14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has recently released the new Surface Pro and Surface Laptops with latest-generation hardware, and now other manufacturers are also upgrading their devices with new chips, more RAM and storage.
Xiaomi, whose Mi Notebook Air was positioned as a rival to Apple’s MacBook, unveiled today a hardware refresh of its laptop lineup as well, once again as it tries to stay in line with its rivals.
Specifically, the Mi Notebook Air with 13.3-inch screen is being upgraded to Intel Kaby Lake processors, while the smaller model with a 12.5-inch screen is only getting the 7th generation M3 chip.
What’s more, the bigger model is getting upgraded to 8GB RAM and 256GB storage, while the GPU is now NVIDIA’s GeForce MX150. The battery life has also been increased, and Xiaomi says users could get up to 9.5 hours of battery life per charge.
Windows Hello-enabled laptops
In addition, the new Xiaomi laptops are also getting a fingerprint sensor that can be configured with Windows Hello for biometric authentication.
The parent company says the upgraded laptops provide up to 10 percent performance improvements over the previous generation, while the 12.5-inch model is even 12 percent faster, all thanks to the new CPU and the other improvements made across the range.
Xiaomi is one of the companies that are offering excellent value for the money, with its devices typically relying on a very compelling mix of premium features coupled with an affordable price.
As far as laptops go, the race against Apple’s MacBook lineup is first of all suggested by the name of the laptop, showing that the focus is indeed on making the device as lightweight as possible. And truth be told, the Mi Notebook Air is really easy to carry around, as it tips the scales at only 1.07 kg in the case of the smaller model.
There is no touchscreen support, so the Mi Notebook Air is a more conventional laptop that sticks with the approach that Apple itself has embraced for its MacBook series.
