brand new 2023 Mac, with just 8GB of RAM and I'm extremely pleased that Apple has rectified this with the M4 release's 16GB as standard. Yes, it's still a shame you have to cough up $200 / £200 just to get a 512GB SSD, but I guess you can't have it all…

So, the Mac Mini M4 is unequivocally better than last year's iteration. And remarkably, it's cheaper in the UK, too. It'll set you back $599 / £599 instead of last year's $599 / £649. But I think it's an even better deal when you consider the Unified Memory upgrade.

You see, what put me off picking up a Mac Mini last year was that its base price tag just didn't tell the whole story. Sure, $599 / £649 was a great price then and still is now. But I considered the 16GB of Unified Memory an essential upgrade, as well as the 512GB SSD, turning what was an affordable little machine into a not-so-affordable little machine. This time around, you can pick up a 16GB Mini for $599 / £599 without having to pay an extra $200 to upgrade the RAM. Even with the 512GB upgrade, it’s still a very palatable $799 / £799. That's a much better deal.

Digital Camera World review pending, I'm confident the Mac Mini has quietly become Apple's best-value Mac. And that's exactly what it should be. Sure, it doesn't boast the portability of the best MacBooks, and yes, you will need a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. But if you're looking for an affordable Mac that boasts plenty of raw power and don't mind a utilitarian device that lacks that trademark Apple pizazz that iMacs and MacBooks have in spades, then the Mac Mini M4 looks like it could be a very smart buy indeed.

Looking for peripherals to suit a brand new Mac Mini M4? Check out the best monitors for photo editing and the best Mac keyboard.

Being an Apple customer often leaves me feeling betrayed. Apple are the company for creatives, right? But nothing could drive a stake further into that heart than the new iMac M4.

I've recently had to ditch my old iMac because it was starting to struggle at times. It was an iMac 2020 with Intel Core i7 and I was convinced I needed it – and not just a single specced-out MacBook Pro and a monitor – partly out of common business sense (always have a backup) but mostly by the glorious 27-inch 5K Retina display which Apple proceeded to optimise a lot of their apps for.

Final Cut Pro – which I used for my drone work at the time – was and is a joy on that display. The first thing I did, though, with my new iMac was a joy not possible with the new devices, and not just because the new M4 iMacs don't have such a big and beautiful photographer & video-friendly monitor.

No. After getting the box home, unpeeling the screen protector (yes, in some ways it is like a giant iPhone) and admiring the design for a bit, I powered down and plugged in an extra 32GB of RAM into the spare memory slot next to the paltry 8GB Apple provided, for a total of 40 GB (yes, I know, not equal across slots, but financially efficient and still a lot faster than 8GB).

Yes, only a few years ago the beautifully sculpted iMac 2020 had a little door in the back so you could upgrade the memory when you wanted, like a grown-up computer. Plus the maximum memory was 128GB plus the graphics memory. The biggest you can specify the base M4 is 24MB! Laughable. If you push the boat out for the 10-core M4 variant you can at least specify up to 32GB, but that's the limit. (It's also very interesting that Apple isn't trying to palm you off with 8GB – I have views on that too!!)

In other words, I'm feeling a lot like the new iMacs – though very capable machines – are a big middle finger at Apple's traditional creator base.

It looks like Apple feel they have to keep making an iMac – perhaps they feel they must because Steve Jobs did – and so they target the 'bottom left' of his original consumer/pro desktop/laptop matrix (see video below) without thinking: "Do any consumers actually want or need a desktop unless they're taking things seriously?"

In other words, are Apple just making work for themselves with the iMac? Okay, perhaps not, there are plenty of possible customers – even just to have an aesthetically pleasing device in a field location for retailers and museums – but the 27-inch iMac did something else. It provided a decent amount of power and – crucially – a great display in a beautiful case.

The case for this with the smaller display is pretty thin – the $1,899 top spec iMac still only has 24GB "Unified Memory" and a 512GB SSD storage (or $2099 if you order 32GB specially). That's only 8GB or 16GB more unified memory and the same storage as you'd get with a MacBook Air 15-inch – a computer which is $200 less AND you can move around!

If you want something to edit like a pro, you'll need to provide your own display which, sadly, isn't as aesthetically pleasing. Though it might actually cost you less if you're prepared to tolerate an old 4K display. The tiny new Mac Mini M4 starts at $599 and gets to $999 with 24GB/512GB.

Now I still struggle to believe Apple feels this is a high-end spec in any category, but there is also an M4 Pro version or $1,399 if it's more processor cores you want (actually that's beating the iMac on power).

Of course, an issue with the Mini is that you don't even get a keyboard and Apple's own accessories are, frankly, immorally priced! The rule is tolerate non-Apple gear or face a steep price jump! Apple's 5K 'Retina' displays start at $1,599, by the way, so you can see why choosing any of the best 4K monitors will likely save you some cash!

The point is, this all just makes me really sad – I said goodbye to a computer I loved and a screen I did great work on and rather than the joy of a replacement I now have an ugly monitor to plug into a laptop.

I know Apple has indicated there is no likely replacement for the 27-inch iMac. There was an iMac 'Pro' too – what felt like an attempt to push the price point up for users on the cusp of premium like me, and I'd warrant a lot of photographers, for who screen real estate matters a lot, and power quite a bit (but slightly less than, say, a 3D rendering engineer).

It all feels like Apple want to categorise all serious pros in a $4,000 minimum spender zone when it comes to computers (if you're including monitors, keyboards and mice – which I'd argue are still reasonably essential) and I'm not sure the M4 is that far ahead!

More fool them – the upshot is that I now need one fewer Apple product (though admittedly am placing a bit more faith in a laptop, insurance, the best external SSD, and the cloud it it all goes wrong!)

If you're feeling uncertain, check our guides to the best MacBooks for photo editing and the best desktop computer for photo editing.

Apple has unveiled its new iMac complete with a fresh M4 chip. The new all-in-one desktop computer comes complete with a new glass textured Retina display, a thin sleek design, and a host of new features including Apple intelligence – Apple's long-awaited AI update!

The Apple iMac computer has been a staple of the brand since 1998 and has been a favorite choice for creatives in search of the best desktop for photo and video editing. Although it seemed to be losing popularity in recent years, the introduction of the powerful new M4 chip brings with it features that aim to revitalize the iMac and speed up workflow.

The M4 chip facilitates a strong boost in performance with Apple claiming the much-improved CPU to house the 'world's fastest' CPU core, providing up to 1.7x faster processing than the iMac with M1.

The M4 has been designed to handle extensive workloads in various areas, including gaming, which now offers 2x faster frame rates, as well as video and photo editing.

Apple states, "Content creators can edit like never before, with up to 2.1x faster photo and video editing performance when applying complex filters and effects in apps like Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro compared to iMac with M1".

The more AI tools that are added to editing software, such as Adobe's Generative Fill, require a higher level of processing power to produce quick results, so more power is needed to keep up. Improvements in the M4 chip's processing speeds should improve workflow speeds – a blessing for any creative!

The M4's Neural Engine, Apple's term for 16 AI-dedicated processor cores on the chip that accelerate machine learning tasks for Apple devices, is now over 3x faster than on the iMac with M1. This is to provide fast and efficient AI assistance with Apple Intelligence features first announced at WWDC in June. (This speed boost is from the same number of NE cores at the M1.)

With Apple Intelligence, Apple introduces a brand new AI experience to macOS, providing new ways for users to 'work, communicate, and express themselves on Mac'. These new additions include new Writing Tools that aid in refining, summarizing, and proofreading text that aim to speed up workflow so users can get back to the more important tasks.

AI features continue with integrated Chat GPT (if the user chooses it), Image Playground (a limited AI image generator), privacy protection, and a new and improved Siri model that is even more 'capable'. The new Siri can learn the user's "personal context" to deliver more tailored intelligence and automated responses.

As the iMac M4 is an all-in-one computer, the screen plays a large role in the performance, especially for video and photo editing. While only available in 24-inch (the old 27-inch variant that would often be the top choice for photographers didn't survive into the M-processor era), the new M4 version still manages a 4,480 x 2,520 4.5K Retina display and now buyers have the option for a nano-texture glass

The Nano-texture glass (also available on the new iPad Pro, the device in which the M4 chip debuted) is an option that drastically reduces reflections and glare while maintaining outstanding image quality. This allows the iMac to be placed in more locations without needing to draw the curtains and block out daylight – but will set you back an extra $200/£200.

The in-built camera has also seen an upgrade. The new 12MP Centre Stage camera keeps the subject in the center of the screen at all times, even with multiple subjects in the frame. The camera also supports Desk View, utilizing the wide-angle camera to provide a top-down view of your desk. This is useful for educators and content creators to show off what they are working on without an overhead rig system.

Other notable features include all four USB-C ports supporting Thunderbolt 4 for superfast data transfers (except on the base model, which is limited to 2).

All come with MacOS Sequoia, and is available in seven "vibrant" colors – each with matching accessories – green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue, and silver. Memory options start at 16GB of faster-unified memory, configurable via 24GB up to 32GB.

Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering John Ternus says, "iMac is beloved by millions of users, from families at home to entrepreneurs hard at work. With the incredible features of Apple Intelligence and the powerful performance of Apple silicon, the new iMac changes the game once again. With M4 and Apple Intelligence, gorgeous new colors that pop in any space, an advanced 12MP Centre Stage camera, and a new nano-texture glass display option, it’s a whole new era for iMac."

The new iMac M4 is available to preorder today with availability beginning November 8, 2024. The cost starts at $1,299 / £1,299 / AU $1,999 rising depending on additional extras.

The Pencil Pro is the latest iPad-compatible stylus in the Apple Pencil line. It joins the Apple Pencil (second generation), the Apple Pencil (first generation), and the cheaper Apple Pencil USB-C. All four pencils enable you to draw, tap, and swipe on your iPad screen as a more accurate alternative to using your finger. Many people find that a stylus provides a more ergonomic and intuitive way to interact with an iPad’s touch-sensitive screen, especially in relation to drawing or using brush-based tools to retouch a picture.

The Pencil USB-C is the cheapest and most basic model. It requires charging via USB-C, while the latter two models charge as they magnetically clamp to your iPad. The original first-generation model charges via a Lightning connection. The second-generation pencil has tilt and pressure sensitivity so you can write and draw naturally and the new Pencil Pro adds additional features such as the ability to roll your brush as well as tilt it.

As you’d expect, the Pencil Pro also has other unique tricks up its sleeve as we’ll explain. The Pencil Pro is compatible with iPad Pro 13-inch (M4), iPad Pro 11-inch (M4) iPad Air 13-inch (M2), and iPad Air 11-inch (M2). The Pencil Pro was released with the M4-powered iPad Pro and I was lucky enough to borrow both to test out for this review.

Apple Pencil Pro: Specifications

Apple Pencil Pro: Design & Handling

Apple hasn’t reinvented the wheel with the look of the Pencil Pro. Like its three predecessors, it’s still a pencil-shaped stylus that you hold like a pencil or a paintbrush, with the iPad screen being your canvas. The first-generation pencil was round and smooth so it would roll off a desk. The Pencil Pro shares the flattened edge introduced in the second-generation model, which stops the pencil rolling. This flat edge also enables you to magnetically attach the Pencil Pro to the top of your iPad where it’s close at hand.

While docked on your iPad the Pencil Pro is wirelessly charged, so it shouldn’t run out of power during a job. This is a nice design touch. We found that the magnetic connection was nice and strong, though if the Pencil Pro does become dislodged you can hunt it down using Apple’s Find My app.

One welcome new design feature is the ability to squeeze near the tip of the Pencil Pro to activate a variety of commands such as popping up a palette to enable you to switch tools for example. This ‘squeezeabilty’ means that the smooth surface of the pencil isn’t interrupted by buttons like you’d find in some third-party styluses.

Apple Pencil Pro: Performance

I’ve been an iPad owner for years, though I’ve not used an Apple Pencil before. I did however have an old Wacom Art Pad tablet that I plugged into my iMac, so I was familiar with using a stylus as a more ergonomic and intuitive way to draw in various apps or dodge and burn in Lightroom. When I used my old Wacom’s stylus to draw on its tablet that movement was translated to the cursor on my iMac’s screen. This put a distance between me and my onscreen work. By drawing with the Pencil Pro directly on the iPad Pro’s display the interaction was immediate, like drawing with a pencil on paper.

The Pencil Pro does much more than being an alternative to a mouse or a trackpad. The iPad Pro can sense the angle of the Pencil Pro which alters the shape of the brush strokes in a natural way. Older Apple Pencils can adjust the tilt and pressure being applied (which changes brush stokes organically), but the Pencil Pro has a unique gyroscope that lets you rotate (or barrel roll) the pencil to adjust the brush stroke that you’re producing in a more realistic way. When you tilt and roll the Pencil Pro in an app such as Pages you’ll see the onscreen brush tip change shape according to how you’re holding the pencil. This lets you preview if you’ll produce a thin or thick stroke for example. Another clever feature is the appearance of a computer-generated shadow of the stylus which changes according to the angle of the Pencil Pro. This virtual shadow is a clever combination of hardware and software wizardry, but I’m not sure how useful it is in practice.

I also enjoyed the way I could perform commands (such as jumping between a brush and an eraser) by double-tapping the Pencil Pro’s side or squeezing its tip. Unlike a real pencil or brush, I could interact with the iPad’s screen by simply hovering the pencil’s tip near it. You can also customize the shortcuts produced by a double tap or a squeeze in the Apple Pencil Settings menu which is very handy. For example, you can use a squeeze to show ink attributes or between the current tool and the last used. A haptic throb also helps confirm that the Pencil Pro has responded to your double tap or squeeze (and you can toggle this feedback on or off in Settings).

I found the Pencil Pro very useful when doodling in Pages, and in Scribble mode it could turn my atrocious handwriting into legible text in the Pages document. However, it takes me much longer to write with a pencil than it does to type (even when using two fingers!) So this scribble-to-text feature is not something I’d use.

I also tested the Pencil Pro in Final Cut Pro which is an app I use on a daily basis. Here I found the Pencil Pro of less use than it was in Apple's Pages app. In Final Cut Pro I couldn’t see the onscreen preview of the Pencil Pro’s angle or its rotation, but to be fair that would only be useful when drawing. Nor could I see the animated shadow graphic that was visible when using a pen tool in Pages.

I could use the Pencil Pro in Final Cut Pro to select and re-order clips in the timeline and trim them by dragging the trim handle. A long press of the Pencil Pro’s nib summoned a pop-up menu that enabled me to detach a selected clip’s audio track which was handy for performing split sound edits. I could also use the pop-up menu to cut a clip at the playhead. This would be useful if I was using the iPad on its own, but as I had it docked in a Magic Keyboard I was able to summon the same pop-up menu with a double click on the keyboard’s trackpad.

So I enjoyed using the Pencil Pro for the purposes of this review, but now that I’ve returned it to Apple I don’t feel compelled to purchase a replacement. However, I do miss that iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard though!

Apple Pencil Pro: Verdict

Thanks to unique features such as its built-in gyroscope the Pencil Pro enables you to change a brush stroke as you rotate the device (as well as responding to the angle of tilt and the pressure on the nib). This will make it an attractive purchase for artists who use the iPad as their digital canvas and need a tool that behaves like a real-world brush. Photo retouchers should also enjoy tweaking images in Lightroom with much more precise control than they’d get by swiping their finger on the iPad’s display. By being able to fine-tune the Pencil Pro’s behaviour using squeezes and taps this frees you up from the need of a keyboard, allowing you to work quickly and intuitively.

Alternatives

Tablets sit in a strange place these days and have lost the explosive growth they saw in their early days. But this hasn’t stopped computer manufacturers from producing ultra-portable and lightweight hybrid tablets and laptops with Microsoft leading the way with its Surface line.

The Asus ProArt PZ13 is a direct competitor aimed at creatives on the go, offering a fantastic OLED screen alongside AI-powered processing. It’s undoubtedly a powerful device considering its impressively svelte and lightweight design, but it offers nowhere near the power of the Asus ProArt PX13 and the Asus ProArt P16.

That said, it is a Copilot+ PC for creatives who need a small and lightweight device for photo and video editing on the go. The PZ13 offers the form and function of a tablet alongside the convenience of a laptop with the processing power required for general editing tasks.

The small screen and lack of compatibility with some creative software such as Adobe Lightroom Classic are frustrating, although Lightroom CC and Photoshop are compatible, do reduce its useability. But to be fair you can get most of the tasks you need completed with the PZ13.

I love small and portable devices, including cameras, for obvious reasons. In most cases, you do have to make a handful of concessions because, with a smaller size, limitations of one kind or another are inevitable. The PZ13 makes up for this with a comfortable-to-use detachable keyboard and the Asus Pen that allows you to use it as a pen display/graphics tablet.

