Introduction and unboxing
When you reside exterior of China, then Huawei smartphones have turn into considerably of an afterthought for you in these previous couple of years. We can’t go over the explanations for this right here however we’ll add that it is a disgrace for many of us at GSMArena, as a result of Huawei makes a number of the best {hardware} (and significantly cameras) on the planet and we rightfully really feel like we’re lacking out because of the software program’s limitations.
However none of that impacts the corporate’s PC enterprise and Huawei has saved on making glorious laptops for nearly each funds. At the moment, we’re most likely the very best all-rounder – the Huawei MateBook D16 2024.
It is a 16-inch laptop computer with two USB-A, one USB-C, and an HDMI port. There’s additionally a full-sized keyboard, a quantity pad, and Intel’s thirteenth Gen processors, all of which match into simply 1.72kg with the larger 70Wh battery.
The laptop computer ships with a 65W Huawei Tremendous Cost brick with a completely connected cable.
Ours is the absolutely loaded mannequin with 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD drive, the Intel i9-13900H processor, and the larger 70Wh battery. It prices €1,399/£1,199 however there are just a few different choices – a collection of Core i5 processors and both 8/512GB or 16/512GB with a beginning worth of €649/£549 – lower than half of our evaluation unit.
Design and construct high quality
The MateBook D16 2024 seems like just about each different Huawei laptop computer from a distance. It is available in both (Mystic) silver or (Area) gray (our unit, which is trending towards purple at instances) and also you get a cool steel physique and a HUAWEI emblem on the lid.
Earlier than we transfer on, it is vital to notice the distinction between the Huawei MateBook D16 2024 and the Huawei MateBook D16 2023. They seems almost similar and have the identical vary of processors and seemingly the identical show. However the 2023 mannequin has a unique and arguably higher port choice – two USB-A’s on one facet, two USB-C’s, HDMI, and a 3.5mm audio jack on the opposite facet. The 2023 model is not offered by Huawei however sure retailers have it and it may be price a extra detailed look to make certain that you might be getting the right model.
The hinge could be very agency and opening the lid requires two arms. We’ll deduct factors from Huawei for this as a result of each different laptop computer from the corporate can simply be opened with one finger – completely balanced as all issues ought to be.
Opening the laptops reveals the 16-inch 16:10 1200p show with comparatively skinny bodily bezels that rise above the show glass. The show is matte, has a webcam on prime, and a model emblem beneath.
The keyboard leaves loads of area in your palm on the underside case and there are three stickers for Huawei Share, Intel’s processor, and the graphics.
The MateBook D16 2024 could be very sturdy. There is no flex whenever you push down anyplace on the chassis and the display screen lid would not budge whenever you press the corners.
Trackpad, keyboard, show, audio
The trackpad of the MateBook D16 2024 is regular-sized. Some may name it small for the category, particularly in comparison with the same-sized MateBook 16S’.
The floor of the trackpad is clean and feels pure to carry out two and even three-finger gestures and faucets on. When you insist on bodily pushing down the trackpad to faucet, you may discover the perimeters more durable than the middle. The underside of the trackpad is the best to press and it is divided into single and double presses – a press on the best facet is acknowledged with no consideration mouse click on.
The trackpad, in comparison with the MateBook 16S
The trackpad is barely off-center as a result of the keyboard is offset to the left to accommodate the Numpad. It takes some getting used to however we anticipate Numpad diehards to really feel completely at residence right here. The keyboard is absolutely backlit with a white backlight and two energy settings – half and full.
The keyboard has ample 1.5mm key journey and the keys are properly damped. You have got a two-row Enter key and an extended Area key – one thing many will admire.
The perform row has Huawei’s now-standard set of keys and you may lock the Fn button to both have perform keys or the F1-F12 keys purposeful.
The Numpad has a basic structure with a further 4 shortcuts up prime for the Calculator, Search, a button to reduce the at present displayed window, and a key to disable the digicam.
The facility button is within the higher proper nook and contains a capacitive fingerprint reader on prime. It is as much as Huawei’s traditional nice customary and has caching, which means when the laptop computer’s turned off, you press it and it’ll energy on and log you in with out the necessity of a second contact.
