Huawei is the world’s third largest smartphone manufacturer, and now the Chinese company has turned its attention to making laptops. Its first attempt, the Matebook X is rather excellent, although, like with everyhing Huawei makes, its influences are clear – Apple’s Macbook better start sleeping with one eye open.
As quoted by T3.com. Despite it’s initial appearance, the Matebook is actually a pretty innovative device, with the company using its knowledge and experince in the smartphone industry to influence its laptop design. The result is an ultra-portable device with some brilliant user focused features which make it a pleasure to use.
But let’s start with the way its looks. Cover up the logos and you’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between this and Apple’s Macbook. That’s no bad thing because the Macbook is arguable the most attractive laptop you can buy, but it would have been nice to see Huawei do something a little different with the design, like Microsoft did with the Surface Laptop.
We’re not too fussed, however, because the Macbook is a stunning laptop, and so to is the Matebook X. It’s great news for people who love Apple’s industrial design, but prefer Windows 10 over macOS.
Open it up and you’ll find a pleasingly clicky keyboard with a decent amount of travel, and a large glass touchpad, which is a pleasure to use. The hinge gives a good amount of resistance, and feels secure while open.
We reviewed the Gold model, but Huawei are also selling the Matebook X in Space Grey, Rose, and Silver.
When open you’ll find the most distinctive feature which sets the Matebook X apart from the Macbook. It’s the stunning, 2160 x 1440 pixels, 13-inch screen, complete with shrunken bezels. That’s one inch larger than the Macbook’s 12-inch display, making this the worlds smallest 13-inch laptop. That’s an impressive claim, and the sharp, comparatively large display is a major selling point of this device.
There’s no touch, however. That didn’t really bother us, coming from a Macbook.
The display has a 3:2 aspect ratio, so it’s a little more square than most laptops. This is great for working surfing the internet, but not so great for watching videos.
Despite that, Huawei is pitching the Matebook X as a media device, especially as the laptop features some pretty imressive Dolby Atmos speakers.
Now, obviously this isn’t going to start pumping out 24 channel surround sound, but the Matebook X does sound very good, especially for a laptop of its size. There isn’t huge amounts of bass, which can be expected, but there’s plenty of volume and a wide sound stage.
Huawei has also taken some innovation from its smartphone devision, placing a lightning fast fingerprint sensor inside the power button. This is an incredibly secure and quick way to unclock the device, and saves you having to type a password every time you go to unlock it.
The keyboard is also splash resistant, so you needn’t worry if a careless coworker knocks a drink on it.
Just like Apple, the only ports you get here are two USB-C, and a headphone jack. Although, slightly annoyingly, the left USB-C is only for power, while the right USB-C can be used fo everything else. They’re not interchangeable like the ones of Apple devices.
Generously, Huawei will include a USB-C adapter in the box, which features an HDMI port, USB3, Display Port and extra USB-C.
Huawei Matebook X Full Specifications
Size
|
Width
|
12.5 mm (0.49 in.)
|
Depth
|
286 mm (11.26 in.)
| |
Height
|
211 mm (8.31 in.)
| |
Weight
|
1.05 kg (2.31 lb)
| |
Color
|
Space gray, Prestige Gold
| |
Display
|
Size
|
13 Inch
|
Type
|
IPS
| |
Corning® Gorilla® glass
| ||
Resolution
|
2160 x 1440 pixel
| |
Colors
|
sRGB 100% color gamut
| |
Contrast
|
1000:1
| |
Brightness
|
350 nits
| |
CPU
|
WT-W09: 7th Generation Intel® Core™ i5-7200U processor
| |
WT-W19: 7th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-7500U processor
| ||
GPU
|
Intel HD® Graphics 620
| |
Operation System
|
Windows 10 64-bit Home
| |
Memory
|
Gray Color
|
i5 8GB + 256GB
|
Gold Color
|
i7 8GB + 512GB
| |
Network
|
IEEE 802. 11 a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5GHz 2x2 MIMO
| |
Connectivity
|
Standard
|
Bluetooth 4.1 (compatible with 3.0 and 2.1+EDR)
|
Sensor
|
Ambient ligh sensor, fingerprint sensor, accelerometer, and Hall sensor
| |
Battery
| ||
Audio
|
Dolby Atmos
| |
In the box
|
HUAWEI Matebook Charger
| |
Quick Start Guide
| ||
HUAWEI MateBock 2 (Standard in some models)
| ||
*Dislaimer: The preceding specifications are theoretical values based on product design. To provide accurate product information, specifications, and features, Huawei may make real-time adjustments to the preceding specifications, so that they match the product performance, specifications, indexes, and components of the actual product. Product information it subject to such changes and adjustments without notice
| ||
Energy Efficiency
|
Products that earn the ENERGY STAR prevent greenhouse gas emissions by meeting strict energy efficiency requirements set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
| |
As you can see from the spec sheet, it’s certainly no slouch, although, admittedly, it’s also not going to be used for gaming.
The battery life is claimed to be around 10 hours. We’d say this is a slight overestimate, and generally got around 8 hours, which we’re still pretty happy with.
Now, we’ve convered the premium design and the powerful specs. All that’s left is the price... and this will probably make you wince.
i5/8GB/256GB – €1399 (around £1225)
i5/8GB/512GB SSD – €1599 (around £1400)
i7/8GB/512GB SSD – €1699 (around £1485)
Gone are the days of Huawei being a budget brand.
You’ve probably also noticed all of those prices are in Euros, and that’s because we haven’t been given any UK specific pricing or release dates yet, despite being launched all the way back in May.
Verdict
The Huawei Matebok X has it all, a stunning premium design, powerfull specs, and useful, user-centric features.
If you’re after an ultra portable laptop, love Apple’s industrial design, but prefer Window 10, this really is the perfect machine.
Of course, that is if you can afford it, and, if you have the patience to wait for Huawei to release it in the UK.
If you can’t wait, it’s also worth checking out the rather brilliant Dell XPS 13, or Microsoft’s new Surface Laptop.
0 comments