Just when we thought Apple would be the first to release a 16-inch laptop, Huawei has swooped in and stolen its thunder. Huawei yesterday unveiled the 16.1-inch Honor MagicBook Pro, a not-so-subtle jab at Apple's rumored MacBook Pro.
The cheeky branding isn't the only thing reminiscent of Apple's laptops; the MagicBook Pro, sold under Huawei's Honor brand, looks nearly identical to a MacBook Pro, sporting a sleek silver aluminum chassis with an edge-to-edge display. But despite the larger screen, the MagicBook Pro weighs only 3.7 pounds, which is even lighter than the current 15-inch MacBook Pro, which checks in at 4 pounds.
But don't get too excited about the MagicBook Pro being the Windows 10 alternative to the MacBook Pro that the MateBook X Pro is to the MacBook Air. According to GizChina, the MagicBook Pro will only be available in China starting at $799. There is no word yet on whether it will ever make it to the U.S.
We wouldn't bet on it ever arriving given Huawei's recent struggles with the U.S. government. As a refresher, the Chinese tech giant was placed on a blacklist by the U.S. Department of Commerce after President Donald Trump signed an executive order that forbids U.S. firms from using tech made by a company the government considers a security threat. Many feared Microsoft would revoke Huawei's Windows license, but those worries were quelled when the software giant promised to continue to support Huawei laptops.
The laptop is equipped with an 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8565U CPU, 8GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD and Nvidia GeForce MX250 graphics card. The U-series Intel chip is more efficient than the H-series CPUs in the MacBook Pro but nowhere near as powerful. Combine that low-power processor with a 56-watt battery and the MagicBook Pro is rated for up to 14 hours of battery life. Less impressive is the webcam built into the laptop's keyboard, which is certain to look straight up your nose.
While only a rumor at this point, Apple's mysterious 16-inch MacBook Pro is much more likely than the MagicBook Pro to be sold in the U.S. You can learn more details about that intriguing new laptop --- including pricing, specs and release date --- by reading our up-to-date rumors hub on the 16-inch MacBook Pro.
