Huawei MateBook D 16 (2024) review

Huawei’s ongoing US trade ban has badly affected its Android smartphones and tablets in the UK and Europe. However, an agreement with Microsoft means there are no such problems for its laptops, which run on full Windows 11.  

What’s more, MateBook devices are renowned for their excellent value for money, especially when compared to the likes of Dell’s XPS range and Apple’s MacBook Pros.  

So, if you’re looking for a 16-inch laptop and don’t need top-tier performance, why wouldn’t you go for the 2024 edition of the MateBook D 16?  

It starts at just £699.99 for starters but there are a few reasons why it might not be right for you. 

Design & Build

• Classic grey aluminium design
• Relatively lightweight
• Only one USB-C port

If you’ve used any recent Huawei laptop, the design of the MateBook D 16 will be familiar to you. The aluminium chassis is functional if a little boring, especially in the Space Grey finish which is your only colour option. 

However, I can’t deny that it’s very well built, and feels durable enough to withstand years of use. A more eye-catching design would’ve been nice, but the minimalist look makes it suitable for pretty much any scenario. 

Despite the choice of premium materials, the MateBook D 16 weighs just 1.68kg. That’s relatively light for a 16-inch laptop and means it won’t weigh down your bag too much when travelling.  

At 17mm when closed, it’s by no means the thinnest laptop out there but that helps it to avoid feeling flimsy without adding unnecessary bulk. There’s also room for a decent range of ports, though Huawei could’ve done more with the space available.  

My biggest complaint is that there’s only one USB-C port. It means that while you’re charging, you can’t connect many modern accessories without a separate hub. The port also doesn’t support the latest Thunderbolt 4 or USB4 standards for fast data transfer. 

It’s better news elsewhere, with two USB-A ports (albeit the older 2.0 standard), full-size HDMI and 3.5mm audio jack. I’ve often complained about the lack of USB-A on modern laptops, but just wish it hadn’t come at the cost of USB-C functionality here. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

Screen & Speakers

• 16-inch, 1920×1200 IPS display
• Impressive, but not the most colour accurate
• Solid dual stereo speakers

As the name suggests, the MateBook D 16 is equipped with a 16-inch display – specifically, a 1920×1200 IPS LCD. The screen won’t blow you away, but it consistently impresses across almost all everyday tasks. 

During my two weeks using it as my main laptop, there were no obvious weaknesses. Everything from web browsing and Word documents to image editing and YouTube videos looked great. I never felt like I was missing out by not having an OLED. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

See also  Honor Pad 9 review

That might be different if you want to use a laptop for serious photo editing or watching movies and TV shows, though. Its 98% coverage of the sRGB colour gamut is solid, but 76% of AdobeRGB and P3 shows there’s room for improvement with regards to colour accuracy. 

However, I found it to be more than acceptable for casual use, especially with good detail and viewing angles. The lack of a high refresh rate is a shame, but the standard 60Hz is far less noticeable here than on a smartphone or tablet. 

The display is not touch sensitive, but I didn’t miss having this. It’s not a crucial feature, but one that I’ve enjoyed using on some previous Huawei laptops.  

Elsewhere, I recorded a maximum display brightness of 315 nits. That’s totally fine for almost all indoor environments, but you can pretty much forget about good visibility outdoors. 

In terms of audio, the MateBook D 16 boasts dual stereo speakers. Despite their position on the underside of the device, audio quality is impressive. There’s a warmth and depth to the sound that isn’t always available on laptops, plus a nice hit of bass. 

At max volume, it can deliver near room-filling sound without any audible distortion.  

Keyboard, Trackpad & Webcam

• Decent, large keyboard and trackpad
• Great fingerprint sensor in power button
• Disappointing 720p webcam

The size of the MateBook D 16 means there’s plenty of room for both a full-size keyboard and separate number pad. I mostly ignore the latter, but it might be important to you as, for example, an accountant. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

Either way, it doesn’t take long to adjust to the placement of the keys. Within a few minutes, I was back typing close to my usual speed – despite the model I tested using the German keyboard layout. 

Each key offers 1.5mm of travel, making it satisfyingly clicky without getting too loud. And there are two different levels of backlighting, so it’s easy to see what you’re typing from a dark room. 

Huawei has added a few extra controls to the row of function keys, including shortcuts to the calendar and PC Manager app, plus toggles for Wi-Fi, the webcam and more. 

Talking of the webcam, the MateBook D 16 is equipped with a 720p lens. It’s naturally positioned above the display, rather than built into the keyboard like some earlier models. It times out before long which is presumably to save battery but annoying, nonetheless. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

However, there’s no physical privacy shutter, and image quality isn’t great. I often looked dull and grainy on video calls, and it struggles to adjust to bright or dim environments. 

If you need a high-quality webcam, you’ll have to get an external one. 

With no IR sensor for Windows Hello face unlock, the fingerprint sensor built into the power button is your only alternative to manually entering a pin or password. Luckily, the fingerprint sensor is one of the best I’ve tried on any laptop, consistently unlocking the device with a quick tap. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

See also  Poco X6 5G review

Specs & Performance

• Strong Core i9-13900H performance
• Cheapest model uses i5-12450H instead
• 512GB or 1TB SSD

Performance on the MateBook D 16 will vary hugely depending on the model you get.  

