24 NOVEMBER 2019|COMPUTER SHOPPER|ISSUE 381
THERE’SNOSHORTAGEof ultraportables to
sift through, but that hasn’t discouraged
Huawei from adding more to the pile.In
fairness, the MateBook 14 (Shopper376) and
MateBook Pro X(Shopper377)are both
superb laptops, and with the MateBook 13
offering many of the same design ideas fora
lower price,itcould be another strong
addition to the Chinese firm’s line-up.
There are atrio of models on sale in the
UK: an entry-level model with aCore
i5-8265U processor,8GB RAM and
256GB of storage; aCore i7-8565U
model with 8GB of memory and 512GB of
SSD space; and atop-end model that adds
Nvidia’s GeForce MX150 dedicated graphics.
Huawei sent us the middle Core i7 spec but
with a256GB SSD,acombination we haven’t
found on sale,but performance should be
indicative.For the closest Core i7/512GB SSD
model, expect to pay£1,000, while the
cheaper Core i5 model is £799.
These are competitive prices, given that a
Dell XPS 13 (Shopper376) with the same Core
i7-8565U starts at £1,199,while the Microsoft
Surface Laptop 2(Shopper373) is £979 fora
basic Core i5 specification. It’s not these rival
Windows laptops the MateBook 13 is inspired
by,however: it’s Apple’s 13in MacBook Pro.
NOTFAR FROMTHETREE
The minimal industrial lines look like theywere
plucked out of the mind’s eyeofCupertino’s
engineers. That’s no bad thing, as in its light
greyordark greycolour options, it’s pleasant
to behold, and the silvery textured Huawei
logo on the lid stands out nicely,too.
Build quality is decent as well, even if
the finish isn’t quiteuptothe same
exacting standards as Apple’s.
Measuring 286x211x14.9mm and
weighing in at 1.3kg, it’s not the smallest
or lightest ultraportable around, but it’s
small enough to pop intoabackpack or
laptop bag and forget about until you need
it. Youwill have to factor in carrying a
dongle,however,asthe MateBook 13
only has abrace of USB Type-C ports
(one with DisplayPort) and a3.5mm
headphone jack forconnectivity.
Those USB Type-C ports are both
USB3.1, meaning there’s no Thunderbolt 3
compatibility forconnecting high-
performance peripherals or external
graphicscardenclosures.Alsodisappointing
is that only the left-hand port can be used
forcharging, which seems an oversight. The
HUAWEI MateBook13
★★★★★
£1,000•From http://www.amazon.co.uk
WINDOWS 10 LAPTOP
bundled dongle adds afull-size USB and
additional USB Type-C port to the equation, as
well as HDMI and VGAconnections. There are
more elegant dongles around, but at least
Huawei included this in the package rather
than charge extra forit, as Apple does.
BORDER PATROL
Unlike on the MateBook Pro Xand MateBook
14, the MateBook 13’s 1-megapixel webcam
hasn’t been hidden under akeycap,and
instead is back in the traditional topbezel of
the screen. Those bezels aren’t as thin as the
MateBook XPro’s, but the MateBook 13 still
offers arespectable 88% screen-to-body-ratio.
Lift the MateBook 13’s lid and there are
even more similarities to the Apple MacBook
Pro.The keyboard looks the same,and the
touchpad is reasonably large too, although
it’s not quiteasexpansive as the Force Touch
trackpad. Functionally,however,both the
keyboard and trackpad are quitedifferent
from the MacBook Pro’s.
Travel on the chiclet keyboard is shallower
than that on the Dell XPS 13, but at 1.2mm it
has alot more actuation than the Butterfly
mechanism keyboards on modern MacBooks.
Touch-typing on the MateBook 13 is a
pleasant experience,ifnot as tactile as it is on
the Surface Laptop 2’s keyboard. The keycaps
don’t feel particularly premium compared to
more expensive laptops, but there’s no
discernible flex in the keyboard deck, which
will be aboon forheavy-handed typists.
One neat addition is the built-in fingerprint
reader within the power button in the top
right-hand corner,which works with Windows
Hello forbiometric signing in.
GOING OFFTRACK
Things are less positive when it comes to the
trackpad. It’s agood size,offering more
vertical and horizontal space than the
trackpads on many rival 13in laptops. However,
it didn’t feel especially smooth or responsive;
the use of Windows Precision drivers means
the cursor goes where you want it to,
but there’s afeeling of drag to the
trackpad’s surface,likely down to the
lack of glass coating.
It might look like aForce Touch
trackpad, but the MateBook 13 uses a
traditional ‘diving board’ mechanism rather
than haptics. This is fine,but there’s agood
deal of playwhen physically pressing on
both the leftand right buttons, with the
latter emitting anoisy clacking sound. That’s
hardly adeal-breaker,but it can get abit
irritating, and shows where Huawei has cut
corners to achieve the MateBook 13’s
competitive price.
The most impressive thing about the
MateBook 13 at first glance is its 13in,
2,160x1,440 IPS display; thanks to the
minimal bezels, the screen fills up most of
the laptop’s tophalf.The Dell XPS 13 and
Razer Blade Stealth 13 offer 4K panels, but
VERDICT
WhattheMateBook13lacksinflourish,it
makesupforinvalueandperformance
