Reviewers are raving about the MateBook X Pro from Huawei.
The Verge, for example, doesn't mince words when it simply calls it the best laptop.
But does it really live up to all of this hype? Stick around and find out.
The MateBook X Pro sells in just two configurations.
There's a top spec'd model, which is the one I'm reviewing,
that comes with an i7-8550U processor, 512 gigabyte NVMe SSD,
16 gigabytes of RAM and an NVIDIA GeForce MX150 dedicated GPU.
And all of that sells for just $1,749 CAD or $1,499 USD.
There's a lower spec model that comes with an i5-8250U,
a 256 gigabyte SSD, 8 gigabytes of RAM and no dedicated GPU,
and that model sells for just $1,499 CAD or $1,199 USD.
To get a sense for how exciting those prices really are,
let's take a look at another laptop in the same class, the Dell XPS 13.
To get an XPS 13 with the same specs as the i5 MateBook, you're gonna have to spend
$1,849 CAD or $1,599 USD,
and to get one with the same specs as the i7 MateBook,
you have to spend $2,199 CAD or $2,089 USD.
Those prices being accurate at the time of filming. Now keep those prices in mind as we take a closer look.
The MateBook X Pro is often compared to Apple's MacBook Pro and it's not an unfair comparison.
Huawei even goes as far as calling this colour space grey, for goodness sake. And, like that computer,
it's got a solid, well-machined enclosure made out of aluminum
and there's very little flex across the bottom and top lids.
When I twist it, there's a little bit of give across the enclosure, but it's hardly worth noting.
The computer is slim and lightweight,
weighing 1.33 kgs or 2.93 lbs despite its large touchscreen.
It's well balanced so you can open it single-handedly,
and it's stiff hinge lets you tap away at that touchscreen without too much wobble.
And now ports, time for a roll call.
Along the left side, first, we've got a headphone jack, then a USB-C port and a Thunderbolt 3 port,
both of which can be used for charging.
Along the right side, that's a USB-A port.
Noice!
The legacy support doesn't stop there, though.
Huawei also includes a USB-C dock in the box that gives you an extra USB-A port,
another USB-C port, an HDMI port, and even an old-school VGA connector
for that dusty old projector your work makes you use.
The 13.9" IPS display is gorgeous. It's a 3K panel with really vibrant colours and great contrast,
and it's really bright at about 450 nits, with an auto-brightness feature that works really well.
And look at those bezels. That's a screen-to-body ratio of 91%. Compare that to the Dell XPS 13,
which has a screen to body ratio of only 80.7%. The touchscreen has an anti-fingerprint coating which works well,
but there's no pen support, which isn't really a big deal because this is a clamshell laptop
and the screen doesn't fold all the way back anyways.
The aspect ratio is 3:2, which regular viewers might know is my favourite aspect ratio,
because it means more vertical space and less scrolling.
There's one flaw with the screen, though, and that's glare. And there's a lot of it.
Which isn't really a big deal... if you like looking at yourself...
and you should like looking at yourself... because you're beautiful.
Inside and out.
It's true.
The keyboard is great. It's got a standard layout. Keys have a good tactile feel and the travel is short
but not too shallow at 1.22 mm.
There's a backlight with two levels, but it does turn off after a period of inactivity, which is annoying.
There's also a Windows Precision Touchpad, which has smooth tracking and a good, solid click.
Now if you look around online, you'll notice many users complain that the touchpad is loose. And I noticed this, too.
It's a real flaw, but it was the only physical flaw my unit had and it didn't affect usability at all,
so I'm willing to give it a pass.
The power button in the upper right is also a fingerprint sensor.
It's fast and it's accurate and it lets you power up the laptop and login to Windows with a single button press.
Now it's no surprise with these specs, this computer is snappy.
I measured an average Geekbench score of 14,029 and an average PCMark 10 score of 3,505.
The SSD is really fast, too. I measured an average sequential read speed of 3,156 MB/s
and an average sequential write of 2,034 MB/s.
All of my detailed benchmarks can be seen in the description below.
Now the i7 isn't that much faster than the i5,
but it does come with that dedicated GPU and that means you can do some light gaming.
But there is a catch.
There are actually two different variants of the MX150, with different clock speeds,
and they're both sold as the same model.
This computer has the slower variant, which means graphic benchmarks that are about
25% lower than a regular MX150 like you'd find in the Acer Aspire 5, for example.
This was probably done to keep thermals manageable,
but the computer still runs hot. The fan, while not especially loud or annoying,
does run often even at light loads and at heavy loads the keyboards really warm,
which makes gaming sessions uncomfortable.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to run my regular battery life benchmark before I had to return the review unit,
but, anecdotally, battery life was great. And everything
I've read confirms that battery life is either average or above average for a laptop in its class.
There are four speakers with Dolby Atmos branding which means they're loud and they're clear
and I did notice some separation that you don't normally hear on laptop speakers,
but it was a little bit weak in the low end.
Those super thin bezels mean that Huawei we had to find another place to put the webcam.
And they came up with the most delightful
solution by hiding the webcam under one of the keys, which is great for privacy,
but the angle is awkward and might be off-putting to some.
So what about the hype?
Well, the hype, the hype is real. This is an amazing little laptop. It's well designed. It's well built.
It's got great specs and its price makes it an amazing value.
I've really only got two complaints: the hamstrung GPU and the weak thermal management,
both of which make this laptop less than ideal for playing games.
But on a computer like this gaming's a bonus. A nice to have.
What you're really getting with the MateBook X Pro is a productivity machine
that can handle processor-intensive tasks like heavy multitasking
or video editing and do it in style with a well-built chassis and a beautiful, functional display.
And at prices like these, it's a definite buy.
Thanks for watching another one of my reviews.
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