The 2020 MateBook X Pro still has Thunderbolt 3…
…Even though Huawei deliberately removed the Thunderbolt symbol next to the port, and no longer mentions Thunderbolt 3 on the 2020’s product page.
Theory: Export Restrictions
The 2020 MateBook X Pro is the first generation to be conceived after the export bans took place. Huawei likely had to jump through hoops to get licensing for various technologies used in this device. Huawei would have had to work with Intel to license and implement Thunderbolt 3. At some point, they might have thought Thunderbolt would be a no-go. Maybe the licensing deal pulled through, or maybe they snuck in Thunderbolt under the radar!
The fact that the mechanical team and the marketing team were both instructed to actively remove mentions of Thunderbolt 3 suggests to me that Huawei was at some point expecting Thunderbolt 3 to be gone.
From Huawei’s perspective, it’s cheaper to keep Thunderbolt than to remove it, because then they could use the exact same PCB design and manufacturing process. As you can see from my live teardown, the 2020 X Pro has the exact same motherboard as far as I can tell, just with a slightly upgraded CPU soldered on.
Thank you, this is exactly what I needed to know.
Matebook x pro 2021 is already available on sales. Will you get 1 ? Guess no need to modify the cooling any more.