Huawei has expanded their Matebook notebook range with an updated version of the MateBook Pro X and new budget model the MateBook 14, both revealed at MWC 2019.
The Chinese company took its time in launching its notebook range in Australia, now that it has it is likely that the latest models will land Down Under as well.
The updated model of the Matebook X Pro features a near-identical design. Besides omitting its full Huawei logo, it has the same number of ports, touchscreen, and the pop-up web-camera embedded in the keyboard’s function row.
It does have an updated inner, with a faster processor (i5-8265U or Core i7-8565U), upgraded graphics card (Nvidia MX250 discrete graphics), and upgraded Thunderbolt 3 port, plus the option for up to 1TB of storage.
All incremental updates, but Huawei appear to be trying to not rock the boat after its first notebook offerings were well received.
In addition to the updated MateBook X Pro, Huawei revealed the MateBook 14, a more affordable model. Pricing yet to be released.
It features the same keyboard, trackpad, fingerprint scanner, and pop-up webcam of the Matebook X Pro, but with a slightly larger display with lower resolution (14-inch 2160 x 1440 pixel touchscreen), USB-C connection in the place of Thunderbolt 3, and two speakers instead of the X Pro’s quad speaker system.
The MateBook 14 has the same processor and GPU options, but the most storage offer maxes out at 512GB.
Due to its lower specifications, Huawei claims its 57.4Wh battery will offer up to 15 hours of video playback or 10.5 hours of web browsing.
Both notebooks include new software dubbed “Huawei Share One Hop” that transfers images and other files between a Huawei phone and laptop once triggered by NFC chips in both devices at speeds up to 30Mbps, similar to Apple’s AirDrop feature.
It will be interesting to see if the negative press surrounding the distrust of Huawei’s products will affect the sales of its notebooks and smartphones in 2019, both of which have been well received by consumers all over the world.
The MateBook X Pro and MateBook 14 are slated to hit international markets this year, the X Pro starts at €1,599 for the Core i5 model (8GB RAM and 512GB storage); and €1,999 for the Core i7 model (16GB RAM and 1TB storage). The MateBook 14 will start at €1,199 euro for a Core i5 model, and €1,499 for the Core i7 version.
Local pricing and availability are yet to be confirmed.
