I ditched my MacBook Pro for the Asus ProArt GoPro Edition (PX13) — this is the first time I can confidently say creators can switch from macOS

When it comes to Windows creator laptops, it’s been my mission to hunt down the ultimate MacBook Pro alternative. As someone who creates regularly on Apple systems, this is always a good frame of reference to have, because if you want to aim for the King, you'd best not miss.

Well, that’s where I introduce you to the Asus ProArt GoPro Edition (PX13), a GoProified edition of the 13-inch 2-in-1 monster the company started making a year ago. And with a jump to Strix Halo, a fresh, durable design and ergonomics that feel like a match made in heaven for any creative, this is one helluva fighter for the throne.

With AMD’s Ryzen AI Max 395+ chipset, this chews through any complex Photoshop or Premiere Pro workload with the greatest of ease, while being a beast with AAA games too. A creator laptop that just so happens to be a serious gamer too? Who knew that was possible!? (Not Apple).

The svelte construction means this whole heap of power is easy to stash in your backpack, suitably durable for outdoor work, and with a wink to GoPro in the aesthetics, it brings the utilitarian personality on big.

And in terms of getting stuff done, you have that gorgeous OLED panel with impressive color accuracy (but still just 60Hz), the built-in DialPad is as good as ever for precision control in creative apps, and moving away from using a dedicated Nvidia GPU to the integrated all-in-one AMD chip has given battery life a serious boost.

Now, yes, let’s address that $2,999 price tag. It’s a lot — limiting it only for the pro creatives out there. But to come close to a spec set like this in the likes of a MacBook Pro (especially that high 128GB of shared system memory for running AI locally), you can spend close to $5,000.

So while this won’t be for the regular folks (if you are getting into content creation for the first time, I’ve had no trouble daily-driving the MacBook Pro M5), if you are looking to take things to the next level in video, photo or music production, and you don’t want to drop a totally bonkers amount of cash, this is a great, more palatable option.

Asus ProArt GoPro Edition: Cheat Sheet

• What is it? This is a 13-inch creator laptop.
• Who is it for? It's for what we call prosumers — power users who get mightily creative with the likes of Adobe Creative Suite and other advanced apps.
• What does it cost? You can pick one up for $2,999.
• What do we like? Asus is really hitting its stride in making the ideal Windows alternative to the MacBook Pro. AMD’s Strix Halo chip is a monster here, paired with a ton of system memory for AI-intensive tasks, the OLED screen is gorgeous and the ergonomics are tip-top for getting stuff done.
• What don’t we like? So this is a pricey beast, the battery life is good, but doesn’t match what you can get from a MacBook Pro, and not having a full-size SD card slot and a refresh rate still locked at 60Hz feels like a big miss for creators (especially with slow-mo footage).

Asus ProArt GoPro Edition: Specs

Asus ProArt GoPro Edition: The ups

Transitions are never easy — even for me, hopping between Windows and macOS on the regular. But if there’s one thing that Asus nails here, it’s making that leap for creators a cinch for anyone looking to make the jump from a MacBook Pro.

Sleek stylings

And it starts with an uber premium, utilitarian body that feels great in the hand and sports impressive ergonomic touches all over the shop.

From the sharp-looking GoPro touches like the etched lines across the lid and around the side to the hinge that feels sturdy yet easy to open with one finger, you know you’re in for a treat from the first touch.

Then there’s the keyboard, which has a gorgeous tactile impact on each key press, and a decent-sized touchpad that dominates the bottom of this 13-inch deck with a nice snappy click to it. Plus, the DialPad makes a return here, which, alongside the stylus on that touchscreen display, allows for super precise edits.

Ports are well placed, it looks the business, and after watching laptops get bigger and bigger, it’s always a joy to go back to a 13-inch model — especially when it’s military standard tested for impressive durability on outdoor shoots.

Power packed

Previously, dedicated graphics were the name of the game for the PX13, but with Strix Halo, Asus is able to have its cake and eat it too with both peak performance and impressive battery life.

In the realm of creator laptops, these numbers are crazy good — every bit a match in GPU-intensive processes to the MacBook Pro lineage. I’ve handled complex 4K video edits in Premiere Pro with After Effects graphics and dabbled with massive compositions in Ableton Live.

And given that ludicrous 128GB of shared system memory (in this RAM price crisis economy!?), I’ve also been able to dip into running some local AI as well. Put simply, whatever you throw at it, this will handle it. The multitasking capabilities are insane!

Oh, and did I mention that this is a monster for gaming too? Many creator laptops forget about that bit, but the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395’s GPU capably handles all the latest AAA titles better than certain RTX 40-series dedicated cards.

Since this has the same chip as the ROG Flow Z13 KJP edition, I'll let Darragh take you through its gaming chops.

Then, for those days when you are away from the plug, so long as you manage your workload, you can eke out a full day of usage from this.

Granted, it’s not as capable in terms of stamina as the MacBook Pro, but this is still strong in the grand scheme of things.

A mesmerizing display

Then we turn our attention to that 3K OLED panel up front, which is a pure flash flood of color with accuracy that inspires confidence in your work color balancing.

Unfortunately, it still only runs at 60Hz, and it's a bit on the dim side (typical with single-layer OLED). But for creating, this sharp, vivid panel is an absolute joy to use with zero latency on the touch response. Whether you’re binge-watching in tent mode or getting stuff done, this is a bright, capable screen for all jobs.

Asus ProArt GoPro Edition: The downs

That’s not to say the transition has been completely flawless, though. There is one standard creator requirement that this doesn’t quite cut the mustard on.

Still no full-size SD card slot?

I was hoping this would be a thing of the past. I get that there are certain cameras (especially GoPro models) that use Micro SD. But the vast majority of the camera landscape uses full-size SD cards.

Is this me over-complaining? Possibly. There is always USB-4 to connect them for fast transfers. But to ignore this generic standard for most pro creators is a miss in my books.

You can leave StoryCube at the door

With the ProArt GoPro edition, you get some decent software bundled in, like CapCut and GoPro Cloud integration with 12 months of Premium+. But being honest, that’s where the nice freebies start and stop.

Asus has a couple of other exclusive apps like StoryCube and MuseTree, which are essentially AI content management and idea brainstorming systems, respectively.

But I found that the natural language search of StoryCube was a bit unreliable, and the workflow of MuseTree just felt a bit off, feeling more like a glorified AI art generator rather than actually something to inspire me.

Asus ProArt GoPro Edition: Verdict

So where does that leave the Asus ProArt GoPro edition? Well, in the spirit of the name, it feels like the ProArt PX13 has finally gone pro. It’s a sleek, stylish laptop that achieves a feeling like it's worth the lofty price tag attached to it.

The move to Strix Halo has liberated this 13-inch machine from bad battery life and turned it into a serious portable creation station. And looking past the lack of a full-size SD card slot and the weird StoryCube and MusTree apps, this has the chops to really power through your workload.

As someone who daily drives a MacBook Pro for all my video, music, and graphic design work, a few weeks with this have shown me that there is a world outside of Apple where I can get things done.