Xiaomi Considers Introducing Laptop to Compete With Apple - Bloomberg

[patrick3027]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-02/xiaomi-said-to-consider-laptop-for-early-2016-aiming-at-apple
 

Xiaomi Corp. is considering the introduction of its first laptop early next year, people with direct knowledge of the matter said, opening a new front in its battle against Apple Inc. and Lenovo Group Ltd.

Xiaomi’s notebook may go on sale in the first quarter to compete with such premium computers as Apple’s MacBook Air and Lenovo’s ThinkPad, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. Xiaomi has held talks with Samsung Electronics Co. to supply memory chips, and that initial agreement may extend to providing displays, the people said.

http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20150901PD204.html
 

The sources believe Xiaomi will likely release a 15-inch notebook as it is the mainstream size in China and will adopt Linux operating system. The notebook is estimated to be priced at CNY2,999 (US$471) and will heap pressure on competitors' simliar products priced between CNY4,000-6,000.

 

Definitely a good thing. It would increase competition and hopefully give Linux' market share a boost.

[ZetZet]

I'm curious which OS it will have. Maybe something Linux-based?

hopefully windows. 

[Guest Generallee]

opening a new front in its battle against Apple Inc. 

 

Hahaha

[patrick3027]

hopefully windows. 

Yeah, it's not like we already have enough laptops with Windows pre-installed...

[FakezZ]

Honestly, like Torvalds has said, for Linux to penetrate (° ͜ʖ ͡ -) the desktop, it has to be preinstalled on PCs, because the average user simply doesn't care to take time to install a new OS on his own.

[ZetZet]

Yeah, it's not like we already have enough laptops with Windows pre-installed...

it's not like any linux system can compete with macOS. Especially developed by a chinese company.

[6God]

Honestly, like Torvalds has said, for Linux to penetrate (° ͜ʖ ͡ -) the desktop, it has to be preinstalled on PCs, because the average user simply doesn't care to take time to install a new OS on his own.

 

The casual user wants something that just works. The causal user does not have time to deal with idiocy in their computer because they are idiots. I don't mean idiots in a bad way, most users of tech are idiots. They do not want to understand nor do they care to understand. 

 

One of my favourite researchers fits this cold. The man is a certifiable Da Vinci grade genius in the OR and is probably one of the best that the hospital has ever had. Yet he doesn't know how to use a laptop very well. Mind you, this is the guy who can use a robot to snip your balls yet he doesn't understand Microsoft Word. Because his job doesn't need him to be good with a laptop. Its a mediocre tool of no consequence. He just needs it to work and nothing more. He doesn't want to understand why, or to troubleshoot. He literally aint' got time fo that. 

 

Linux isn't the OS for people like that. Linux needs to outdo bloody OSX in marketshare before people start clamouring about how it'll kill windows. And OSX is arguably more consumer friendly than any Linux distro and Windows itself, which is saying a lot given how simplistic Windows on the surface is these days. 

 

People need to keep it in their pants with the "DAE LINUX UNDERRATED ITS SO AWESOME AND FOR EVERYONE" mantra. It isn't and it likely never will be. Linux is fantastic in servers, because you're paying someone absurd amounts of money to keep it all running. Linux in servers has nothing to do with Linux in the consumer space, where like I said before, it struggles to even beat away the small marketshare that OSX has. 

 

Chrome OS is a better example to use, that is far more friendly and worth using for some users (Chromebooks that aren't priced at stupid levels however, the Pixel IMHO makes no sense to me with its price tag). 

[patrick3027]

-snip-

Most Linux distros are just as user friendly as OSX or Windows. Buy a Dell laptop with Ubuntu pre-installed and "it just works", no need to mess with an anti-virus or to uninstall 10 bloatware programs the OEM decided was good for you. Need to install a program? No need to go to sketchywebsite.com, just open the software center, select the programs you need and click install.