The version I tested is powered by the Core i9-13900H, one of the most capable processors in Intel’s 13t-gen range. Alongside a bumper 16GB of RAM, performance is predictably excellent. 

My daily workflow includes dozens of Chrome tabs, Word documents, Slack messaging, plenty of emails, plus regular video calls and some photo editing. Even with all these open at the same time, there was no slowdown whatsoever. I couldn’t even hear the fans kicking in. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

The large display makes it well-suited to multitasking, and I’m confident the high-end model can handle pretty much all office-related tasks without breaking a sweat. 

Sadly, I can’t be so sure about the entry-level version. Not only is the i5-12450H a much less powerful chipset, it’s from the older 12th-gen range which was released back in early 2022.  

I can’t comment on its performance, though other laptops with similar specs have been good everyday devices but if you’re planning to use the MateBook D 16 for several years, I’d have concerns over how it might hold up over time, especially with only 8GB of RAM here. 

On both models, you’ll get Iris Xe integrated graphics rather than a discrete GPU. It means the device is unsuitable for the likes of professional graphic design and demanding games, but that’s probably not what you’re buying it for. 

Storage also varies between models, though I’m sure most people will be happy with either a 512GB or 1TB SSD. Both are generous for their respective price points. 

Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1 aren’t quite the latest standards, but this isn’t an issue unless you have a very modern router or audio equipment. 

Huawei MateBook D 16 (2024) benchmarks

Here’s how the laptop compares to other big-screened laptops, though most of these are more expensive:

Battery & Charging

• 56Wh battery on cheapest model
• Solid battery life from high-end 70Wh cell
• 65W USB-C charging

Battery capacity is another thing that varies depending on the model you choose. The cheapest version gets a 56Wh cell, while the pricier model benefits from a beefier 70Wh. 

However, even on the latter, battery life is solid rather than spectacular. I made a conscious effort to unplug it at 100% shortly after starting work at 9.30am, and it was down to single figures just after 5pm. This was with brightness quite high, but only Wi-Fi usage and regular daily office tasks. 

Therefore, the MateBook D 16 falls just short of what I’d describe as all-day battery life. You’ll want to be near a power source as the end of the day approaches.  

Of course, you can get much longer from a charge if you’re just watching a movie or TV show. In our 720p video loop battery test, the MateBook D 16 lasted a respectable 14 hours and 15 minutes. 

When you do run out of battery, the 65W charger in the box is relatively quick by laptop standards. It went from 0-21% in 15 minutes, then 40% after half an hour. A full charge took just over 90 minutes which isn’t bad at all. 

Software

As I mentioned at the start of this review, the MateBook D 16 runs a full version of Windows 11 Home. 

There are very few changes to the core Microsoft software experience. In fact, I could only find three: Huawei PC Manager (for connecting to Huawei devices), Huawei Mobile Cloud (cloud storage) and Huawei Control Panel (for quick access to popular tools). 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

These will be genuinely useful for some people, but I was able to ignore them without any hassle from pop-ups or notifications. 

These days, Windows 11 is slick and well optimised for a traditional laptop like this. It offers tons of features, extensive customisation and the ability to download almost any app via the web. It tends to struggle more with touch input, but that’s not a problem here.  

Even if a new major version of Windows launches soon, the MateBook D 16 is very likely to be compatible. 

Price & Availability

The MateBook D 16 has a pricing structure that you don’t often see on laptops starting at £699 for an Intel i5-12450H model with 8GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD.  

However, the only alternative in the UK is a £1,199 version with a Core i9-13900H, 16GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. That’s quite the jump with nothing in between such as a Core i7 option. 

Both are available to buy from the Huawei UK website, where the i9 model includes a free pair of Huawei’s FreeBuds 5 earbuds. Like all Huawei devices, it’s not available in the US, though you may be able to import one. 

The best alternatives will vary depending on which model you choose, but the likes of the Lenovo Yoga 7i 16, Dell Inspiron 16 2-in-1 and even Apple’s 15-inch MacBook Air offer better value for money than the MateBook D 16. 

Should you buy the Huawei MateBook D 16 (2024)?

It’s difficult to sum up the MateBook D 16, with its dramatically different specs between models, so it depends on which one you plump for.  

On one hand, it offers a compelling experience for just £699, with an enjoyable display, impressive keyboard and solid build quality. The fingerprint sensor is very good, too. 

All those things are also true of the £1,199 model, but it gets the benefit of a much more powerful processor and larger battery. 

Considering both models suffer from a poor webcam, only one USB-C port and no discrete graphics, neither is an easy recommendation. 

But when you consider the lack of capable sub-£700 laptops out there, the MateBook D 16 is still one of the best options out there. The high-end version is a tough sell, though.

Specs

• 248.7 x 356.7 x 17mm   
• 1.68kg 
• 16-inch 2.5K (1920×1200) IPS display, 60Hz 
• Full-size keyboard with backlighting 
• Large trackpad   
• 720p webcam   
• Dual stereo speakers   
• Fingerprint power button   
• Intel Core i5-12450H/Core i9-13900H 
• Intel Iris Xe graphics  
• 8/16GB RAM 
• 512GB/1TB SSD 
• 2x USB-A 3.2  
• 1x USB-C 3.2 
• 1x HDMI  
• 1x 3.5mm audio jack   
• 56/70Wh battery 
• 65W USB-C charging 
• Wi-Fi 6  
• Bluetooth 5.1 
• Windows 11 Home