The Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro: A True Competitor in the Windows Laptop Market?
As I held the Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro in my hands, I couldn't help but think that it was billed as some kind of cheaper MacBook killer. However, upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that this is not just a knockoff or a cheap imitation, but rather a well-designed and built laptop that is worth considering.
One of the first things that stood out to me was the aluminum shell of the Mi Notebook Pro. It feels solid and premium in the hand, and it's clear that Xiaomi has put a lot of thought into the design of this laptop. The branding on the device is minimal, with only a small logo on the bottom right-hand corner of the lid. This gives the impression of a clean and minimalist design aesthetic.
The hinge on the Mi Notebook Pro is another standout feature. It has a satisfying weight to it, and without needing to use both hands, I was able to easily open and close the device. The theme of clean style and quality construction continues throughout the entire device, including the input/output ports.
While I would have loved to see Thunderbolt 3 on this device, the solid mix of ports at this price point is still impressive. USB Type-C charging is also a nice touch, making it easy to charge the laptop on the go. However, the only part of the design that even slightly breaks the illusion is the cheaper feeling bottom panel.
Unfortunately, I had some issues with importing the device from GearBest.com and having it pre-configured in Chinese. While Chrome and parts of some programs are still available in English, it's clear that this is not a laptop designed for international markets. Nevertheless, the Mi Notebook Pro remains an impressive piece of hardware at a great price.
Speaking of which, let's take a closer look at the battery life of this device. From the manufacturer's specs, we can expect around 8 hours of use on a single charge. But how does it perform in real-world usage?
Upgrading and Upgrade Ability
When I opened up the Mi Notebook Pro to check its upgrade ability, I was pleased to see that adding an additional M.2 SSD would be easy-peasy. However, unfortunately, the RAM is soldered, so if you're looking to upgrade this laptop, it's best to buy as much RAM as you can afford.
Conclusion
Starting at $9.79 on promo, the Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro is an impressive piece of hardware that offers a great price-to-performance ratio. The inclusion of a dedicated graphics processor will give it a longer lifespan as GPU compute becomes more important for productivity. The solid construction should also help it hold up physically over time.
Battery Life: A Standout Feature
One of the things that really makes the Mi Notebook Pro stand out is its battery life. With a capacity of 60 watt hours, this device can easily last a full day on a single charge. In fact, I was able to get around 8-10 hours of use from it in real-world usage.
Webcam and Speakers
The webcam on the Mi Notebook Pro is perfectly acceptable for Skype calls and other video conferencing applications. However, the Harman speakers that boast Dolby Atmos certification are truly outstanding. The positional audio is excellent, with clear and detailed sound that's perfect for music and video streaming.
Gaming Performance
While the graphics card isn't amazing in games, it does handle titles like Rocket League, Skyrim, and CS:GO with ease. This makes it a great option for casual gamers who want to play after studying or relaxing.
Overall, the Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro is an impressive piece of hardware that offers a lot of value for its price. With its clean design, solid construction, and long battery life, it's definitely worth considering if you're in the market for a new laptop.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enThe Xiaomi mi notebook Pro has been billed as some kind of much cheaper macbook killerBut it doesn't run mac OS and it's like$1000 soby that line of thinking what Windows notebook with anAluminium shell isn't a cheaper MacBook?So then, does it actuallystand out from the crowd as a true competitor, or is it justa look-alike knockoff?Well, I'll get to that after I tell you what's not a knockoff. Todays sponsor TunnelBear. TunnelBear makes it easy to privately andsecurely browse a more open Internet. Try TunnelBear for free go to TunnelBear.com/lttOpening up the Mi Notebook pro feels...really good. The aluminum backing is solid and sotastefully free of branding that even Apple's light-up logo feels a little tacky by comparison the hinge has asatisfying weight to it withoutrequiring two hands to open it and this theme of clean style andquality construction is present throughout theEntire device even extending to the i/o I mean I'd have loved to see Thunderbolt 3But this is still a solid mix of ports at this price pointPlus USB type-c charging is nice to haveThe only part of it that even sort of breaks the illusion is the cheaper feeling bottom panelBut in regular use this is not an issue at allWhat was an issue for me at least is that we imported this thing through gearbest.comand it was pre-configured toChineseso yeahNo problem Dennis can fix ah no he can'tIt actually comes with a single language Chinese version of Windows like we tried to just deal with itLike Chrome and parts of some programs are still in English so it's notImpossible to get by but to call the experienceInconvenient would be a gross understatement so for me and my fellow Guilos the only real option is to reinstallare you really going to say Guiloit's not technically insulting per sayit's an insult to mebut i mean yeah stillFor me and my fellow Guilos