 

But you know what isn't user-friendly? Asking the user to change the OS on the laptop he just bought. A company who wants to pre-install Linux on a laptop should be encouraged. I'm tired of people saying Linux isn't as consumer fiendly as Windows when they haven't used a modern distro like Linux Mint for more than two weeks.

[Misanthrope]

Honestly, like Torvalds has said, for Linux to penetrate (° ͜ʖ ͡ -) the desktop, it has to be preinstalled on PCs, because the average user simply doesn't care to take time to install a new OS on his own.

 

That has to be revised: The average user is quickly shifting away from desktop pcs. Give it another 10 years and it will be mostly just phones, tablets and other "smart" appliances only. At that point the desktop experience will be for the corporate world and power users, at which point we should most advanced users to Linux even if it's a learning curve. Not saying that we would given how quickly the tech community is fully embracing Windows 10 and it's fucking telemetry bullshit but well we're talking ideally here.

[Guest Kloaked]

Yeah, it's not like we already have enough laptops with Windows pre-installed...

 

Windows is better.

[FakezZ]

The casual user wants something that just works. The causal user does not have time to deal with idiocy in their computer because they are idiots. I don't mean idiots in a bad way, most users of tech are idiots. They do not want to understand nor do they care to understand. 

 

One of my favourite researchers fits this cold. The man is a certifiable Da Vinci grade genius in the OR and is probably one of the best that the hospital has ever had. Yet he doesn't know how to use a laptop very well. Mind you, this is the guy who can use a robot to snip your balls yet he doesn't understand Microsoft Word. Because his job doesn't need him to be good with a laptop. Its a mediocre tool of no consequence. He just needs it to work and nothing more. He doesn't want to understand why, or to troubleshoot. He literally aint' got time fo that. 

 

Linux isn't the OS for people like that. Linux needs to outdo bloody OSX in marketshare before people start clamouring about how it'll kill windows. And OSX is arguably more consumer friendly than any Linux distro and Windows itself, which is saying a lot given how simplistic Windows on the surface is these days. 

 

People need to keep it in their pants with the "DAE LINUX UNDERRATED ITS SO AWESOME AND FOR EVERYONE" mantra. It isn't and it likely never will be. Linux is fantastic in servers, because you're paying someone absurd amounts of money to keep it all running. Linux in servers has nothing to do with Linux in the consumer space, where like I said before, it struggles to even beat away the small marketshare that OSX has. 

 

Chrome OS is a better example to use, that is far more friendly and worth using for some users (Chromebooks that aren't priced at stupid levels however, the Pixel IMHO makes no sense to me with its price tag). 

Honestly. Linux isn't that hard to use anymore and the terminal is not a necessity either.

[FakezZ]

That has to be revised: The average user is quickly shifting away from desktop pcs. Give it another 10 years and it will be mostly just phones, tablets and other "smart" appliances only. At that point the desktop experience will be for the corporate world and power users, at which point we should most advanced users to Linux even if it's a learning curve. Not saying that we would given how quickly the tech community is fully embracing Windows 10 and it's fucking telemetry bullshit but well we're talking ideally here.

This is actually very fucking true. The desktop is dying for the average users anyway...

[Burusutazu]

it's not like any linux system can compete with macOS. Especially developed by a chinese company.

Two well known Linux Distros are Chinese. Ubuntu Kylin and Deepin. Both are well polished.

[ZetZet]

Two well known Linux Distros are Chinese. Ubuntu Kylin and Deepin. Both are well polished.

Not surprised I have never heard of them.

[Burusutazu]

Not surprised I have never heard of them.

Well... they are in Chinese. I tried Deepin for myself and it is pretty much built as an osx replacement. Ubuntu Kylin is just Ubuntu with chinese programs and a special software center. (both now have english language options and Deepin did when I tried it) China is pretty heavily invested in Linux as far as im aware.

http://www.deepin.org/?language=en

http://www.ubuntu.com/desktop/ubuntu-kylin

[Pyromaniac225]

Interesting. I would check it out for sure.