The 720p digicam is on the highest of the show. It is within the good spot for video calls – we do not like “up-the-nose cameras” hidden within the keyboard – however that is about as a lot reward as we’re prepared to provide this unit. It is low decision and the picture from it’s downright unhealthy.
Huawei’s AI Digital camera software program can put a digital background behind you and apply a magnificence filter in your face (with choices to melt and brighten), but it surely seems unhealthy and the poor 720p feed seems slapped over the uninspired faux background.
The show is a 16-inch IPS LCD with a taller-than-standard 16:10 facet ratio and a decision of 1920x1200px, which rounds off at 142ppi. Huawei says the panel covers 100% of the sRGB gamut and 45% of the NTSC one – and that it has a 1200:1 distinction ratio. There is no such thing as a touchscreen choice on the MateBook D16 2024, and the panel is restricted to the usual 60Hz.
The show is rated at as much as 300 nits. We measured 311 nits within the heart as excessive as 330 on the prime left edge, however solely 280 nits on the backside proper one. That is a uniformity of round 84%, which is not unhealthy, however not superb both.
Colours are fairly saturated and there is a good quantity of distinction right here. Huawei’s Show Supervisor app is right here but it surely lacks any kind of significant show controls apart from adjusting the colour temperature.
The show is matte, which we admire, particularly in comparison with the shiny MateBook 16S. Huawei’s shiny panels are very reflective and they should compensate with a lot increased brightness, which in flip requires increased battery use. A matte panel is solely extra sensible and it really works within the MateBook D16 2024.
The MateBook D16 2024 subsequent to the MateBook 16S (matte beats shiny, struggle me)
There are two microphones on the entrance of the MateBook D16 2024 that produce good sound high quality. Huawei’s PC Supervisor suite provides a stable quantity of choices. You possibly can select between Noise Cancelling, which tries to get rid of exterior noise, and Sound TrueHD, which does the other, attempting to convey your atmosphere to callers in a pure manner. It sounds digital and a bit harsh, we left the Noise Cancelling on.
There are two audio system on the underside proper and left of the MateBook D16 2024. They’re louder than your common laptop computer audio system and a nice, midrange sound. Nevertheless, there isn’t any bass to talk of. Huawei’s PC Supervisor offers you three choices to amplify the speaker’s output – Good Optimization is on by default and makes the tiny audio system sound a bit bit higher. We might keep away from Extremely-Bass and Sound Turbo as they make little to no significant distinction and none in a constructive route.
Lastly, a phrase on upgradeability. To open the MateBook D16 2024, that you must unscrew ten Torx T4s after which use a pry software to unsnap the underside panel from the highest one – begin from across the heating vents on the again and gently work your manner round, unclasping the panel. You possibly can swap the Wi-Fi card, the battery, and the NVME SSD on this laptop computer. The RAM is soldered onto the motherboard and isn’t upgradeable.
Software program, efficiency and battery life
Being a Huawei laptop computer, it comes with smartphone connectivity out of the field. You possibly can hyperlink your Android cellphone (not simply Huawei) and management its show from the laptop computer, again up its pictures and movies to the laptop computer and have the cellphone’s information connection accessible by Instantaneous Hotspot.
Huawei’s SuperHub lives on the prime of the display screen. Simply drag a file up and a bit digital drawer pops up and you may deposit it there. It is a handy strategy to share recordsdata, pictures, movies, in addition to textual content and share it throughout apps and home windows.
Huawei SuperHub
It’s also possible to entry the cellphone’s recordsdata and share recordsdata throughout your laptop computer and cellphone.
Huawei’s PC Supervisor app is great. It offers recommendations on the laptop computer and options its management panel with fast toggles to leap to Notes shortly, Huawei Share, AI Search, allow the hotspot, or the show’s eye consolation mode.
It is also a one-stop store for all the laptop computer’s drivers, and it is the place you select the efficiency mode. You get a alternative of Balanced and Efficiency.
We have now the MateBook D16 2024 with the thirteenth Gen Intel i9-13900H and 16GB of 3733MHz DDR4 RAM, that is not upgradeable so you possibly can’t add extra or get speedier RAM.
The processor is Intel’s thirteenth Gen i9 (Raptor Lake) and it is probably the most highly effective you possibly can’ve gotten in a laptop computer final 12 months. We’re now at Intel’s 14th Gen and its new line of Core processors, so whereas the crown has been misplaced it is nonetheless a beast of a CPU.
