Huawei MateBook D 15 (2020, Intel) quick review – good performer with a sleek look

Just like the other manufacturers, Huawei is bringing new devices on the market every year. Expectedly, these machines are equipped with modern hardware. The same goes for the device that we’re going to review today – the Huawei MateBook D 15 (2020). This one looks and feels like the 2020 AMD version from the outside, but the new things are hidden under the shell.

The Intel version of MateBook D 15 comes with Tiger Lake-UP3 CPU like the Intel Core i5-1135G7 or with some other Comet Lake-U processors. Because this is a thin and light device, it has soldered memory which isn’t good if you want to upgrade the laptop after some time.

On the bright side, the notebооk isn’t expensive and it has a clean and good-looking design. For some of us, it may look a bit like some Apple devices out there. It uses a small lightweight USB-C charger that could possibly fit in most bags and even in bigger pockets.

The laptop comes with an optional fingerprint reader that is part of the Power button, and its camera is hidden between the upper row of keys of the keyboard and can be popped up with a single touch – it sounds fancy but in reality, it’s not that user-friendly. This device definitely seems interesting because of its price, looks, and extras – so, let’s inspect it closely.

You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/huawei-matebook-d-15-2020/

Contents


Specs Sheet

Huawei MateBook D 15 (2020) - Specs

  • BOE TV156FHM-N41 (BOE0872)
  • Color accuracy  4.4  2.8
  • HDD/SSD
  • up to 512GB SSD + up to 1000GB HDD
  • RAM
  • up to 8GB
  • OS
  • Windows 10 Home, Windows 10 Pro
  • Battery
  • 42Wh, 3-cell, 42Wh
  • Body material
  • Aluminum
  • Dimensions
  • 357.8 x 229.9 x 16.9 mm (14.09" x 9.05" x 0.67")
  • Weight
  • 1.53 kg (3.4 lbs)
  • Ports and connectivity
  • 2x USB Type-A
  • 2.0
  • 1x USB Type-A
  • 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
  • 1x USB Type-C
  • HDMI
  • Card reader
  • Wi-Fi
  • 802.11ac
  • Bluetooth
  • 5.0
  • Audio jack
  • 3.5 mm combo
  • Features
  • Fingerprint reader
  • Web camera
  • HD
  • Backlit keyboard
  • Microphone
  • 2x Microphones
  • Speakers
  • 2x 2W Speakers
  • Optical drive
  • Security Lock slot

All Huawei MateBook D 15 (2020) configurations

#CommissionsEarned

What’s in the box?

The package contains the standard things – manuals, a compact 65W charger, a USB Type-C cable, and of course – the laptop itself.


Design and construction

The laptop is made of aluminum which contributes to its compact dimensions – we have a 16.9mm profile and a weight of 1.53 kilos. As we said earlier, this machine has a simplistic and clean design and that’s why it looks good. On the other hand, it’s not the most rigid device that we have tested – the space between the touchpad and the keyboard is quite bendable as well as the area on the right of the touchpad.

Sadly but the lid can’t be opened with a single hand. However, despite the bendy base of the laptop, the lid is strong – a heavy book on it should not be a problem (probably).

Now, the camera is placed in an unorthodox place – it’s embedded into a dedicated key between the “F6” and “F7” keys. This means, in most cases, people are going to look directly at your chin during video calls or you have to correct your head position which can be quite uncomfortable. The keyboard lacks a backlight, and just like the AMD variant, its travel is numb while the feedback is clicky enough.

A look-down and we can spot the big touchpad. It seems this is the same unit that we saw in the AMD sibling of this laptop – gliding feels great but when it comes to tracking, this fella isn’t the most accurate one.

On the bottom plate, we can spot the two side-placed speakers and a medium-sized ventilation grille. The hot air is pushed in between the lid and the base which isn’t an optimal solution.