Asus ProArt PZ13: Specifications

Asus ProArt PZ13: Price

The Asus ProArt PZ13 is available to buy now, and although the marketing says up to 16GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage, this is the standard spec available at the time of writing. A lower spec in these regards would be debilitating for creatives so it would be surprising if lower-end models are released.

The PZ13 costs $1100 / £1200 and is also a whisker less expensive than the Surface Pro, Copilot+ PC (11th Edition), which is the closest Surface model available and direct competitor. This suggests the PZ13 is well priced when you consider that the Surface is the 2-in-1 market leader. Plus, the build quality and overall performance of the PZ13 that’s on offer, which we’ll cover in more detail later, can’t be faulted.

Asus ProArt PZ13: Design & Handling

I have to confess that I’ve always had a soft spot for 2-in-1 laptops/tablets, mostly down to their compact size and lightweight which make them the most capable balance between these two types of devices. I also have to admit that I don’t own one, simply because I prefer the processing power available with more traditional laptops, at the expense of portability in comparative terms.

The PX13’s footprint is similar to a sheet of A4 paper and is 0.35in / 90mm thick with a weight of just 0.85kg / 1.87 lbs. It’s undoubtedly small and portable, but the build quality like all of the ProArt range oozes quality. Asus claims it can perform in extreme environments up to 70°C and as low as -30°C, and has been tested against all sorts of situations most people wouldn’t subject a device to.

It’s also rated against water and dust ingress to IP52, so with all this in mind you should be able to use the PZ13 pretty much anywhere and in most weather conditions. The weak point would have to be the screen in the case of a drop, but the included detachable keyboard and rear stand that act as a case might provide some protection here.

The Asus Pen can be stowed in the rear part of the case, which doesn’t magnetically latch onto the PZ13 quite as well as you’d hope when in stand mode, but it works. The Asus Pen works well in place of a mouse and comes into its own for photo and illustration software where the PZ13 is transformed into a pen display. In tablet mode, you have no physical keyboard, but if the keyboard is attached you can lay the screen and the keyboard flat to use keyboard shortcuts or use the rear stand.

The keyboard itself is comfortable to use, but not so much so that you’d want to use it all day for typing, just like any keyboard of this type. The size of the keys is good, although the Shift and Control keys are small like the other ProArt laptops. There’s also backlighting, which is a great feature for typing in low-light or dark environments.

The main downside to the PZ13 is the lack of ports, which to be fair is unsurprising given the small size of the device. What you do get are two USB 4.0 Gen 3 Type-C that support power delivery and display, alongside an SD card reader. Yes, you read that correctly, the PZ13 has an SD rather than a microSD card slot. You even get a microSD adaptor in the box.

This means that you’ll have to use a USB hub if you need to attach any USB-A devices, or a USB-C hub if you need to attach more than two USB devices or more than one if you’re charging or running from power. This isn’t out of the ordinary for this type of 2-in-1 and is essentially what you sign up for when you purchase one.

There are front and rear-facing cameras with the front 5MP /1440p camera aimed at video streaming / video calls and Windows Hello face recognition. Image quality is fine for these purposes but not great for taking photos, as you might expect. The rear camera is 13MP and can capture video in 4K. Quality is much better as you’d expect, but JPEG processing is heavy on both, especially in low-light situations.

Asus ProArt PZ13: Performance

For general tasks such as web browsing, typing, and watching movies, the PZ13 sails through these and the ability to use it in tablet mode makes the latter a clutter-free experience. When it comes to editing photos and videos, it has the power required but with only 16GB RAM and no discreet GPU, it’s not going to blow you away. It’s capable, but certainly not commanding in this respect.

Capable is good though, don’t get me wrong, and the Snapdragon X Plus X1P 42 100 Processor with AI capabilities does a stellar job in most situations. Using Photoshop and Lightroom CC, since Lightroom Classic is incompatible, I was able to do everything I needed to in terms of photo editing but more intensive processing tasks require patience. For example, applying Super Resolution in Adobe Camera Raw, where file size is quadrupled, took a whopping three minutes and 34 seconds.

The overall size of the PZ13 means that it’s not a device I’d want to use all day every day as my main computer, but on the go, it can get the job done. Running Davinci Resolve 19 (Windows ARM 64 version), The PZ13 was able to run the software, which is optimized for this type of device, although it’s much slower than a more powerful laptop. Outputting a 10-minute 4K video at best quality settings took 43 minutes, which is a long time.

The PZ13 was also tested with Geekbench and Cinebench, although the latter was unable to perform tests because the Snapdragon X Plus CPU doesn’t have AVX2 instruction support. For Geekbench, however, it scored 2369 for single core, 11218 for multi-core, and 9598 for graphics. It’s middle of the road, but not a bad score when you consider just how small and thin the PZ13 is, and how tightly packed the components are.

The 3K (2880 x 1800) 13.3-inch OLED touchscreen is small yet sufficient for a device of this type, but the on-screen image is fantastic. Asus claims it can display 100% of the P3 color space, and when calibrated using a Spyder XPro it was displaying 97% P3, 95% Adobe RGB 1998, and 99% sRGB, which is good enough for color-critical work. And as an end note, the sound quality is absolutely fine but not as good as the ProArt P16.

Asus ProArt PZ13: Verdict

The Asus ProArt PZ13 is never going to be your everyday computer if you’re a creative, simply because it lacks the processing power that’s currently available in higher-spec machines. More intensive tasks require time and patience because processing times certainly aren’t short, but what you might call standard laptop tasks are fine.

The thing with this device is that it’s not designed to be a main computer; it’s small, lightweight, and highly portable which brings with it compromises in terms of processing capabilities. But for general photo editing tasks in Photoshop and Lightroom CC, it performs adequately and the Asus Pen allows it to be used as a pen display for more precise editing.

Alternatives

Laptops have come a long way in recent years and can, in some cases, rival the processing power of desktops. Not to mention, thanks to advances in screen technology, wide-gamut OLED screens with HDR are becoming the norm at the upper end of the market. 

The Asus ProArt P16 is one such example, offering creative Windows users the high-end processing power they need and making it one of the best laptops for photo editing. Videographers, illustrators and graphic designers etc. will also benefit from the P16 thanks to the Asus Dial and the Asus Pen, although this is a standard laptop rather than a convertible like the Asus ProArt PX13.

Being a standard laptop means that the keyboard remains functional when using the Asus Pen rather than switching off when a convertible is flipped into tablet mode. I prefer full keyboard access when using laptops as pen displays because it's extremely useful for accessing keyboard shortcuts while also enjoying precise direct adjustments.

Asus is best-known in the gaming world, but many of the specs required for gaming are identical to those for creative use, so the ProArt series is a natural fit. Creative laptops require a wider gamut and generally higher-quality screens than gaming laptops, although these are becoming the norm in both fields as screen technology improves at a rapid pace.

Asus ProArt P16: Specifications

Asus ProArt P16: Price

The Asus ProArt P16 is a high-end laptop with a price to match, but also one that's positioned correctly considering the specs on offer. UK and US prices do, however, vary wildly with US customers getting a much better deal overall. The 1TB SSD version with 32GB RAM costs £2600 / $1900, while the 2TB version with 64GB RAM costs £2900 / $2700.

Although pricing is in line with other laptops when considering specs, this is still a lot of money and will make the P16 more attractive to professional users. But the desktop-like spec would provide longevity for anyone whose budget stretches this far. 

Whether or not you need the processing power available is something only you can decide; if you could settle for an AMD Ryzen 7 CPU, 32GB RAM, and a lower spec Nvidia 4060 GPU while still enjoying an OLED screen with an alternative manufacturer, you could pay a lot less for what would still be a powerful laptop.

Asus ProArt P16: Design & Handling

The P16 may be a 16-inch laptop, but it's far from being a beast in terms of size and weight. When closed, it's extremely svelte, and with a weight of just 1.85kg / 4.08lbs, it's lightweight for its size. Many competitors weigh in at just over 2kg / 4.4lbs, so although that's not much more it still makes the P16 more comfortable to carry around for long periods. Which is often, exactly why we buy these types of computers.

With an all-aluminum textured chassis in nano black, including the outer shell and the keyboard bed, the P16 is undoubtedly built to a high standard. The coating of the body is claimed to resist smudges and fingerprints and it looks great, but it does indeed pick up fingerprints and smudges more than the 13-inch ProArt PX13 that's made of the same material. Perhaps this is the result of having to grasp the larger and heavier model more firmly.

Asus claims the P16 exceeds the MIL-STD 810H military standard for durability and has been tested for sand, dust, and humidity resistance. This wasn't tested, but if true it's fantastic for creative use in well, practically any location, which will be useful for location photographers and videographers. 

The speakers provide decent sound quality for a laptop, but considering their size and being top-mounted, this has made the outer keyboard keys smaller than they could have been with narrower or even bottom-mounted speakers. But typing is still comfortable with no flex in the metal keyboard bed.

To be fair, it's only the Shift and Ctrl keys that are smaller than would be desirable. But for creative users who frequently use these two modifier keys, it's perhaps an all too obvious oversight for a creative laptop. The omission of the right Windows key in favor of a Windows Copilot key is a frustrating waste of a key if you, like me, have no intention of using this Windows feature.

When it comes to ports, you get 2x USB-A, 2x USB-C, 1x HDMI, 1x DC-in, 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack and an SD card reader. The latter is always welcome on any computer because you can always use a microSD adaptor to download data from these cards, but you can’t do it the other way around and SD cards remain much more commonly used.

Asus ProArt P16: Performance

With an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 2.0GHz with AI-enhanced efficiency when using AI-powered software features, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 8GB GDDR6 discreet GPU, 64GB of DDR5 RAM and a 2TB SSD, the P16 was able to crunch through all tasks thrown at it with ease. Of course, the SSD isn’t as loaded as the SSD on my laptop, so the PX16 will naturally run more smoothly, but the processing power on hand can’t be faulted.

To test this, I processed several images in Lightroom and Photoshop, alongside performing some basic video editing and exporting in Davinci Resolve. All three are extremely resource-hungry, but the P16 opened the software extremely quickly and sailed through all tests with ease.

To provide a little perspective with some resource-heavy Lightroom tasks using 24MP Raw files, a five-exposure HDR preview image was rendered in four seconds while the merge itself took 11 seconds. Super Resolution, where Raw file sizes are quadrupled took 22 seconds. These are far from controlled scientific tests but they do provide a real-world example of processing speed.

A feature that's useful for all of the software tested is the Asus Dial which provides control like an external dial controller but is built into the trackpad. It can be switched on and off as required and can be configured in terms of the functions accessed, although these are limited to a list of available options.

When it comes to battery life, I managed to get a full day out of the P16 when performing a variety of different tasks in Standard mode where the P16 switches between the integrated and discreet GPUs depending on the task in hand. Eco mode uses only the integrated GPU, while in Optimized mode the P16 behaves like Standard mode except for when on battery power where it switches off the discreet GPU and uses the integrated. The idea here is to extend battery life.

The 16-inch 4K (3840x2400) OLED touchscreen is a pure delight to use, providing beautifully sharp detail alongside deep blacks and bright yet realistic colors. Asus claims the P16 can display 100% of the P3 color space, and when calibrated using a Spyder X Pro it was displaying 97% P3, 97% Adobe RGB 1998, and 100% RGB. This is close to the claim and up there with some of the best wide-gamut standalone monitors.

Asus ProArt P16: Verdict

The Asus ProArt P16 is a stunning laptop to use with fantastic performance across the board. The build quality is excellent with the P16 having a distinctly premium look and feel. What I like about it, alongside these points, is the fact that it's thin, fairly compact and lightweight for a 16-inch laptop, so it's not uncomfortable to carry around. 

The screen is fantastic with a bold on-screen image that's packed with detail. And although the gamut of the screen isn’t quite what Asus claims, it's not far off and is perfect for colour-critical creative work. My main gripe with the P16 is the small Shift and Control keys, which are both commonly used modifier keys for creative software, but this certainly isn’t a dealbreaker. 

Alternatives

There was a time, not so long ago when many people were saying that the popularity of tablets signaled the demise of the personal computer. I never agreed with this idea, and not to be smug, I was right. 

The Asus ProArt PX13 puts a foot firmly in each camp being a convertible laptop with laptop, tablet tent, and stand modes, and is one of the best laptops for photo editing. What's most useful about this laptop, alongside the versatility it provides, is the sheer amount of processing power available and the fantastic 13.3-inch 3K OLED touchscreen. This is a small and lightweight laptop.

Asus is well-known for producing high-end Windows PCs, particularly gaming PCs, but also in the creative world with its ProArt series of laptops. These are aimed at all types of creatives including photographers, designers, digital artists, and videographers where the processing power and features, including the Asus Dial and the ASUS Pen, provide an enticing package. 

It's these two features that make the ProArt PX13 stand out and they're incredibly useful. For photographers and videographers, the Asus Dial, which is integrated into the trackpad, works like an external dial controller for making adjustments. The Asus Pen is perfect for digital artists and photographers because it transforms the laptop into a pen display/graphics tablet.

Asus ProArt PX13: Specifications

Asus ProArt PX13: Price

The Asus ProArt PX13 is available in two slightly different flavors, quite simply that the most expensive model comes loaded with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 discreet graphics card and a 2TB SSD, while the slightly more affordable model is packed with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 and a 1TB SDD. 

Both are fantastic GPUs, but the 4070 is undoubtedly the better model. Probably not $/£500 better though, even with the extra TB of storage, so this is something to consider. These are powerful laptops aimed at creatives with the power required to run hardware-hungry photography and video editing software. 

So, although there are highly capable laptops available for creatives at a lower price, with a slightly lower spec, the ProArt PX13 models are high-end 2-in-1 laptops. As the adage goes, you get what you pay for, and these laptops are stunning if your budget allows.

Asus ProArt PX13: Design & Handling

The ProArt PX13 is a high-quality laptop with an all-aluminum textured chassis in nano black. I'm not talking about just the outer shell, even the keyboard bed, which exhibits no flex and contributes to the overall positive typing experience. The coating of the body is claimed to resist smudges and fingerprints, maybe it does help, but the ProArt PX13 does succumb to these like any black laptop.

It still looks fantastic, and although it sounds a bit weird, it is a good-looking laptop. It's also compact and lightweight at just 1.38kg / 3.04lbs making it perfect for creatives on the go. This size, however, does mean it's on the small side as a main computer and an external keyboard and monitor would be beneficial if using it for this purpose.

Asus says that the ProArt PX13 exceeds the MIL-STD 810H military standard for durability and reliability and has been successfully tested for sand, dust, and humidity resistance. While this hasn’t been tested, it's an attractive selling point for a 13-inch laptop that's designed for use on the go – for use on location and as this suggests, almost any location.

Moving on to the backlit keyboard, this is small being a 13-inch laptop. But the QWERTY keys are full-size and comfortable to use, although the surrounding keys are cramped and it's easy to accidentally hit some of these when typing. There's also a dedicated Windows Copilot key which fits in with the AI element of the processor, but it's a waste of a key in my opinion, especially if you're not interested in using this operating system feature.

Keyboard backlighting can be set to three levels as well as off; a nice-to-have feature is that when watching full-screen videos in laptop mode, the backlighting fades off during viewing to eliminate the distraction. Moving onto ports, you get pretty much everything you need here including 1x USB-A, 2x USB-C, 1x HDMI (full size), 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack, and a MicroSD card reader. An SD card reader would be much more useful since these are more widely used in cameras.

Asus ProArt PX13: Performance

With an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 2.0GHz, which is claimed to deliver AI-enhanced efficiency when using AI-powered software features, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 8GB GDDR6 discreet GPU, 32GB of DDR5 RAM and 2TB SSD, the ProArt PX13 provides processing power that belies its compact size. Gone are the days when compact laptops were only good for web browsing and word processing; the ProArt PX13 can handle demanding creative software without skipping a beat.

This specification is perfect for running software including the Adobe Creative Suite and Davinci Resolve etc. When running a few tests in Lightroom, it cut through demanding tasks with ease, taking 18 secs to apply Super Resolution to a 42MP Raw file and 19 secs to merge a five-exposure HDR image made up of five 61MP Raw files. Other editing tests across Photoshop and Davinci Resolve were equally fast and smooth.

On paper, the ProArt PX13 could handle gaming with ease, although the 60 Hz refresh rate while perfectly adequate for creative use, is on the slow side for gaming, although certainly not unusable. In use, the screen 13.3-inch is small but comfortable to use and presents no issues. Asus recommends that UI magnification be set to 250%, but I found 200% is much better for creative software.

At 3K (2880 x 1800), the OLED touchscreen is crisp and clear, producing a punchy on-screen image with deep blacks, great contrast, and pleasing colors. Asus claims the ProArt PX13 can display 100% of the P3 color space, and when calibrated using a Spyder XPro it was displaying 97% P3, 96% Adobe RGB 1998, and 100% RGB, which is perfect for color-sensitive work. 

