Supposedly if you log in to your microsoft account and download windows with the media tool, you can swap the Chinese version to English, not tried it. arstechnica.com/gad…ew/ Otherwise you'll need to buy a copy of windows off ebay for £10.
Microsoft Windows 10 Home Chinese Version Windows 10 brings
back the popular Start Menu from Windows 7 and introduces new features,
like the Edge Web browser that lets you mark up Web pages on your screen 7th Generation Intel Core m3-7Y30 Processor Dual Core 1.0GHz, up to 2.6GHz Ultra-low-voltage
platform and dual-core processing provide maximum high-efficiency power
to go. Intel Turbo Boost Technology delivers dynamic extra power when
you need it 12.5 inch FHD IPS Screen with 1920 x 1080 Resolution Offering
good experience for watching videos and browsing the Web. The 1920 x
high-bandwidth RAM to smoothly run your games, photos and video-editing
applications, as well as multiple programs and browser tabs all at once 128GB SSD Storage Capacity Provides room to store pictures, videos, music and more Camera for Photos and Face-to-face Chat 1.0MP front camera lets you capture memorable moments or chats with friends Dual Band 2.4GHz / 5.0GHz WiFi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac wireless Internet, allows you to connect to the Web while within range of an available wireless network Bluetooth 4.1 Interface Syncs with Compatible Devices
Latest comments (62)
cdennis1990
22 Sep 17#2
these lesser known chinese makes are the way to go !!
Swf77MiUk to cdennis1990
23 Sep 17#31
5th biggest phone seller in the world. Id say there hardware is exalant
Mikiex to cdennis1990
24 Sep 17#53
Multi billion dollar Xiaomi is lesser known?, I guess so if you are comparing it to Samsung and Apple
cdennis1990 to Mikiex
24 Sep 17#54
Okay then I will rephrase it ..... lesser mainstreamed?? is that suitable for you ?
backllem to cdennis1990
26 Sep 17#62
People were saying this quite a lot 5 years ago, not any more, and you are saying this like it's news. Oh, you haven't got much longer to say this. People's opinions don't keep abreast of changes in reality.
dagghand
26 Sep 17#61
Just an FYI I've just managed to order using the code but price changed to £370 then again on the card details page to £356. Hopefully I'll avoid import charges or it may just have to be rejected
goodfera
22 Sep 17#15
4G is min memory for Windows 10, so spec exaggerates basic level
SClub to goodfera
22 Sep 17#18
Not really, 1GB is the minimum.
goodfera to SClub
25 Sep 17#60
No way I would run with 1G RAM unless in no hurry whatsoever to do anything !. Tried 2G and hard disk also spends too much time swopping content out of RAM. If you read the right MS references, 4G it is to have some performance. 8G even betetr !
JamieD2016 to goodfera
23 Sep 17#34
Not according to Microsoft.
The_IMF
22 Sep 17#10
Still waiting for my last 3 orders from last month to be delivered from Gearbest. Their support ticket page is broken so can't even ask where my items are.
Is there any way to completely filter Gearbest trash from my view?
rapid111111 to The_IMF
22 Sep 17#12
I'm also waiting for 3. 1 is overdue. The other 2 are still under the time limit but would usually have arrived by now. Usually get stuff within 10 days max. Yodel haven't received it yet, so it looks like maybe there is a backlog of shipment being held up.
SClub to rapid111111
22 Sep 17#14
Were they marked as shipped a while back? I've been waiting over 3 weeks for an EZBook 3 Pro which was allegedly shipped at the start of the month...do you think Gearbest may be a bit liberal with their shipping dates? I don't remember being given any options around shipping method either which is a bit weird.
Equally, my Onda Xiaoma 21 came in 10 days. All using budget shipping. Wasn't offered tracking this time - UK Express only.
rapid111111 to SClub
22 Sep 17#16
Yep. 3 weeks ago. Marked as shipped. The cut off time is 30 days. Then you're allowed to start complaining. Mine were sent British Priority which usually means 7-12 days and tracking by yodel once they arrived on her country. All orders until now have kept to those days.
SClub to rapid111111
22 Sep 17#17
Thank you, sounds like we (or the parcels!) are in the same boat then! Makes me feel better :smile:
The_IMF to SClub
22 Sep 17#19
Ordered from Ali Express several times and never had an issue. Tracking is on point, can contact shop easily etc. Gearbest is a shambles.
