Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) vs ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026)
41.4Performance68
29.8Display55
55.3Battery50.7
79.6Portability38.2
3 spec wins — Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3)5 spec wins — ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026)
InnoReviews verdict
ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) wins this laptop face-off, 55.6 to 48.4, pulling ahead mainly in performance (+27) and display (+25). Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) still makes sense if its price or standout specs fit your needs better.
Which would you pick?
Key differences
Reasons to pick the Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3)
- Stronger battery score: 55 vs 51
- Stronger portability score: 80 vs 38
- 57% lower thickness: 11.5 mm vs 26.9 mm
- 31% lower weight: 1.51 kg vs 2.2 kg
Reasons to pick the ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026)
- Stronger performance score: 68 vs 41
- Stronger display score: 55 vs 30
- 700% higher storage: 2,048 GB vs 256 GB
- 329% higher charging: 150 W vs 35 W
- 300% higher RAM: 32 GB vs 8 GB
Display
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Screen size | 15.3 ″ | 16 ″+5% |
| Panel type | IPS (Liquid Retina) | IPS-level, anti-glare, 100% sRGB |
| Resolution | 2880x1864 | 2560x1600 |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 165 Hz+175% |
| Peak brightness | 500 nits | — |
Performance
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | Apple M3 (8-core) | Intel Core i7-14650HX (up to 5.2GHz, 16C/24T) |
| Graphics | Apple M3 10-core GPU | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Laptop GPU, 85W (8GB GDDR7) |
| RAM | 8 GB | 32 GB+300% |
| RAM type | LPDDR5 (unified) | DDR5-5600 SO-DIMM (2 slots, upgradeable to 64GB) |
| Storage | 256 GB | 2,048 GB+700% |
| Storage type | SSD | M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD (2x M.2 slots) |
Benchmarks
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Geekbench 6 (single) | 3,130Top 26% | — |
| Geekbench 6 (multi) | 12,066Bottom 19% | — |
Battery
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity | 67 Wh+6% | 63 Wh |
| Charging | 35 W | 150 W+329% |
Design
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 1.51 kg+31% | 2.2 kg |
| Thickness | 11.5 mm+57% | 26.9 mm |
| Material | Recycled Aluminum | All-black chassis with an anti-fingerprint coating, MIL-STD-810H tested |
Connectivity
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Ports | 2x Thunderbolt / USB 4, MagSafe 3, 3.5mm | 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1x USB 2.0 Type-A, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (DisplayPort / Power Delivery), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x RJ45 LAN, 3.5mm combo audio jack |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) |
| Bluetooth | 5.3 | 5.4 |
| Webcam | 1080p FaceTime HD | 720p HD camera |
| Biometrics | Touch ID | — |
Software
| Spec | Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) | ASUS TUF Gaming 16 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system | macOS Sonoma | Windows 11 Home |
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