Comparison Xiaomi Mijia Automatic Umbrella vs Euroschirm Birdiepal Surprise

The purpose determines the category of people for which the umbrella is designed.

— Male. Traditional men's umbrellas have a strict, discreet design, which usually goes well with a business style.

— Female. Umbrellas specially designed for women are usually designed to match, often with unusual colours, patterns, and the like.

— Children's. Children's umbrellas are distinguished primarily by their characteristic bright design with variegated colours; they can also carry drawings — for example, with popular cartoon or comic book characters. Also, many of these models are smaller than "adults" — otherwise it would be inconvenient for a child to use an umbrella.

— Unisex. Umbrellas without a pronounced "gender", equally well suited for both men and women. They can have a different design — from restrained to quite bright and catchy.

The presence in the design of the umbrella of reinforced elements and additional parts that provide protection from strong winds. Note that the essence of such protection is not so much the prevention of eversion, but the ability to withstand bad weather without breaking. In other words, most storm umbrellas can easily turn inside out, but they endure this trouble without any consequences and easily return to normal working shape. And the wind directed from the outside, they resist much better than ordinary ones. Therefore, if you often have to be outside during heavy rains with strong winds, it makes sense to pay attention to models with this function.

The diameter of the umbrella dome when unfolded. The larger the diameter of the dome, the more reliably it will protect you from rain and the easier it will be to place one more person under the umbrella. On the other hand, a wide umbrella can be uncomfortable in tight spaces — for example, in the flow of pedestrians on a busy street — and when folded it will take up more space. Therefore, it does not always make sense to choose the largest of the available options.

The minimum diameter for an "adult" umbrella (see "Destination") is considered to be about 80 cm. Most models are in the range of 90 – 110 cm — this provides a good degree of protection with ease of movement. And in the largest modern products, the diameter of the dome can reach 150 cm.

The length of the umbrella when folded. For the decomposed one, this parameter is not specified, because is not critical, but when transporting a closed umbrella, it is the length that is the most important dimension.

The length of cane umbrellas (see "Type") is, by definition, the same when open or closed; most often it is 60 – 90% of the dome diameter (see above). But folding models of the same diameter can vary markedly in length, and here the choice depends on the situation: on the one hand, more compact umbrellas are more convenient to carry, on the other hand, they are less reliable and more complex in design, and also cost more.

The material of the dome is a canopy stretched between the spokes of the umbrella.

— Polyester. Synthetic material, the most popular among modern umbrellas. It has good strength and density, as well as water-repellent properties (although in its pure form it still gets wet sooner or later); in addition, it is resistant to temperature extremes and ultraviolet radiation. It is also worth noting that various additives can be used in polyester domes, which can significantly change the appearance and properties of the fabric — for example, it can easily be given a resemblance to silk or satin, provide additional water-repellent properties, etc. Therefore, we can say that such umbrellas are very diverse, and the properties of the dome largely depend on the price category of the product.

— Nylon. Synthetic material, somewhat similar to polyester, but cheaper — and in every sense: it is inexpensive, but it loses in a number of characteristics. In particular, nylon is not so strong and reliable, besides it is less pleasant to the touch, and after drying it can “sit down”. It is used mainly in low-cost models of umbrellas.

— Eponge. Cotton or silk fabric, characterized by an original surface texture — it resembles a sponge (hence the name — from the French eponge). However, unlike a regular sponge, pongee practically does not absorb moisture — on the contrary, it has excellent water-repellent properties and dries quickly. At the same time, the fabric has a...n original appearance, is pleasant to the touch, and its price is low, which makes it possible to use this material even in relatively inexpensive umbrellas.

— Silk. Silk provides the product with a luxurious appearance, but loses to other materials in terms of strength, and also gets very wet. As a result, this material is usually used in umbrellas from the sun (see "Application"), and among the "rain" is almost never found.

— PVC film. Distinctive features of a film based on polyvinyl chloride (PVC) are complete imperviousness, as well as transparency. This allows you to create on its basis not only classic umbrellas, but also the so-called birdcage ("birdcage") — models with a high dome, covering not only the head, but also the shoulders.

