When I want the reasoning unrolled before a code draft, this is often the cheaper tab to open.
DeepSeek entered my flow because Chinese reasoning and code drafts are cheap per call, not because I needed another chat brand. For a branched problem or logic that should be proven before it is implemented, I ask for steps above the code. Many models jump to something that runs on a false premise; this one is more willing to list assumptions. Assumptions can still be wrong. I still plug in the inequalities myself. Chinese explanations need less translation cleanup for teammates. English long-form and marketing voice are not why I am here. Open weights matter if you will host yourself; I still draft in the official web UI, and local ops is a separate job. Versus ChatGPT it is less smoothly omniscient. Versus Copilot it is a desk you open, not a ghost in the editor. The low cost means I iterate more. Production autocomplete still lives in the IDE.
People writing Chinese technical notes, who want reasoning before code, and who watch token cost. Not a first pick for English brand copy.
Shows the cases
It is less likely to dump final code before the branches.
Chinese notes edit cleanly
Comments and design memos for local teammates need less de-translation.
Cheap to probe
Two extra “what if empty input” turns do not hurt.
Path to self-host
If you move later, you are not starting from zero.
English polish is average
Outbound English pages still go through Grammarly or another window.
Not an IDE
It does not follow the caret. Cross-file refactors belong in Cursor-class editors.
Steps can still be wrong
Complete write-ups are not correct write-ups. Substitute the edge values.
Ask for complexity, invariants, and failing cases before any function body.
Turn a talk into background / decision / open questions; ban undiscussed components.
Paste logs and your hypotheses; only mark which guesses the log contradicts.
The weight path allows it. Hardware is yours. Do not treat the web UI as private by default.
No. One is reasoned chat. The other is keystroke completion.
More useful when you will check the steps — not automatically more correct.
Follow your policy. Self-host later is not the same as a private web chat now.
For short Chinese reasoning and cost-sensitive drafts I open this first.
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