When using a laptop, the trackpad is always an important element of the device as a whole, and the size here is comfortable and you get a positive click with no sponginess. It accepts multi-gesture and is home to the Asus Dial. This works like an external dial controller but is beveled on the trackpad for finger control and is used for making adjustments. It can and can be configured to your liking with a list of adjustment options for the creative software you have installed, but you can only select the controls/adjustments in this list.

It takes a little getting used to the Asus Dial and Control Panel, and it won’t appeal to everyone, but it does work as well as intended without the need for an external device. It's switched off by default and can be easily switched on with a specific trackpad gesture. The Asus Pen works similarly well, but when in tablet and tent modes you lose the use of the keyboard, so one way around this is to lay the screen flat to use both together.

Asus ProArt PX13: Verdict

The Asus ProArt PX 13 is easily the best 13-inch laptop I've used, offering excellent overall performance in a highly portable and versatile convertible laptop. The laptop handled everything I threw at it with ease and the fact that it's so small and lightweight makes it a great option for creatives on the go. The screen is fantastic with a bold on-screen image exhibiting reliable colours. It can display 97% P3, 96% Adobe RGB 1998, and 100% RGB, which is up there with the best laptops for creative use.

The ProArt PX 13 is aimed at creatives, and Asus has hit the nail on the head for those who need a powerful machine they can rely on at home, in the office, or on location. The only real negative is the slightly cramped keyboard when typing where some of the keys surrounding the QWERTY keys can be accidentally pressed. It's not a dealbreaker, but something to consider if you type a lot.

Alternatives

ASUS has revealed a new range of ProArt laptops at Computex 2024. The ProArt range is targeted at photographers, videographers and digital artists and features high-end components designed to make light work of even the most demanding workloads.

The newly-launched ProArt models feature Copilot - Microsoft's AI conversational assistant that helps you search, perform tasks, generate text and create images based on written or spoken ideas. ASUS also includes creator-focussed AI apps like StoryCube: a smart asset-management app loaded with AI assistance to help with scene organisation and clip generation. The included MuseTree app lets you generate more creativity through simple graphical interactions, while intelligently storing and managing ideas at all times. The new laptops feature a dedicated Copilot key for quick access to the everyday AI companion.

Read more:
The best laptops for video editing
The 'era of the AI PC' is here
Asus ProArt Studiobook 16 OLED review

ASUS ProArt P16

The largest new ProArt laptop is the 16-inch ProArt P16. It's powered by AMD's latest Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor which includes an NPU (neural processing unit) capable of 50 TOPS (TOPS, an acronym for 'trillion operations per second', is a measurement of integer maths performance; the background processing behind AI algorithms like Copilot. A nVidia GeForce RTX 4070 GPU takes care of the ProArt P16's graphical processing, itself capable of a TOPS score of 321. This makes the ProArt P16 the first AI PC of its kind built for advanced AI workflows across creativity, gaming and productivity, while also offering faster performance with apps like DaVinci Resolve and Adobe Premiere Pro.

ASUS ProArt PX13

For those that prefer a slightly more portable laptop, there's the 1.38 kg 13-inch ProArt PX13. This is a convertible/2-in-1 laptop with a 360° hinge that allows seamless flipping between laptop, tent, stand or tablet modes. The PX13 boasts a top-end Lumina OLED display capable of 100% DCI-P3 color coverage, a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, HDR with up to 600 nits of peak brightness, and an impressive Delta E <1 colour accuracy. Processing power again comes from the same AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor / GeForce RTX 4070 GPU combo as in the larger ProArt P16, giving the ProArt PX13 comparable AI processing performance to its larger sibling. ASUS has also included cutting-edge connectivity like Wi-Fi 7, twin USB4 ports and a handy UHS-II micro SD card reader.

ASUS ProArt PZ13

Lastly is the ultra-compact and ultra-portable ProArt PZ13 detachable laptop. Weighing only 0.85kg, it gets the same 3K Lumina display as the ProArt PX13, but here it can be magnetically detached from the keyboard to become a standalone tablet. It also packs a microSD slot and Copilot+ AI capability courtesy of its AI-enabled Snapdragon processor, while featuring a large 70WH battery and IP52-rated dust and water resistance.

All ProArt laptops come with a free three-month Adobe Creative Suite subscription, as well as a free six-month CapCut membership - a video editing program from the company behind TikTok. The membership gives access to premium features and thousands of assets, magical AI tools, and a stock library.

The ProArt P16, PX13 and PZ13 are available to pre-order now, priced from $1,899.99/£2,599, $1,699.99/£1,999, and £1,199, respectively.

Apple makes MacBooks in two sub-ranges. Apple would probably prefer to put it differently, but you could say the MacBook Air range is designed for portability ahead of performance, while the MacBook Pro is all about performance, even if it means a slightly bigger machine. What confuses things is that the latest MacBook Airs are very fast, and the latest MacBook Pros are very light.

It's hard enough already to choose the best laptop for photo editing, without Apple itself offering so many choices!

So what are we to make of the MacBook Air 15-inch M3? On the face of it, you’re getting a super-slim premium quality laptop with a bigger screen than the baseline MacBook Air 13-inch M3 model (bigger even than the regular MacBook Pro 14-inch), the latest M3 processor, a 10-core CPU as standard and a 6-speaker audio system. Best of all, the price is well below that of the baseline 14-inch MacBook Pro and not a whole lot more than the 13-inch MacBook Air. On paper, the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 looks very, very tempting.

The devil, of course, is in the detail. If you're trying to work out which is the best MacBook for photo editing in 2024, there's a lot to think about. As ever with Apple, the base models have very modest RAM and storage which you will probably want to upgrade, and that really bumps up the price. We’ll talk about that more below, but first the specs.

Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 (2024): specifications

Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 (2024): price

The MacBook Air 15-inch M3 starts at $1,299 / £1,299, which seems a great price for a 15-inch laptop with this level of performance and a 15-inch Liquid Retina screen. But that’s for a baseline spec which might be fine for browsing, emails, presentations and a bit of dabbling in Apple Photos, but for any kind of serious creative work it doesn’t look enough.

So for a start you might want to bump up the RAM to 16GB (another $200 / £200) to allow for memory-gobbling photo end video editors, and the internal storage from 256GB to 512GB (another $200 / £200). 256GB storage will get you started, but it’s not long before it gets swallowed up by caches, libraries and other system overheads.

With 16GB RAM and a (still modest) 512GB storage, the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 now costs $1,699 / £1,699, but now at least you’ve got a machine with serious processing power and a more balanced blend of RAM and storage to go with it.

If you do the same calculations with the MacBook Air 15-inch M3, it comes out at $1,499 / £1,499, so there is always that $200 / £200 price differential. What you get for the extra money with the 15-inch version, though, is not just the larger screen, but a 6-speaker system (as opposed to a 4-speaker set-up) and a 10-core GPU as standard rather than as an upgrade.

Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 (2024): key features

This is not the first 15-inch MacBook Air. In 2023 we got the MacBook Air 15-inch M2, so this just looks like a refresh with the latest M3 processor. Amongst other improvements, the M3 boasts a ‘next generation’ GPU with dynamic caching for improved performance. However, Apple’s online performance comparisons don’t include the M2 generation – it prefers to contrast the latest M3 performance with older M1 models or even Intel Macs. We have been told that Apple doesn’t expect M2 owners to upgrade, more M1 or Intel MacBook users.

What complicates things is Apple’s ‘Pro’ and ‘Max’ variants. The MacBook Air 15-inch M3 just has a regular M3 chip, while the latest M3 MacBook Pros have more powerful variants. So is a ‘vanilla’ M3 better than an M2 Pro or an M1 Max? When you combine Apple’s often rather selective comparisons with these multiple permutations… well, you get the maze of possibilities that can paralyze any Mac buying decision.

Let’s put that aside. Even with a ‘regular’ M3 processor, the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 is blazingly fast. It’s hard to imagine any stills photographer needing more power than this, and if you are a professional video producer handling multi-track, multi-cam 4K, 6K or 8K, then you should be looking at a specced-up MacBook Pro (at the very least) or a desktop workstation. 

What else have we got? Well, the 15-inch screen is not unusual in a laptop, but the resolution is, together with the real-world display quality. It is pretty exceptional. The 6-speaker audio system is pretty formidable, and the keyboard is terrific – and backed up by a big and rather good trackpad.

However, you only get two Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports. No card reader, no HDMI. Of course, you can use dongles and adapters, but that doesn’t mesh too well with Apple’s beautifully clean, minimalist product design. If you are a photographer on the road then you will probably be using one port for an external SSD, the other for a card reader, and unless you get a plug-in hub – yet more clutter – then that’s all your ports used.

Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 (2024): design and handling

The MacBook Air’s key selling point is portability, and this is where the 15-inch version takes a bit of a hit. The larger screen makes it just that little bit wider than the 13-inch version, and it’s just a little thicker to allow for a slightly beefier battery. These things are relative, and the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 is still remarkably svelte for a 15-inch laptop… but one of the key selling points of the Air range over the MacBook Pro range is size and weight, and the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 sails pretty close to the wind here.

But then if you’re looking for the best experience with a portable computer it makes a compelling case. Where else are you going to get a screen this big in a computer this light that can run so long on a single charge? And while the 6-speaker audio won’t match your home cinema setup, it delivers a rich and satisfying sound you wouldn’t expect from a laptop. 

The MacBook Air 15-inch M3 oozes quality. It looks great, it feels great, and it’s great to use. If you’re a Windows fan you will be incandescent with rage at the cost versus the specs, but if that’s how you feel then this computer is not for you. The world is big enough for all of us.

HOWEVER. The notch at the top of the screen is pretty horrible. Yes, phones have notches, but on the short side of the display where you don’t mind so much, but on the long side of the display, as it is on the MacBook Air 15-inch M3, it’s ALWAYS THERE.

The notch appeared in the M2 generation, so it’s not new, and it did ‘disappear’ into a black menu bar when we used Apple Photos, Davinci Resolve and iMovie in full-screen mode, so it’s probably not the end of the world. 

At the same time, though, I do wish Apple would find a way to incorporate a 16:9 ratio display, not the 16:10 ratio of many past MacBooks or whatever the ratio is on this screen (it’s a tad ‘squarer’  than 16:10). Apple has given us the biggest screen for the space available but only at the cost of a non-standard ratio and that ‘notch’.

Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 (2024): performance

The benchmark figures confirm the impression you get from using the MacBook Air 15-inch M3. This is a very fast and powerful laptop. Apple’s own data shows it’s a lot faster than the first-generation M1 MacBooks, but in our table we compare it to M2 MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models, and these are closer. The M3’s single-core scores are definitely better, but the M2 Pro chip still offers superior multi-core and OpenCL performance.

In use, the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 feels fast, fluid and responsive. Occasionally some programs can drag their feet doing who-knows-what, but that’s more to do with the software than the computer. Adobe Lightroom launches in moments and runs beautifully, while native Apple software like Photos and iMovie work brilliantly. You could use the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 for quite serious work with the best video editing software too, whether it’s in Final Cut Pro, Apple’s own pro editor, Adobe Premiere or DaVinci Resolve.

Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 (2024): verdict

The MacBook Air 15-inch M3 is fast, sleek and beautifully made. The screen might not be the even more advanced Liquid Retina XDR (extreme dynamic range) used on MacBook Pros, but it’s so good anyway that you might not notice the difference. The keyboard is excellent and the large touchpad is smooth and responsive. There’s almost nothing to fault.

Except the complex pricing structure, the need for more RAM and storage than the base model supplies, and perhaps the whole idea of a 15-inch screen on a laptop designed for portability. I’ve used a 15-inch MacBook on trains, buses and airplanes and in general the screen is just that little bit too big to fold out properly against the back of the seat in front of you.

If I wanted a powerful, portable desktop replacement I would probably go for a MacBook Pro not an Air. But if I wanted a lightweight and portable type-anywhere laptop to use alongside my desktop workstation, I would choose the 13-inch version over this one. For me, the MacBook Air 15-inch M3 is just a fraction too large and just too basic in its connectivity.

Alternatives

Another spring, another MacBook Air. Apple’s new laptops are now coming like clockwork to align with the Cupertino giant's development and rollout of its latest processors. Do we need a new MacBook Air every single year? I am not sure, but clearly enough people’s wallets are opening to make Apple say yes for now.

With the relatively small time frame since the last model, the latest MacBook Air doesn't have much to make a song and dance about outside of its processor moving from an Apple M2 to an Apple M3 chip, which should in theory offer some increased performance but also some increased endurance, with a more economic use of power. Otherwise, the new model is a clone of what came before, although that might not be an issue, as Apple’s M2 MacBook Air was a fantastic device, and Apple has claimed that the Air is now the “world’s most popular laptop”, so clearly the old ‘if it ain’t broke’ saying comes into play.

However, if all this chip talk is a bit nerdy for anyone who isn’t fascinated by core counts and nanometer manufacturing, the only question worth asking is – is a newly numbered processor actually faster and more efficient at running the creative tasks I need than previous models? 

MacBook Air M3: Specifications

MacBook Air M3: Price

In Apple’s MacBook Air series, the M3 Air starts at only $100 / £100 over the M2 Air (which is staying in the lineup for now). However in the wider market, you can shop around and find regular deals on the M2 Air that bring the cost far below the newer model; and in my opinion, that is very much a deal you should take. The M3 Air does not make enough of a case for itself in terms of increased processing power over the prior model, and if the price is any sort of concern and you can find a deal, then you can absolutely buy the M2 Air instead without any major sacrifices. 

MacBook Air M3: Design & Handling

The newer M3 MacBook Air doesn’t make any changes from the prior model in terms of design, sticking to the same chassis, ports, and screen. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as the MacBook Air is one of the most well-designed laptops around, but it does compound the idea that this new model doesn’t really have much to offer over the previous generation.

This is also the first time that the MacBook Air has been released at the same time in both 13in and 15in sizes. Apart from the increase in screen size, there isn’t much to separate these models however, the biggest differential is the larger laptop managing to squeeze in a slightly more impressive sounding speaker setup. Although the 13-inch model still manages to produce some decent sound for quietly listening to music or editing video.

But as I have already asserted, the MacBook Air is arguably one of the nicest designed laptops you can buy. The wedge shape that was the hallmark of the Air up until the M2 design is long in the rearview mirror, with the more rounded and smooth corners and edges of the M3 MacBook Air being much more pleasant to hold, and much less prone to damage other things in a tightly packed bag. The Air continues to live up to its name, being a very lightweight device, and thin enough to slip into tight gaps in a rucksack. The design is also fanless, which means that the Air is much more comfortable to use on a lap or in bed without superheating its base.

There are the same color options available as last year’s models, although the new Midnight colorway has a new anti-fingerprint coating. I have the Starlight version here, but I tested the Midnight version of the 15in Air last year, and fingerprints were a continual nightmare. However, the new Midnight version uses the same coating as the Black version of the MacBook Pro which I did manage to test a few months ago, and is really effective and keeps grubby marks off the chassis.

The scissor-switch keyboard is a delight to type on, and like the last generation of Air, there is no more Touch Bar. As someone who never used the Touch Bar on their MacBook Pro for anything other than brightness and volume, I am not sorry to see this go and be replaced by a more practical row of function keys. Especially as custom keys are quite practical in a lot of editing apps, getting these to work on the touch bar was always a bit of extra work. 

In the top right of the keyboard, there is a very effective fingerprint reader, this is one of the best that I have used on any device, it’s very fast with few rejections, even when my fingers are wet or dirty.

The screen continues to be lovely, Apple laptops are renowned for their stunning displays and despite not much changing with this display it still looks wonderful, especially for photo and video editing, with smooth movement, balanced whites, and bright and accurate colors.

The only area that lets the MacBook Air down is in its port selection, which still has kept me trapped in a world of dongles and adapters. While the Air might be slightly too thin for an SD Card reader, it would be a very welcome addition for any creatives that want to use the Air as their primary device, but leaving it out of the Air feels like a cynical way to push users onto the MacBook Pro. 

The Air also is limited to just two USB-C ports, which are also both irritatingly located on the same side. I regularly use my MacBook with an external monitor (via USB-C), and I almost permanently have an external SSD connected, which with these two ports in use, I have nowhere else to connect any other devices – like my external SD card reader. 

I use a dock with multiple ports when I am at home, but the point of a laptop is I am not chained to my desk. Apple might be limited by the thin design here, but equally small Windows laptops manage to squeeze in many more ports. Again this feels like a way to sell me a MacBook Pro instead.

MacBook Air M3: Performance

As I have come to expect after testing the previous two generations of Apple’s in-house silicon – performance is a revelation compared to previous Intel MacBook models. Whilst it is very unfair to compare a new laptop to one designed around five or six years ago, in reality, there are a lot of people out there (I can count myself among them) who are still using Intel MacBooks. 

I still use an Intel Mac day-to-day as my work laptop, and while it doesn’t feel slow in isolation, it is only when I compare the same tasks I do regularly on Intel to those same tasks on the Apple M3 Air that it really becomes apparent how much of a jump the M3 is. And in many tasks like photo and video editing, there is an overwhelming gulf in performance between the two. 

