Huawei got into the monitor market just over a year ago, their first attempt being the budget Huawei display. And with that debut well received, the Chinese tech giants brings us the upmarket Huawei MateView 28″.
The monitor market is another PC accessory market to be have become saturated in the last few years. The resurgence of PC gaming and the recent uptick in working from home have brought big players to the table with some excellent offerings.
With that in mind, Huawei are going for innovation and attractive design with MateView 4K and hoping it catches the eye of the premium monitor buyer.
Tall View
Huawei MateView sports a 3:2 form factor. This aspect ratio was chosen to show two documents side-by-side perfectly. It’s a simple idea that offers some productivity benefits but makes some other uses look a little awkward.
Gaming and watching 16:9 content will ‘letterbox’ your display which may bother the odd person. In this form, of course, you are wasting quite a bit of screen real estate.
The screen resolution covers 4K in the 16:9 mode and playing in Ultra HD doesn’t force any compromises beyond the letterboxing.
The device itself looks quite striking. Frosted aluminium dominates the device and with minimal bezel around the screen, the image pops from the frame.
The single leg design and geometrically simple lines offer a very 2020s minimalist design that is pleasing to look at, even when switched off.
Sharp View
As previously mentioned, Huawei MateView supports 4K in 3:2 and 16:9 modes. The resolution of 3,840 x 2,560 can be cropped neatly for the 3,840 x 2,160 of regular Ultra HD.
The maximum resolution of the HDMI 2.0 standard is 3,840 x 2,560 at 50Hz with the Display Port supporting the full 60Hz.
The maximum brightness of 500 nits is about par for this type of device but the IPS’s gentle handling of colour help the image stand out.
Colour accuracy is excellent with 100% of the sRGB colour space covered. The rated 1,200:1 contrast ratio is competitive for a monitor and can just about offer the dynamic range for the boasted HDR 400 compatibility.
Creature Comforts
Huawei made much of the simplicity of hooking their products into an existing ecosystem or unlocking enhanced features by adding their devices to it.
One very basic part of this is going all-in on USB-C. The MateView monitor is powered by a 135W charger that interfaces with the monitor via the standard.
This is obviously beneficial for unifying one’s box of cables and offering interchangeability and easy replacement.
Another part of the strategy is the ability to project directly from Huawei PCs, laptops, tablet and smartphones.
The monitor includes WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1 so you can interface with BT mice, keyboards and audio device as well as the aforementioned ‘master’ link devices.
The stylish foot has a wireless charger built in – a user can drop their device on the spot and juice up. This is especially handy when projecting from a Huawei device as you don’t have to worry about charging your P40 Pro as you work.
Huawei MateView also features a built-in dual-mic audio capture setup.
Interface
The device features three USB outputs – 2x USB-A 3.0 and 1x USB-C. The USB-C carries video, data and charges at up to 65 watts.
The device features HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort 1.2.
The ports are split across the rear of the leg near the foot, and on the side of the leg. The arrangement puts the most used on the easiest place to reach and is a nice touch from the designers.
The two USB-A ports, the USB-C output and the 3.5mm audio combo socket are next above the power button on that easily reached side spot.
The in-built speakers are of acceptable quality. The 2x5W front-facing stereo speakers won’t replace you 2.1 PC speakers but they’re loud enough for your office, workspace or bedroom.
The speakers lack punch, presence and precision in the low-end so music and action movies would be their weakest suit. The sound is just a little hollow for these pursuits.
Controls for the monitor are input via a touch-sensitive rubber bar along the underside of the display. The user can adjust the volume or navigate the deep selection of settings. It looks cool but it can be tricky to land at the volume you’d like or change whichever slider you are working on.
Our View
Huawei are aiming for a specialist customer. That is, someone who works with video, images or words and uses their monitor for entertainment purposes also. While there are plenty of fish in that sea, their need for a €600 monitor will vary.
Though it must be pointed out that for €600, you do get a lot of monitor and a lot of extras to sweeten the deal.
Review device provided by Huawei
