MateBook D 14 review: a look at Huawei’s ultralight affordable laptop [Sponsored]

For consumers looking for a portable, lightweight, and affordable laptop, the MateBook D range is an attractive option. The MateBook D 14 comes with the compact form factor of ultraportable laptops, along with an impressive battery life and mid-range price of R13 499.

But past the marketing, how does the MateBook D 14 perform in real life?

We spent some time with Huawei’s newly launched laptop.

MateBook D 14 form factor and design

While the idea of an affordable laptop may make you think of a bulky device with limited performance, the MateBook D 14 has a lightweight design that’s both functional and attractive.

With a screen-to-body ratio of 84%, the display immediately stands out. The Mystic Silver colour also gives the device a premium feel, differentiating itself from the usual all-black colour palettes we often see on laptops.

The portability of the laptop becomes immediately apparent when you handle it. Weighing only 1.38kg, you’ll often find yourself easily lifting and moving the laptop with just one hand.

The MateBook D 14 comes with a USB-C Adapter for charging, without the need for a power brick. This adds to the minimalism of the device — you don’t need to carry around a hefty cable to charge to.

Despite the lack of a power brick, the adapter supports fast charging, meaning you don’t sacrifice convenience in the name of portability.

Impressive performance for an affordable laptop

While the MateBook D 14 is marketed as an entry-level Huawei laptop, the device isn’t an entry-level experience.

It runs extremely well, handling multi-tasking, word processing, and media viewing with ease.

Despite only having a 1920 x 1080 display, visuals are clear and crisp on the screen, making it perfect for watching video content and looking at multimedia.

Working on the device does not create the cramped feeling you often experience on other ultralight devices — likely due to the spacious keyboard layout and generous screen-to-body ratio.

The 8GB of RAM and 256GB/512GB NVME SSD create a smooth and seamless experience that effortlessly handles the multi-tasking of a daily workflow.

The laptop’s speakers also deliver ample volume and clear audio, making it perfect for both streaming video and holding video calls.

While this isn’t a laptop for gaming or video editing, it’s a great device for general work and leisure.

MateBook D 14 battery life

One of the standout features of the MateBook D 14 is its battery life. Equipped with a 56Wh battery, you can get hours of work and media viewing when the cable is unplugged.

Huawei’s tests show that the laptop can get up to 9.5 hours of local 1080p video playback. But even when streaming content online, you’ll see the laptop last several hours.

On several occasions, when streaming series and other online video, we were easily able to enjoy over 6 hours of streaming without needing to plug the device in for charging.

Unique features

Past its performance and battery life, there are other unique features that come with Huawei’s MateBook D 14.

The laptop runs Windows 10, but it also comes with some additional Huawei features and software.

Huawei’s PC Manager software, which is unobtrusive but easily accessible, makes it simple to use the features from Huawei’s software ecosystem.

This includes multi-screen collaboration, and easy file sharing with Huawei Share.

The support for NFC chip scanning means it’s as simple as tapping your NFC-equipped Huawei or Honor smartphone on the MateBook D’s Huawei Share logo.

If you don’t have a Huawei smartphone, you can still link phones with the Windows 10 tools like Your Phone.

But Huawei’s cloud backups, IoT support, and unique features are an attractive perk for users with Huawei smartphones.

If you’re looking for the benefits of being part of Huawei’s ecosystem of devices, you’ll find one of the best examples here.

Huawei MateBook D 14: making great tech more affordable

The MateBook D 14 exemplifies what is possible at the R13 499 price point. As South African consumers see technology prices surge in 2020, the MateBook D 14 provides a refreshing experience.

Rather than feeling like you’re paying a premium for ordinary tech, the laptop punches above its weight.

Its lightweight form factor and performance provides a great offering for the work-from-home and remote work realities of 2020.

Furthermore, its premium aesthetic and great display give it the feel of a more expensive device.

It’s the kind of device that piques your interest into Huawei’s MateBook series as a whole, opening up the possibilities of what more affordable technology can achieve.

This article is sponsored by Huawei.

Feature image: Huawei