Huawei launches trio of new MateBook personal computers, expanding its portfolio of its stylish, high-end devices: Huawei MateBook X, Huawei MateBook E and MateBook D.

The new trio of MateBooks will begin shipping over the summer of 2017.

Huawei plans for a global expansion into computers, posing a fresh challenge to established PC players in a market that has suffered two years of falling sales volumes.

Initially, the new entrant is targeting the premium-priced consumer market, pitting it against Lenovo, HP and Dell, which collectively hold more than 50 percent of the PC market, and possibly even Apple's shrinking Mac computer business.

HUAWEI MateBook X

A stylish 13-inch fanless notebook design with an 88 percent screen-to-body ratio and 4.4mm bezels. It includes a choice of 7th Generation Intel Core i7 or i5 processors (i7-7500U and i5-7200U) with HD 620 graphics, Dolby Atmos Sound System and a fingerprint-ready power button with encrypted chip.

The HUAWEI MateBook X features a 3:2 aspect ratio. With HUAWEI Space Cooling Technology, Microencapsulated Phase Change Material has been applied to the HUAWEI MateBook X, making the device a fanless 13-inch notebook. Inspired by Huawei's flagship products' aesthetic style, the HUAWEI MateBook X is available in three colors: Prestige Gold, Space Gray and Rose Gold.

Additionally, the HUAWEI MateBook X features a 2K display screen with Corning Gorilla Glass and eye comfort technology, and boasts a 41.4Wh battery.

Storage comes via an integrated PCIe SSD, and depending on the configuration will either be 256GB or 512GB. Memory is a downside: Huawei has decided to use LPDDR3 rather than DDR4, which means that the top spec unit hits 8GB (4GB also offered) rather than 16GB.

Going around the device, Huawei has supplied two USB Type-C ports, one of which can be used as a charging port for the supplied 40W power adaptor but both can be used for data. The ports are USB 3.0 (5 Gbps), and both will work with the new MateDock 2, which is this time being supplied with the device rather than being sold separately.

For connectivity, the MateBook X has an 802.11ac solution capable of 2x2 MIMO and BT4.1, although no modem for 4G.

Working with Windows Hello users can sign into the device with their fingerprint. The device's built-in MateBook Manager facilitates easy connectivity between Huawei smartphones and the MateBook.

HUAWEI MateBook E

An elegant 2-in-1 notebook with a screen-to-body ratio of 84 percent, a new Folio Keyboard with a maximum angle of adjustment that can reach up to 160 degrees, a choice of 7th Generation Intel Core i5 or m3 processors and 2K touch screen display.

At the heart of the MateBook E is Kaby Lake Y, the 4.5W processors from Intel. Along with Intel's new naming scheme, here the MateBook E gets either the Core m3-7Y30 or the Core i5-7Y54, matching the similar CPUs to the last gen but on the latest microarchitecture using updated features like Speed Shift 2. These processors come with Intel's HD 615 graphics, and will be supplied with either 4GB or 8GB of LPDDR3 and then 128GB, 256GB or 512GB of PCIe storage.

The keyboard folio now comes with the device rather than being an add-on, and the hinge is updated to allow for a full 160 degree of tilt. The hinge is part of the folio, and stays with the keyboard but aligns flush when not in use.

Along with the power button is the fingerprint reader, as well as a single Type-C connector. This is used for power as well as connecting to the new MateDock 2, which also comes bundled with the MateBook E in some regions.

The new MateBook E is thinner, coming in at 6.9mm, and houses a 33.7 Wh battery (up from 32.7 Wh) which Huawei claims is good for 9 hours of video playback at 50% brightness. The speaker system is carried over from the 2016 model too, although with Dolby Audio Premium certification.

Huawei revealed pricing for a few models, with the low configuration of m3, 4GB DRAM and 128GB SSD coming in at 999 Euro. The high configuration of Core i5-Y, 8GB of DRAM and 256GB SSD will be 1299 Euro.

HUAWEI MateBook D

A 15.6-inch notebook with an 83 percent screen-to-body ratio, a 178-degree viewing angle, a choice of 7th Generation Intel Core i7 or i5 processors, optional NVIDIA GeForce 940MX Graphics, and Dolby Atmos Sound System.

At 15.6-inches, the display comes in as a Full-HD 1920x1080 and uses an IPS panel for better viewing angles. Huawei lists the panel as supporting 250 nits, 800:1 contrast, and a rather low 45% NTSC support.

For storage and memory, Huawei is offering a variety of combinations. The chassis supports both a PCIe M.2 based SSD and a 2.5-inch HDD, and so there will be:

• 4GB of LPDDR3 with either 500GB HDD, or a 128GB SSD+500G HDD
• 8GB of LPDDR3 with either 1TB HDD, 256GB SSD, 128GB+500GB or 128GB+1TB
• 16GB of DDR4 with 128GB SSD + 1TB SSD

Connectivity comes via the same 802.11ac with 2x2 MIMO with BT4.1 as the MateBook X, along with the same specifications for audio: dual speakers, dual microphones, and Dolby Atmos Sound System support.

The battery is rated at 43.3Wh, which given the size of the device and the weight (4.2lbs, 1.9kg), seems low.