— Jacquard. Waterproof fabric, usually synthetic, having a so-called jacquard weave. Due to this, a specific texture pattern is visible on the surface of the dome, giving it an original appearance. On the other hand, jacquard is quite difficult to manufacture, and therefore expensive.

— Satin. Cotton or silk fabric with an additional water-repellent impregnation, having a satin weave. This weave gives a rather dense surface with a characteristic sheen, giving it a pleasant appearance. Satin is used mainly in design models of umbrellas, on the domes of which various patterns are applied.

— Polyamide. Polyamides is the general name for a number of synthetic fibers, in particular, capron and nylon (see above). They have good water-repellent properties, but the performance characteristics (durability, resistance to stretching, etc.) can be different — depending on the price category of the umbrella.

— Hook. The characteristic curved handle allows you to hang the umbrella on any suitable device - the back of a chair, a clothes hanger, etc. In addition, it is quite secure when held and provides a stylish appearance with a hint of traditional classics. On the other hand, a hook makes the entire product more bulky and inconvenient to transport - therefore, it is found mainly among canes (see “Type”), where the main inconvenience is due to the size of the umbrella itself and depends little on the shape of the handle. Also, some believe that “hooks” are more likely to get lost than models with other types of handles; and this opinion is not without foundation - for example, there is a high probability of forgetting about such an umbrella hung by the handle in an inconspicuous place.

- Direct. An elongated handle of a cylindrical (or close to it) shape; in some models it may be slightly bent - for example, to imitate the knob of a cane. Very comfortable to hold, but not as secure as a hook and less compact than a round one.

- Round. This category includes handles that are close in shape to either a ball or a very short cylinder (the height of which is comparable to the diameter). This option is the most compact and is considered optimal for folding umbrellas(see “Type”), created with ease of portability in mi...nd. On the other hand, in terms of reliability and ease of holding, round handles are inferior to the types described above; This is partly compensated for by the wrist strap provided in many similar models.

- C-shaped. A rather unusual type of handle is in the form of a loop with a small slot resembling the letter C. The slot is provided so that the umbrella can be hung on a rope or other similar device. In any case, this form provides two advantages over more traditional options. Firstly, it provides more grip options - you can grab the bottom of the loop, the side, between them, etc. Secondly, it allows you to free your hands when holding an open umbrella: the C-shaped handle can be put on the wrist, and The central rod should be rested on the shoulder; as a result, the hand will be free. On the other hand, this type of handle is quite bulky and expensive; It is because of this that they have not gained much popularity.

The type of clasp installed on the umbrella strap.

We are talking about a strap that tightly secures the dome in the closed position. Most often, Velcro or a button is used as a fastener, and in some models a button is used. Here is a description of each option:

- Velcro. The most popular type of fastener these days. Velcro is inexpensive, extremely compact (in particular, it does not protrude above the strap, unlike buttons), and is also easy to use - so they can be found in all price categories of umbrellas. The main disadvantage of such devices is that as they wear out, their effectiveness drops noticeably - to the point that at one point the Velcro stops holding it at all. However, the service life of such fasteners is still usually quite long, and worn-out Velcro can be replaced without any problems or costs in a workshop or even on your own.

- Button. The clasp is in the form of a characteristic metal button, like clothing buttons. Such devices are much more reliable and durable than Velcro, but they are more expensive and somewhat less convenient: unfastening the button requires a certain amount of force, and fastening it also requires greater precision. In addition, not all users like the part that noticeably protrudes from the strap when the umbrella is closed. In light of this, buttons are used much less often than Velcro, and mainly in models of the middle...and top price categories (with rare exceptions).

- Button. An ordinary button that, when fastened, is threaded into a loop. From a practical point of view, such fasteners are noticeably inferior to Velcro and buttons - they are not as reliable, and they are not particularly convenient. Therefore, buttons can be found extremely rarely in our time - in individual cane umbrellas in the “retro” style, where such a fastener is used primarily as a characteristic design element.

Total weight of the umbrella.

All other things being equal, lighter umbrellas are more convenient to carry (both in the open and closed positions). On the other hand, such products are less reliable and/or more expensive than relatively heavy models of similar design and size. We also note that in some cases, significant weight can be an advantage. For example, in a strong wind, a massive umbrella does not “tear from your hands” as much, and when released, it does not fly as far as a lighter one.