Ports

The left side of the laptop houses a USB Type-C 3.2 (Gen. 1) port (for charging and data transfer), a USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) port, and an HDMI connector. The right side is a bit shy with its two USB Type-A 2.0 ports, and an audio jack.


Disassembly, upgrade options, and maintenance

Removing the bottom panel is easy – you have to unscrew 10 Torx-head screws. After that just pop the plate with a pry tool and that’s it.

The cooling solution is a bit upgraded compared to what we saw in the AMD version. The decently sized fan and heat pipe are here again, but this time there is another smaller heat pipe that is accompanying the big one.

For storage, there is an M.2 PCIe x4 slot and a free space for a 2.5-inch SATA device but the default package lacks a connector for this kind of device so, you have to buy one separately – odd.

The battery unit has a capacity of just 42Wh which sounds a bit low for a 15-incher. 

Sound

Huawei MateBook D 15 (2020)’s speakers produce a clear, loud sound with good quality. Its low, mid, and high tones are clear of deviations.


Drivers

All of the drivers and utilities can be downloaded from here: https://consumer.huawei.com/en/support/laptops/matebook-d-15/

CPU options

Our laptop is equipped with an Intel Core i5-1035G7 which is a 4-core CPU with 8 threads – not the most modern solution but it’s fine for light games and usual daily tasks. This is the 2020 variant of the machine, so it can be picked with Intel Comet Lake-U CPUs like the Core i5-10210U, i3-10110U, and some AMD Zen-based variants like the Ryzen 5 4500U.


GPU options

The device that we have bought comes with an iGPU – the Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 (96EU). The top GPU option is the GeForce MX250.


Gaming tests

cs-go-benchmarks

CS:GOHD 1080p, Low (Check settings)HD 1080p, Medium (Check settings)HD 1080p, MAX (Check settings)
Average FPS82 fps55 fps25 fps

Gears 5Full HD, Low (Check settings)Full HD, Medium (Check settings)Full HD, High (Check settings)Full HD, Ultra (Check settings)
Average FPS28 fps19 fps

Temperatures and comfort

Max CPU load

In this test we use 100% on the CPU cores, monitoring their frequencies and chip temperature. The first column shows a computer’s reaction to a short load (2-10 seconds), the second column simulates a serious task (between 15 and 30 seconds), and the third column is a good indicator of how good the laptop is for long loads such as video rendering.

Average core frequency (base frequency + X); CPU temp.

Intel Core i5-1135G70:02 – 0:10 sec0:15 – 0:30 sec10:00 – 15:00 min
Huawei MateBook D 15 (2021) Balanced Mode3.64 GHz (B+52%) @ 94°C @ 49W3.16 GHz (B+32%) @ 90°C @ 37W2.13 GHz (B-11%) @ 64°C @ 18W
Huawei MateBook D 15 (2021) Performance Mode3.70 GHz (B+54%) @ 94°C @ 51W3.35 GHz (B+40%) @ 94°C @ 41W2.89 GHz (B+20%) @ 83°C @ 31W
HP Pavilion x360 15 (15-er0000)2.97 GHz (B+24%) @ 75°C @ 35W2.39 GHz @ 78°C @ 21W2.35 GHz @ 77°C @ 20W
ASUS VivoBook 14 X4153.31 GHz (B+38%) @ 91°C @ 37W2.71 GHz (B+13%) @ 91°C @ 25W2.40 GHz (B+0%) @ 76°C @ 20W
MSI Summit E13 Flip Evo3.65 GHz (B+52%) @ 96°C @ 45W3.31 GHz (B+38%) @ 96°C @ 47W3.03 GHz (B+25%) @ 96°C @ 29W
Dell XPS 13 9310 (2-in-1)3.36 GHz (B+40%) @ 99°C @ 41W3.16 GHz (B+32%) @ 99°C @ 37W1.92 GHz @ 72°C @ 16W
Dell XPS 13 93103.15 GHz (B+31%) @ 100°C @ 40W2.73 GHz (B+14%) @ 100°C @ 30W1.65 GHz @ 73°C @ 15W
Dell Vostro 15 55023.33 GHz (B+39%) @ 100°C @ 38W1.96 GHz @ 72°C @ 14W2.02 GHz @ 74°C @ 15W
Dell Vostro 14 54023.02 GHz (B+26%) @ 99°C @ 29W2.61 GHz (B+9%) @ 99°C @ 25W2.00 GHz @ 76°C @ 15W
MSI Modern 15 (A11X)3.59 GHz (B+50%) @ 94°C @ 44W3.45 GHz (B+44%) @ 95°C @ 40W3.18 GHz (B+33%) @ 91°C @ 34W
Lenovo ThinkBook 14s Yoga3.52 GHz (B+47%) @ 94°C3.24 GHz (B+35%) @ 94°C2.63 GHz (B+10%) @ 75°C
Lenovo Yoga 7 (14)3.34 GHz (B+39%) @ 94°C2.97 GHz (B+24%) @ 94°C2.39 GHz @ 75°C
Acer Aspire 5 (A514-54)3.54 GHz (B+48%) @ 87°C2.01 GHz @ 66°C2.03 GHz @ 67°C