out there the only real option is to reinstall windowsWhich in this case also meant obtaining a fresh license key with that sorted out thoughIt was time to actually get to using the mi notebook pro and good news here. It is a powerful little machineQuad-core hyper threaded core i5 8250u 8 gigs of ram and get this an NVIDIAMX 150 which is basically a mobile version of the GT 1030 I mean to be clear youDon't expect to be playing modern triple-a titles at full resolution, but this is still heaps better than integrated graphicseven for things like premiere or Photoshop or older games andUnlike some devices that we've testeddedicated graphicsDoesn't seem to have any negative impact at all on the systemCooling was more than satisfactory with our CPUQuietly reaching a mere 53 degrees Celsius under load with a small 2.1ghz turbo and the battery lifeblew our minds the efficiency of this hardwareincluding intel's 8th gen u series cpu gave the mi notebook pro astaggering 10-hour4 minute result in our battery life work test that is a full 40 minutes longer than our previouschampion the LG gram and it absolutelySmashes other laptops that are well-regarded for their battery life like the dell XPS seriesMicrosoft Surface lapbook and the MacBook Pro running Windows butthe most important aspect of anyProductivity oriented device is arguably the interface if the keyboard and trackpad are constantly annoying youNothing is going to save itFortunately however the mi notebook pro actually gets these mostly right as wellThe keyboard has a good layout that commitsno major sins and a reasonable switch travel distanceBut its key caps are quite poorly stabilized so if you hit the keys off-centerThey do feel really mushy, which can affect accuracy, so I'll give that a b minus as for the trackpadDespite its large size. We experienced. No issues with palm rejection the tactile feel when clicking is nice and satisfying andAlthough out of the box it has quite a bit of sloppy feeling accelerationIt's actually large enough that you can disable acceleration entirely for a great experiencethis one gets an a for a Windows device the MacBook is still way ahead of the pack andThat's true when it comes to screens as well, but I really don't mean that as an insult to the meNotebooks display it runs at a mere 1080p 60hzBut it's bright with wide viewing angles. Thanks to its IPS panel so as long as you don't mind thereflections that are an inherent part of theGlass-fronted screen experience, you will like it one thing I might have changed is to add a touch screen option thoughThis is something that I feel Apple has really been missing out on and would give the Mi notebook proa leg-up the webcam is perfectly acceptable for Skype calls andas for the Harman speakers that boast Dolby Atmos certification wellI've yet to have an overhead or surround Atmos experience on a notebook, butfront positional audio was outstandingespecially considering their downward firing positioning andwhile for stereo content they do distort a bit at full volumethey get loud before they get there and they're surprisingly full sounding making the mi notebook pro afantastic portable Netflix machineLet's get back to that GPU now okayYeah, it's not amazing in games, but it is still a big upgrade from intel's integrated solution rise of the Tomb RaiderNot a good time, but it handled titles like rocket LeagueSkyrim and csgoHandily, so if you want a casually game after studying, then it's got you covered there, tooOpening up the mi notebook pro we can see where the impressive battery life comes fromFrom an impressive battery this thing is rated at 60 watt hours and since we're in hereWe'll take a look at upgrade ability too so adding another m.2 SSD would be easy-peasybut unfortunatelyThe RAM is soldered so if you're looking at one of these I would recommend buying as much RAM as you're gonna needProbably the 16 gig model unless you are a very light userbottom line thenstarting at $9.79 us on promo the me notebook Pro is an impressive piece of hardware at aGreat price. That's made even greater. If you don't mind the Chinese Windows that's includedthe inclusion of a dedicated graphics processor will give it a longer lifespan asGPU compute becomes more important for productivity and the solid construction should help it hold up physically asLong as you'd want to use it the remarkable battery lifeThough is what really makes it stand out against other MacBook alternatives like the Dell XPS soWell done XiaomiandWell done Dollar Shave Club for sponsoring our video that was a good decision you guysIf you guys haven't already now is the time to try out Dollar Shave ClubIt's more than just razors Dollar Shave Club makes it easy for you to upgrade your shave and your bathroom nowYou don't have to step foot in a store to get high-qualityGrooming products they'll deliver them straight to your door and for a limited time Dollar Shave Club is basically giving away their $h!t shower shaveStarter set to new members for only $5 the starter set features their executive razor and three trial sized versions of their most popularProducts to help you stay fresh and clean so you get their shave butter body wash and one wipe Charlies butt wipesthen after the first box of razor cartridges replacement cartridges are sent for just a few bucks a month so the offer is exclusively atdollarshaveclub.com/linus check it out belowSo thanks for watching guys if this video suckedYou know what to do?But if it was awesomeGet subscribed hit that like button or maybe consider checking out where to buy the stuff. We featured at the link in the video descriptionAlso linked in the description is our merch store, which has cool shirts like this one and our community forum, which you should totally joinConstruction sorry\n"