The Core i9-13900H is a 45W processor with 14 whole cores, divided between 6 efficiency cores and eight environment friendly cores. The entire variety of threads is 20.
The processor posted a stellar single-core rating in Geekbench 6 and a powerful multi-core rating, beating laptops with the identical chipset however extra spectacular cooling. The Geekbench 6 OpenCL rating is about what you’d anticipate for built-in Intel graphics – a lot decrease than simply about any modern discrete GPU on the market.
Geekbench 6
Diving a bit deeper into the graphics efficiency of the Intel Iris Xe built-in graphics, we ran GFXBench’s suite of exams. Within the high-level exams, the MateBook D16 2024 aced the 1080p Aztec Ruins based mostly on the Vulkan API with round 160fps. The GPU saved round 60fps within the 1440p check and round 25fps within the 4K check.
GFXBench graphic exams
The 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVME SSD contained in the MateBook D16 2024 is a 321JN1024GB-TX01 mannequin quantity and that is about all we find out about it. No phrase on the producer but it surely’s a quick unit with glorious speeds throughout the board.
We did a 1-hour stress check on the CPU to see how the MateBook D16 2024 would deal with its potent processor and had been pleasantly shocked. The laptop computer saved the processor at its peak 3.4GHz for round 10 seconds after which shortly throttled all the way down to 2.7GHz. It went again as much as 2.8GHz in about quarter-hour after which settled at 2.6GHz for the rest of the check.
Impressively, the ‘Shark fin’ followers, whereas continually operating, weren’t audible throughout our check. Huawei claims the twin fan answer is designed to spice up airflow by 55% and generate as little as 22 dB of noise, and we’ve to say it really works nice. For comparability’s sake, the MateBook 16S and its Core i7-12700H throttled to 1.3GHz and stayed there throughout the stress check – an enormous distinction in similarly-sized and cooled laptops.
Battery life
Maintaining with the spectacular streak, the MateBook D16 2024 managed stable numbers in our battery life check. It entails operating an 11-hour YouTube video at most brightness and most quantity till the laptop computer dies.
The MateBook D16 2024 managed an outrageous 7 hours and 34 minutes. That is in comparison with the MateBook 16S’ little over 6-hour outcome. Keep in mind that that laptop computer has an 84Wh battery to this one’s 70Wh, although it has a barely greater, higher-resolution show.
Conclusion
The Huawei MateBook D16 2024 prices €1,399/£1,199 on the time of writing and that nets you the very best attainable configuration of a Core i9-13900H processor, 16GB of RAM, 1TB of storage and a 70Wh battery. You could possibly save €100 and go for the Core i7-13700H mannequin however we would not. It is a downgrade we might worth at round €200.
At €1,399, the MateBook D16 2024 is not low-cost however a fast have a look at the present market yields rather more costly choices or very barely cheaper ones with two-year-old processors. We might say this laptop computer is a good choice to have at the moment but it surely by no means hurts to attend just a few months for a reduction. Huawei runs promos on a regular basis on its web site and typically the offers are exhausting to withstand.
We favored the MateBook D16 2024. it is a type of working-class-hero sort gadgets – it would not look fancy or flashy, however it may possibly do all of it, and it is completely suited to every thing. The show is superb, the efficiency is spectacular, and the battery life would not go away you wanting. What extra is there to say – that is pretty much as good as a 16-inch laptop computer could be.
If you would like higher, you could search for a extra premium construct, a brighter show that is additionally touch-enabled, and maybe for a discrete GPU – however all of that may price you further, fairly a bit, and that proper there’s a entire different sort of laptop computer.
Professionals
- Good, matte show with a taller 16:10 facet ratio
- Nice backlit keyboard, has a Numpad
- Sturdy construct, good port choice
- Very loud audio system
- Lengthy battery life
- Highly effective processor that is nicely dealt with
- Considerate Huawei software program enhances the laptop computer
Cons
- The show is simply 300 nits, is not a touchscreen
- Trackpad may very well be a bit greater, is off-center
- No bass to talk off
- No choice for a discrete GPU
- Whereas fairly priced, it is not low-cost