24
Reviews
11 – 24 May 2022 • Issue 631VERDICT An affordable laptop with
specifications and performance that
offer great value for the price★★★★★
ALTERNATIVE Honor MagicBook
16 £850 Honor offers a similar-sized
model with a less powerful Ryzen 5
SPECIFICATIONS processor for £150 less
Eight-core AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor ••
16GB RAM •• 16in IPS 60Hz 2250x1680-pixel
resolution •• 512GB M.2 SSD •• 720p webcam •• Wi-Fi 5- • Bluetooth 5 •• 1x HDMI port •• 2x USB-C port •• 2x USB
3.0 ports •• Windows 11 Home •• 17.8x351x255mm
(HxWxD) •• 2kg •• One-year warranty
http://www.snipca.com/41658
its contrast ratio of 1,688:1. However,
with a maximum brightness of
344 cd/m², it’s slightly too dim. We also
found its vertical viewing angles too
narrow, so we had to tilt the screen
carefully to achieve a perfect view.
This is when we need to remind
ourselves that the MateBook 16 costs
£1,000, not £1,200 or £1,500. You
can’t expect everything to be premium
quality, and a few minor negatives
can’t outweigh the laptop’s excellent
battery life, stupendous power in
everyday tasks, and a 16in screen that
provides a huge amount of working
space. The Huawei MateBook 16
isn’t perfect, but it’s an amazing
achievement for the price.While other manufacturers produce
vast ranges of laptops with lots of
different options, Chinese company
Huawei is laser-focused on creating a
handful of well-specified laptops that
offer great value for money. The new
MateBook 16 is a prime example: it costs
£1,000 but has a specification that rivals
those of more expensive models.Key to its success is the AMD
Ryzen 7 5800H processor, which
propelled the MateBook 16 to a
remarkable score of 6,341 in our
benchmark tests. The £700 Dynabook
Satellite Pro C50-J-12A, reviewed
last issue, was significantly slower,
scoring just 4,129.
Battery life is impressive too. It kept
going for 12 hours 8 minutes while
running office software, five hours
longer than the Dynabook. The
MateBook lasted almost as long
when we played videos, which is
testament not only to AMD’s power
efficiency, but also to Huawei’s large
84Wh battery.
The only downside to having such
a long-lasting battery is that it adds to
the laptop’s weight. As a result, the
MateBook 16 is a hefty 2kg. It’s slim, atleast – just 17.8mm tall with the
lid closed – and very sturdy, with
a lid encased in metal to protect
the screen.
The speakers are good for the
price and belt out music at a decent
volume. The bass recedes into the
background more than we’d like,
but it will do justice to most types
of music. The keyboard is nothing
special, with keys that feel rather
mushy, and we felt the whole
laptop move when
we were
typing quickly.
We were surprised to see the
webcam nestling between the F6 and F7
keys on the top row of the keyboard.
Recent Huawei laptops have placed the
webcam above the screen, but video calls
from the MateBook 16 give callers an
unflattering view of your neck and
chin. Otherwise, its 720p video output
is quite reasonable. The final surprise
was the trackpad, which is enormous
and a pleasure to use.
Then we come to the 16in IPS
screen, which we’ve deliberately kept
until last. In many ways, it’s magnificent.
It stretches almost to the edges of the
lid, with very little bezel, and its
2520x1680-pixel resolution offers
plenty of space for your programs.
We happily worked on two windows
side by side, and relished the extra
vertical space that the screen’s 3:2 aspect
ratio provides. Switching back to a 16:9
laptop felt odd after using the MateBook- as if someone had stolen a chunk
of the screen.
Image quality is good but not great. It
covers a respectable 93 per cent of the
sRGB colour standard with excellent
accuracy, and we can’t complain about
LAPTOP | £1,000 from Huawei http://www.snipca.com/41658Huawei MateBook 16
Grand slam
Great performance
and battery life make
this an amazing laptop
for the price