Xiaomi’s upcoming Windows laptops could pack impressive hardware at very low prices

By Brad Bourque July 22, 2016

redmi 4 xiaomi smartphone rumor version 1468928871 office header — Aloysius Low/CNET

We’ve seen a lot of evidence recently that Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi might be eyeing the PC market, and now we have more info on what the Mi laptop might look like – if it does indeed exist. The supposed specifications, pricing, and a few renders come from an allegedly leaked presentation, possibly for Xiaomi’s July 27th press event, according to GizmoChina.

Xiaomi-GizChina-Slides-1 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

If the slides are correct, there will actually be two models of the Mi laptop upon release. The first is the Pro version, which features an Intel Core i7-6700HQ, a quad-core chip we’ve seen a lot of lately, backed up by 16GB of DDR4 memory, and a 512GB SSD. The Pro version also packs in dedicated graphics, in the form of an Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M with 4GB of visual memory. That should be enough for gaming at 1080p, but not enough to game smoothly at the 15.6-inch screen’s native 4K resolution.

The Pro version is priced at ¥6,699, according to the slides. That’s about $1,003 in U.S. dollars, but it’s hard to say if that price will translate. If it did, it would be remarkably inexpensive for the hardware.

The basic version is powered instead by a more modest Intel Core i5-6200U, a dual-core chip with a 2.3GHz Base Clock and Hyper-Threading, alongside 8GB of RAM. It lacks dedicated graphics, but makes up for it with a 256GB SSD. The slides don’t detail the lower-end screen’s resolution, but we doubt it will also be 4K. This version costs just ¥3,999, or about $599. That price would also be quite low.

xiamiospecs — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Those components look good on paper, as does the appealing price point, but a lot of what makes a quality notebook are the more ethereal qualities. The keyboard, display, material quality, and battery life can all make a huge difference in decided whether a laptop is a winner, or destined for the junk heap.

Xiaomi is unproven in the laptop market, but we’ll know for sure whether the move was a wise choice if the brand reveals the laptop on July 27th.

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Brad Bourque is a native Portlander, devout nerd, and craft beer enthusiast. He studied creative writing at Willamette…

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