Zak_K to The_IMF
23 Sep 17#20
I too ordered on the 30th Aug. I needed it for a holiday so it was time sensitive. The last contact I had with support they told me it got held up in customs, maybe they're talking rubbish but if true could also be the case with yours.
7day to Zak_K
23 Sep 17#21
Is it easy after customs and hoe do they know...what if you never get the product as some from eBay and even
SClub to Zak_K
23 Sep 17#23
Ordered an SSD from AliExpress on the 8th September with full tracking (free postage). Left the depot in HK on 13/9, was in the UK by the 14/9 and has taken 8 days to get through customs and to my local mail centre.
Can't understand why the Gearbest items are taking longer unless they haven't really been dispatched, or they are on a boat...the checkout option was definitely different when I purchased this time - there was only one postage option. Hmm.
Tempted by the Air 12 though lol
alexus to SClub
23 Sep 17#24
To be fair to chinese retailers gearstick bang good etc I have ordered load over the years. With electronics often you order that gets but into a bulk order factory sometimes with demand they are selling as fast as can make other they list won't even dispatch for a week. But normally can see its ready to be picked up in a few days bus it to airport where it gets checked and loaded into a plane within couple of days it then normally shows in tracking that its arrived in UK.... Goes quiet if can see where it is often mine are held in some customs yard near Heathrow..... Just sits swear the UK wants to make this slow sometimes 2:weeks then seems to get waved through. If have several gadgets bits of cheap junk seems like often all held the same amount of time. Feels like it's just almost all delays here. Pay for fast airmail service goes though quickly but they assume everything high value and check then it's faster to you but bet a customs bill.
So to me feels like we blame the Chinese but it's really British customs making it slow once they dispatch. Chinese sometimes guilty of taking orders before having enough stock.
bigpappa69 to The_IMF
23 Sep 17#36
I've ordered 5 phones from Aliexpress, and 2 had not been delivered after 60 days. Got refunds, but still..
Gentle_Giant to bigpappa69
24 Sep 17#52
Were they Diamond rated sellers, or low rated stores selling dirt cheap?? It is a real risk buying from the low rated guys; you dont know if they are good, but new, or low rated because they are con artists, or pack stuff so badly it gets damaged/stolen in transit..
I have had a few issues over the years, a couple of things never arrived and a few - mostly Flash drives, turned out to be fake; I got refunds on all but one item. That guy was a real jerk, in arbitration via AE, he wouldnt accept he had sold me fakes and insisted they were returned to him for testing; then failed to collect them from the Customs shed in Shenzhen, so I ended up out the purchase AND return postage costs. By the time all this had happened, it was outside of the comp rules for AE - which is probably how he planned it. I wasnt happy with AE about that, I suspected he wasnt genuine about his claims and asked to send the fakes to them for testing, but they wouldnt do it.
So I still have a number of 8GB mp3 players lying around that have been hacked to report 32GB.
ripkord to The_IMF
25 Sep 17#56
This. Still waiting on MiBand 2 being shipped (even though it says its been shipped its yet to be collected), ordered on the 9th.
The_IMF to ripkord
25 Sep 17#59
Same issue here. Got that dash cam says shipped but tracking says "waiting to be collected" since 9th September.
winchman to SClub
23 Sep 17#47
Add me to that list for the 3pro at the start of September, British priority(Yodel), last tracking comment was for 'parcel data received, waiting for collection', but it also says shipped, nothing since, but they assure me it's on the way... I did say when I ordered I only wanted the version with the little hatch on the bottom, v4, or I would cancel.
SClub to winchman
24 Sep 17#55
Ooh keep us updated on progress please as I wasn't offered tracking for some reason :disappointed:
winchman to SClub
25 Sep 17#57
Got an email this morning saying there is a customs hold up, be here soon after 1st Oct.. I recon they never sent it but have now got them and are sending them out...
SClub to winchman
25 Sep 17#58
Thanks, I have the same note :smile:
We are contacting you with an update to explain the delay with your order.
Unfortunately, due to an unexpected Customs delay, your parcel is currently being processed. We have approached the shipping company to expedite the issue. They have confirmed that the package can be released by October 1, 2017; it will arrive shortly after this.
Please accept our sincere apologies for the matter. As a goodwill gesture and to apologize, we have credited 50 points to your GearBest account on September 22, 2017.
If you require further assistance, please contact us on the GearBest Support Center.
Thank you again for your kind support and continued patience.
thebiophysicist to The_IMF
23 Sep 17#45
I thought they had ripped me off the item said it had despatched but I still didn't have it. Came about 2 and a half months later when I had given up on it coming.
kimonoo
23 Sep 17#51
The Code you entered has expired.
