Huawei Matebook 13 review: A cheaper Matebook X Pro with killer performance

Despite company turmoil, Huawei continues to go after a slice of the US laptop market. Following the release of the Matebook X Pro last year, the Chinese company debuted the Matebook 13 today. The thin-and-light notebook promises to be lighter on customers’ wallets than last year’s more premium model but still strong in design and specs.

Many (including myself) may be getting bored of MacBook-esque laptops, but Huawei is using the design of the Matebook 13 to its advantage. The company wants to snag customers’ attention with a familiar, high-end design and then offer them features and specs that other 13-inch notebooks don’t have, such as a 25W Nvidia MX150 graphics card. But this space is crowded with similar Windows devices, and the Matebook 13’s stand-out features may not be enough to produce many converts.

Look and feel

The Matebook 13, like the Matebook X Pro, is a minimalist’s dream laptop in terms of its design. Its aluminum-alloy unibody has a smooth satin finish, and the diamond-cut edges give the machine just enough aesthetic “edge” to appear premium but not ostentatious. Only the massive, raised Huawei logo in the center of the lid messes up this aesthetic, and while not unique, it may be enough for some of the most design-focused among us to turn up their noses at this device. Overall, though, the Matebook 13 is a sturdy laptop that doesn’t bend under pressure, and its understated design will appeal to those who want a simple yet attractive laptop.

Working on the Matebook 13 was pleasant thanks in part to its 13-inch, 2160×1440 touchscreen and its 3:2 aspect ratio that lessened the amount of scrolling necessary to browse webpages and documents. It’s not as immersive of a screen as that on the Matebook X Pro because of its smaller size and the slightly larger top bezel, which holds the webcam. Huawei did not put the recessed camera button on this device, so you’ll get a regular webcam experience (but no IR camera) at the cost of a little more bezel atop the display.

The Matebook 13’s chassis measures 15.9mm at its thickest point, and with its 2.87-pound weight, it’s both thin and light enough to slip into your bag almost unnoticed. Each bottom corner has a rubberized foot to elevate the laptop when it’s on a flat surface. I appreciate that the back two feet are larger than those on the front corners, because they lift the Matebook 13 at a slight angle, making it more comfortable to use for long periods of time.

The Matebook 13 includes Dolby Atmos sound, and its speakers sit on the underside of its chassis. Sound isn’t obstructed when the laptop sits on a desk or a table (likely due to the support of those rubber feet), but sound muffles immediately when the laptop is propped up on your lap. The difference between Dolby sound and regular sound is equally noticeable, but thankfully Dolby features are on by default. Dolby Atmos provides different sound profiles for you to choose from depending on the type of media you’re watching or listening to and how you prefer to hear it.

Regardless of whether you use Dolby Atmos features or not, the Matebook 13’s speakers will only be able to fill a small room with sound. They don’t get nearly as loud as I expected, so I couldn’t hear music clearly when I stepped out of my home office.

Where the Matebook 13 truly mimics Apple’s MacBook is in its scant port selection: just two USB-C ports, one on either side of the chassis. A headphone jack sits next to the USB-C port on the left edge. Neither has Thunderbolt 3 capabilities, and they are not created equal, either. The right-side USB-C port supports data transfer and DisplayPort connectivity, while the left-side port supports data transfer and charging. Those who need non-USB-C ports can use the MateDock 2.0 that comes with each Matebook 13.

It seems counterproductive to gloss over Thunderbolt 3 in a laptop like the Matebook 13. It may be the mid-tier laptop in Huawei’s line, but other notebooks priced between $999 and $1,299 include at least one Thunderbolt 3 port. Arguably more frustrating is the fact that you can’t make use of the positions of the USB-C ports for convenient charging. Since only the left-side port can power up the device, you’ll likely be stuck in an uncomfortable position when the only free outlet is on your right side.

Keyboard and trackpad

The Matebook 13’s keyboard looks like that of the Matebook X Pro, just without the recessed camera button. It also sits on a smaller chassis area thanks to the overall smaller size of the Matebook 13. It resembles Apple’s butterfly-mechanism keyboard only in aesthetic, as these keys are slightly more comfortable to type on with their 1.2mm of travel. That will appeal to those who like the look of the MacBook or the new MacBook Air but don’t want anything to do with butterfly keys.

No speakers sit on either side of the keyboard, and only the hybrid fingerprint reader and power button sit at its top-right corner. This allows for one-push power and sign on—the Matebook 13 powered on and signed me in within 10 seconds of pressing the button every time. The precision trackpad is longer than it is tall, but it’s still a spacious trackpad. It looks a little squished due to the large space that the keyboard takes up, but I wasn’t hampered by its placement or its size.

Huawei’s Matebook 13 Ultrabook.

Valentina Palladino

Huawei’s Matebook 13 Ultrabook. Valentina Palladino

It measures 15.9mm at its thickest point and weighs about 2.8 pounds—thin and light, but not the thinnest or the lightest.

