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Xiaomi Surprises With MacBook Lookalike 'Mi Notebook Air'

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Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi had a surprise in store for attendees of its new Redmi Pro smartphone launch event today, unveiling its first ever PC laptop, named the "Mi Notebook Air".

The familiar-named $750 aluminum notebook closely resembles a MacBook and features a 13.3-inch 1080p display, up to 2.7GHz Intel Core i5-6200U processor, 8GB RAM, 256GB solid-state storage, and a discrete Nvidia GeForce 940MX graphics card.

q-100.jpeg

Connectivity-wise, there's a USB-C port included for charging, 2x USB 3.0 ports, 1x HDMI, and a headphone jack. Xiaomi claimed a 9.5 hour battery life for the notebook, which weighs 2.82 pounds.

The company also announced a smaller 12.5-inch (2.36 pounds) model with an Intel Core M3 CPU, 4GB RAM, a 128GB SSD, and integrated graphics, costing $540 in total. Both laptops have a full-size backlit keyboard. The Windows-installed machines will be available in China from August 2, but no details regarding global availability have been given.

mi-nb-air-1-2.jpg

According to CNET, Xiaomi partner Tian Mi will manufacture the Mi Notebook Air. Rumors that the smartphone maker was seeking to enter the PC laptop market have been bubbling for a while, and its unapologetically titled debut offering leaves no doubt the company is seeking to emulate - not to mention compete against - Apple in the Chinese market, albeit in the form of a more budget-conscious package.

Xiaomi saw flat revenues last year, with the struggling smartphone sector making up 90 percent of its sales. The move shows the company sees untapped potential in the Chinese consumer notebook market despite suggestions that it may be on the verge of contracting, which indicates the company is also willing to take a risk as it attempts to justify its $45 billion valuation.

Article Link: Xiaomi Surprises With MacBook Lookalike 'Mi Notebook Air'
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2016/07/27/xiaomi-macbook-lookalike-mi-notebook-air/
I want to be angry at this company and this product, but it's a darn leap nicer and cheaper than most OEMs are shipping today. So credit to their CMD+C/CMD+V designers.

The only issue would be the warranty, really. I imagine it would be a colossal pain to get it returned/repaired in the event of hardware failure.
 
Relative cons:
  • not retina,
  • not running OSX or macOS,
  • 0.79LBS heavier,
  • no Apple branding (but space for an Apple sticker is available);)
  • article doesn't share "thinner" but I'm guessing it's not quite as thin (and I know that is a paramount concern for all of us),
  • includes the "antiquated":rolleyes: headphone jack instead of a proprietary lightning jack
Relative pros:
  • much more powerful processor,
  • multiple standard ports (without needing an adapter),
  • discrete graphics processor,
  • slightly larger screen (in either model),
  • about half the price of MB,
  • includes the thoroughly ubiquitous standard headphone jack, no adapters required
Is this basically a more powerful MB at MBair pricing (albeit without OS X)?
[doublepost=1469624794][/doublepost]
keysofanxiety said:
The only issue would be the warranty, really. I imagine it would be a colossal pain to get it returned/repaired in the event of hardware failure.
Click to expand...

Applecare for MB $249 vs. Cost of a new MI (starting at about) $540
 
Last edited:
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keysofanxiety said:
I want to be angry at this company and this product, but it's a darn leap nicer and cheaper than most OEMs are shipping today.
Click to expand...

Which makes their appalling business practices all the more aggravating. They clearly have the right people to make good products, but they copy everything about Apple’s product designs and marketing in a very stereotypical fashion. It is such a waste of talent to cheapen the image like this.
 
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HobeSoundDarryl said:
Applecare for MB $249 vs. Cost of a new MI (starting at about) $540
Click to expand...

AppleCare is for 3 years. You can pop into any Apple Store globally without needing POP (as warranty is validated by SN) and have it repaired within a few days. Apple also have a brilliant RMA/DOA process. AppleCare also covers consumable items like batteries, which no other manufacturer do. Heck, Lenovo don't even cover dead pixels on a brand-new machine with their warranty.

So... what if it goes wrong? How do you get it returned? Unless you're suggesting you should just buy a new one if it fails :D
 
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Buying a new one is what I'm suggesting. At only $540, it's not that much more than Applecare at $249 and you get a new one instead of a repaired old one. Nothing against Applecare or Apple service here- just pointing out that for less than the cost of an Apple phone or some iPad, this pricing buys a whole new laptop... or for about 2X Applecare, it buys a whole new laptop.

If I'm taking a poke at something, I'm probably taking a poke at relative pricing of both laptops.
 
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Wow. Just a few weeks ago I was looking at HP and DELL laptops and some Hackintosh forums just to see what it would be like, just in case Apple doesn't update the Macs and keeps the silly price.

Just think of this. $1600 for a 500 Gig SSD Macbook, $1500 for 500 Gig SSD Macbook Air or $2000 for a 500 Gig Macbook Pro. What are they smoking over there in Cupertino? If they keep milking the old products I will switch to a Hackintosh. There are enough nice and powerful PCs now.
 
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keysofanxiety said:
No thank you.
Click to expand...

I wasn't telling YOU to do it... just making an observation on relative value. $249 buys a piece of electronic paper promising a repair(s) if you need any such repairs. $540 buys a whole new laptop, perhaps updated with newer tech if you need to execute that action out in the second or third year. Any dents, dings, scratches, etc are also "fixed."

I also find myself thinking about Apple stickers applied, then the whole thing put inside one of those thin transparent (protective) cases, would anyone even know that it's NOT an Apple laptop... especially if the hackintosh crowd can get OS X installed? Oh yeah, never mind... multiple, common-use ports would give it away. If it doesn't have an adapter(s) hanging out of it, it's not a new Apple product;)
 
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HobeSoundDarryl said:
Relative cons:
  • not retina,
  • not running OSX or MacOS,
  • 0.79LBS heavier,
  • no Apple branding;)
  • article doesn't share "thinner" but I'm guessing it's not quite as thin (and I know that is a paramount concern for all of us).
  • includes the "antiquated":rolleyes: headphone jack instead of a proprietary lightning jack
Relative pros:
  • much more powerful processor,
  • multiple standard ports (without needing an adapter),
  • discrete graphics processor,
  • slightly larger screen (in either model),
  • about half the price of MB.
  • includes the thoroughly ubiquitous standard headphone jack, no adapters required
Is this basically a more powerful MB at MBair pricing (albeit without OS X)?
[doublepost=1469624794][/doublepost]

Applecare for MB $249 vs. Cost of a new MI (starting at about) $540
Click to expand...


Windows 10 > MacOS

Only haters will say anything different.
 
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