The laptop offers 2 operating modes – Balanced and Performance (you can access them by pressing Fn+P). The first one is suitable for light daily tasks like Web browsing or videos. The CPU boosts quite well in short-to-medium loads but when you apply serious stress for a long time, the clock drops down to just 2.13 GHz. On the bright side, the laptop feels snappy despite the lower frequency and we like the thermal readings as well – 64°C is a good result.

Switching to Performance mode brings more snappiness and dissipated heat to the table. The bigger difference between the two scenarios is in prolonged periods of heavy usage – this time the CPU is reaching 2.89 GHz and the processor temperature is 83°C. Actually, the laptop performance quite well (in both modes) for such a thin device.

Comfort during full load

If you switch to Balance mode, the laptop is quiet but the right side of the keyboard, as well as the palm rest area, becomes hot. In Performance mode, you can definitely hear some fan noise however the shell temperature is a bit cooler on touch.

Verdict

The Intel version of the Huawei MateBook D 15 is a good budget offer. The laptop has a good-looking sleek design, it has a thin profile and it’s light at the same time. So, portability is one of its key selling points.

Comfort-wise, the Intel version of the Huawei MateBook D 15 is a quiet device if you switch to Balanced mode. In this scenario, it’s hard to hear any noise from the cooling fan but if you apply some heavy stress, the right side of the shell will heat up immediately (but not too much, it’s still okay but you’re definitely going to sense the heat under your fingers). If you don’t mind hearing some fan noise, the Performance mode brings more performance, higher CPU clocks during heavy loads, and the shell is a bit cooler. The CPU frequencies and temperature surprise us in a good way given the fact how slim is this laptop.

In addition, the notebook has a compact USB-C charger which is great – if you have bigger pockets it’ll fit there with ease. The Intel Core i5-1135G7 (which is one of the available CPU variants) and its iGPU are good enough for some light games as well – CS:GO and Dota 2 can run just fine on (at least) Low settings.

Huawei MateBook D 15 has its flaws – the keyboard lacks a backlight, the camera is placed in a super strange place in the upper part of the keyboard, and the I/O feels so old school in 2021 with two USB Type-A 2.0 ports that are placed on the right side of the device. Moreover, this Huawei machine comes with 8GB or 16GB of soldered memory and there isn’t a SODIMM slot for future upgrades. Our advice is to get the 16GB version if you plan to buy this device.

Pros

  • Decent performance and thermals
  • Aluminum built, despite the low price
  • A quiet experience in Balanced mode
  • Optional fingerprint reader


Cons

  • Soldered memory
  • Lacks an SD card reader and a Thunderbolt port

You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/huawei-matebook-d-15-2020/

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Franck
Franck
8 months ago

Thank you for this great review and for the video!