Roger Fingas
Best known for its smartphones, China's Xiaomi on Wednesday revealed the Mi Notebook Air, its first laptop, apparently designed to take on Apple's MacBook and MacBook Air.
The flagship model features a 13.3-inch screen, with an Intel Core i5 processor, 8 gigabytes of RAM, 256 gigabytes of SSD storage, and an NVIDIA GeForce 940MX graphics card, CNET noted. Dedicated graphics are relatively rare in laptops outside of high-performance systems built for gaming or video editing.
Other features include two USB 3.0 ports and one USB-C connection, the latter enabling charging. Battery life is rated at 9.5 hours.
A cheaper 12.5-inch model scales back specifications to include a Core M processor, 4 gigabytes of RAM, and a 128-gigabyte SSD. One benefit however is increased battery life, rated up to 11.5 hours.
Although branded under the Xiaomi name, both systems are actually being made by a partner, Tian Mi. They should go on sale in China on August 2, with the 13.3-inch model costing 4,999 yuan (about $750), and the smaller one priced at 3,499 yuan ($525).
There are no apparent plans to bring the Mi Notebook Air to the U.S., but the product could add to Apple's competition in China, where even the 11-inch MacBook Air is 6,288 yuan ($943).
Charles Martin
Christine McKee
Oliver Haslam
William Gallagher
26 Comments
They actually called it "Air"? What a bunch of fucking clowns.
No shame.
What OS? Windows?
Gotta knock a couple hundred off those price tags. Then you'll be closer to what people have come to expect for a Windows laptop.
Theft is the sincerest form of flattery. Why didn't they just put an Apple logo on it and complete the picture? Chinese courts would rule that apples first appeared in northern China millions of years ago so cannot be trade marked.
So now "air" is a generic term for a certain kind of computer... This is "me-too" mindless marketing. Just come up with another name. Why is that so hard?
Mi Notebook Feather
Mi Notebook Breeze
Mi Notebook Anywhere
Mi Notebook Away
Mi Notebook Go
Mi Notebook Dash
Mi Notebook Unimaginative Reuse of Popular Company Product Naming