I don’t think there are many better designed laptops going around, in fact I’d put the Huawei Matebook X Pro right alongside the MacBook and the Dell XPS 13.
In fact, those three devices are the three I’d be recommending if you’ve got serious cash to lay down on a laptop.
And by serious cash, I’m talking $3,299 – give or take the rebate of a free set of Huawei headphones for current purchases.
The Dell has this slim, tiny design. A really compelling portable computer.
Huawei’s Matebook X Pro has a bigger screen, bigger profile, but follows the MacBook’s edgy design and overall style.
I’ve been using this laptop for a month, and it’s one hell of a daily driver. Pro is in the name because it matches it with the “other” Pro’s.
Under the keyboard is a 10th Generation Intel Core i7 processor running at 1.8GHz, NVIDIA GeForce MX250, 16GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD.
Solid, Pro specs. And it feels it. I’ve been doing video, audio, photo work without any issue.
But in daily use, it’s the screen that impresses most. This 13.9 inch screen runs at 3000 x 2000 pixels, which, while not being as impressive as others, is still rocks solid.
And most impressive, it pushed right to the edges – the bezel around the outside of the screen is at best 5mm top, left and right.
This is aided most by the lack of an above screen webcam. Instead, that’s hidden under a function key at the top of the keyboard. Cunning, smart, and a great way to bat back at the privacy narks. But, in a world of Zoom calls and such, it’s a poor placement, a view no-one at the other end of a video call wants to see.
There’s a huge trackpad for mouse control, and the keyboard itself is very smooth, great sound, great feel under the fingers.
Top right of the keyboard is a power button that doubles as a fingerprint reader for fast login to Windows.
Sound comes from speakers either side of the keyboard, and it’s impressive enough to enjoy your streaming shows or music. No question.
Perhaps Huawei’s biggest selling point is to Huawei phone owners. Using Huawei Share, you simple tap your phone on the Matebook X Pro and from there you can drag and drop files from phone to computer, access files directly and share connectivity. It’s brilliant.
Sadly, Huawei’s scale in the smartphone space is no longer growing, so that simple feature advantage is diminished.
At $3,299, it’s expensive. You’ve gotta really love Windows to want this, because a similarly specced MacBook Pro is about the same. Remember when Apple was the premium priced product?
I wish this had a 2 in front of the pricetag. Because I think it’s one of the most impressive laptops available on the market today.
Thin, Sleek, touch-screen, borderless screen, powerful, it’s got it all.
