Recently there were two notebooks unveiled by MI. And, going through the pre-launch buzz, these notebooks should have been using some Linux distro - whether a MI grown distro or an already established distro. There are good Chinese origin distros like deepin and Ubuntu Kylin. But, they chose to use a proprietary OS. Maybe it was for some strategic move or something, but I would have liked if they would have at least given a choice.
The higher end one has a Skylake Core i5 6200 processor, 8GB DDR4 RAM, 13.3" Full HD display, Geforce 940MX graphics card, 256GB SSD. Price of CNY 4,999. That is around INR 50,343.
The lower end one has a Core M3 processor, 4GB RAM, 28GB SSD, 12.5" Full HD display, no graphics card, and even fewer ports. The price is CNY 3,499. This is around INR 35,235.
Also, I am not sold for the looks that result in limited ports/usability. You would need to purchase more peripherals - like usb hubs, usb ethernet adapters, etc., just to use your notebook. And, in the proprietary OS notebooks, you have more competition.
Lets see what alternatives/competition we can find:
At the higher end, with similar specifications that of the MI higher end notebook, I could only find one notebook. The HP HP Pavilion Notebook - 15-ab521tx (HP Part Code: T0Z72PA). But the price goes up by > INR 10K. The price of this HP laptop on the hpshopping.in website is INR 62,190. You do get the HP original bag and 1 year onsite warranty in that price.
The link to the HP laptop -> http://www.hpshopping.in/HP_Pavilion_Notebook_-_15-ab521tx
You also get 3 offers (well, practically 2 since you have to select one from the first two).
1. You can pay an additional INR 999 to get either one of these two:
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP Black S6500 Bluetooth Speaker Worth Rs. 1999
or
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP H2800 wired Headset Worth Rs. 1999
2. You can pay INR 1,999 for the HP External 1TB HDD Worth Rs. 4999
There are other offers also on the product page.
The specifications for HP HP Pavilion Notebook - 15-ab521tx (HP Part Code: T0Z72PA):
I found a few other notebooks from various brands in the price range of INR 47K to INR 59K, but these had shortcomings, like less display resolution or inferior graphics card or inferior processor. Therefore I am not including these in my alternatives.
Currently, in the higher end, there is no competition for the MI notebook. The MI notebook wins hands down against all other brands in the ~INR 50K price range.
The lower end of the MI notebook presents some challenges. You can find many notebooks in the INR 35K range, but the market/demographic that the MI notebook targets is quite unique. Mainly the display size of 12.5" is quite unique in itself. In this form there are mainly 2-in-1/detachable designs. Mostly tablets with keyboards.
Why would I want to type with a keyboard on a tablet? Or, use a mouse/trackpad on a tablet. This seems just not right. Why not have a 14", 15", or 17" tablet and fill that gap instead of just attaching a keyboard to a tablet. I believe there would be more demand for a larger tablet than the demand for a smaller notebook.
Or, maybe this (MI notebook) is a tablet that I cannot touch. That makes this more problematic. On such a tiny screen how would I be able to work on a spreadsheet? Maybe some can, but I cannot. I like my notebook to be at least 14" size (or at the minimum of 13.3" size that the higher end MI notebook has).
So, if this is just a regular non-touch, non-convertible, non-2-in-1 notebook, then I would be comparing this with a regular notebook and not with some niche designs.
I would be using the HP brand for the comparison, since there would be a lot more devices to list here than I could. I will list just two devices.
The first one is HP Notebook - 15-ba001ax (HP Part Code: W6T51PA). At a glance this notebook has:
AMD Quad-Core A8-7410 APU Processor | Windows 10 Home | 4GB RAM/ 1TB HDD | 15.6" HD SVA display | 2GB Graphics Card | DTS Studio Sound™; Dual speakers.
Plus, you get the HP Original bag and 1 Year Onsite Warranty.
In addition, you get the INR 999 offer (same as the higher model that I have described above). By paying the additional INR 999 you can get either of these two:
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP Black S6500 Bluetooth Speaker Worth Rs. 1999
or
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP H2800 wired Headset Worth Rs. 1999
There are more offers on the product page. But, the offer for the external 1TB HDD is missing here.
The specifications are:
All in all, the HP Notebook - 15-ba001ax (HP Part Code: W6T51PA) is a very good option for its price of INR 33,690 as stated on its product page: http://www.hpshopping.in/HP_Notebook_-_15-ba001ax
The second device is a little costly but with Intel Skylake Core i3 processor, the HP 15-ac635TU Notebook_Laptop (HP Part Code: T9G22PA). At a glance this notebook has: Intel® Core™ i3-6100U Processor | Windows 10 Home | 4GB RAM / 1TB HDD | 15.6" FHD anti-glare LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) | DTS Studio Sound™; Dual speakers.
Plus, you get the HP Original bag and 1 Year Onsite Warranty.
In addition, you get the INR 999 offer (same as the one described above).
There are more offers on the product page. Even here, for this product, the offer for the external 1TB HDD is missing.
