The first major casualty of HUAWEI's US ban is a new MateBook

Huawei has endured a rather tough time as a result of the U.S. trade ban against it, as major partners around the world either cancel or assess their relationship with the brand. The firm has been able to weather the storm and launch devices anyway, but it looks like we’ve got our first canceled product as a result of the ban.

HUAWEI consumer CEO Richard Yu told CNBC that an upcoming MateBook laptop has been put on indefinite hold due to the situation. “We cannot supply the PC,” he was quoted as saying.

Yu said the length of the trade ban would determine whether the company would be able to launch the new MateBook. But he added that it wouldn’t be launched if HUAWEI was on the so-called Entity List for a long period of time.

Alternatives to Intel, Microsoft?

The MateBook line is heavily reliant on U.S. companies, as HUAWEI uses Intel’s processors and Microsoft’s Windows 10 as the operating system of choice. One possibility is for HUAWEI to switch to AMD‘s processors, having previously used them in some laptops. However, as a U.S. company, AMD is almost certainly subjected to the trade ban. HUAWEI will also need to find alternatives to other U.S. laptop parts.

As for the operating system conundrum, it’s possible the company could switch to Linux or an Android-derived OS in lieu of Windows. But there are no guarantee users will buy a MateBook without Windows.

Huawei’s smartphone business isn’t quite as hard hit as the U.S. trade ban, as the company designs much of the silicon in these devices (including the modems and Kirin processors). Still, the new MateBook’s scuppered launch underscores the critical situation HUAWEI finds itself in right now.

Would you buy a MateBook without Windows? Let us know in the comments!

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