In the race to form the simplest laptop, companies often compromise on basic aspects that are really important to consumers. Sometimes the planning overshadows the performance and other times laptops suffer from severe battery issues. In short, choosing a Windows laptop is anything but easy. But one company wants to require away all the confusion around Windows laptops, and it’s not a standard PC maker. Enter the Mi Notebook 14 Horizon Edition, a premium Windows laptop from smartphone company Xiaomi.

I’ve spent the past two days with the Mi Notebook 14 Horizon Edition with a Core i7 (10th gen) processor with 512GB SSD and 8GB RAM. It’s a high-quality laptop, and with a starting price of Rs 54,999 for an entry-level model and Rs 59,999 for the top-end version, the one i’m using immediately . But after spending some hands-on time with the device, the new Mi Notebook 14 Horizon Edition might appear as if the simplest Windows laptop during this price segment

A fusion of Dell XPS 13 and Apple MacBook Air

If you’re checking out a Windows laptop that has an Apple-made feel and therefore the classiness of Dell XPS 13, i might say the Mi Notebook 14 is for you. The aluminum shell makes the Mi Notebook 14 premium in nature – and that’s how people perceive a high-end machine lately . Yes, the planning of the notebook reminds one among the MacBook Air, and perhaps that’s absolutely fine. The Mi Notebook 14 doesn’t seem to be as thin because the XPS 13 or MacBook Air but it’s faraway from clunky. It just weighs 1.35kg, making it highly portable. So, if you’re someone who travels tons , the Mi Notebook 14 seems to be an ideal fit.

Even though the planning of the Mi Notebook 14 is unmistakable that of the MacBook Air, the nearly bezel-less display makes the laptop look different. I haven’t fully tested the display yet, but this non-touch 1080p display seems to be impressive. By reducing the dimensions of the bezels, Xiaomi may are ready to pack a 14-inch screen into the dimensions of a 13-inch notebook, but there’s one trade-off too. Well, there is no space to include a web camera. Instead, Xiaomi is bundling an external web camera which will be hooked above the screen 

That aside, I still love the design. There is no Xiaomi logo at the middle of the Mi Notebook 14’s hood, making the planning minimalistic. Despite being thin and lightweight , the notebook still has many room for ports. The left edge houses one USB 2.0 port and a headphone jack, while the proper side features a Type-C port for data transfer and charging, an HDMI 1.4 port, and two USB 3.1 ports. Unfortunately, there’s no Thunderbolt 3 on this chassis. A microSD card slot is additionally missing, which may be a bit strange.

The keyboard is really good

The scissor-switch keyboard on the Mi Notebook 14, the one also found within the latest MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, is superb . The keys have more travel, and therefore the whole keyboard appears to be something which will last. Apart from a full-sized keyboard, Xiaomi also managed to pack a good-sized trackpad. The trackpad is responsive and pleasing to use

A fast processor

Although it might be too early to expire the ultimate verdict on how the machine fared in my testing, i used to be quite impressed by the performance. The version i’m currently testing comes with Intel’s 10th-gen i7 (Comet Lake), 512GB PCI Express Gen 3 NVMe SSD, 8GB of RAM, and Nvidia MX350 GPU with 2GB of video RAM. Based on my limited testing, the Mi Notebook 14 appears to be fully capable of being the first laptop most of the people need. If you’re using the machine for light video editing and editing docs, you’ll never need to worry about lags or stutters. The Windows 10 runs smoothly on the machine.

So if you’re knowledgeable video editor or a gamer, the Mi Notebook 14 isn’t meant for you. The reason for this is often limited RAM and therefore the lack of high-end GPU. For professionals within the creative field, the 16-inch MacBook Pro remains the foremost powerful option.

Battery testing still in progress

According to Xiaomi, the Mi Notebook 14 can deliver up to 10 hours of screen-on time between charges. During my brief testing, I got roughly between 6 and seven hours of battery life with the screen’s brightness set above 50 per cent. That said, i’m still testing the machine and that i don’t want to leap into any conclusion yet.

Wrap up

So far, the Mi Notebook 14 Horizon Edition is superb . I am doing most of my work-related tasks, from writing copies, sending emails, and editing photos on the machine. That’s what I do on a laptop – and I believe the priority for most users is to get the work done.