Valentina Palladino

It measures 15.9mm at its thickest point and weighs about 2.8 pounds—thin and light, but not the thinnest or the lightest. Valentina Palladino

A large Huawei logo blemishes the otherwise clean lid.

Valentina Palladino

A large Huawei logo blemishes the otherwise clean lid. Valentina Palladino

It measures 15.9mm at its thickest point and weighs about 2.8 pounds—thin and light, but not the thinnest or the lightest. Valentina Palladino

A large Huawei logo blemishes the otherwise clean lid. Valentina Palladino

A headphone jack and one USB-C port sit on its left side. This USB-C port is the only one that supports charging.

Valentina Palladino

One other USB-C port sits on the right edge.

Valentina Palladino

The keyboard looks similar to those on the Apple MacBook, but Huawei’s keys will speak to those who hate butterfly keys.

Samuel Axon

The all-in-one fingerprint reader and power button make an appearance on this device as well.

Valentina Palladino

Inside the top-tier model is a 2GB Nvidia MX 150 GPU in addition to Intel integrated UHD graphics.

Valentina Palladino

The Matebook 13 starts at $999.

Valentina Palladino

Performance

Huawei sells two models of the Matebook 13: one with a Core i5-8265U processor, Intel UHD Graphics 620, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of PCIe SSD. Our review unit is the top-tier model, which includes a Core i7-8565U processor, a 2GB Nvidia MX 150 GPU (25W), 8GB of RAM, and 512GB of PCIe SSD. It performed well on our benchmark tests, beating Huawei’s own Matebook X Pro on nearly every one.

Judging on specs alone, the Matebook 13 is actually better than the Matebook X Pro, even though Huawei is classifying it as its mid-tier Ultrabook. While the Matebook 13 has a lower-resolution display, less RAM, and a smaller battery than the X Pro, it’s better than last year’s flagship in almost every other way.

Most users can do without the 3000×2000 display that the X Pro has (even if it is stunning), but I would have liked to have a 16GB memory option, considering the other updates, particularly the inclusion of the 25W Nvidia GPU. While the MX150 card doesn’t make the Matebook 13 suitable for hardcore gaming at high frame rates, it will allow the device to play most games well and aid in video and photo editing. Including more than 8GB of RAM would make those processes even smoother.

The Matebook 13 also has Huawei’s “Shark Fin 2.0” cooling solution inside, which places the fans at the center of the chassis, between the CPU and GPU. This is supposed to help disperse heat more efficiently, and Huawei claims it provides about 25 percent more airflow than other cooling solutions in competing laptops. However, the back-center of the chassis, right beneath the hinge, always felt warm to the touch during intense work periods (like when the Matebook 13 ran our benchmark tests). It wasn’t scalding, but it was enough to warm my legs when the Matebook 13 was propped on my lap.

Huawei also claims that the new cooling solution is designed to keep fan noise at a minimum, but that’s not the case. The Matebook 13 was roaring so much during our benchmark tests that I needed to turn up the volume of my other systems to hear anything when I had the Matebook 13 beside me on my desk. It’s safe to say that the Matebook 13 will produce a tornado of noise when performing any laborious task.

Battery life

Whereas the Matebook X Pro shone with its 15-hour battery life, the Matebook 13 doesn’t come close to that bar. Huawei estimates the Matebook 13 will last about 9.6 hours on a single charge; our review unit lasted an average of 540 minutes (or nine hours) on our Wi-Fi test and an average of 445 minutes (about 7.5 hours) on our WebGL test. That’s on the lower end of the Ultrabook spectrum, with most competitors like the HP Spectre 13 and the Dell XPS 13 lasting a half hour to an hour longer than that.

Huawei may think these numbers are acceptable because the Matebook 13 is its middle-of-the-road notebook. However, the Matebook 13’s design, performance, and even its price suggest that it can rightly be compared to other top-tier laptops. Its battery life, while not horrible, isn’t going to do it any favors when customers make those comparisons.

Move over, Matebook X Pro?

Huawei wanted to expand its laptop family with the Matebook 13, but I can’t help thinking that the company may end up cannibalizing it. The Matebook 13 has a lot of things going for it: a perfectly acceptable Ultrabook design, a comfortable keyboard with a hybrid power button and fingerprint reader, and great performance that outmatches the more expensive Matebook X Pro. Huawei’s decision to include the 25W Nvidia MX150 GPU will please many users who wanted the more-powerful discrete graphics card and didn’t get that option in the Matebook X Pro (which included the 10W GPU).

However, Huawei made disappointing and confusing sacrifices. The Matebook 13’s lackluster battery life is unfortunate but understandable considering its smaller frame. But the lack of Thunderbolt 3 and the differences between its USB-C ports will only make customers scratch their heads. They may be small problems (literally and figuratively), but they will frustrate Matebook 13 users who believe they purchased an Ultrabook with the same standard capabilities as competitors like the XPS 13 or the Spectre 13.