In everyday use, the little things are just better, apps open faster and I can have more tabs open without my laptop grinding to a halt, but the real benefit of the M3 processor is when you actually push it. 

Adobe Lightroom Classic is probably my most used piece of software on my Intel Mac (outside internet browsing of course), but it is also the software that frustrates me the most, as it is often so slow and jarring. In areas like these, the M3 chip in the MacBook Air is just a huge boon. I can import RAW images and make previews without my laptop going into meltdown or just freezing up, flicking through the film strip actually feels smooth. I can’t praise enough how much better life is on these newer MacBooks if you are coming from an old Intel model.

Nonetheless, my personal laptop is an M2-powered MacBook Air, so I am pretty familiar with what that laptop is capable of in real-world use, and I can't really notice any perceptible difference between the M2 Air and M3 Air in terms of performance. Even more intensive tasks, for example, a Lightroom export of 100 RAWs into JPEGs were neck and neck in the time it took to complete.

Below are some benchmarks comparing the latest M3 chip against the previous generations. Benchmarks certainly aren’t everything and they don’t necessarily reflect real-world use, but you can see here how big the difference is between Intel model benchmarks. There is progress here over the previous generation of M2 processors, but it isn't noticeably faster in use. For multi-core and graphics tasks, the standard M3 is behind the older M2 Pro on benchmarks.

The MacBook Air I have been provided has 16GB of RAM, the base Air has just 8GB. While a lot of reviewers (myself included) found this controversial in the most recent MacBook Pro – because that MacBook was for pros – I am not going to bemoan the Air starting on 8GB as that suits the target audience much better. 

I will however still lodge a complaint here about Apple’s pricing for RAM and SSD upgrades over the actual value of these parts. Should 8GB of additional RAM cost $200 – I don't think so, and a similar upgrade on a Dell XPS is just $50. This can very quickly push the price of Apple’s “most affordable” laptop up until it makes spending just a little more on the MacBook Pro seem like a significantly better value option, funny that.

Battery life on the MacBook Air is outstanding. Just browsing the web, even using a lot of intensive traffic sites like Google Docs, Drive, Canva, and multiple tabs, I was getting a long day (and then some) easily out of the Air. 

When using more high-power drain applications like Lightroom and Photoshop, the battery did drain faster, but I could comfortably do several hours of editing out and about. I am pretty confident I could just leave the house with this laptop without even taking the charger, meanwhile, my five-year-old Intel model barely makes it through streaming a movie. 

MacBook Air M3: Verdict

While the MacBook Air with M3 is the best MacBook Air yet, it is not by a significant enough margin from previous generations that anyone using an M1 or M2 MacBook should really sit up and take notice. However, if you are still using an Intel-powered MacBook then it gets a little more interesting, as the improvements over those now quite old models are significantly more dramatic, and when it comes to photo and video editing, you will really notice the increased speed.

The rest of the MacBook Air is a familiar affair, with the same screen, keyboard, and ports as the previous incarnation, although while this isn’t particularly exciting, all these parts were already fantastic and the reason why I would call the MacBook Air the best laptop for most people, although I will still bemoan the stingy amount of ports Apple puts on its Air models.

The final consideration for anyone is the price, with the MacBook Air M2 still being sold, and often found at a significant discount, the performance gains of the M3 chip aren’t really enough that I would consider spending more money on this model if I could get the same specced M2 model for much less.

Alternatives

Chromebooks are cheap and cheerful laptops for buyers on tight budgets, right? For the most part, they have been. But Google wants to push the whole Chromebook concept upmarket and take on traditional Windows laptops more directly. The idea is to create portable PCs that compete with some of the more affordable entrants in our roll call of the best photo-editing laptops. Enter the new Asus Chromebook Plus CX3402CB.

Asus is one of several big brands partnering with Google on the Chromebook Plus project. The most immediate difference is that this Chromebook is running an Intel x86 chip just like a standard Windows laptop and therefore not the Arm CPU you'd normally expect to see.

It's an Intel Core i3 processor, so still relatively low-end. But there's 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage. Add in a 14-inch 1080p screen and on paper this looks a lot like a full-feature, if entry-level, Windows laptop.

The software side is where things obviously differ, with Chrome OS rather than Windows installed and various Google apps like Docs, Sheets, and Slides built right into the operating system. So, you don't need an internet connection to do basic work.

Beyond that, there are additional Google-specific niceties, including webcam enhancements, the ability to run Android apps, Google Drive features being fully integrated into the system, and some claims around AI, the latter arguably being more about marketing than substance.

The catch, of course, is that you're not going to be able to run all your legacy Windows apps. How much that matters depends on your existing workflows. If you have Windows licenses or subscriptions you want to carry over, many of them may be non-starters. There are alternatives, including most importantly image editing and video encoding solutions. But the more demanding your workflows, the less likely a Chromebook of any kind is going to be a good fit.

Asus Chromebook Plus: Specifications

Asus Chromebook Plus: Design & Handling

If the idea is a more premium spin on the classic Chromebook concept, the Asus Chromebook Plus CX3402CB slightly stumbles at the first hurdle. It's reasonably well put together. But the all-plastic chassis hardly feels up market.

You do get a pair of USB-C ports, which is very welcome, plus two USB-A sockets, HDMI and 3.5mm audio. Then there's an integrated 1080p webcam, which is a cut above the usual low-fidelity webcam potato found on many cheap laptops and has a physical shutter for guaranteed privacy. Note, however, it doesn't support facial recognition, nor is there a fingerprint reader. So security is old school. You'll be using a password.

Making matters worse, this is a conspicuously dated portable with thick, unsightly bezels. It's brand new but it looks at least five years old out of the box. Yuck. What's more, there's a little flex and bounce to the keyboard bed, which doesn't exactly help with the quality vibes, and those screen bezels aren't just unsightly, they make for a larger-than-average 14-inch laptop. That said, at 1.44 kg (3.17 lbs) this is a reasonably light 14-inch lappie.

Another arguable downside is the lack of touchscreen functionality. Taken in the round, this is a worthy enough and workmanlike machine, but premium? That's a hard sell, especially with the dowdy styling.

Asus Chromebook Plus: Performance

Up front and center is the Intel Core i3-1215U CPU. It's a proper x86 with two Performance cores and four Efficient cores. Really high-end Intel portables go all the way up to eight Performance and 16 Efficiency cores, so you have to keep your expectations in check.

But those two Performance cores will clock up to 4.4GHz, and combined with the four Efficiency cores, the chip can run eight software threads in parallel (the Performance cores support HyperThreading). So, there's decent performance on offer and enough to comfortably beat any existing Arm-powered Chromebook, though that may change later this year when Qualcomm's new Snapdragon X Elite arrives.

Anyway, for basic image editing tasks, there's sufficient CPU performance. Possibly more of a limitation is the 8GB of system memory. If you like to run with a zillion tabs open in your web browser, for instance, you're going to run out of memory. Likewise, 8GB will be a bit marginal if you're editing really large images.

Another problematic spec item is the 256GB of storage. As reviewed here, it's a UFS flash drive and not a proper M.2 SSD. So, it's far slower than most Windows laptops. You can opt for a 512GB M.2 drive and also a 16GB memory upgrade. We'd recommend pulling the trigger on both. The only problem is that it pushes the price into territory where you might as well just buy a Windows laptop.

You'd still be left with the software limitations, too. Photoshop Express is available in the Google Play store. But it's not as powerful as Photoshop CC and Lightroom is only available as an Android app.

As for the 'AI' pitch Google is making for these Chromebook Plus devices, it's frankly a bit of a stretch. There's no specific AI hardware in this device, so any AI functionality is run up in the cloud and therefore available to any Chromebook.

Still, the 14-inch display has reasonable working elbow room courtesy of its 1080p (1,920 by 1,080 pixels) native resolution. It's not exactly the brightest at 250 nits, but the colors are vibrant enough. The 1080p webcam is a highlight, too. It has far superior video quality than most laptops, even far more expensive models, and boasts operating-system level image processing including background blur and noise cancellation.

You can apply that to any video calling or conferencing application, you don't need app-specific support. Less impressive are the feeble built-in speakers. They're loud enough, but the sound quality is hideously thin and tinny. Yuck.

Finally, the Asus Chromebook Plus CX3402CB offers better battery life than you might expect given the combination of a modestly-sized 50Whr battery and an Intel CPU. Over 10 hours of video playback is possible. With slightly heavier workloads, that figure will fall, but in most circumstances, it should just about get you through a working day away from the mains.

Asus Chromebook Plus: Verdict

The Asus Chromebook Plus CX3402CB certainly has the CPU horsepower to take on lower-cost Windows laptops thanks to an Intel Core i3 CPU, with quite a lot of similarly priced laptops configured here with an Intel chip, 8GB of RAM, and a 14-inch 1080p screen. But for any serious workflows, the combination of 8GB of RAM, the slow UFS storage, and the limitations of Chrome OS will begin to tell.

The dated styling doesn't help much either, nor does the fact that for lighter tasks Chrome OS will run just as well on a cheaper and more efficient Arm chip. All told, then, the concept of a premium Chromebook might make sense, but as executed here it's hard to see why you wouldn't just go for a similarly priced Windows laptop.

Alternatives

It's a bold move, but Asus has gambled on all-AMD hardware for its new Asus TUF A16 (FA617XS) gaming laptop. The reasoning, very likely, is that "TUF" is Asus's more accessible gaming brand, and AMD chips, in particular AMD GPUs are typically that bit cheaper than the Nvidia alternatives.

Not that the TUF's AMD chips are poverty spec. The eight-core Ryzen 9 7940HS CPU is a monster. It's the Radeon 7600S GPU where the money has really been saved. However, outside of gaming, that's a pretty powerful graphics chip. For sure, it has the measure and then some of any integrated graphics and will do a very nice job of accelerating filters and effects in many image and video workflows.

Screen-wise, you get a generous 16-inch IPS panel with 2,560 by 1,600 pixels for plenty of elbow room, albeit you won't be able to view 4K content at full resolution. It also hums along at 240Hz, which is nice but arguably overkill, even for gaming. You're not going to be playing the latest titles at 240Hz with that Radeon GPU.

Despite the gaming remit, the styling isn't overly adolescent and the build is pretty sturdy, which is promising for an overall workhorse. Add in 16GB of RAM and all for around £1,250 and it makes for an intriguing and relatively low-cost alternative to several of the best photo-editing laptops already available. In many respects, performance should be comparable to much more expensive systems including the MacBook Pro with the latest Apple M3 silicon.

Asus TUF A16: Specifications

Asus TUF A16: Design & Handling

The Asus TUF A16's base chassis is all plastic but seriously sturdy. Admittedly, there's just a little flex if you push hard above the keyboard bed. But the screen lid is alloy and lush to the touch.

Speaking of the keyboard, the key actuation is smooth and satisfying, the keyboard bed is very stable and solid and the keys are backlit, albeit white only. There's no full RGB, which isn't a huge surprise at this price point. You also get a nice, big trackpad with a slick tactile surface.

The overall design looks reasonably contemporary thanks to slim bezels around the 16-inch, 2,560 by 1,600 resolution display and a 90% screen-to-body ratio. That helps to keep the TUF reasonably compact for a 16-inch system. As this class of laptop goes, this isn't a particularly monstrous or overly heavy portable. The design language is also fairly low key for a gaming-centric laptop, which is welcome if you want to take it to work or into meetings.

Arguably less successful, design-wise, is the port placement. There's a decent provision of connectivity, including USB4, USB-C and USB sockets, plus HDMI and LAN. But they're all located along the sides of the chassis. So is the old-school barrel connector for the power supply. In fact, that's rammed precisely in the middle of the left chassis side and really isn't terribly ergonomic, especially for anyone who is a lefty mouse user.

Ideally, it would be far preferable to have at least some of the ports, including power and video interfaces, for instance, on the rear of the chassis. However, the way Asus has designed the hinge, that's basically impossible. Pity.

Asus TUF A16: Performance

AMD's Ryzen 9 7940HS CPU is a known quantity and basically an eight-core beast of a CPU. As laptops go, it's got all the performance you could reasonably ask for whatever the workflow, be that editing huge RAW images or encoding 4K video timelines. Given the low cost of this laptop, the sheer CPU power on offer is spectacular, especially when you consider you'd need to speed over two times as much to get a MacBook Pro with similar grunt.

More of a mystery for most buyers will be the AMD Radeon RX 7600S GPU. In simple terms, it's a cut down version of the desktop RX 7600. In a more relevant mobile context, it performs just a touch below an Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU in most games. Well, until you enable ray tracing at which point the frame rates dive and much more so than an RTX 4060.

If you want a pure gaming system, something with an RTX 4060 would be preferable, therefore. However, in the context of a broader remit including content creation and with gaming as a sideshow, the AMD RX 7600S is a pretty decent GPU. It's unlikely you'd notice any shortfall versus the Nvidia GPU when it comes to accelerating effects and filters, for instance.

The 16-inch IPS display, meanwhile, is definitely a winner. For really high-end workflows, you might miss native support for full 4K content. For everything else, this is a super sharp screen, with extremely zippy response and plenty of speed courtesy of 240Hz refresh. OK, it can't compete with a MacBook for HDR sizzle. But at this price point, it's a definite positive.

For the record, you also get a nippy 1TB SSD, which is fair enough for the money, and 16GB of fast DDR5 RAM. Again, you might want to upgrade those elements for the most demanding applications. But it's a strong spec list for the price point.

The same goes for battery life. This is one metric where cheaper laptops tend to fall behind. Big batteries are expensive, so that's where system makers try to save some pennies.

Battery life obviously isn't normally a strong point for most gaming laptops. But this is where the Asus TUF A16 FA617XS's all-AMD technology really pays off. Not here, however.

Perhaps it's a benefit of having dual AMD chips nicely integrated. But whatever the reason, you can expect over 10 hours of video playback or other light use away from the mains. You'll get a lot less if you do anything really intensive. Certainly, Apple MacBooks of all stripes are more efficient under load. But we're back to that value proposition. For the money, the Asus TUF A16's balance of performance and battery life is excellent.

Asus TUF A16: Verdict

Not many laptops add up to more than the sum of their parts. But the Asus TUF A16 review definitely does. On paper, it offers good value, with a particularly strong AMD CPU and a decent graphics chip for a relatively low price.

It's fairly well engineered, too, and won't turn heads in a professional context for the wrong reasons. But the big surprise is battery life that can extend beyond 10 hours. When you add that to a mix that includes huge CPU grunt for relatively little money, the result is a very compelling all round proposition for anyone who wants a genuine high-performance laptop but doesn't want to spend far more. Indeed, you could spend two or three times as much and not get much by way of a meaningful advantage for content creation performance. Impressive, isn't it?

Alternatives

Asus has updated its everything, everywhere, all-in-one laptop with the latest chips from AMD and Nvidia. The Asus ROG Flow X13 2-in-1 now runs both AMD's awesome Phoenix APU and Nvidia's new RTX 40 Series graphics.

Specifically, you get the eight-core AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS APU plus an RTX 4060 GPU. You can opt for an even more powerful RTX 4070 graphics chip, but there are reasons why you might not bother, more on which in a moment. 

You also have the option of an even more powerful GPU via the Asus XG Mobile external graphics box that hooks up courtesy of a dedicated I/O port. Again, that's not something we'd recommend for most users, it's just so horribly expensive.

Whatever graphics you go for, it outputs to a 13.4-inch display with 2,560 by 1,600 pixels and 165Hz refresh. It's touch-enabled and sports a 360-degree hinge that supports numerous configurations from conventional laptop use through tablet modes and everything in between but does so without obviously looking like a 2-in-1 convertible. That's a good thing. It's just a very slick little laptop.

Indeed, this is a beautifully built machine that feels extremely high quality. Factor in decent connectivity including dual USB-C ports, including USB4 support and you have an overall proposition that's ready to do just about anything including take on any of the more portable members of our round up of the the very best photo-editing laptops.

If there is an immediately obvious downside to the refreshed Asus ROG Flow X13 it's that those skinny chassis proportions do limit performance. It's not that this is a slow laptop, more that there is a price to be paid compared to larger, heavier and less versatile laptops in pure performance terms.

Asus ROG Flow X13: Specifications

Asus ROG Flow X13: Design & Handling

Any Asus ROG laptop comes with fairly high expectations in terms of build quality and styling and the Asus ROG Flow X13 absolutely does not disappoint. The chassis is super rigid thanks to an all-metal design and features a tactile finish that feels great to the touch.

The keyboard bed is also super stable with pretty much zero bounce or flex, which just adds to the impression of a high quality machine. The same goes for the 360-degree hinge. Asus has got its stiction levels just so when you manipulate the screen and the overall size and weight of the Flow X13, helped by nice slim screen bezels, make it moderately useful as a tablet, even if a dedicated tablet is always going to be more ergonomic.

