Huawei has reissued its flagship laptop MateBook X Pro 2020. Nothing changes in terms of design and appearance, but inside technology does.
Like the previous laptop with the same name, the Huawei MateBook X Pro (2020) has a 13.9-inch touch display with a very narrow screen edge. The color “Space Gray” will remain the same for the time being, with new colors such as “Emerald Green” and “Mystic Silver” to follow later in the year. The gray version of the laptop will appear in domestic stores at the end of June 2020.
In Austria there are two versions of the device: one with 16 gigabytes of RAM and 512 gigabytes of internal memory, as well as 10th generation Intel Core i5-10210U processors and an NVIDIA GeForce MX250 (1,599 euros) and one with 16 gigabytes of RAM and 1 terabyte of internal memory as well as 10th generation Intel Core i7-10510U processors and an NVIDIA GeForce MX250 (1,899 euros).
Very high quality workmanship
Nothing has changed in the aluminum case (304 x 217 x 14.6 millimeters with 1.33 kilograms): the device in matt gray looks great and still shines with its high-quality workmanship. The connections also remained unchanged: 2 x USB-C, 1 x USB-A 3.0 and a 3.5 mm jack plug for headphones and microphone are on board. Since nothing has changed in the design, we recommend for a more detailed look at the case our review of the previous version of the Huawei MateBook X Pro. The MateDock 2 adapter, a power adapter and a charging cable are also supplied with the laptop.
The glossy display is also excellent except for the good visibility of fingerprints. The high brightness enables working even in sunlight and contrasts, details and colors leave nothing to be desired. The resolution is again 3,000 x 2,000 pixels, the display takes up 91 percent of the screen area. An innovation is immediately apparent in operation: The new cooling has become even quieter than its predecessor and does not go beyond a little annoying buzz even under full load.
The camera remains the point of criticism
Like its predecessor, the case of the MateBook X Pro gets noticeably warm when it does demanding work, but not hot. Huawei has also improved the four speakers on the laptop: They can play much louder music and tones, but slight quality losses can be heard at the highest volume. Dolby Atmos is on board again. The good chiclet keyboard with backlighting and a pleasant drop, the fingerprint sensor integrated in the power button and the camera, which can be sunk in one key, have been retained.
The retractable camera remains a curiosity of the device. Although the idea of being able to extend the camera only when it is in use is nice, the camera angle is still not ideal. In video conferences and the like, you appear filmed at an angle from below, which does not necessarily put the user in the best light. If you want to speak to the camera at eye level, you have to place the device at an angle on a surface. Apart from that, the keyboard does a great job: The spaces between the keys and the case are so narrow that hardly any dust can penetrate.
If you have one, you don’t necessarily have to change
Especially for users who want to work mobile and are on the go a lot, the Huawei MateBook X Pro is one of the best notebooks ever. It is light, handy and, with its 7,565 mAh battery, offers a runtime that leaves many competitors pale. Huawei itself names 12 hours of surfing, 14 hours of video playback and 16 hours of screen work as data – which we can also confirm for 15 to 20 minutes. Especially with the up to 16-hour runtime, a great update to the predecessor has been achieved. A full charge of the laptop takes just over 100 minutes.
However, if you own the predecessor, you don’t necessarily have a reason to switch to the new MateBook. Especially in terms of performance, the differences for normal users are hardly noticeable. The only thing: The battery life seems to remain more stable under high continuous load, but in everyday use, both the MateBook X Pro and the 2020 version do everything they are supposed to do. The GeForce MX250 graphics card is not the laptop monster, but it does make it possible to play new titles like “Doom Eternal” with lower graphics settings. All in all, Huawei has managed to do a small but nice update to the MateBook X Pro that appeals to users who are looking for a workhorse on the go.