UberPark
23 Sep 17#26
you will probably be charged another £80 FOR Customs import handling and tax so £435
Picard123 to UberPark
23 Sep 17#27
No you won't.
jrandrews72 to Picard123
23 Sep 17#38
You might and you should be prepared to pay. if you don't pay you are lucky. gov.uk/goo…uty
Picard123 to jrandrews72
23 Sep 17#50
Depends where the entry point is. If it's direct from China to the UK eg. DHL, then sure. But if it enters the EU and then onwards to the UK, you wouldn't be paying UK tax as tax will have been paid in the relevant EU country where the goods entered.
This deal is HOT. Lovely laptop for £350.
Gentle_Giant to UberPark
23 Sep 17#29
There is that risk, but in 10 years of ordering direct from China, I have only had customs duty on a few parcels, and never on one sent using the "China Mail" or "Free" option that ends up being delivered by Royal Mail.
As suggested above, GearBest have probably been selling stock they didnt have and had to wait to get hold of it; one thing I have caught a number of less reputable Chinese sellers doing is issuing a FAKE tracking number to make it look like the product has shipped, then changing it for the real number a week or two (or three, or four !!), later, when they finally actually ship it.
That "8 days to get through UK customs" report is odd; the longest delay I have had is 4 days around a Bank Holiday a few years ago, the usual is a maximum of 2 days from landing to delivery to the local PO sorting office.
arfster to Gentle_Giant
23 Sep 17#41
Occasionally customs gets really backlogged, just your bad luck if yours gets stuck.
dagghand
23 Sep 17#49
Just tried to order, code is rejected as "expired" and the price jumps up to £464.31
peterhatfield
23 Sep 17#46
Code doesn't work anymore
winchman to peterhatfield
23 Sep 17#48
You could well be right. Although I have found some people get lucky, maybe a new account or email address, all a bit hit and miss.
EportJake
23 Sep 17#43
Ordered a fair bit from Gearbest over the last couple of years. Always picked free shipping and never been stung for import tax. Always got what I wanted too. AliExpress is basically the chinese eBay from what I understand, so not really a comparable vendor for those commenting.
shayureppa to EportJake
23 Sep 17#44
I'm going to go for the i5 version. Should I stick with free shipping and insured delivery or pay for extra via DHL? If choosing DHL will I get stung by Customs fee?
Gentle_Giant
23 Sep 17#37
Quote from Gearbest's own description (which is word for word (including misspelling), the same as the AE seller blurb.
"Warm Prompt: Xiaomi Air 12 has Chinese OS versions for option (Windows 10 Home Chinese Version, Not Activated Windows 10 Home English Version).
If you purchase Xiaomi Air 12 pre-installed with Windows 10 Home
Chinese version, you should pay attention on when you change the
language, some things will still be shown in Chinese. This will
certainly not compromise usage or downloaded applications. The following
picture shows the result of Chinese Version:"
(For "Warm Prompt", read "Warning Prompt").
So buyer beware.
There is also a warning that China Mail wont ship them, so they have to go FEDEX or DHL, which WILL mean customs and VAT charge.
Not sure what deal Gearbest have, but FEDEX/DHL means 100% chance of cutoms duty AND VAT on top (plus the carriers admin charge of around £10 +vat).
One other warning, my experiences of the Chinese version of other Micro$haft Windows is that it is heavily restricted and localised to China; China is the only location and only time zone that can be set in XP and Win7 versions, and I dont see any reason why M$ wouldnt do the same with Win8 & 10.
Chinese language added to standard versions of the OS didnt have this restriction, so it is a special version and not just a case of Chinese used as the install language.
(I have a Chinese wife).
If I was working and had an income right now, I would buy one and see if I could get Win7 running on it, as I suspect the OS version installed will have Chinese government spyware as well as M$ spyware slurping all your data.
JamieD2016 to Gentle_Giant
23 Sep 17#42
Agreed. I wouldn't trust that operating system as far as I could throw Big Ben.
faxmax
23 Sep 17#32
You can buy the Chuwi Hi13 for this price which is a far better deal for most people.
+ 13.5" 3000 x 2000 IPS screen, one of the best screens anywhere (same as in latest Surface) + touch & stylus capability, detachable keyboard option
- CPU is half the performance of this, but this isn't too significant if not using on intensive applications - onboard storage is half and slower (64GB ROM), speed difference will sometimes be noticeable but not terrible. Storage can be expanded using SD card so again mostly an issue of performance which may not be noticed in everyday tasks
I wouldn't buy a Chuwi again after the poor support seen for the Hi/Vi 10 plus models. They shipped devices with some major issues and did nothing to fix them. It took a clever individual to make them usable!
