When it comes to laptop quality, the Apple MacBook Pro has always been linked with premium specs and design, and the recent 2018 refresh did that reputation no harm at all. The high-end notebook has plenty of rivals though, including the Huawei MateBook X Pro.
Huawei has obviously been inspired by Apple when it comes to the look and feel of the MateBook X Pro, but that's fine with us, and it's going to appeal to shoppers looking for a Windows 10 machine. Here we'll compare the laptops in all the key areas that matter.
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Huawei MateBook X Pro vs Apple MacBook Pro: design
Huawei Matebook X Pro
As we said right at the top, the Huawei MateBook X Pro looks to take a leaf or two out of the Apple design manual: it definitely has the feel of Huawei's take on the MacBook Pro, and as a result we've got two very aesthetically pleasing laptops to consider here. Both manage that challenging trick of combining both style and power into a single device.
The Huawei MateBook X Pro just about shades it in terms of the thinness of its bezels. You get a 13.9-inch screen running at an ultra-sharp 3000 x 2000 pixel resolution, and overall the laptop checks in at a very reasonable 1.33 kg (2.93 lbs). It's a beautiful-looking laptop, 14.6 mm (0.57 inches) when closed, though it's only available in one colour: space grey.
For our money the Apple MacBook Pro is just slightly better looking, but only by the smallest margins. With Apple you get a 13.3-inch or a 15.4-inch display, with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels or 2880 x 1800 pixels. The 13.3-inch weighs 1.37 kg (3.02 lbs) and is 14.9 mm (0.59 inches) thin when closed, while the 15.4-inch weighs 1.83 kg (4.03 lbs) and is 15.5 mm (0.61 inches) thin when closed. Silver or space grey are your colour picks.
Huawei MateBook X Pro vs Apple MacBook Pro: specs
MacBook Pro
Both these laptops come with a variety of spec configurations to pick from, but the bottom line is that these are two very powerful computers no matter which specs you pick. You're definitely shopping at the top end of the market with the Huawei MateBook X Pro and the Apple MacBook Pro – that's reflected in the prices, but it also means you won't be noticing any slowdowns or performance problems on these laptops for a long time to come.
The configurations for the Huawei MateBook X Pro are slightly easier to get your head around: either an 8th-gen Intel Core i7 or an 8th-gen Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB or 16GB of RAM, 256GB or 512GB of internal storage, and either integrated Intel UHD Graphics 620 or an on-board Nvidia GeForce MX150. At the best configuration, it's a laptop that's hard to beat in terms of power and performance.
Over on the Apple side, you've got two sizes of the MacBook Pro and more combinations of specs to pick from. At the bottom end you've got 7th-gen Intel Core i5 processors, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, and Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640; at the top end you've got 8th-gen Intel Core i9 processors, 32GB of RAM, 4TB of storage and Radeon Pro Vega 20 graphics cards. You've got more flexibility with Apple, but the price goes up accordingly.
Huawei MateBook X Pro vs Apple MacBook Pro: features
Huawei MateBook X Pro
Besides the raw specs on show, you've got a number of other features to think about them, chief among them the choice of Windows 10 or macOS Mojave. Both Windows and macOS are brilliant operating systems nowadays, so which one is right for you probably depends on which one you're most familiar with – or which one works best with all the other hardware you've got at home.
Other than that, the Huawei MateBook X Pro comes with a touchscreen, giving you another way of interacting with the laptop. The MacBook Pro, except for the cheapest 13.3-inch model, comes with a Touch Bar that's slightly less useful – though Touch ID login is handy. Speaking of fingerprint access, the same biometric login option is available on the Huawei MateBook X Pro too.
Huawei promises 12 hours of video playback from one battery charge with the MateBook X Pro, while Apple says the MacBook Pro can go for 10 hours – though take those estimates with a pinch of salt. You get two or four Thunderbolt 3/USB‑C ports on Apple's laptop, plus a headphone jack, while the Huawei rival has one USB-A port, one USB-C port, one Thunderbolt 3/USB-C port, and a headphone jack.
Huawei MateBook X Pro vs Apple MacBook Pro: verdict
MacBook Pro
All in all, two very decent laptops here, and neither one is going to disappoint. First, take a look at the stylings and decide whether the ultra-thin display bezels of the MateBook X Pro are enough to tempt you in; second, consider whether you want to be spending the next few years using Windows or macOS as your operating system of choice. After that, you should have a fairly good idea of which laptop is best for you.
Another important consideration is price (check out the widgets on this page for the latest deals). Because of the variety of configurations, there are MacBook Pros that are both cheaper and more expensive than the MateBook X Pro, but head to head the Huawei laptop will give you a bit more bang for your buck. At the very top end you can be parting with a serious chunk of cash for the best MacBook Pro.
The best pick here is going to be different for everyone, depending on past experience and future requirements, but it's safe to say that the Apple MacBook Pro has a serious Windows-powered competitor in the form of the Huawei MateBook X Pro. We're looking forward to whatever the next generations of these laptops have to offer.
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