The specifications are:
The HP 15-ac635TU Notebook_Laptop (HP Part Code: T9G22PA) is a little costly than the one described above, at INR 38,190 (product page: http://www.hpshopping.in/HP_15-ac635TU_Notebook_Laptop)
You can get a lot many options in the ~INR 35K range. But if you require a niche product of 12.5" screen size with limited ports/usability then sure you can get the MI notebook. But, if you want a device on which you can view/create more freely (again, this is my opinion, yours may differ) then I would suggest to go for a regular notebook.
The link to the HP laptop -> http://www.hpshopping.in/HP_Pavilion_Notebook_-_15-ab521tx
You also get 3 offers (well, practically 2 since you have to select one from the first two).
1. You can pay an additional INR 999 to get either one of these two:
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP Black S6500 Bluetooth Speaker Worth Rs. 1999
or
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP H2800 wired Headset Worth Rs. 1999
2. You can pay INR 1,999 for the HP External 1TB HDD Worth Rs. 4999
There are other offers also on the product page.
The specifications for HP HP Pavilion Notebook - 15-ab521tx (HP Part Code: T0Z72PA):
| Operating system | Windows 10 Home 64 |
| Processor | Intel® Core™ i5-6200U with Intel® HD Graphics 520 (2.3 GHz, 3 MB cache, 2 cores) |
| Memory, standard | 8 GB DDR3L-1600 SDRAM (1 x 8 GB) |
| Hard drive description | 1 TB 5400 rpm SATA |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce 940M (4 GB DDR3L dedicated) |
| Optical drive | SuperMulti DVD burner |
| Display | 15.6" diagonal FHD anti-glare LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) |
| Expansion slots | 1 multi-format SD media card reader |
| Network interface | Integrated 10/100 BASE-T Ethernet LAN |
| Wireless | 802.11b/g/n (1x1) and Bluetooth® 4.0 combo |
| Ports | 2 USB 3.0; 1 USB 2.0; 1 HDMI; 1 RJ-45; 1 headphone/microphone combo |
| Pointing device | HP Imagepad with multi-touch gesture support |
| Keyboard | Island-style keyboard with integrated numeric keypad |
| Audio features | B&O PLAY with 2 speakers |
| Power supply type | 65 W EM AC power adapter |
| Battery type | 4-cell, 41 Wh Li-ion |
| Security management | Kensington MicroSaver lock slot; Power-on password; Accepts third-party security lock devices |
| Weight | Starting at 2.09 kg |
| Minimum dimensions (W x D x H) | 38.45 x 26.11 x 2.52 cm |
| Warranty | 1-year limited parts and labour |
| Pre-installed software | CyberLink YouCam; CyberLink PowerDirector; CyberLink PhotoDirector; Adobe® Shockwave® Player; CyberLink Power Media Player; User Guide documentation; iPass; Evernote; Dropbox |
I found a few other notebooks from various brands in the price range of INR 47K to INR 59K, but these had shortcomings, like less display resolution or inferior graphics card or inferior processor. Therefore I am not including these in my alternatives.
Currently, in the higher end, there is no competition for the MI notebook. The MI notebook wins hands down against all other brands in the ~INR 50K price range.
The lower end of the MI notebook presents some challenges. You can find many notebooks in the INR 35K range, but the market/demographic that the MI notebook targets is quite unique. Mainly the display size of 12.5" is quite unique in itself. In this form there are mainly 2-in-1/detachable designs. Mostly tablets with keyboards.
Why would I want to type with a keyboard on a tablet? Or, use a mouse/trackpad on a tablet. This seems just not right. Why not have a 14", 15", or 17" tablet and fill that gap instead of just attaching a keyboard to a tablet. I believe there would be more demand for a larger tablet than the demand for a smaller notebook.
Or, maybe this (MI notebook) is a tablet that I cannot touch. That makes this more problematic. On such a tiny screen how would I be able to work on a spreadsheet? Maybe some can, but I cannot. I like my notebook to be at least 14" size (or at the minimum of 13.3" size that the higher end MI notebook has).
So, if this is just a regular non-touch, non-convertible, non-2-in-1 notebook, then I would be comparing this with a regular notebook and not with some niche designs.
I would be using the HP brand for the comparison, since there would be a lot more devices to list here than I could. I will list just two devices.
The first one is HP Notebook - 15-ba001ax (HP Part Code: W6T51PA). At a glance this notebook has:
AMD Quad-Core A8-7410 APU Processor | Windows 10 Home | 4GB RAM/ 1TB HDD | 15.6" HD SVA display | 2GB Graphics Card | DTS Studio Sound™; Dual speakers.
Plus, you get the HP Original bag and 1 Year Onsite Warranty.
In addition, you get the INR 999 offer (same as the higher model that I have described above). By paying the additional INR 999 you can get either of these two:
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP Black S6500 Bluetooth Speaker Worth Rs. 1999
or
>>> Total 3 Years Onsite Warranty Worth Rs.5999 + Reliance Burglary & Theft Insurance + McAfee Internet Security Worth Rs. 1999 + HP H2800 wired Headset Worth Rs. 1999
There are more offers on the product page. But, the offer for the external 1TB HDD is missing here.