The screen does look nice though!
igsey
23 Sep 17#39
US keyboard.
Uns
23 Sep 17#33
Great price but there's no way I'd spend that kind of money and have no warranty
Nevasleep to Uns
23 Sep 17#35
Same, no real warranty and no support on shipping. A little too risky for me.
drsaurabhg
22 Sep 17#3
does anybody know whee can I buy the LTE 4G version of it?
upandcumming to drsaurabhg
23 Sep 17#30
I think that is a waste of time because it is hardcoded to a Chinese network.
crazygoldfish
23 Sep 17#28
Cold - a lot of money & terrible Gearbest
huangxq2
23 Sep 17#25
why is the price way cheaper than china? I do not get it.
It is 3599 CNY in china on taobao, (equal to ebay here)
exchange rate 8.9, work out £404.
thoma85
23 Sep 17#22
What’s the build quality like on the Xiaomis?
ehosin
22 Sep 17#13
I'd also be worried about buying a laptop from HK due to potential import taxes --- I can't see an EU warehouse shipping option
Sambat
22 Sep 17#11
Customs duty?
Gavin01
22 Sep 17#9
Warranty would be trouble otherwise hot
da1em
22 Sep 17#8
I've got the 13.3" version of this, it's great. Boots up in less than 10 seconds. Bought a key off the net for Windows 10 professional for about £15, simple to install it.
RiverDragon8
22 Sep 17#7
You can change win10 Chinese into the English version click. The only thing that puts me off this laptop is the glossy screen, other than that it ticks all the right boxes.
gunnerkes
22 Sep 17#6
Brilliant price, wish I'd held off a bit on my ezbook pro 3 now
elbs
22 Sep 17#5
£355, gearbest and no warranty. not a good combination
asinivali
22 Sep 17#4
Not looking for a laptop atm and I'd be wary of ordering something for £355 with no real usable warranty but that's a sensational price
![Fresh Breakfast Meat Box (Using code) @ Campbells Meat [Haggis / Lorne Sausage / Bacon / Black Pudding & More]](/images/topics/208684_1.jpg)
![[Xbox One] Q. u. b. e: Director's Cut on Deals with Gold](/images/topics/208716_1.jpg)
Opening post
Supposedly if you log in to your microsoft account and download windows with the media tool, you can swap the Chinese version to English, not tried it.
arstechnica.com/gad…ew/
Otherwise you'll need to buy a copy of windows off ebay for £10.
Microsoft Windows 10 Home Chinese Version
Windows 10 brings
back the popular Start Menu from Windows 7 and introduces new features,
like the Edge Web browser that lets you mark up Web pages on your screen
7th Generation Intel Core m3-7Y30 Processor Dual Core 1.0GHz, up to 2.6GHz
Ultra-low-voltage
platform and dual-core processing provide maximum high-efficiency power
to go. Intel Turbo Boost Technology delivers dynamic extra power when
you need it
12.5 inch FHD IPS Screen with 1920 x 1080 Resolution
Offering
good experience for watching videos and browsing the Web. The 1920 x
1080 resolution screen boasts impressive high-quality images
4GB DDR3 RAM for Advanced Multitasking
Substantial
high-bandwidth RAM to smoothly run your games, photos and video-editing
applications, as well as multiple programs and browser tabs all at once
128GB SSD Storage Capacity
Provides room to store pictures, videos, music and more
Camera for Photos and Face-to-face Chat
1.0MP front camera lets you capture memorable moments or chats with friends
Dual Band 2.4GHz / 5.0GHz WiFi
802.11a/b/g/n/ac wireless Internet, allows you to connect to the Web while within range of an available wireless network
Bluetooth 4.1 Interface Syncs with Compatible Devices
Latest comments (62)
I've just managed to order using the code but price changed to £370 then again on the card details page to £356. Hopefully I'll avoid import charges or it may just have to be rejected
Is there any way to completely filter Gearbest trash from my view?
Yodel haven't received it yet, so it looks like maybe there is a backlog of shipment being held up.
Equally, my Onda Xiaoma 21 came in 10 days. All using budget shipping. Wasn't offered tracking this time - UK Express only.
Marked as shipped.
The cut off time is 30 days. Then you're allowed to start complaining.