 

As far the linux discussion going on here.

I would switch for sure if I could play games in fullscreen with good optimization. I haven't invested Linux extensively, but afaik with Nvidia cards linux does not necessarily work well.

IDK if fullscreen is as much of an issue though.

[Bouzoo]

Apple and Lenovo, the brands 90% have heard of, Xiaomi, the brand that 90% haven't heard of. Okay it may not be 90% but you know what I mean. 

[Dabombinable]

Windows is better.

*because it is pre-installed on so many computers

[JAKEBAB]

Most Linux distros are just as user friendly as OSX or Windows. Buy a Dell laptop with Ubuntu pre-installed and "it just works", no need to mess with an anti-virus or to uninstall 10 bloatware programs the OEM decided was good for you. Need to install a program? No need to go to sketchywebsite.com, just open the software center, select the programs you need and click install.

 

But you know what isn't user-friendly? Asking the user to change the OS on the laptop he just bought. A company who wants to pre-install Linux on a laptop should be encouraged. I'm tired of people saying Linux isn't as consumer fiendly as Windows when they haven't used a modern distro like Linux Mint for more than two weeks.

Eh i'd argue software support is still a big concern with Linux, yea sure they have alternatives and the average user is just going to web browse etc but really nothing is in the same league as Office nor is there anything in the same league as the adobe suite imo. You also have to think about those obscure programs, my mum is far from a power user but even she manages to get 1 man show programs to back up her phone or something like that. One other thing, if a program isn't in the software center it can be a bit intimidating to install a program with terminal.

 

On topic though im excited for this, i love the look of there products and im eager to see them shake up such a high end market like apple. 

 

God i wish they didn't have backdoors in there products

[FakezZ]

Eh i'd argue software support is still a big concern with Linux, yea sure they have alternatives and the average user is just going to web browse etc but really nothing is in the same league as Office nor is there anything in the same league as the adobe suite imo. You also have to think about those obscure programs, my mum is far from a power user but even she manages to get 1 man show programs to back up her phone or something like that. One other thing, if a program isn't in the software center it can be a bit intimidating to install a program with terminal.

 

On topic though im excited for this, i love the look of there products and im eager to see them shake up such a high end market like apple. 

 

God i wish they didn't have backdoors in there products

Again, you don't HAVE to mess with the terminal to add a repository. It can be very easily done (on the distros I've used at least, including Ubuntu and derivatives) through UI by going to settings. And then the programs will pop up in the Software Center. Simple. It is just that people are afraid of Linux, because whenever they see an advanced user use it, they will usually do pretty much everything with the terminal, just because it is a lot easier. However anything an average user wants to do on a PC can be done without it.

[Misanthrope]

Apple and Lenovo, the brands 90% have heard of, Xiaomi, the brand that 90% haven't heard of. Okay it may not be 90% but you know what I mean. 

 

A shit ton of people have heard from them in their predominant markets: India and China. They're trying to break into the west but Xaomi is an established mobile name over there.

[Guest Kloaked]

*because it is pre-installed on so many computers

No. It's objectively better.

Sorry.

[Bouzoo]

A shit ton of people have heard from them in their predominant markets: India and China. They're trying to break into the west but Xaomi is an established mobile name over there.

I meant the western market, I know they are mainly in east.

[deviant88]

They dont get it the reason apple is successful is that they have their own OS/Store and ecosystem, with their own apps and such, they sell top quality and brand.

How is a chinese company going to release standard looking laptops running Linux or worse Windows, going to compete with apple?

 

Its same thing if a central african company would announce their own smartphones running android that will compete with iPhone, really they need to stop going full retard.

[FakezZ]

No. It's objectively better.

Sorry.

Give me actual points as to why it is better and I will be more than happy to tell you why you're wrong