Still, it's great to have the flexibility, plus touchscreen capability. It's all pretty impressive given the slim proportions, especially considering you can configure this laptop with up to an Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU.

Of course, there are limitations with this kind of form factor. If you want to maximise connectivity, a larger chassis will always make that easier. Still, you get arguably just enough ports with the Asus ROG Flow X13 (2023). There's a main USB4-spec USB-C port which doubles as the charging socket, a full-sized HDMI socket, a single USB-A interface, microSD, and a headphone connector.

Where things get a little complicated is the Asus XG Mobile IO connector on the left side of the chassis. Through it, you can hook up a box containing a powerful external GPU. That box also adds HDMI, DisplayPort, three USB-A ports and a Type-C socket.

What's more, if you pull the cover off the connector, you can access an USB-C port on the laptop itself. That's handy if you are using the main USB-C to charge the laptop, but it is a tiny bit fiddly to access compared to a conventional exposed port.

Asus ROG Flow X13: Performance

A quick glance at the Flow X13's slim side profile would have you assume the performance on offer was as slim as the chassis. Nope! The AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS CPU and Nvidia RTX 4060 mobile GPU combo delivers proper performance.

OK, this isn't an out-and-out desktop replacement machine. But for all-round content creation and even gaming, it's remarkably effective. The eight-core Ryzen 9 7940HS chip is seriously powerful and will tear through most image editing workflows. It's also well up to the job of video encoding on the move. You really could have this as your portable production device.

In extremis, the 16GB of memory configured here arguably isn't quite enough for the most demanding jobs, perhaps if you're working with a large batch of RAW images or several very high bitrate video clips. In those scenarios, the upgrade to 32GB is worth considering. And you might want to upgrade the 1TB SSD if demanding video workflows are your norm. But the CPU itself delivers all the grunt you could ask for, even in a much larger and heavier device.

Of course, you also have that Nvidia RTX 4060 graphics. It's a fair way down the pecking order by Nvidia's standards. But it's still miles, miles more powerful than an integrated GPU, and can come in very handy when processing certain filters and effects. If you fancy some gaming on the side, well, it'll do a decent job of that, too.

All that said, there is that aforementioned price to be paid for the portability. The RTX 4060 GPU is capped at 60W. That translates into a clock frequency of 1,470MHz, well below the maximum 2,370MHz the 4060 hits in some larger laptops. Indeed, even if you opt for the RTX 4070 GPU, it too is capped at 60W power consumption. It's therefore debatable if paying extra for the 4070 is worth it. The bottom line is that a bigger, heavier machine will offer superior graphics performance.

Whatever, the Flow X13's 13.4-inch, 2,560 by 1,600 pixel display is a beaut'. OK, it can't compete with an OLED panel for contrast and HDR performance. But it's a lush, vibrant and extremely sharp IPS item running at a buttery smooth 165Hz. It's pretty super.

If that all sounds good, there is one fairly substantial disappointment, namely battery life. The Asus ROG Flow X13 (2023) can't quite manage seven hours, even doing something as undemanding as video playback with the screen at half brightness.

Actually, lean on the CPU or GPU, or crank up the brightness, and you'll see hours fall off that figure. When you consider how long a MacBook Air will last, much less the latest MacBook Pros with Apple silicon, it's clear that choosing this Asus machine will mean a major compromise on battery life.

Asus ROG Flow X13: Verdict

There's a huge amount to love about the Asus ROG Flow X13. It's beautifully engineered, it's quick and has a fab little touchscreen. More than anything, it's just so darned versatile. It really is remarkable to find something so slim and slick is also so powerful and useful.

With all that in mind, the limited battery life is a major bummer. With another two or three hours of mains-free operation, this really would be the everything, everywhere, all-in-one laptop that did everything from replacing your desktop and tablet to double as an in-the-field editing device. As it is, it remains hugely desirable and yet significantly compromised.

Alternatives

With the debate and arguments about which platform is best for creatives well and truly over, it’s safe to say that these days you can use both Apple and Windows computers effectively for creative work. There will always be people who prefer one platform over the other for different reasons, but with Windows laptops like MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo - A13MT, creative users can take advantage of features not available in their Apple counterparts.

The MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo is a 2-in-1 Windows 11 laptop that’s aimed at creatives thanks to offering a 16-inch touchscreen with compatibility with the MSI Pen; this effectively turns the laptop into an all-in-one pen display and computer, allowing you to make direct inputs into software such as Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom to increase precision and comfort. But, without the requirement for additional hardware.

This is a reasonably powerful laptop with a 13th Gen Intel Core i7, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, 1920x1200 IPS screen but like many 2-in-1 Windows laptops, it only offers Intel Iris Xe Graphics. This makes it a mid-range option that should be able to meet the needs of enthusiasts for photo and video editing, and to some degree low-end professional use, but for more demanding professionals more RAM and a discreet graphics card (GPU) would be essential.

The main draw of this laptop is the simple fact that it can be used as both a traditional laptop and a tablet, using either your fingers or the MSI Pen instead of the trackpad or a mouse. And at £1299 this mid-range 2-in-1 is reasonably priced for the enthusiast market. It’s undoubtedly a capable laptop that performs well, but it’s certainly no powerhouse when it comes to processing power.

MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo: Specifications

MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo: Design & Handling

MSI is generally known as one of the higher-end gaming laptop and gaming PC component manufacturers, with design and build quality held in high regard. The Evo Flip Evo is reassuringly well-built and looks refined in matte black with a glossy MSI logo on the lid. It’s a great-looking laptop that sports a large trackpad and a fingerprint reader alongside Windows Hello face recognition, so nothing to complain about here. Although, the matte black body is a fingerprint magnet.

The Flip Evo is a weighty beast at 1.9 kg / 4.19 lbs, but this is an average weight for 16-inch laptops whether Windows or Apple models. It’s just something to bear in mind when purchasing a laptop that you intend to carry around often, and if this weight is problematic you may be better served with a laptop offering a smaller screen size and a consequently lighter weight.

Being a laptop aimed at creatives, the screen itself is just as important as the processing power provided by the internal components. And while the 16-inch 16:10 screen is fantastic in terms of screen real estate, it’s let down by the mediocre 1920x1200 resolution when many current laptops sport QHD or 4K screens. This resolution coupled with the large screen means that you can sometimes see pixelation in software interfaces and images when zoomed in.

The full keyboard is nice and rigid and doesn’t flex during typing. There’s not a great deal of travel in the keys, but the typing experience is comfortable and the fact that there’s a number pad to the right of the Qwerty keyboard is useful. This is a reduced size compared to desktop keyboards with a number pad, but it remains comfortable to use. The keyboard also offers three levels of white backlighting which can be switched off when not needed to conserve battery power. 

When it comes to ports, there are two Thunderbolt 4/DP/USB-C (w/ PD Charging), Two USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A, an audio combo jack, HDMI 2.0, and a MicroSD Card Reader. The latter is always something of an oddity because, for most people, a full-fat SD card reader is preferable since this is the more common card type for cameras and microSD cards can be used with an SD adaptor.

The ability to PD charge speeds up the process, but this comes at the expense of one of the USB-C ports, so it’s swings and roundabouts here. Battery life is naturally better with less demanding office tasks, web browsing, and watching streaming services, providing enough charge for a day’s use, but this is dramatically reduced to just a few hours when using photo and video editing software that use more hardware resources which, in turn, require more power.

MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo: Performance

In terms of performance; web browsing, using office apps, and performing general tasks, the Flip Evo showed no signs of slowdowns or stuttering, which is to be expected for this type of undemanding use. Loading more demanding apps such as Photoshop, Lightroom and even Davinci Resolve is surprisingly fast. However, when working within these applications, heavier processing loads do take time to render because of the 16GB of RAM and the reduced hardware acceleration as a result of only having an integrated graphics chip.

Davinci Resolve was the slowest when switching between pages and making adjustments, but it’s not painfully slow and this is extremely demanding software. A basic 30-second 4K video took a minute to render, which is pretty good. Lightroom, on the other hand, was by far the best performer, and this is great for enthusiasts since many only use Lightroom for organizing, editing, and outputting their Raw files and JPEGs depending on the file format they capture. 

The 512GB hard drive is on the low-capacity side, so it will fill up quickly and make using an external hard drive a necessity for photo and video storage. This would allow you to use the internal storage mainly for the operating system, applications, and office documents with much lower storage demands to avoid quickly filling up the internal SSD. A 1TB SSD would be better, but 512GB is a workable capacity.

For photo and video editing, a discreet graphics card is always preferable but naturally drives costs higher. For a 2-in-1 laptop with an Nvidia 4060 GPU, the cost of the 2-in-1 laptop roughly doubles with the sweetener being that you typically get more RAM and storage thrown in. But even with the integrated graphics offered by the Flip Evo, 32GB of RAM would make a huge difference to overall performance when it comes to photo and video editing.

In the specs, the screen is advertised as being capable of displaying 100% sRGB. When the screen was calibrated using a Datacolor Sypder X Pro, it was indeed displaying 100% of sRGB. Alongside this, it was displaying 82% of Adobe RGB and 87% of DCI-P3. This is fine for enthusiasts using the Flip Evo for photo editing because you can get by with a screen displaying 82% of Adobe RGB, although this isn’t quite a wide enough color gamut for more demanding users and the most color-critical work. The overall brightness and contrast are also a little lackluster – adequate, but far from outstanding.

The Flip Evo performs well in tablet mode with the screen flipped back at an angle to allow the device to stand up, or fully rotated flat. It’s comfortable to hold in one arm for a short time, but it is a heavy laptop so it doesn’t take long before you feel the need to lay it on your lap with the screen facing towards you. When in tablet mode, the keyboard is disabled so you can’t accidentally press the keys, but this means that you’re unable to use keyboard shortcuts in photo and video editing software, and is annoying if you use them.

You can get by using the menus and toolbar in Photoshop, for instance, and using the MSI Pen is both comfortable and precise alongside providing a tactile editing experience. But I couldn’t help feeling frustrated that I had to fully rely on menus. For changing tools and some settings I simply used the fingers on my left hand while using the pen on my right. The overall experience is akin to using a pen display, but the functionality and general workflow aren’t as efficient.

MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo: Verdict

The MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo is a great productivity and general-use laptop with the ability to handle enthusiast-level photo and video editing. It does struggle with heavy processing tasks in Photoshop, but with Lightroom, it handles Raw file processing much more effectively; many enthusiasts only use Lightroom to organize, edit, and output their Raw or JPEG files with little to no need for Photoshop, and the Flip Evo can comfortably handle this.

To be fair, it can manage what you might call ‘standard’ Photoshop editing and even basic video editing, but it only takes longer to perform the more demanding editing tasks professionals are likely to throw at it. To put things into context, if you’d like a 2-in-1 laptop that’s much more capable, you’d roughly need to double the reasonable cost of $1699 / £1299 of the Flip Evo and once in the $2500 price bracket, you could get a much more powerful ‘standard’ laptop so jumping up to the next 2-in-1 rung isn’t quite so clear cut.

In terms of design and build quality, the Flip Evo can’t be faulted and the matt black body looks sleek and refined. It’s a bit of a fingerprint magnet, but this is often the case with black laptops so nothing out of the ordinary. The large screen is great in terms of size and is as crisp and clear as you can get with a 1920x1200 resolution. It’s a shame it’s not 2560x1600 because this would deliver a significantly improved picture and a wider color gamut, increased contrast and brightness would be a huge bonus.

MSI Summit E16 Flip Evo Alternatives

Over the last couple of weeks, I had come to feel a huge swathe of support in my irritation about Apple's variety of pricing options for the still new M3 MacBook Pro range. My digital in-box had been piled high with mail expressing similar discontent at the structure and teirs of the pricing which seem, to me (and others), to be designed to make overspending inevitable.

But I've laid out my theory on the MacBook Pro M3 pricing before, and already shared some voices of support suggesting I go the whole hog and buy a PC instead. I was a little more surprised to find Apple enthusiast – but Windows user at work – Mark Gillespie mailing me with a reasoned argument for the existence of at least four of the Macs I reference in my opinion (though not all of them).

So, in fairness to the Apple world that I'll almost inevitably return to, I'll share Mark's thoughts.

He first suggests that users who are new to Mac don't actually buy new; "Choose an M1 or M2 version of the model you prefer but with 16MB RAM and any storage size greater than the minimum config" he suggests. Personally, I take that as evidence that Apple is over-charging and/or under-specifying their entry-level machines. At the time of writing the MacBook Air M1 13-inch is still on offer for $999 with a paltry 8GB RAM and 256GB storage.

Upgrade to the newer M2 MacBook Air model and you'll find yourself another $100 poorer for the same memory specs (though this time it's a 13.6-inch screen rather than 13.3).

I agree that these entry specs are unacceptable – certainly for me – though no doubt suit some. I'm not sure Mark can easily get away with placing all hobbyists in the same boat though – he might say the best laptop for photography for that group is lesser than the pros, but in my experience that depends on ambition (or patience). In any case, the minimum entry point for a (true) current would seem to be the $1,499 MacBook Air 13 with 16GB RAM and 512GB storage.

For folk like me, who plan on buying Apple and have a case for buying new, Mark's advice is "DON’T start by working your way up Apple’s pricing ladder from the bottom. Start by configuring your ideal machine to suit the job and then cut features until it fits your true budget."

As established, for the ports, that's a MacBook Pro. Then we apply the advice about avoiding 8GB editions and the minimum spend in store is the M3 Pro-based 18GB/512GB $1,999 (we could, of course, specify 16GB to the absolute base model M3 machine 14-inch MacBook Pro and get that down to $1,799, but not only would we have to wait but the slower CPU would also only have one fan and still have 2GB less RAM).

Using the "Working down from the top-spec" is a bit off-putting in my view; the top off-the-shelf model is the $3,999 16-inch M3 MacBook Pro with 48GB RAM and 1TB storage. I can spec this up to 128GB RAM and 8TB storage for $7,199 but on my budget I'll drop below the initial $3,999 as part of my de-specing!

Interestingly Mark also ignored the base M3 MacBook Pro in the 4 categories of customer he envisaged, which were:

• MacBook Air Education; office productivity; hobby design and photography
• M3 MacBook Pro Productivity, beginner creativity
• M3 MacBook Pro with 18GB+ 2D pro design, video and creative, coding, scientific and hobby AI
• M3 Mac MacBook Pro 36GB+ 3D design and development, pro video, pro AI, pro creative, pro scientific, pro coding,CS research, (high-end gaming?)

Yes, he used the brackets on 'high-end gaming' too – hard for any Mac users to say that with a straight face, I imagine – and said he believed that 3, the M3 MacBook Pro with 18GB was the sweet spot, at least for the photo and video needs I had set out (as well as playing Civilazation V, of course).

I think I'm coming to my decision, but one thing I'd not taken into account that Mark cautioned me to think about is the needs of AI. He suggests the upcoming M3 Ultra in the Mac Studio will come with a boat load of memory. I'm less certain this will be a big part in my life. For one this I have no plans to ask Siri to write articles for me, and for another I can't imagine any technology which requires an 'Ultra' chip is going to be used for much other than development unless things change very fast in Apple's pricing structure.

The one bet that I probably am prepared to make this year is that doesn't happen (after all, the resale value is always a big part of the pro-Apple argument I make to myself).

Digital Camera World keeps guides to the best laptop for video editing and the best MacBook for photo editing.

Last week I laid out the problem I'd come to as a Mac user; I had decided to buy an M3 MacBook Pro and nearly did it, right up until I was confronted with Apple's confusing and apparently greedy pricing structure which was pushing me toward spending $4,000 for what felt, to me, like the equivalent of a $2,000 computer. I didn't feel like all of that could be blamed on inflation so I decided to keep my money in my pocket and even investigate all the best laptops for video editing, including PCs.

Certainly, I feel the joy I used to experience in buying a new computer of my own every half-decade has been supplanted by a feeling of fear and dread at making a hideous expensive mistake, and voicing that made me feel far from alone.

One respondent told me that they'd thought of switching to Mac a number of times: "As an always PC person, I have always been universally been envious of the obvious build quality and engineering of Macs and the fact they are always pretty!" Fair enough – that's probably what drew me to Macs in the early 2000s. He wasn't tempted, however: "Although I will pay for quality, I won't have my eyeballs ripped out nor will I compromise a lot on my ability to do what I want on it or with it. Memory is where Apple has always generated the margin on their products. I can't see that changing imminently."

I think he's right. I'm old enough to remember when it was possible to buy a MacBook and then put the memory you wanted in yourself for rather less than Apple charged, but the last model that allowed for that was the intel-powered Mid 2012 MacBook Pro (which was available in 13-inch, 15-inch, and 17-inch). They also had an 8x "SuperDrive" DVD drive and FireWire 800 ports.