Mine were sent British Priority which usually means 7-12 days and tracking by yodel once they arrived on her country.
All orders until now have kept to those days.
Can't understand why the Gearbest items are taking longer unless they haven't really been dispatched, or they are on a boat...the checkout option was definitely different when I purchased this time - there was only one postage option. Hmm.
Tempted by the Air 12 though lol
So to me feels like we blame the Chinese but it's really British customs making it slow once they dispatch. Chinese sometimes guilty of taking orders before having enough stock.
I have had a few issues over the years, a couple of things never arrived and a few - mostly Flash drives, turned out to be fake; I got refunds on all but one item.
That guy was a real jerk, in arbitration via AE, he wouldnt accept he had sold me fakes and insisted they were returned to him for testing; then failed to collect them from the Customs shed in Shenzhen, so I ended up out the purchase AND return postage costs. By the time all this had happened, it was outside of the comp rules for AE - which is probably how he planned it.
I wasnt happy with AE about that, I suspected he wasnt genuine about his claims and asked to send the fakes to them for testing, but they wouldnt do it.
So I still have a number of 8GB mp3 players lying around that have been hacked to report 32GB.
We are contacting you with an update to explain the delay with your order.
Unfortunately, due to an unexpected Customs delay, your parcel is currently being processed. We have approached the shipping company to expedite the issue. They have confirmed that the package can be released by October 1, 2017; it will arrive shortly after this.
Please accept our sincere apologies for the matter. As a goodwill gesture and to apologize, we have credited 50 points to your GearBest account on September 22, 2017.
If you require further assistance, please contact us on the GearBest Support Center.
Thank you again for your kind support and continued patience.
This deal is HOT. Lovely laptop for £350.
As suggested above, GearBest have probably been selling stock they didnt have and had to wait to get hold of it; one thing I have caught a number of less reputable Chinese sellers doing is issuing a FAKE tracking number to make it look like the product has shipped, then changing it for the real number a week or two (or three, or four !!), later, when they finally actually ship it.
That "8 days to get through UK customs" report is odd; the longest delay I have had is 4 days around a Bank Holiday a few years ago, the usual is a maximum of 2 days from landing to delivery to the local PO sorting office.
AliExpress is basically the chinese eBay from what I understand, so not really a comparable vendor for those commenting.
"Warm Prompt: Xiaomi Air 12 has Chinese OS versions for option (Windows 10 Home Chinese Version, Not Activated Windows 10 Home English Version). If you purchase Xiaomi Air 12 pre-installed with Windows 10 Home Chinese version, you should pay attention on when you change the language, some things will still be shown in Chinese. This will certainly not compromise usage or downloaded applications. The following picture shows the result of Chinese Version:"
(For "Warm Prompt", read "Warning Prompt").
So buyer beware.
There is also a warning that China Mail wont ship them, so they have to go FEDEX or DHL, which WILL mean customs and VAT charge.
Not sure what deal Gearbest have, but FEDEX/DHL means 100% chance of cutoms duty AND VAT on top (plus the carriers admin charge of around £10 +vat).
One other warning, my experiences of the Chinese version of other Micro$haft Windows is that it is heavily restricted and localised to China; China is the only location and only time zone that can be set in XP and Win7 versions, and I dont see any reason why M$ wouldnt do the same with Win8 & 10.
Chinese language added to standard versions of the OS didnt have this restriction, so it is a special version and not just a case of Chinese used as the install language.
(I have a Chinese wife).
If I was working and had an income right now, I would buy one and see if I could get Win7 running on it, as I suspect the OS version installed will have Chinese government spyware as well as M$ spyware slurping all your data.
+ 13.5" 3000 x 2000 IPS screen, one of the best screens anywhere (same as in latest Surface)
+ touch & stylus capability, detachable keyboard option
- CPU is half the performance of this, but this isn't too significant if not using on intensive applications
- onboard storage is half and slower (64GB ROM), speed difference will sometimes be noticeable but not terrible. Storage can be expanded using SD card so again mostly an issue of performance which may not be noticed in everyday tasks
Prices always fluctuate on Gearbest, but pricing up right now also shipped from HK/China it is 325.96:
Tablet £247.12 - gearbest.com/tab…tml
Keyboard £55.74 - gearbest.com/tab…tml
Stylus £23.10 - gearbest.com/tab…tml
The screen does look nice though!
It is 3599 CNY in china on taobao, (equal to ebay here)
exchange rate 8.9, work out £404.