The Chuwi Unibook has stirred up the laptop market with its promise of quality at a bargain price. But is it all it's cracked up to be?

At first glance, the Unibook offers a $450 Windows machine with an aluminum build and Intel’s new Wildcat Lake processor. However, as we dig deeper, it becomes clear that you truly get what you pay for. The screen, trackpad, speakers and webcam are abysmal, while the metal chassis feels flimsy and the performance is lacklustre.

Performance-wise, the Unibook struggles even with basic tasks. Adobe Premiere exports a 4K video in over an hour compared to the MacBook Neo's under ten minutes. The computer is also hindered by its meagre 8GB of RAM, making everyday use a challenge. A fresh reboot uses up nearly half of this memory and multiple apps quickly overwhelm it.

While some might argue that the Unibook’s good battery life and decent keyboard redeem it somewhat, these features are overwhelmed by the overall poor user experience. The screen is washed out, the trackpad feels like pressing a rock, and the speakers are tinny at best. This laptop is not just disappointing; it’s a reminder of how far we’ve come in terms of expectations for modern computing.