Another told me how they still used a 2013 Mac Pro – the cylinder (or trash can, depending on your perspective). They told me they had "64GB memory and a 2TB SSD, connected to 32TB of RAID 5 storage" – sounds plentiful for "Photo manipulation using Lightroom Classic, Photoshop and 6 other photo processing tools along with Painter." He said that: "Adobe is pushing me to get a new Mac by implementing features that do not work well on Intel chips." I sympathise (though I struggle to see why Adobe, who charge a subscription, would do this).

His tip, though, did make sense – he'll be looking at the Mac Mini instead of a new Mac Studio; I should look at the MacBook Air. Sadly, of course, I want the sockets including the SD port without a dangling accessory, but it was wise counsel. But otherwise this seems very sound advice. Not that the next respondent agreed...

Another reader – who accused me of making my title a bit 'baity' (though in my defence it was absolutely how I felt) told me: "I have used Macs and PCs since the latter part of the ‘80s. Since the modern era of the Mac, OS X, to the present, there has been no question as to which platform I’d rather use. I don’t consider myself a “fanboy”, just a pragmatic user who has worked in IT since the mid-eighties."

That seems reasonable – though I'm in my mid-40s and have also used both platforms (and others too – any RISC OS fans out there?). Still, he continued: "I find it difficult to believe someone would consider leaving a platform for petty reasons."

Petty? I disagree – My point was that Apple's options are designed to encourage you to buy above your needs through fear of missing out. That isn't petty. 

He said: "That would be analogous to leaving your Tesla for a 1963 Volkswagen Beetle because there are too many choices to make with a Tesla."

Interesting point. I do have a bit of beef with Teslas – I like an instrument cluster in front of me, not off to the side, and I like some more physical controls. I much prefer the Jaguar I-Pace. All the more odd because I did like Apple's touch bar which is not exactly a well-loved – and now discarded – piece of laptop design that's very analogous to the Tesla's touchscreen centre control panel.

Anyway, back to the correspondent, who finished with a flourish: "As one who was once an avid PC user who built my own PCs because of the choices it offered me, I became disillusioned with PCs primarily because of the poor operating system choices. Windows is an all-out failure; I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. Though Windows has made strides over the years, it’s still a poor choice for an OS, especially given its MS-DOS roots. Failing to shed its single-user, insecure DOS roots has caused users infinite nightmares. Linux is a good OS, but it doesn’t support the software that a photographer and videographer needs. That is why I switched to the Mac in the early 2000s.

I believe if you were to switch to a PC/Windows platform, you’d soon be writing an article about why you were returning to the Mac."

He might have a point. I'm off to look at the Apple Store and the Samsung store right now... 

Check our guide to the best laptops for photo editing and the best budget laptops to see how many Apple manage to get on that list!

Samsung’s Galaxy Book3 Ultra is the South Korean giant's answer to the Apple MacBook Pro but it is also a rather sleek and stylish ultrabook in its own right. The quality of the display is the clear attraction point here, especially given Samsung’s expertise in that field.

It would be an understatement to say that Samsung specializes in display technology as the company makes pixel-perfect smartphones, luminous laptop displays, and probably some of the most vivid TV screens around. I am pleased to say that the 16-inch AMOLED panel on the Galaxy Book3 Ultra is Samsung at its absolute best. It is a photo-real 3K screen with a 2,880 x 1,800 resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate that is super smooth. 

The inclusion of a Nvidia RTX 4070 suggests that the Ultra can handle most games, though it isn’t quite right for anything super intensive. Fortnite, for example, I found was not as fluid as you find on a dedicated gaming PC or PlayStation. This is because the RTX 4070 chip is merely OK for gaming; it can handle them, but it isn’t something you should specifically buy for that purpose. It’s better served for content creation or consumption, rather than fully fledge gaming. 

Packing an Intel Core i9-13900H chip is also something to take note of. The Galaxy Book3 Ultra gave me super-fast performance regardless of my workload. I worked it hard with multiple tabs, excessive downloads, frequent social media scrolling, and the Ultra handle all with hardly a whimper from its insides. 

Having a Samsung smartphone is also a good reason to check out the Ultra; if you have the Galaxy S23, for example, you can use the Samsung Multi Control feature to use the keyboard to control the smartphone screen. It is, admittedly a niche use case, but it aims to give you that same iPhone-MacBook experience that Apple has successfully created. Sharing files, photos, and documents from one to the other is just as seamless. 

Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra: Specifications

Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra: Price & Availability

Pricing starts at $1,999 / £2,499, making the Ultra a sizable investment, but there are several solid reasons to check it out. For starters, it's the first Galaxy Book to feature a Nvidia GeForce GPU – the RTX 4070. What’s more, it’s also a laptop that will pair well with other Samsung devices, which should attract those with the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra or the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5. 

Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra: Design & Handling

My Galaxy Book3 Ultra review unit is a smart-looking laptop; not quite a MacBook but in that general style with its grey aluminum body and neat black chiclet keys. It does lack a little originality, but this is a professional machine that can also work well as a personal device. You have a standard-looking graphite body with a logo that is cool and reflective. There are no great risks here, nothing remotely flamboyant, it’s all very subtle. 

It is fairly light for a 16-inch laptop at just 1.79kg. That is still a big chunky machine, and you will feel that if you want to travel with it. Its 355.4mm length and 250.4mm width make I found made it challenging to slide in and out of a rucksack. 

The input controls on the Galaxy Book3 Ultra make it an office champion with a very large keyboard and trackpad. The keys are very low, but they have decent travel and also make a nice muffled clack. The sound is enough to give me that satisfied feel to typing, but still suitably quiet for a silent office. There’s also comfortable space for the palms and wrists, thanks to the larger surface area. 

The size of the device has also allowed it to have a pleasingly large trackpad, which is fantastic for editing photos and videos. You can take the cursor, slowly, from the bottom to the top of the screen without having to hold and change your finger.  

Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra: Performance

There is an Intel Core i9-13900H chip under the hood of the Galaxy Book3 Ultra and it’s matched with 16GB of RAM and 1TB SSD of storage. You can opt for an i7 model and also bump the RAM up to 32GB, but only if you purchase in the US – UK customers are sadly limited to 16GB if they choose the i9 model. The problem here is that the i9 chip and the RTX 4070 GPU will be slower with only 16GB of RAM which makes the top-specced model less appealing. 

However, the i9 features six P-cores that can take it all the way up to 5.4GHz, with eight more powerful E-cores on hand for even more juice. 

In GeekBench 5, the Ultra recorded a multi-core score of 12,788. That is very good – it beats the Dell XPS 15 for power – but it isn’t quite in the league of the M2-powered MacBook Pro. That does slightly undermine its credentials as an alternative to Apple’s premium laptop. 

There is a typical 76Wh power source inside the Galaxy Book3 Ultra and has the staying power to get through a normal 9-5 shift. It even retains enough juice to surf the web or stream something after hours. In fact, there was very little we threw at it that really put its battery to the test. If you do find its battery depleted, the USB type-C charger takes around 90 minutes for a full charge and works with your smartphone.

Having a Samsung smartphone does offer some decent extra features, such as file sharing that can be dragged and dropped from phone to laptop and vice versa. The setup of this is simple and it works just as seamlessly as what Huawei offers with its OneHop software. 

The Ultra also has Bluetooth v5.1, Wi-Fi 6E, and a very generous selection of ports. These include an HDMI2.0 slot, two Thunderbolt 4s, a USB 3.2, a MicroSD multimedia card reader, and a headphone mic combo hole. What’s more, the power button also doubles as a fingerprint reader and consumer models come with the Windows 11 Home operating system.

Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra: Verdict

The Galaxy Book3 Ultra is a great, creative laptop with amps of power and a big bold screen. However, the price is the biggest stumbling block; you can get it from the Samsung website where it is priced at $2,400 in the US, or £2,540 here in the UK. If you’re after a MacBook alternative, there are more affordable options as this, and more similar to the actual price of the MacBook Pro.

I work with drones, which means I work with 4K video. I'm a photography writer, which means I work with photos. I'm just the kind of creative who ought to have a MacBook Pro. Indeed I have one from work, and I have a 2020 iMac – one of a long line of Macs. But it's starting to feel like it might be my last.

I set out to order a new MacBook Pro on the Apple site and I found the process so frustrating and irritating that I gave up. What irritated me, more than anything, was the way Apple has blurred the product range so there isn't a simple choice between entry, mid, and maxed-out. Now it's full of confusing compromises that all seem designed to persuade you to go, "Oh well, just another step up" until you've spent $4000.

My first hope was that perhaps a few Apple enthusiasts on YouTube could sort it out, but that proved a fool's errand. Instead I had to listen to people spouting fanboy nonsense about Apple's unified memory, suggesting it meant 

This isn't really the case. On a Windows machine you'll have faster, more expensive RAM devoted to graphics (GDDR 6) and still-very-fast (but not as fast) RAM devoted to memory (DDR 5). Apple's Unified memory is all the fast expensive type, which means the graphics will be borrowing your main memory (though it's the slightly slower and less power-hungry kind sort designed for laptops).

So, on realizing that I understood the tech better than most of the spec-sheet-spouting YouTubers, I went back to it and started working out what I'd need. 

I am hoping for another four years from this machine, which means – given modern Apple's enthusiasm for solder and lack of upgradeability – I need to get it right. That inflexibility is already very off-putting. There is a door on the back of my 2020 iMac for me, a user, to add new RAM. Some younger readers might not believe it, but this was once also the case with MacBooks – why DCW's James Abbot "Wouldn't touch a MacBook" now.

Fear of making a mistake takes a lot of the joy I used to experience from buying a new computer. I still live in hope, though, so I press on. Do I want a 14-inch or 16-inch? Well, this is actually an easy step for me, and it's instinctive. It's the big one. Or is it? I'll just check…

A look at the 14-inch range and I see it starts at $1,599 for a machine with an offensively low 8GB RAM and not an M3 Pro or M3 Max chip – just an M3, so there's three of them to choose from (and one wonders how far a standard M3 is from an M2). Oh, and 8GB memory shared between video and system on a computer with 'Pro' in its name is downright insulting. 

In the first example of a sneaky "Oh well, I'll just go up one", what you can do is add $200 to get the memory to what I'd regard as the minimum acceptable 16GB. Then the machine is $1,799, at which point you're only $200 away from the $1,999 M3 Pro – which also boasts 8GB RAM minimum rather than 16, so it's kinda okay, right? After all, you're also getting an 11-core CPU rather than 8-core, and 14 GPU cores rather than 10…

Dig a bit deeper for the $2,399 spec 12CPU / 18GPU model and the storage goes up to 1TB SSD rather than 512GB. Since that would have been an extra $200 for the storage, we can see it's $200 for the processor bump. Apple also 'threw in' the $20 upgrade to a 96W power brick, which will charge the machine faster / keep up with the power needs at this point.

Finally, the top tier is the M3 Max. Stripping everything else out, you're effectively paying $400 more for the lower M3 Max (with 14 CPU and 30 GPU cores), or $700 for the higher version (16CPU / 40GPU). The cheaper one has a minimum of 36GB unified memory – which I do consider a workable amount – but incredibly the cheaper Max chip will only allow one upgrade, for $800 to 96GB. The more expensive M3 Max chip, however, offers a mid-tier, so 48GB (minimum), 64GB, or 128GB are options.

Confused yet? Did I mention the balance of the CPU cores? Some of the CPU cores are 'efficiency cores' – prioritizing battery life over speed. In fact there are more of these in the newer Pro chips than in the M2 series – the 12-core M2 had 8 'performance' and 4 'efficiency' – so it was actually more performance-biased.

That's not all. The memory bandwidth for the Pro is lower than the M2 series – 150GB/s rather than 200GB/s. Is this deliberately throttled? It looks that way because the M2 Max had 400GB/s, while now the M3 Max has 300GB/s for the 'base' M3 Max (with 14CPU+30GPUcores) and 400GB/s for the highest (16CPU/40GPU). That's another $300 for some more cores because – it seems – Apple are deliberately turning down the memory's speed to make the more expensive one look, er, Max in benchmarks.

So, for the ultimate CPU performance – that in reality might take a few seconds off a long video render but I'll probably never need – I'm being nudged toward spending $400 more on the 'Max' series – a chip with ray-tracing designed for high-end 3D work and gaming (despite the software desert) – and then nudged again to spend another $300.

Plus the same goes for the 16-inch versions, which are bigger, which is also a $400 step, atop which they have a similar pricing scale. But a big screen is so useful... and that bit of my bag is big enough so... 

Okay, your point?

In summary, the choice facing me – and the potential cost of getting it wrong – is too stressful. Yes, I mentioned I do video, but 2D work doesn't automatically push me up to the max, or the Max. But all the upgrades are so small on their own that I end up looking at all of them. They're little steps, nothing feels big (except the price).

The upshot – for now – is that I've left the Apple site without buying anything, and I went there wanting to buy. Will I be back? Not until I've had a good look at the best photo editing laptops and best video editing laptops regardless of platform!

I have had a lot of responses to this M3 MacBook Pro debate starter (and have put some together here) you guys are helping me decide!

When you read the title, I bet you think I’m an Apple hater – a Windows user who doesn’t understand the unique way that Macs work. Or, perhaps, that I simply can’t afford one so I carry a bitterness for anything and everything Apple. These are common assumptions made by Apple users when confronted by seemingly angry Windows keyboard warriors online.

I can honestly say that any of those assumptions couldn’t be further from the truth. I used to only buy Apple computers, love the way they’re designed and built and still believe that macOS is a far superior operating system to Windows, which has pretty much always been the case. So now you’re probably wondering, why on Earth did I move to Windows?

To cut a slightly longer story short, I used to always upgrade the RAM and HDDs in my Mac notebooks as soon as they arrived. Once Apple began soldering in the RAM and over time it became harder and harder to do home upgrades, I moved over to a Windows desktop where I could change any component myself. Overall, I was becoming frustrated with the way Apple was telling me how to interact and use the hardware it manufactures when I owned the device itself.

Why Windows works for me

I recently bought a new notebook because my old one was no longer up to the tasks I needed it for at seven years old. This was a process that spanned several weeks of research and I even looked at the MacBook Pro 14-inch, but I saved myself a small fortune with a comparably powerful Lenovo Legion Slim 5 14. What’s more, it has a fantastic wide gamut OLED screen for photo and video editing, along with an Nvidia 40-series GPU.

I have to confess that the RAM in my Legion Slim 5 is soldered in. Why Lenovo (the best Lenovo laptops) has gone down this route is beyond belief because the upgrade was peanuts compared to Apple's RAM prices – so it’s not about profit. However, I opted for the maximum 32GB of DDR 5 6400MHz RAM, so this should keep me going for a while. But I can add a second M.2 SSD if I want to, and clone and change the upgraded 1TB M.2 drive the notebook came with, if and when I want to. My desire to tinker is, in part, catered for.

I appreciate that Apple Unified RAM works slightly differently to RAM in PCs because of how and where it’s attached to the motherboard, and that Apple claims their computers can match the performance of comparable Windows computers with twice as much RAM. But does this even matter? I for one don’t care as long as I can achieve the performance I need with double the amount of RAM in a PC, especially when it’s so inexpensive compared to Apple’s RAM upgrade prices.

I paid £1431 For the Legion, and the nearest equivalent MacBook Pro 14, assuming 16GB of RAM is the equivalent of the 32GB I chose, would have cost me $2600 /£2099, so a saving of $840 / £668 for what I would consider to be a more versatile option. As I say, I do prefer macOS, but I also don’t mind Windows and PCs are comparably well-suited to creative work these days, unlike 20 years or so ago when things were different. Coincidentally, both notebooks also benchmark with similar results, so the lower cost of the Legion is a true saving in every sense.

I guess it comes down to preference and what you’re willing to pay. Of course, a low-end $375 / £300 Windows notebook will be next to useless and plagued with performance issues, but spend around $1,890 / £1500 and things are significantly different. So, for me, a mid-range Windows gaming notebook provides all of the power I need for photo and video editing and more, it’s a well-built device and saved me a ton of cash in the process. Which is why, I wouldn’t touch a MacBook Pro with a bargepole.

See where the rest of the DCW team rank things in the best photo-editing laptops guide.

It is the end of another year, it's the return of pumpkin spice, long nights, holiday sales, and of course the next version of Apple’s processors. After Apple turned the world of computing upside down with the release of its M1 chip, proving the hold Intel had over the high-end processor market could be broken, like clockwork Apple has trotted out a new version of its processors each fall. 

We are now onto the third version of Apple’s in-house silicon, fittingly named the M3, which also comes in an M3 Pro and M3 Max varieties, although those are not my focus this time, this review focuses on the the base M3 chip in the MacBook Pro, which for the first time in several years has had a complete redesign.

Well, not exactly a complete redesign, as it now just follows the design of the previous two generations of M3 Pro/Max MacBooks that have debuted in the last few years. However, Apple has seemed resistant to phase out the base MacBook Pro with the much-maligned touchbar design for the past couple of generations, so it is a welcome sight to see it finally make the jump.

