If Apple’s Macbook Air is the poster-child for “form-over-function,” and Lenovo’s X300 its utilitarian cousin, Samsung’s X360 falls somewhere in between on the 13.3-inch wafter-thin ultraportable family tree, serving as another solid, though somewhat underwhelming choice according to TrustedReviews‘ full write-up. It’s not as thin as the Air, but is slightly lighter while still feeling reasonably durable, and with a full complement of ports certainly has the edge in terms of utility. It also manages to be a bit more visually appealing than the X300, is blessed with a “superb” keyboard (which we liked, too), and the five hours of battery life in real-world usage impresses as well. But, it’s hampered by a disappointing 1280 x 800 glossy screen and an under-performing 1.2GHz Core 2 Duo CPU. The thing is popping up at online retailers a bit cheaper than we’d expected (we found one for about $150 lower than Samsung’s indicated $1,899 MSRP), but, in the US at least, might just be priced a little too close to its proven competitors to make it a serious contender over here.
[Thanks, Simon W]
Filed under: Laptops
Samsung’s X360 ultraportable reviewed: cheaper than competition, but not as good originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Nov 2008 11:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Tags: alexander, another-solid, apple, cellphones, photoshopping, poster, review, reviewed, samsung x360, smartphone, though-somewhat, ultraportable
Filed under: Laptops
Okay, so maybe Samsung isn’t entirely new to the laptop game here in the USA, but for its first line of self-branded lappies, the Q310 ultraportable didn’t fare half bad in its first review. Critics over at Laptop Mag found the design of the 13.3-incher to be “handsome,” the performance “smooth” and the endurance to be satisfactory enough. It also pointed out that the glossy display wasn’t incredibly distracting as with other machines we’ve personally reviewed, and while they had a tough time finding anything major to harsh on, they couldn’t help but point out that the $949 ThinkPad SL300 was likely a better value. ‘Course, if money ain’t a thang, you’re probably safe to make a purchase here.
Samsung’s Q310-34P laptop reviewed: not bad for a first try originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 16 Nov 2008 21:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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While low-cost laptops are all the rage right now, there’s still a solid chunk of folks out there willing to pay a premium for potent ultraportables. The Voodoo Envy 133 is undeniably one of the sexier small machines we’ve seen of late, and the internals are rather impressive given the size of the enclosure. Still, this here rig costs a pretty penny, and we’ve all ideas those who splurged have a thing or two to say about it with nearly two months of usage under their belt. Has the Envy 133 lived up to your surely lofty expectations? Are there aspects there you wish were different? How could Voodoo go about tweaking things whenever it finally decides to actually launch another product at all its successor?
How would you change the Voodoo Envy 133? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Nov 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Laptops
We already detailed the basics of Sony’s VAIO TT — you know, the outfit’s slap in the face to the netbook arena — earlier this month, but the crew over at CNET had a chance to benchmark the unit and toss out some quantifiable talking points. Overall, critics found it just as appealing as we did, but they couldn’t help but point out just how debilitating the insane price tag is. Of note, they weren’t particularly wowed with the sheer performance, but the magnificent battery life (nearly 4-hours in a video playback drain test) and the speedy SSDs were gushed all over. At the end of the day, this thing is still too expensive for the majority of laptop buyers, but those not alarmed by the $2,000+ sticker should hit the read link for a look at the full writeup alongside a few benchmarks.
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Filed under: Laptops
Toshiba’s R600 ultraportable got lost in the din of Tuesday’s MacBook announcements, but TrustedReviews got their hands on the 12.1-inch ultraportable, which replaces the crazy-thin-and-light R500 and goes up against some pretty tough competition like the VAIO TT. Not a lot of external differences here — it looks identical to the R500 — but the keyboard, screen, and overall fit and finish have apparently been much improved, and the bump to Centrino 2 and the corresponding 1.2 or 1.4GHz Core 2 Duo processors is certainly appreciated. Click on for a bunch of pictures of the new rig, including some teardown photos.
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Of course it
had to happen sooner or later, but we’re a little taken aback that someone at Sony had the temerity to slice open a newborn
Vaio TT and put it on display — in a booth at
CEATEC, no less — for the whole world to see. Righteous indignation aside, the thing is pretty impressive, especially considering that without the Blu-ray drive it would only be about half the size. We have one more pic for you after the break, and be sure to check out our look inside the
Z series while you’re at it.
[Via Sony Insider]
Continue reading Sony’s Vaio TT gets dissected, found to contain small components
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Filed under: Laptops
We were suitably impressed by ASUS’s netbook moniker-defying
N10 when we got our
hands on it earlier this month, and it seems to at least be able to hold its own with
Call of Duty 4, but if you’re looking for a bit more information to inform your potential purchase, you may want to hit up the link below to check out Mobile Computer’s full review of the ultraportable. As you might expect, they were especially impressed by the N10’s performance compared to standard netbooks, but they’re a bit perplexed as to exactly what the target audience for it is, describing it as an “interesting technological exercise,” but one that sits uncomfortably between traditional netbooks and regular Core 2 Duo-based laptops and ultraportables. Still, we’re guessing the N10’s uniqueness alone will win it a few admirers, and if that $700 price tag ever gets knocked down, it’d no doubt have plenty more.
[Thanks, Michael A]
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It’s crazy to think, but October is merely days away. That also means that Breast Cancer Awareness month is just around the bend, and Sony’s being ultra proactive by announcing two new pink laptop bundles to support breast cancer research. First up is the Cosmopolitan Pink VAIO CR pack, which features a 14.1-inch LCD, 1.3-megapixel camera, Core 2 Duo CPU, Bluetooth, a built-in DVD burner and a matching case / mouse. If that’s a tad large and / or underpowered for your tastes, you can check the Glossy Pink VAIO SR, a 4-pound rig with a 13.3-inch LED backlit display, up to 320GB of HDD space and a “Switch” mode that gives users the ability to toggle between high performance and power saving modes on the fly. The two bundles start at $870 and $1,399, respectively, though you can CTO them both ’til your wallet cries uncle.
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Filed under: Laptops
We all know the X300 was fairly widely praised, though that price tag was mighty prohibitive. Still, if you’ve got the coin to play around with ultrathin ultraportables, the X301 is a welcome upgrade. According to Laptop Mag, the Centrino 2 platform and built-in DisplayPort made an “already excellent machine even better.” Most of the basics from the X300 are still here, but critics couldn’t help but swoon over the new inclusions. Regrettably, the battery life was said to be an hour or two short for their liking, so it sounds as if you’ll want to factor in an extra pack if you’re the type who strays from power outlets. Hit the read link for the full rundown, just don’t expect anything out of the ordinary.
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