The biggest mobile show of the year, Mobile World Congress or MWC, is getting underway in Barcelona, with Huawei one of the first to unveil its new products. There's no sign of the company's 2018 flagship phone yet, but Huawei has shown off a premium Windows notebook and new Android tablets.
First up, the Windows 10-powered Huawei MateBook X Pro is the successor to the ultra-portable MateBook X that launched last May. It comes rocking a 13.9-inch touchscreen display, which packs in an impressive 3,000 x 2,000 pixels. Also impressive are the minimal bezels, so this display is almost all screen – it has a 91 percent screen-to-body ratio, Huawei says.
Under the hood the MateBook X Pro comes with a choice of 8th-gen Intel Core i5 or i7 processors and up to 16 GB of RAM, as well as either an Intel UHD Graphics 620 or Nvidia GeForce MX150 chip. In short, the MateBook X Pro can be tricked out to a very high spec indeed, for those with the money (though we're still waiting on retail prices).
The MateBook X Pro also earns its "pro" moniker in the audio department, with four speakers built into the base and Dolby Atmos compatibility. We can only tell so much from a press launch, but this looks like Huawei's attempt to take on the best laptops from the likes of Dell, Microsoft, and Apple.
A fingerprint sensor built into the power button adds some extra security, while you also get two USB-C ports, one USB-A port, and – according to Huawei at least – 14 hours of battery life with regular use. It weighs in at just under 3 lb, or around 1.33 kg.
And in a rather gimmicky first, one of the function keys at the top of the laptop's keyboard pops up to reveal a webcam for all your video calling needs, presumably because there's no room on the bezels – at least you'll be certain the camera's not on when it's folded down into the keyboard.
You'll be able to pick up the MateBook X Pro in Space Gray or Mystic Silver, though as we mentioned we're still waiting on a price and a release date. Expect more details to trickle out as Mobile World Congress continues this week.
Meanwhile, Huawei's new Android tablet is the MediaPad 5, the latest in a series of iPad competitors the company has launched in recent years. You can pick from an 8.4-inch, a 10.8-inch, and a 10.8-inch with stylus option (the MediaPad 5 Pro), depending on your needs and budget.
All three tablets bring with them a 2560 x 1600-pixel screen and a curved edge display (for a better feel in the hand, Huawei says), as well as an integrated fingerprint scanner – though the 3.5-mm headphone jack has been dropped. Like Huawei's phones, the tablets come with the company's own Android skin, which in this case is placed over the latest Android 8.0 Oreo mobile OS.
Processing power is provided by Huawei's own rather nippy Kirin 960 CPU, whioch sits alongside 4 GB of RAM, and 32 GB to 128 GB of expandable internal storage. Huawei is claiming 10-11 hours of battery life for these tablets, but it's the high-end version with the M-Pen stylus included that looks the closest to the iPad Pro. An official keyboard accessory will soon be available too, potentially giving us another much-needed Android rival to the slates made by Apple.
Again, Huawei didn't give a price or launch date for these tablets at its MWC press event, but we do know the devices will be available in Champagne Gold or Titanium Gray. Keep an eye on all of our MWC 2018 coverage for more details as they're announced.
Product pages: Huawei