The new version of the MacBook Pro M3 is a fair bit more expensive than the previous version, with Apple adding an additional $300 to the ticket price. The new version is just under an inch larger but otherwise has similar internal specs as the previous model (except trading its M2 chip for M3), it also gets rid of the touch bar for a row of standard keys. I’m not an economist, and maybe I am missing something, but is the new design really that much of a premium?

Apple’s choice of RAM has also caused a stir among reviewers. While Apple will be quick to tout that its unified memory is superior to normal RAM, the base model still comes with an underwhelming 8GB of RAM, I will go into this later in this review, but this might be a sore point for power users. 

As ever with Apple, increasing the specifications of your MacBook Pro feels unnecessarily pricey. To take the RAM from 8GB to 16GB, is another $200, as is upgrading the SSD from 512GB to 1TB. When you can buy a third-party 2TB SSDs (or even larger) for around that price – $200 per 512GB does sting.

How does the MacBook Pro M3 compare?

Depending on how far you can stretch your budget, the base MacBook Pro M3 is actually just a great advert for buying the MacBook Pro M3 Pro. The base price for the MacBook Pro M3 is $1,599, but if you do spec the M3 MacBook up to 16GB of RAM it totals $1,799. The lowest-tier M3 Pro MacBook costs only $200 more ($1,999) but nets you 3 more CPU cores (8 vs 11), 4 more GPU cores (10 vs 14), and a further 2GB of RAM (16 vs 18), and is where I would consider putting my money instead.

For more casual users, if you think you can get away with just 8GB of RAM then the MacBook Air would be my recommendation which offers similar levels of performance for less money. Or it won’t be long until the MacBook Air with M3 is released, usually coming in the spring, if you want to wait to see the M3 performance boost in a cheaper, smaller, and lighter model. The only thing that would really tempt me to the MacBook Pro over the Air is the inclusion of the SD Card slot, which is something I rely on daily, but have managed to work around for the last few years.

MacBook Pro M3: Design & Handling

Apple has been working through the last of its touchbar stock for quite some time, but finally, the base MacBook Pro model joins the rest of the range with the newly designed body, and I couldn’t be happier. I know some people out there are big fans of the touchbar for some specific uses in certain editing apps, and I am currently sitting happily typing this review on a MacBook Pro with a touchbar. I never hated the touchbar and I could always see its potential, but I also never really found a use for it personally (or maybe apps never tried hard enough), but I am mostly glad to see the back of it.

The touchbar has been replaced by a row of function keys, which is more practical, the keyboard has also had a redesign, with black keys on a black background. I don’t like this as much as the keys separated by the chassis color on the previous model as the keys are a little hard to distinguish, and the black picks up grease more. 

The keyboard itself is still beautifully easy to type on, with classic scissor-switch keys and not the horrendous butterfly key experiment from previous MacBooks.

The other new additions that come alongside the new body design are the inclusion of an SD Card slot and HDMI port, both of which will be greatly received by photographers everywhere. I am not sure why the laptop manufacturers collectively decided to banish SD Card readers from their devices, but I am so happy they are making a comeback. I have to copy files several times a day between an SD card and my laptop, and having a dongle dangling near constantly is a huge annoyance.

On the other side of the laptop are two Thunderbolt powered USB-C ports, and the MagSafe charging port. It is a shame to be reduced to just two USB-C ports, although using the laptop over the course of a few weeks, I very rarely needed to plug in more than two USB-C cables, as with the SD card slot, I am now thankfully dongleless. 

I am still not sure about the return of the MagSafe charger and HMDI. My monitor is connected with USB-C, along with it providing power delivery, so the MagSafe port and HDMI are largely redundant and could be better served by additional USB-C ports. However, I appreciate other setups rely far more heavily on HMDI connections. The MagSafe connection still feels like a cash grab for Apple to charge for certifying cables, but I guess it is useful if you are someone who trips on cables a lot.

Lastly, the new design brings the notch the the entry-level MacBook Pro. I know the notch has proved controversial, and while I don’t necessarily love it, after using the laptop for a while, I did completely stop noticing it. I am still confused as to why it is so large when other brands manage to squeeze similar-quality cameras into smaller bezels. 

It still doesn't bring Apple's FaceID system from its iPhones, instead uses a very quick and accurate fingerprint reader over the power key. The quality of the webcam is excellent, and much improved in the previous model’s muddy image.

The screen itself is stunning. This is one of the best screens I have ever used on a laptop, with beautiful color and contrast, editing on this screen is just a joy, and makes my photo and video look better than ever and really shows off more of what my cameras are actually capturing. The screen also gets very bright, which will be of more help when summer rolls around again and I am editing outside, but for the time being, it is coping well under the bright (and slightly annoying) spotlights of a fancy coffee shop.

Entertainment is also better, with movies looking stunning. The speakers on the MacBook Pro are also excellent and have been blasting music at me while I write this review, with good separation between highs and lows, and while the bass isn’t exactly booming, it is punchy enough to be felt. 

MacBook Pro M3: Performance

Firstly, if you are coming from the previous M2 MacBook Pro then you probably won't notice a significant real-world difference between that processor and what the M3 is capable of. The body redesign here with the additional ports would be the main driving factor to upgrade. If you are an M2 user hoping for more processing power, I would recommend looking at going up to the M3 Pro or Max, (or M2 Pro and Max laptops if you can find one at a bargain).

If you are coming from Intel models of the MacBook Pro, then it is an entirely different story, with the M3 chip being an absolute revelation over those older models.

The M3 chip in the MacBook Pro handles all the day-to-day stuff with ease, MacOS has always felt silky smooth to use, even on older Intel chips, but with M3, everything opens that bit faster, opening Chrome, Spotify, or Adobe apps always takes an age to just load on my Intel i7 powered MacBook Pro with that bouncing icon taunting me, but on the M3 MacBook this is near instantaneous.

For photo and video editors looking to use more creative software, the difference between the M3 and older Intel systems is so dramatic I don’t know how I go back to using my Intel-powered laptop. I spend the majority of my computing time in Adobe Lightroom Classic, which is one of the slowest apps even on a good day, but where my i7 MacBook Pro frequently gets hung up on the most simple of tasks like creating previews of images or exporting batches of photos, the M3 MacBook Pro just doesn't really get bogged down.

In exporting images using HandBrake, a dozen 4K videos shot on my phone re-exported as 1080p mp4 files took about a third of the time on the M3 MacBook as it did on my Intel-powered MacBook Pro 13-in. But more importantly, while my Intel MacBook essentially became unusable during the process, I could still use other apps smoothly on the M3 MacBook while the videos processed. 

Where I have a sticking point with the base M3 MacBook Pro is with its standard 8GB of RAM, Apple has provided me with a laptop with 16GB of RAM for testing, which handles everything beautifully. However, I also happen to have my partner’s M2 MacBook Air with 8GB of RAM, which although the processor is sensational, it is very easy to bring its RAM to full capacity when running several intensive tasks – such as photo editing. 

Even though the new M3 chip adds more processing power, I would question if this would be enough for editors who are often using PhotoShop, Lightroom, Premiere, or other software all at the same time. For an investment that will still be used years in the future, and as the memory cannot be upgraded at any later stage, I personally would avoid the 8GB RAM model.

The battery life of the MacBook Pro M3 seems endless. While demanding software like Lightroom or Premiere does cause it to drain faster, it outlasts older systems by hours. For productivity and browsing, it excels even more. During a recent full day of travel – typing on Google Docs, doing light photo editing, and streaming lots of YouTube – I returned home with plenty of battery life left.

MacBook Pro M3: Final Verdict

The updated iteration of the base MacBook Pro M3 model marks the most significant step forward in design for several years by reintroducing sought-after features like the SD card and HDMI ports, but also by the introduction of the polarizing screen notch. While the M3 chip boasts incremental improvements over its predecessor, the M2, it is a massive leap forward from existing Intel-based MacBook Pro models.

However, the central issue with this revamped MacBook Pro lies in its place within the lineup. With 8GB of RAM, it might not meet the demands of power users, with the MacBook Pro with M3 Pro chip being the one to add to your wishlist. It also makes the MacBook Air the potentially more appealing and economically sensible choice for users who don't require extensive processing power. 

This positioning quandary begs the question of whether this iteration is caught between catering to different user segments, potentially leaving both power users and casual users searching for a more fitting alternative.

Alternatives

The Acer Aspire 5 is directly targeted at the top end of more affordable laptops. The mid-range priced model we are testing here bags you an Intel Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB RAM, and a GeForce RTX 2050. These push the limits of what is possible with a budget to mid-range laptops but fall short of what is required for creatives with more demanding requirements for video editing, 3D editing, or more complex layering and compositing of photos. The 17-inch display is a highlight but it comes at the cost of being much less portable.

Acer Aspire 5: Specifications

Operating System: Windows 11 Home
Processor: Intel Core i7-1260P processor Dodeca-core 2.10 GHz
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2050 with 4 GB dedicated memory
Display: 17.3" Full HD (1920 x 1080) 16:9 IPS
Memory: 16 GB, DDR4 SDRAM
Storage: 1 TB SSD
I/O Ports: HDMI, USB Type-A x3, USB Type-C
Touchpad: Yes
Camera: 1080p webcam
Battery: 8 hour battery run-time
Weight: 2.30 kg
Dimensions: (W x D x H) 40.21, 25.79, 1.99cm

Acer Aspire 5: Key Features

The display on the Aspire 5 is a really good size for all creative applications including photo-editing and video-editing. Even though the increased laptop size doesn’t make it the most portable machine, when you’re set up in your mobile workspace you’ll have no difficulty working with the likes of Photoshop or Lightroom. The screen real estate also makes it possible to carry out a range of other tasks with ease, and having two windows open side by side doesn’t cramp the view too much. 

The Aspire 5 is well equipped with a Type-C USB 4 port which supports Thunderbolt making data transfer incredibly fast. The transferring of files from other devices such as hard drives is therefore not particularly onerous with speeds of up to 40Gbps. The laptop’s USB-A ports can only reach up to 20Gbps so it’s good to have the Thunderbolt option. Photographers and content creators work with SD cards a lot but this machine is not set up for transferring files from these cards directly. The use of a hub or docking station can overcome this though. 

This laptop proudly ships with a GeForce RTX 2050 but I wouldn’t rely on it for any significant graphics performance such as in gaming or more complex video editing and color grading. It’s branded as an RTX card but please don’t expect it to be any good at delivering ray tracing in games or 3D rendering. More on this in the performance section of this review.

This GPU is particularly aimed at lighter laptops that need more graphics computing power than an integrated alternative. The GeForce RTX 2050 therefore delivers the necessary power for working with Photoshop and working in the cloud but not much more.

The plugging in of external displays is made possible through the Type-C USB port but the HDMI port is better suited if you’re wanting to connect to an 8K monitor. This laptop is nowhere near capable enough to run video editing tasks at 4K, and definitely not at 8K.

Acer Aspire 5: Design & Handling

The Aspire 5 focuses first on functionality rather than aesthetics. The keyboard and touchpad are well positioned making it ergonomically pleasant to work with for a range of tasks. 

The materials are primarily plastic which makes the laptop light but not particularly robust when holding it or moving it around. It’s also difficult to open the laptop without two hands which isn’t too much of a problem but it does speak to the slightly clunky quality of the construction. Its plastic body and metal style finish with large bevels give it a rather outdated look, something that is common on a high proportion of budget and mid-range laptops. 

Acer Aspire 5: Photo Performance

The Aspire 5 is definitely a general all-rounder that doesn’t excel in any particular area. Its benchmark scores demonstrate that. The Cinebench scores came in at 532 points for the multi-core CPU and 105 points for the single-core CPU. The Geekbench score for multi-core came in at 6,843 and single-core at 2,071. Its GPU OpenCL score was 36,673. 

I’ve been at pains to say that this is not the machine to choose for video editing but just to prove it, during our Handbrake test, the Acer Aspire 5 transcoded a 10-minute 34-second 4K video to 1080p in 15 minutes 15 seconds. This is particularly slow considering the actual 4K video was only just over 10 minutes. The TUF Gaming F15 carried out the same test in 4 minutes 30 seconds. Encoding videos is a key part of a video editor's workflow and you don't want to be hanging around waiting longer than you have to for this process to be completed.

It’s worth remembering that this laptop is not designed for more intensive and demanding tasks so we shouldn’t be too harsh on it. Home workers wanting a laptop to run office applications, work in the cloud, or do basic photo-editing tasks will not be disappointed. I didn’t experience any performance issues when carrying out day-to-day tasks. Alongside this, the inclusion of a 1TB SSD worked perfectly for quick read-write access of files.

The device never got particularly hot but the fan does seem to be working noticeably hard to achieve this cooling. The noise is something that, at most times, blended into the background but the constant noise wasn’t particularly pleasing. 

Acer Aspire 5: Final Verdict

The Acer Aspire 5 is a mid-range laptop with a hardware spec to match. It is a great generalist but will not deliver if more demanding tasks are required. It is therefore a great option for someone wanting a reliable and semi-powerful machine for home working but not suitable for most photo or video editors. 

If you’re happy foregoing a minimal amount of display size then the Dell Inspiron 16 laptop or Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 are great alternatives. They offer similar specs but are a little more affordable. The IdeaPad benefits from an AMD Ryzen CPU and a slightly better graphics card in the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050.

Read more: check out our guide for the best budget laptops for more, or if you want to see the best of the best, take a look at our top picks for the best photo editing laptops and the best laptops for video editing.

The TUF Gaming F15 is made by ASUS and is squarely pitched towards gamers, hence the name. You would be forgiven for wondering why it is therefore being reviewed with creative professionals in mind rather than gamers. If it was called TUF Photo-editing F15 then you could understand the connection. 

The reality is that gaming laptops are often loaded with great processors, a decent amount of RAM, and fantastic graphics cards - all elements that contribute to a great experience for creatives. 

This model (FX507ZU) has an Intel i7 processor and a NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPU with 6GB GDDR6. It meets Photoshop’s recommended hardware requirements in every area which means you’ll have no problem running the likes of Photoshop and Lightroom. 

The TUF Gaming F15 definitely comes in at the top end of what would be considered a budget laptop. The spec matches the price and the inclusion of a number of different IO ports is a big plus. As a photographer, I love the SD card reader on my MacBook Pro, a luxury that is sadly missing on the TUF Gaming F15. 

The GeForce RTX 4050 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture and is therefore perfectly positioned to provide the power for the latest tranche of AI-driven tools in the Adobe suite of products. 

Asus Tuf Gaming F15: Specifications

Model: FX507ZU
Operating System: Windows 11 Home
Processor: 12th Gen Intel Core i7-12700H Processor 2.3 GHz (24M Cache, up to 4.7 GHz, 14 cores)
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPU, 6GB GDDR6
Display: 15.6-inch, FHD (1920 x 1080) 16:9, Value IPS-level, Anti-glare display
Memory: 8GB DDR4-3200 SO-DIMM x 2, Max Capacity: 32GB
Storage: 512GB PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 SSD
I/O Ports: 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack, 1x HDMI 2.1 FRL, 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C support DisplayPort / power delivery / G-SYNC, 1x RJ45 LAN port, 1x Thunderbolt 4 support DisplayPort
Touchpad: Yes
Camera: 720P HD camera
Battery: 90WHrs, 4S1P, 4-cell Li-ion
Weight: 2.20 Kg (4.85 lbs)
Dimensions: (W x D x H) 35.4 x 25.1 x 2.24cm

Asus Tuf Gaming F15: Key Features

Answering the question of whether the key features of the laptop will meet your needs is something only you can answer, I’m afraid. But maybe I can help a little. 

The display is 15.6-inch which is perfect for working on photos and videos. It’s enough screen real estate to run editing tasks when out and about but will definitely benefit from a second screen for more demanding creative projects. The FHD (1920 x 1080) resolution will be fine for photo editing but falls well short of the increasing demand for 4K video. If you find yourself only working with FHD footage then this laptop might be fine for now but certainly won’t be a long-term investment.

The touchpad is another key feature and it's a really good size. It makes navigating around photos and documents a breeze. The pad is pretty responsive although I did find the middle mouse click a little hard to use and at times unpredictable.

The 90Wh battery provides plenty of power for hours of editing, video playback, and web browsing and its super fast recharging enables it to go from 0-50% in as little as 30 minutes.

I would love to have seen an SD Card reader built into the device but that’s understandable given this is primarily a gaming laptop. Transferring photos and videos from cameras is a constant job for creatives but this will have to be achieved through a docking station or hub.

Asus Tuf Gaming F15: Design & Handling

The chassis has been redesigned for 2023, now 4.5% smaller than the previous design. It weighs in at 2.20Kg which is comparable with most laptops of its size but nowhere near as light and portable as the latest MacBook Pro’s for example.

