Huawei's Latest Laptop Pairs DDR5 RAM with New 5nm SoC
The Dyna Cloud L420 is aimed at the Chinese market.
Things have been relatively quiet on the laptop front, since AMD Ryzen 5000 and Intel Tiger Lake-H-based systems launched earlier this year. Laptops using Alder Lake-P processors are expected to debut early next year, and apparently, Huawei is looking to jump into the mix as well with its new Dyna Cloud L420, according to My Drivers.
The Dyna Cloud L420 will reportedly use a brand-new in-house Arm SoC from Huawei called the Kirin 9006C. The SoC will contain 8 CPU cores, with the prime core(s) clocked at up to 3.1 GHz. In addition, it's also alleged that the SoC will feature a new GPU called the Kirin 9000C. Unlike PC-centric x86-64 processors from AMD and Intel, which are based on 7nm and 10nm process nodes, the Kirin 9006C uses a 5nm process like the latest mobile chips from Apple and Qualcomm.
According to the leaked specifications, the Kirin 9006C pairs with just 8GB of LPDDR5 memory and is available with either 256GB or 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage. The display measures 14 inches across and has a 2160x1440 display. On the wireless connectivity front, you'll find Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 4.2. Wired ports include HDMI, USB-A (x2), USB-C (x1) and GbE via a mini-RJ45 jack. Power comes from a relatively generous 56 WHr battery, which is replenished using a USB-C fast charge adapter.
While the Dyna Cloud L420 sounds like an interesting product, it's unlikely to see the light of day within the United States. The company was hit hard with U.S. sanctions by the previous administration, limiting its access to American companies' software and hardware. As a result, the Dyna Cloud L420 [officially] only supports Huawei's homegrown Kirin OS (KOS) and Unity OS (UOS). There's also the possibility that the laptop could receive an update to Huawei's HarmonyOS in the future.
The Dyna Cloud L420 is the successor to the Qingyun L410, Huawei's first laptop to feature the Kirin 990 Arm SoC. However, there is no information on pricing or availability for Huawei's latest offering.
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Brandon Hill is a senior editor at Tom's Hardware. He has written about PC and Mac tech since the late 1990s with bylines at AnandTech, DailyTech, and Hot Hardware. When he is not consuming copious amounts of tech news, he can be found enjoying the NC mountains or the beach with his wife and two sons.