In an interview following the announcement Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei, was upfront about the choice to partner with Microsoft on the Matebook. While Huawei loves working with Google for it smartphones, he believes Windows 10 is the best platform for hybrid tablets and laptops.But he also wanted to create a device that matched the beauty of Apple products.
“Apple PCs look beautiful, and not many others look as good. But the problem is Apple only run Apple software. We believe there’s a market for beautiful Windows tablets”, Mr Yu said.
The Matebook’s obvious competitors are the Surface Pro and iPad Pro, and Huawei is keen to point out the advantages the Matebook has over those devices.
The 2160×1440 12-inch display has a tiny bezel — with an 84 per cent screen to body ratio — besting the iPad and Surface. The device is thinner and lighter than the iPad Pro and Surface Pro, weighing in at just 640 grams. In the hand, the Matebook feels closer to a 10-inch tablet than a 12-inch, even though it’s packing a 12-inch screen.
Microsoft welcomes the competition to its Surface family of devices. Peter Han, vice president for Worldwide OEM Marketing, said the Matebook “offers consumers a new way to experience Windows 10 on a beautifully designed device.”
The Matebook keyboard is sold separately — an odd choice for a product so obviously designed as a hybrid. The leather keyboard case wraps around the device to provide a full size chiclet keyboard, which despite its thinness still provides 1.5mm key travel, making for a comfortable typing experience. That’s better than some laptops on the market.
The keyboard is spill resistant too, for life’s little accidents.
The keyboard surprisingly comfortable — more comfortable than the keyboard case on the Surface Pro, but still a little cramped compared to a keyboard from a dedicated laptop. The case feels sturdy enough, so it should be able to be used on the lap without fear of tipping over.
And unlike the Surface, which requires a hefty power brick, the charger of the Matebook is tiny — comparable to a smartphone charger. The device is charged with USB C.
The Matebook is powered by a sixth generation Intel M chip — not as powerful as the Core i5 and i7 chips found inside the Surface family, but the lower powered chip makes for better battery life. The Intel M chip felt plenty powerful for the tasks I threw at it, including the Autocad sketch software that was bundled into the demo units.
Just like the iPad Pro and Surface, the Matebook comes with a dedicated stylus. The pressure sensitive stylus can detect 2048 levels of pressure with no visible lag. It’s quick and responsive — so it should work as well for quick note taking in meetings as for more graphic work.
Another neat trick: the MatePen doubles as a laser pointer and presentation clicker, which should make PowerPoint addicts happy.
There are a few more goodies in the package. The Matebook ships with active noise cancelling headphones, powered by the device. Huawei will also sell a MateDock, that includes two USB ports and an Ethernet adaptor, great for home and enterprise use.
The Matebook borrows some technology from Huawei’s smartphone stable, including a fingerprint reader to unlock the device, which Huawei claims is the fastest and most accurate on the market.
Interestingly, the one thing Huawei didn’t port across from the phone was 4G connectivity, which is a shame. Instead, Huawei have developed a one-click hotspot app for Android, but the device will be able to share a network connection with iOS as well. Huawei also showed off a drag and drop file exchange system between the Matebook and Android devices.
Taking on Microsoft and Apple is no mean feat, but the always confident Mr Yu thinks the Matebook is up for the challenge.
“Our product is the best,” he says with a smile, “we are not humble”.
The Matebook will be available in April, and will be priced starting at $US699 ($977) in the United States. Local pricing is yet to be detailed.
