I was eagerly waiting for the new Redmi Book Pro 14 2025, but when it finally arrived, the upgrades were minimal. The launch price was 500 yuan higher than last year’s model, and even with the national subsidy, the U5 version with 32GB RAM and 1TB storage still costs 4799 yuan. Since I’m already using a Xiaomi 13 smartphone, I wanted a lightweight laptop from the Xiaomi ecosystem to enjoy seamless connectivity.
After lugging around a bulky gaming laptop for half a year—tiring and with poor battery life—I decided to give this new notebook a try. Here are my initial thoughts after a few days of use.
**Advantages:**
1. **Seamless Connectivity**
Copying text on my phone and pasting it directly onto my computer with just a right-click is an absolute game-changer. No more hassle of sending things through WeChat! While Apple users may have been enjoying this convenience for years, it’s still a breath of fresh air for me.
2. **Affordable Price, Excellent Value**
You can pick this up on JD for just over 2700 yuan, complete with a high-color-accuracy screen and a sharp 2.8K display that supports high refresh rates. For under 3000 yuan, what more could you ask for?
**Disadvantages:**
1. **Battery Life Issues**
I haven’t done a full test yet, but under normal usage without energy-saving mode, the battery lasts about four hours. If I push it into power-saving mode, I might stretch it to five hours. In today’s market, that’s not great at all. The newer models come with ultra-efficient processors that offer better performance while consuming less power.
2. **Underwhelming Performance**
Equipped with the i5-12450H processor, which dates back to 2022, it feels somewhat dated. This “refreshed” version is essentially rebranded from the Redmi Book 14 2023, except they’ve downgraded the original i5-12500H to the i5-12450H. So, don’t expect much in terms of gaming performance. However, since I already own a gaming laptop and only need this one for office work, it works perfectly fine for my needs.
3. **Prone to Smudges**
This is my first time using a fully metal-bodied laptop, and I didn’t realize how quickly sweat stains would accumulate around the touchpad area during typing. It requires regular cleaning to keep it looking fresh.
4. **Limited Ports**
There’s only one Type-C port, and the charger also uses Type-C, meaning you can’t use a Type-C dock while plugged in. There are three USB-A ports, though not all support USB 3.2—the top-right A port is limited to USB 2.0, so be mindful of that.
On the first day, after running some stress tests, the system froze twice, which had me worried initially. But since then, it has been running smoothly. Over the next couple of days, I’ll test its performance without being plugged in.
In conclusion, if you’re looking for a budget-friendly laptop strictly for office work and aren’t interested in gaming, this is a solid choice, especially for Xiaomi ecosystem users. When shopping for electronics, it’s important not to blindly chase top-tier performance but instead focus on what truly meets your needs.
Lydia Curtis 
Josephine Nelson 
Sebastian Lee
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