First Look: Samsung's latest laptop

 

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Posted on 25 Jul 2008 at 15:38

Samsung's latest laptop, the R510, has Intel's new GM45 Express chipset with a GMA X4500M HD integrated graphics chip. However, it doesn't bear Intel's Centrino 2 branding. This is because its 2GHz Core 2 Duo T5750 processor isn't one of the 45nm Penryn processors specified by Intel - though it is more than fast enough for most tasks. Also this laptop only has 802.11g wireless, instead of the required draft N compatibility.

As expected, the GMA X4500M HD graphics chip isn't up to playing the latest 3D games but it should be able handle older, less demanding titles. In combination with the processor it's easily capable of playing back HD movie content, though no Blu-ray drive is fitted.

The 320GB hard disk is surprisingly large for an inexpensive laptop, plus its 3GB of RAM is more than enough for running several memory-hungry programs simultaneously. We were also pleased by the R510's lengthy battery life of nearly four and a half hours in our light usage test. This is far better than most similarly priced laptops, which often last as little as two and-a-half hours.

Despite a generous specification, the R510 costs just over £500. It has a classy looking black and silver chassis that's also available in black and red, and plain black. Overall, it feels robust, though the display hinge felt a little wobblier than we'd like. There are only three USB ports, but there is a HDMI socket for connecting a high definition TV.

The large and responsive keyboard is comfortable to type on, although we had no way to test Samsung's claims that the keys' nano silver coating is resistant to bacteria. We liked the big, accurate touch pad, although the buttons could give a little more feedback. Overall, Samsung's R510 makes a great first impression. This model - the NP-R510-FAA4UK - will be available from August for around £530 inc VAT.

Author: Alan Lu