The top of the laptop is metal with the sides and bottom being made of plastic. The materials make it feel mid-range but the addition of bevels and a sleek custom design give this laptop a visual wow factor. I didn’t find the keyboard to be particularly ergonomic and comfortable to use. I also thought the main keys were weighted too far to the left making it uncomfortable when typing. The RGB backlit colored keys were annoying but can thankfully be turned off. 

One of the selling points is its military-grade toughness, not something I tested for the review! They claim to have conducted rigorous MIL-STD-810H tests with the device exposed to drops, vibration, humidity, and extreme temperatures to ensure reliability. With this badge of honor, the laptop will survive the risks of using it at home, in the office, or out and about.

Asus Tuf Gaming F15: Performance

This laptop performs day-to-day browsing more than effectively with no hold-ups or lag. The 12th Gen Intel Core i7 processor paired with 2x 8GB DDR4 RAM enables this machine to handle photo-editing tasks with ease. The 16GB of RAM is perfect for opening and utilising multiple applications which is necessary for creatives needing access to multiple Adobe applications. 

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 is a mid-range GPU built on the Ada Lovelace architecture. It offers 2560 shaders and uses 6 GB GDDR6 dedicated graphics memory with a clock speed of 16 Gbps. This GPU has DirectX 12 support, and 6GB of GPU memory, both of which are either in line or above Photoshop’s recommendations.

The Cinebench scores came in at 6250 points for the GPU, 791 points for the multi-core CPU, and 96 points for the single-core CPU. The Geekbench score for multi-core came in at 10679 and single-core at 2419. Its GPU OpenCL score was 79031. During our Handbrake test, the TUF Gaming F15 transcoded a 10-minute 34-second 4K video to 1080p in 4 minutes 30 seconds.

Asus Tuf Gaming F15: Final Verdict

The TUF Gaming F15 is an excellent option for creatives who want a laptop at the top end of the budget category. An impressive processor and graphics card will work well for all types of editors but the lack of anything more than a FHD display will be problematic for video editors working with 4kK footage. A docking station or hub will be required to suit most workflows as this laptop doesn’t include an SD card reader. This mid-range laptop is a perfect all-rounder for creatives, gamers, and those working from home.

There are plenty of options in the budget to mid-range category with the Acer Nitro 5 providing similar specs. The HP Victus gaming laptop would be a more direct competitor but lacks the same level of processor or graphics card. 

Read more: check out our guide for the best budget laptops for more, or if you want to see the best of the best, take a look at our top picks for the best photo editing laptops and the best laptops for video editing.

Apple has released its new range of M3-powered MacBook Pro laptops, and if its marketing is to believed, they look rather good (we'll bring you our comprehensive independent review soon). Even the pricing seems at least palatable, with a base 16-inch, 18GB model coming in at $2,499.

But what if you get over-enthusiastic with the customisation options and spec up the flagship 16-inch M3 Max machine with the best of everything - 128GB RAM, an 8 terabyte SSD - what kind of dent (sorry, crater) do you think that'd put in your bank balance? $4,000, $5,000?, surely not as much as $6,000?

Ha, nowhere near. A fully specced-up 16-inch M3 Max MacBook Pro will run you to a whopping $7,199, and that's not including any optional software extras. So in today's Digital Camera World morning team meeting we posed the question: how much camera gear could you buy for the same money? And we're not talking about something like an entry-level Canon EOS R100 and a dozen budget lenses here. No, what kind of heavy duty, premium camera equipment could you be shooting with for the cost of just one MacBook Pro. Spoiler alert: it's a lot!

(The following prices were sourced from B&H on November 8th 2023)

Let's start with Canon. Right now there are some handy price reductions on the EOS R5 which can currently be picked up for $3,399. You could then kit this out with a $1,299 RF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM and a $2,499 RF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM, all for a total outlay of $7,197.

But what say you'd like a few more lenses in your kit bag? Switch to Nikon and your $7,199 buys you a Z 7II ($2,497), plus no fewer than FOUR lenses:

• Nikon Z 14-30mm f/4 S ($1,147)
• Nikon Z 24-120mm f/4 S ($1,097)
• Nikon Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR ($1,697)
• Nikon Z 85mm f/1.8 S ($697)

There's even change left over for a $62 PNY 256GB EliteX-PRO60 UHS-II SDXC card.

"Suuure, but full-frame is for the poor - only a medium format kit is good enough for me" I hear you cry.

Well, your luck's in, as that same $7,199 could instead bag you a Fujifilm GFX 50S II ($3,199), plus a GF 32-64mm f/4 R LM WR ($1,849) and a GF 100-200mm f/5.6 R LM OIS WR ($1,599). You could even add a studio lighting kit like the Interfit Badger Unleashed 2-Light Backpack Kit ($560), but only if you don't mind going $8 over budget :\

"All well and good, but I've already got an extensive camera kit. I want to drop $7,199 on something bigger. More impressive. More childish!"

Well ladies and gentlemen, I give you... a 2011 Ford Crown Victoria ex police interceptor, for the bargain price of $6,500

Fulfil a childhood dream, and drive around secure in the knowledge that no road user well ever cause you any grief. Even 128GB of RAM in your MacBook can't give you that level of God complex.

But coming back down to earth: please think carefully when you're configuring your new MacBook. Sure, a modern MacBook can't be upgraded, so it's wise to get as much RAM as you can afford at the point of purchase, but will your workflow ever really need 64GB RAM, let alone 128GB? Likewise, speccing anything larger than a 1TB SSD will invariably cost more than simply connecting a separate USB external hard drive or SSD of an equivalent capacity.

We love a nice new MacBook here, but even we can't justify splurging over $7,000 on one.

I’m one of those people who is very dubious when it comes to updating my MacBook’s OS. I used Mojave (the 2018 release) for about three years before updating to the latest version which, at the time, was Monteray, and I instantly regretted it. My laptop seemed to run slower than ever, I had even less space on my hard drive, and I could no longer use some of the software I had installed.

One of the problems with updating your OS is that often the latest updates aren’t compatible with older versions of photo editing software or video editing software you might have, meaning you might have to update all of your software. I recently had it the other way around. I had to to update my OS so I could use the latest generative AI features in Photoshop and Lightroom, but I was dubious about doing it because last time it caused me nothing but hassle. My OS was also already taking up a staggering 101GB of storage on my 250GB hard drive and the last thing I needed was for more to disappear.

Perhaps it's time for me to look at the best MacBooks for photo editing, which lists older more affordable models as well as the latest and greatest!

Using Photoshop and Lightroom was becoming painful; even simple tasks such as using the healing brush tool or resizing an image would trigger the “Scratch Disk Full” warning to appear. I’d then have to repeat the cycle of deleting as many documents as I could and emptying my recycle bin just to free up enough space to finish that one task. 

To be completely transparent, my hard drive management is poor (clearly). I never delete Zip files once they’ve been unzipped, I had hundreds of XMT files and thousands of emails stored on my computer but even after deleting all of the above, my OS was still taking up an unholy amount of space. 

When I finally took my Macbook to the Apple store, I was hoping for a quick fix. I wanted one of the Apple Genius to open some secret files, type some code into a black screen and solve all my problems. Instead, I sat with someone as they painstakingly deleted individual files ranging anywhere from 10Mb – 100Mb but that wasn’t even scratching the surface. The Genius suggested I back everything up and reinstall the OS from scratch but that sounded too much like hard work. And it would mean having to install all my software again too.

Lots of friends and fellow photographers recommended Clean My Mac – an app that helps to clean, maintain and remove unneeded files freeing up space on your hard drive. At $39.95/£29.95 for a year's subscription or $89.95/£79.95 as a one-time purchase, it’s really not all that expensive but I was feeling cheap so I didn’t bite on this either. 

Instead, I followed absolutely nobody's advice, updated my OS to Ventura (released September 2022) and to my complete surprise it somehow freed up around 50GB of space on my hard drive. For the first time in years, I have over 70GB of hard drive space available. My laptop is running faster, I can run Lightroom and Photoshop at the same time with no fear of the dreaded Scratch Disk message popping up and I’m not wasting time deleting inconsequential files.

What I hadn't known was that the system stores operating system updates, which can take up many gigabytes, ready for installation. When the update is successfully installed, these are automatically deleted.

I am still going to look into buying some sort of cleanup software because I’d rather pay for an app to do that job for me than have to do it manually but for now, at least I’m happy to have found a solution that cost me nothing, freed up space and enabled me to use all the powerful AI tools Adobe have released without any hiccups. I guess the moral of the story here is rather than fearing updates, we should embrace them.

Also check out the best photo editing laptops if you don't fancy investing in an Apple product

If you're looking for a less fruity iPad Pro - one that's more about Windows than iOS - then Robo & Kala's stunning 2-in-1 might be the alternative you've been looking for. It's powered with an ARM processor - the same energy-efficient tech that Apple Silicon is built with, gifting it silent operation and great battery life. The keyboard and pen attachments are magnetic – more in common with the iPad Pro. Oh, and the body is an elegant CNC unibody style. Then again, it has two USB-C ports, lets you upgrade the storage, and runs a full desktop operating system. Now that's a bit different!

Actually, the OS gives it a bit more in common with the Microsoft Surface, which is also available in energy-efficient ARM-based form with detachable keyboard but, like this device, runs Windows 11. We were very impressed with that, which seems to have wiped away the early concerns about running Windows on ARM which have lingered online but should now be consigned to the bin of history. 

Robo & Kala haven't been around long, but they seem determined to use this modern tech to break traditional boundaries, perhaps making a name for themselves as they shatter Apple's tablet-OS-for-tablets approach. We'll explore whether that's a good idea as we go (spoiler – it probably is), but we also need to know if the Robo & Kala 2–in–1, or Robo&kala as they write it on the case, is the right choice. It'd also be nice if they'd given it an actual name, but you can't have everything. Let's see how close we do get...

Specifications

Processor: Snapdragon 8cx Gen3 chip with 8 cores (4 + 4 efficiency)
Ports: 2x USB-C 3.2 (DP)
RAM: 16GB
SSD: 512GB
Screen: 12.6-inch 
Resolution: 2560 x 1600 px (16:10 OLED) 98% DCI-P3
Battery: 'up to' 20 hours / 41.4Wh
Networking: Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2
Cameras: 13 megapixel rear (4K video), 5MP front (1080P), 1MP infrared face unlock
Dimensions: 7.3mm 
Weight: Tablet only: 690g

Key Features

This is a true 2-in-1 laptop and tablet running Windows 11 on ARM. It's desktop mode works with a color-matched keyboard and trackpad attachment (which, at least at first, is being bundled free via Amazon) and a kickstand. That kickstand can also be used alone, with strong hinges and a good range of movement.

Two USB-C ports allow for charging via the included 65W charger at the same time as connecting to a peripheral, while the optional pencil and keyboard need only magnets to be attached (and don't even need to be attached) making the OLED display very useful around the home and office. There are also front and back cameras for full tablet duties, and face unlock. Oh, and being a proper computer the USB-C ports are DisplayPort, so you can just plug into a monitor and start using it too.

Build and handling

Our device arrived in a few separate boxes; the keyboard, tablet, a lovely case, and a pen. These reflect the alternate bundles on offer, and perhaps we were lucky to get the whole set, but one thing that was apparent from the packaging was the height of Robo&kala's aspiration. White boxes, simple clean design, film wraps, need I say more?

Unlike the iPad, though, this tablet can stand up on its own thanks to the kickstand which allows the device to be positioned at a laptop-like angle all the way around to an angled notepad. That goes well with the pencil which works straight out of the box and is clearly inspired by the Apple Pencil 2 – no bad thing. 

The chassis is a rich green aluminium color and I simply cannot understate how good it looks (though it is a fingerprint magnet, so keep a cloth nearby!) The edges reveal drilled-hole speakers in the gorgeous metallic green build. These come around the 12.6-inch AMOLED display and its thin bezel, and the kickstand closes flat against the back with a hinge at either end. Admittedly the stand edge is so thin because it is metal right to the edge, so there is a risk of scratching, but it seems OK.

Aside from acting as a laptop, tablet, or notebook, the device offers an extra trick via a 'separation mode' in which the keyboard's Bluetooth keeps it working remotely from the tablet. Imagine being able to plug into a display system but take the keyboard to the meeting table? It's a great idea, and very handy, though it'd be better if the keyboard didn't disconnect to save battery so readily and then take a few seconds to relink.

Display

The OLED screen's 600-nit brightness is a noticeable strength of the device and colors are rich and easily seen in normal light. The resolution is such that Windows displays natively at 200%, which means it looks phenomenal compared to the grainy pixelation on a typical monitor. The rounded corners also look good, though they do hide a few pixels.

When using the very Apple-like pencil, the point of interaction seems to follow reasonably smoothly, and the 4,096 pressure levels can be used in different ways via Windows Pen setup. Similarly, the screen seems to detect fingers naturally and the small bezel or sensible error rejection means that using it handheld becomes second nature quickly.

Camera

As with most tablets, you won't be holding a phone replacement in your hand (even the iPad Pro has one fewer camera than the iPhone Pro), but the main camera certainly has the ability to capture usable images in adequate light or to perform other duties like scanning QR codes.

The cameras are both flat against the shell of the device which makes it slip easily into the case and makes them easy to wipe clean (and, to be fair, easy to get finger grease on the selfie/conferencing camera).

Admittedly the face unlock feature does like to be looking straight at you, and blinks agressively at you with a red LED which can be a little annoying. Occasionally I accidentally lifted the tablet from the keyboard in the process of unlocking, but it is all resolved in a moment, and you don't have to use it after all.

Performance

In benchmark testing the Robo & Kala wouldn't be expected to perform faster than high-end computers, but in real-world use the machine blasts through day-to-day tasks like web browsing, file management and the like. Even when we try more demanding tools like Photoshop it works.

Given the size of the machine, that is actually a little difficult to get your head around. The idea that this can be a 'proper' computer is almost incomprehensible. The fact it's doing so – and looking so good doing it – in a world Apple seem to want customers to fork out for a phone, laptop, AND a tablet ought to be a real worry for team Cupertino!

Putting it into numbers it's also apparent that, compared to the Surface Pro 9 or a Dell XPS 13 with an Intel processor, that there is little in it, especially in the multi-core tests.

It's also worth pointing out that even though Robo & Kala's battery claim of 20 hours is wildly over the top it's still possible to get around half that which is excellent. This is where the ARM chip's efficiency outlasts ordinary laptops and this difference is significantly more noticeable than benchmarks for many. 

Robo & Kala for photographers

Of course the built-in cameras aren't really the most exciting aspect of the device for serious photographers – what is more interesting is the chance to take control of your favorite software in as many ways as possible. In that regard a lightweight tablet with a bright screen, a pressure-sensitive pen and a long battery life are appealing, before you even throw in the prospect of a full grown-up operating system and the software choice that brings with it.

I tried Photoshop – real Photoshop, which works on ARM – and it seemed reasonably snappy to me, though I could perceive a hint of a lag which I simply don't on a MacBook. This was especially true with the pencil, but it is still handy, and the button can be used to switch from, say, draw and erase.

In contrast to the world of Apple, it has to be said that Windows on ARM still has a few little pauses. On a fanless machine with silent file storage, they can be somewhat disconcerting, but the trade-off is that you have access to a full file system – you can plug in external storage, copy files over and do with them what you will. The screen's resolution is also well-suited to camera remote control apps.

It's also true that a good number of my Adobe apps weren't available in ARM-friendly form; no Premiere Pro, for example. 

Overall verdict

Looking gorgeous and so sensibly priced, with so much to be said for it in terms of flexibility it's hard to imagine why this shouldn't make it to everyone's shortlist. Perhaps only video editors – who can get Final Cut on the iPad Pro might want to skip this.

Admittedly we encountered a few little glitches that aren't part of the tablet experience for Apple loyalists, but in those instances, we were doing things beyond iOS's abilities anyway.

Similarly there area couple of things the pricier Surface Pro has which would be nice here, not least the rather nice dual-magnet keyboard. Typing on the Robo & Kala is still pretty easy as the keys have about 1.3mm travel, but the keys are resolutely level with the surface. The trackpad is fine, too, though perhaps slightly uneven (easier to press at the bottom). Other devices also offer cellular data connections which would be a nice option to have even if, to be honest, you're usually better off using your phone's hotspot.

Mostly, though, the Robo & Kala just feels like a premium product. It feels good in the hand, the kickstand is tough (but not too tough), the backlighting on the keypad doesn't leak round the keys and they're good to type on. Neither laptop mode nor tablet feel like a compromise, and Windows seems well able to handle both.

When weighed against the investment, this is the best Windows on ARM device out there but, more than that, this should be a real fright for Apple too. It is a powerful, adaptable portable computing device that still manages to feel premium in nearly all the right places without being wallet-busting. It serves to elevate my view of Windows as a platform.

This isn't the only device that should have the iPad quaking in its boots – check our review of the Lenovo Tab Extreme as well as our guides to the best iPad alternatives, the best Android tablets, and the best iPads.