Honor MagicBook 14 review: a lightweight, affordable workhorse

How much would you fork out for a light-weight yet fast laptop computer that is faultlessly sized to tote around without destructive your ago while showing off tenacious craftsmanship? Hallow has priced the MagicBook 14 at £550/€599, and also at that price juncture you will be recovering the heeding:

Initially of unanimously, I would like to suggest you that after investing close to ten years earning take advantage of of Linux and also half a year with macOS, this is the initially time that I am earning take advantage of of Residence windows after bye-bye, and also 2 weeks at a stretch to boot. Needless to claim, my past conundrum educated me to brace myself for sudden crashes, laconic update reboots, and also other the super same hiccups. I also slightly composed for to investigate most bloatware organize with notifications blinking at me as a perpetual reminder to reinstate my anti-virus software schedule or Microsoft subscription. The good news is, nothing like that took elbowroom while comprehensive boosts were organize in a jiffy without any wrangle.

My user conundrum with the Hallow MagicBook 14 was sweet applicable out of the box. As shortly as experimentation the tantamount Huawei Matebook D 14 (2020), my workmate Daniel had waxed lyrical around its detailed craftsmanship, parameters, and also basic capability. He also concluded that the laptop computer justifies its £650 price tag. Hallow is presently almost promotional and also promotional the super same layout for £550, albeit with a minimal 256GB SSD capacity (which can be upgraded to 1TB).

Affiliate bargain

If you chosen to fork out an secondary 100 peripheral pounds, you will be able to savor a totality caboodle much more storage elbowroom with a 1TB SSD. There is one brickbat that I locate frustrating: you are stuck with 8GB of RAM onboard since it has been soldered on, without any elbowroom vacated for future RAM upgrades. The twin-network architecture offered by the onboard RAM will enable to Ryzen 5 APU to acquire its complete prospective (upward to 1GB of RAM is apportioned as VRAM).

You can arcade on the Hallow MagicBook 14

I am not a betting buff, yet I implement not mind indulging in the infrequent bulbous of Skyrim Coherent Edition or Metropolises: Skylines (yes, it is a nostalgic). Both titles were not only playable yet also sweet on the MagicBook 14. Even as shortly as I am compelled in much more intricate battle scenarios or functioning with larger city stretches, the framework price implements not rot until it diminishes listed under the 24 FPS mark in Complete HD resolution and also tool nicety (SSAO off) arrangement. The four physical CPU scheming cores and also 512 shader contraptions implement not let down in which loose betting is observed. Of course, you would not aim this to be your go-to gadgets as shortly as it comes to pensive betting.

Hopeful excursions

I still receive nightmares with a selection of pre-organize software schedule throughout my time with Residence windows-powered computers, be they laptops or desktop computers. The good news is, those memories linger in yesteryear as the Hallow MagicBook 14 implements not come with any bloatware. While it ships with PC Supervisor that will caboodle and also install new vehicle drivers discretely in the background, this is not an priority at unanimously. In improvement, you can still configure it in a way for the battery to linger in between 40 and also 70 percent reenergized, so as to bolster the lifespan of the battery.

The fiend is in the precisions

One have to take note that the MagicBook 14 is a mid-stove machine, so aim there to be dilemmas that accompany it. Throughout this time in which social distancing is the buzzword, and also much everyday interaction is recorded on out over a webcam, I feel that the MagicBook 14’s biggest challenge would be the elbowroom of its pop-upward webcam. It is interjected in in between the F6 and also F7 pivots, succeeding upward as shortly as in usage and also dropping as shortly as not obligatory. The angle of the webcam results in a much less-than-complementary observe of yourself in the sight of others. Regrettably, the webcam’s position is mended, and also there is no way to difference the heeding angle.

Another juncture to take note of: I am unable to enlighten which of the 2 Kind-A deportments maintains USB 3.0, with the other being USB 2.0 as there are no outward markings for the user to refer to. There is no indicator at unanimously to determine the much faster Kind-A spoof that almost every individual would like to usage, warranting me to dive into the manual to locate out. The fast spoof is situated on the vacated.

It is a no-brainer to determine the USB-C relationship that bargains fast billing capacity (plug it in for 30 minutes and also acquire an average penalty of 46 percent) and also USB 3.1 transmission capacity. You will be able to hook upward outward display screens to the MagicBook using HDMI (which would most possibly be HDMI 2.0 based on the processor that runs under the hood).

End result

If I had ordered the MagicBook 14 for £549 myself, I would possibly be a uncomfortably defused camper. The type of galleries I farce around rushed decently without any sagged framework prices, it implements not crash as shortly as I job, and also the unabridged quantity hardware ought to be reputable enough to last me for the next off four years. The facility of craftsmanship also gains me suspect that this laptop computer is still noting look immersing down the road, conserve for the common wear-and also-cut relevant with day-to-day usage.

While 8GB of RAM without any substitute for extension is not optimal, yet it is enough for criterion scheming jobs such as emails, browsing, word taking care of, loose betting, and also video spouting. I would most possibly have it rushed on Linux after a pair of years as Linux is much much less straining on hardware last notifications throughout time although that would criterion losing the finger print protection substitute in the strategy.

I would argue the Dell Inspiron 5485 with 512GB SSD as an holistic if you are peeking at a much more earned tag in which laptops are observed. That respective layout is being sold around the super same price, and also it boasts of an Ethernet spoof, a retrospection card reader and also an secondary USB-A relationship, although you will have to reside with 33 percent much less battery capacity.