Razer released the Razer Book 13 back in November 2020. This new portable laptop is said to focus on productivity rather than gaming. And, since it is quite similar to the M1 MacBook Pro, people have started to wonder which one is actually better here. So, here is our comparison of the M1 MacBook Pro vs Razer Book 13.
Design and Display
The MacBook Pro has its iconic sleek design that hasn’t changed for years. Personally, we don’t think Apple will need to make any changes with this design in the next couple of years.
Moving on to the Razer Book 13, we can see some similarities here. While both laptops share an aluminum design, the Razor Book 12 edges are a bit more squared off. We believe this feature really makes the Razor laptop feel more solid than the Apple machine.
The new Razer Book is a 13.4-inch laptop with a 60Hz matte display. It’s similar in size to the 13.3-inch M1 MacBook Pro. However, the Razer Book is a bit smaller because of the reduced bezel size. It’s worth mentioning that the MacBook Pro can display DCI-P3 color while the Razer cannot. So, if you need a laptop for photo editing then the M1 MacBook Pro is the better option here. Meanwhile, the only advantage of the Razor here is its touch screen display.
Unfortunately, unlike the MacBook Pro, you will see some vents on the bottom of the Razor Book 13. And, this design might lead to some overheating issues because you might block its vents when using the laptop on your lap. Overall, the Razor Book 13 is still one of the best-built window laptops we’ve ever tested. Although it’s quite difficult to open the machine with just one hand, the Razor Book 3 premium design is still worth taking a look at.
Keyboards and Ports
Both laptops share a similar keyboard design, but with the same key travel here. While the M1 MacBook Pro offers a Touch Bar that is unique for the Pro models, the Razer Book keyboard has RBG key lighting for a better typing experience in all light conditions. Also, when it comes to ports, the Razor Book 13 absolutely smokes the M1 Mac with its HDMI 2.0, a USB-C type A, and 2 Thunderbolt 4 ports.
Performance & Test Results
SSD Speed Test
Although the write speed is quite the same on both devices, the read speed is actually faster on the Razor Book 13 with 2768 points compared with 2389 points on the M1 Mac. Not to mention it has a smaller SSD.
Web Browser Test
As you can see, the M1 Mac is about 30% faster than the Razor (210 vs 162.5 runs/minute) when it comes to general web browsing. However, we think the Razor Book 13 is still very impressive for an Intel-based laptop.
Geekbench 5 CPU Test
We have 1543 points for the Razor compared with 1742 points for the MacBook in the single-core test. The result is no different when it comes to multi-core with 7592 points for the Mac and just 5403 points for the Razor.
Overall, the M1 MacBook Pro is around 15% more powerful than the Razor Book 13. Well, this is not surprising because the MacBook Pro model is renowned for its excellent processing power.
GPX Gaming Benchmark
We used a 1440p Aztec Ruins high-tier off-screen test so the resolution won’t make any difference between these machines. At first, we easily noticed that the Mac started up much faster than the Razor.
For the final result, we got 79.5 fps for the Apple M1. Meanwhile, the Razor had 48.1 fps. So, as far as optimized gaming goes, the M1 MacBook is still far ahead of the Razor.
Cinebench R23 & Thermal test
During our Cinebench R23 test, the M1 MacBook Pro was running at 32 degrees celsius at its hottest point, while the razor was at 39 degrees celsius. Using thermal cameras, we noticed a lot more hot spots overall on the Razer Book 13 than the MacBook Pro. But, there are also a couple of cool spots on the Razer Book 13 where the fans are.
3 minutes later, the M1 MacBook Pro reached 96 degrees celsius. Finally, the fans had to kick in, but only at 2700 rpm. So, it’s still completely silent. After 5 minutes, we were quite impressed with the Razer Book 13 because it can kick the wattage back up immediately (after cooling down). Plus, the frequencies also went up as well whereas most other windows laptops with these same processors just slowly go down to 20 watts.
With the final result, the M1 MacBook Pro scored 7674 pts when our Razer Book 13 only got 5444 pts in the Cinebench multi-core test. Honestly, we thought it was going to be higher for the Razer Book 13 because of how high those frequencies stayed and the wattage kept going up. Even though that’s a good improvement, the M1 MacBook Pro is still 40% faster in full CPU load. And, this is a pretty substantial difference.
Lightroom Classic Photo Editing
Note that this is an x86 app that is perfect for Intel Razor Book. And, we had to use Rosetta to support the M1 MacBook Pro. So, it wasn’t running at its full performance here.
At first, we started with a 5042 megapixel raw image and both laptops fired up the image almost instantly. After a few basic editing, the Razor fan began to run at its highest speed. Meanwhile, the M1 MacBook Pro is still cool and quiet.
When it comes to exporting images, the results are fairly close here. We have 2 minutes and 35 seconds for the Mac compared with 2 minutes and 55 seconds for the Razer.
Premiere Pro Video Editing
In this test, we created a 4k project in Premiere Pro to test the video editing on both machines. Again, the Razor started to kick up its fan first. However, it still offered a quite decent playback result with 30 fps at 4k resolution. On the other hand, the M1 MacBook Pro ran this video smoothly and we barely heard the fan noise.
With the final results, it took 9 minutes and 55 seconds for the M1 MacBook to export the video. Meanwhile, the Razor needed 12 minutes and 32 seconds for the same task. So, despite running not-optimized apps, the M1 MacBook Pro is still the winner in both photo and video editing.
Battery
Having a slightly smaller design means the Razor Book 13 will have less battery than the M1 MacBook (55WH vs 58WH). However, this difference isn’t that significant, so I think there is no winner here!
In our battery test, we got around 7 hours of use while using the Razer Book 13 for standard office work with occasional Zoom calls and streaming at 200 nits of brightness. Overall, the Razer’s battery life is very solid.
But, it’s tough to complete with the M1 MacBook Pro which lasts for up to 17 hours when web browsing and up to 20 hours when watching movies. Additionally, we finally have a nice slim charging brick that comes with a Razor laptop this time.
Price
The base model of Razer Book 13 has 256GB storage, 8GB RAM, and the 11th-generation Core i5 Intel chip. And, it is priced at $1199, which is $100 cheaper than the 2020 M1 MacBook Pro ($1299) with the same RAM and storage specs.
Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons | |
| M1 MacBook Pro |
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| Razor Book 13 |
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The Verdict
Overall, the Razer Book 13’s performance here isn’t bad by any means. These are both highly capable laptops that are going to handle your daily tasks. And, we think the Razer Book 13 is a capable laptop for those who prefer using a Windows operating system.
On top of that, the M1 MacBook Pro is just better at more intensive tasks like video or photo editing. So, if you don’t have to use any Intel optimized apps, the M1 MacBook Pro is such a great deal here!
Personally, with only a $100 difference in price range, I would prefer to have an M1 MacBook Pro because of its amazing overall performance and battery life.
Let us know what you think about the M1 MacBook Pro vs Razer Book 13 showdown in the comments!
Read more: 8GB vs 16GB Apple M1 MacBook Pro: Which One is Right for You?