The specifications are:
| Operating system | Windows 10 Home 64 |
| Processor | AMD Quad-Core A8-7410 APU (2.2 GHz, up to 2.5 GHz, 2 MB cache) |
| Memory, standard | 4 GB DDR3L-1600 SDRAM (1 x 4 GB) |
| Hard drive description | 1 TB 5400 rpm SATA |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon™ R5 M430 Graphics (2 GB DDR3 dedicated) |
| Optical drive | SuperMulti DVD burner |
| Display | 15.6" diagonal HD SVA BrightView WLED-backlit (1366 x 768) |
| Network interface | Integrated 10/100 BASE-T Ethernet LAN |
| Wireless | 802.11b/g/n (1x1) and Bluetooth® 4.0 combo (Miracast compatible) |
| Expansion slots | 1 multi-format SD media card reader |
| Ports | 1 HDMI; 1 headphone/microphone combo; 2 USB 2.0; 1 USB 3.0; 1 RJ-45 |
| Webcam | HP TrueVision HD Webcam (front-facing) with integrated digital microphone |
| Pointing device | Touchpad with multi-touch gesture support |
| Keyboard | Full-size island-style keyboard with integrated numeric keypad |
| Audio features | Dual speakers; DTS Studio Sound™ |
| Power supply type | 65 W EM AC power adapter |
| Security management | Kensington MicroSaver lock slot; Power-on password; Accepts third-party security lock devices; Trusted Platform Module (TPM) |
| Weight | 2.19 kg |
| Minimum dimensions (W x D x H) | 38.43 x 25.46 x 2.43 cm |
| Warranty | 1-year limited parts and labour |
| Pre-installed software | Adobe® Shockwave® Player; CyberLink PowerDirector; User Guide documentation; Dropbox; TripAdvisor; CyberLink Power Media Player |
All in all, the HP Notebook - 15-ba001ax (HP Part Code: W6T51PA) is a very good option for its price of INR 33,690 as stated on its product page: http://www.hpshopping.in/HP_Notebook_-_15-ba001ax
The second device is a little costly but with Intel Skylake Core i3 processor, the HP 15-ac635TU Notebook_Laptop (HP Part Code: T9G22PA). At a glance this notebook has: Intel® Core™ i3-6100U Processor | Windows 10 Home | 4GB RAM / 1TB HDD | 15.6" FHD anti-glare LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) | DTS Studio Sound™; Dual speakers.
Plus, you get the HP Original bag and 1 Year Onsite Warranty.
In addition, you get the INR 999 offer (same as the one described above).
There are more offers on the product page. Even here, for this product, the offer for the external 1TB HDD is missing.
The specifications are:
| Operating system | Windows 10 Home 64 |
| Processor | Intel® Core™ i3-6100U with Intel® HD Graphics 520 (2.3 GHz, 3 MB cache, 2 cores) |
| Memory, standard | 4 GB DDR3L SDRAM (1 x 4 GB) |
| Hard drive description | 1 TB 5400 rpm SATA |
| Graphics | Intel® HD Graphics 520 |
| Optical drive | SuperMulti DVD burner |
| Display | 15.6" diagonal FHD anti-glare LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) |
| Wireless | 802.11b/g/n (1x1) and Bluetooth® 4.0 combo |
| Expansion slots | 1 multi-format SD media card reader |
| Network interface | Integrated 10/100 BASE-T Ethernet LAN |
| Ports | 1 USB 3.0; 2 USB 2.0; 1 HDMI; 1 RJ-45; 1 headphone/microphone combo |
| Webcam | HP TrueVision HD Webcam (front-facing) with integrated digital microphone |
| Keyboard | Island-style keyboard with integrated numeric keypad |
| Pointing device | Touchpad with multi-touch gesture support |
| Audio features | DTS Studio Sound™; Dual speakers |
| Battery type | 4-cell, 41 Wh Li-ion |
| Power supply type | 65 W EM AC power adapter |
| Security management | Kensington MicroSaver lock slot; Power-on password; Accepts third-party security lock devices |
| Weight | Starting at 2.19 kg |
| Minimum dimensions (W x D x H) | 38.43 x 25.46 x 2.43 cm |
| Warranty | 1-year limited parts and labour |
| Pre-installed software | CyberLink YouCam; CyberLink PhotoDirector; Adobe® Shockwave® Player; CyberLink Power Media Player; User Guide documentation; iPass; Evernote; Dropbox |
The HP 15-ac635TU Notebook_Laptop (HP Part Code: T9G22PA) is a little costly than the one described above, at INR 38,190 (product page: http://www.hpshopping.in/HP_15-ac635TU_Notebook_Laptop)
You can get a lot many options in the ~INR 35K range. But if you require a niche product of 12.5" screen size with limited ports/usability then sure you can get the MI notebook. But, if you want a device on which you can view/create more freely (again, this is my opinion, yours may differ) then I would suggest to go for a regular notebook.
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