Huawei has officially unveiled its latest laptop, the MateBook Pro, in China—and it’s unlike anything the company has released before. Powered by Huawei’s own Kirin X90 ARM-based processor and running the brand-new HarmonyOS 5, this notebook boldly ditches both Intel CPUs and Microsoft Windows, positioning itself as a true rival to Apple’s MacBook Air and Snapdragon-powered Windows laptops.
At first glance, the new MateBook Pro closely resembles the 2024 MateBook X Pro. However, Huawei has made some thoughtful changes around the keyboard area. Notably, the Windows key has been replaced by a HarmonyOS-branded key, and a new dedicated AI assistant key has been added—a move similar to Microsoft’s recent Copilot+ integration in its own devices.
This subtle redesign signifies Huawei’s commitment to building a fully independent ecosystem while maintaining the sleek, premium look users expect from the MateBook series.
Though official specs remain under wraps, leaks suggest that the Kirin X90 is based on a similar architecture to the Kirin 9010, with a unique 4+4+2 core configuration—all high-performance cores. The chip reportedly supports multi-threading on all 10 cores, allowing for 20 threads of parallel processing. This design promises impressive multitasking performance, though real-world benchmarks are still awaited.
Huawei’s push to develop its own chips comes amid intensifying U.S.–China trade tensions, prompting the company to reduce reliance on Western technologies and strengthen its in-house hardware-software integration.
The Huawei MateBook Pro isn’t just another premium laptop—it’s a declaration of independence. By moving away from both Intel and Windows, Huawei is building an alternative ecosystem that may reshape the future of personal computing in China and beyond. For now, all eyes are on the performance of the Kirin X90 and how HarmonyOS 5 handles a full laptop experience.
