Aside from being
lightweight and super-slim, the product shines with 7h runtime and 8sec
startup.
Design
Samsung
Series 9
Appearing before the term of ultra-book was
born; Samsung Series 9 continues proving superiority over existing models in
the market. Compared with last year’s model, the manufacturer continues increasing
thinness plus reducing price, as well as improving specs, screen, battery for
such a conventional laptop.
Samsung Series 9 (tested version) was
equipped with 13in display featuring 1,600x900p resolution, Intel Core i7-3517U
(1.9GHz), 4GB of RAM, 256GB SSD, Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU.
RRP is $1,880.
The
case is made sturdy by duralumin.
Even for user of first generation of the
laptop, the latest version of Series 9 is still impressive thanks to amazingly
lightweight appearance. The model’s weight and thinness were lowered down to
1.16kg and 12.7mm respectively. These figures exceed those from laptop having
the same screen size, such as Zenbook UX31A or MacBook Air 13in.
However, the slimness narrows down the
device’s connectors, like HDMI, LAN, and there’re only 2 USB ports, one of
which supports USB 3.0. Despite that, Samsung bundles with an accessory that
can extend LAN connection, helping user in need. Besides, the model also has
one 3.5mm jack, along with SD reader which is interestingly positioned, using a
spring-loaded door built into the curve of the chassis.
The
super-slim design features USB 3.0 port in the left. HDMI or LAN ports are
placed with a specialized converter.
In
the right lie USB connector and jack slot.
The chassis is made of duralumin (commonly
used in manufacturing plane, car…) helping the laptop fit in the hold of user
more considerably than popularly aluminum-made model. The rough finish is hard
to get dust but fingerprint (seen from side through reflective light), yet it
is easily cleaned. The coat is totally black-colored with Samsung logo rising on
a side. The manufacturer cleverly put silver color into linings to strike
design features.
The
hinge is sturdy and extendable up to 170 degrees.
Series 9 uses 2 strong hinges in case user
wants to change viewing-angle. There was no shaking display even when we tried shaking
the device with a considerable force. The hinges has wide angle which can be
opened around 170 degrees if necessary.
Chiclet-type
keyboard
Feedback
and sensitivity are very good.
Aiming at hi-class user, Samsung brought
the maximum simplicity yet handiness to the model. Chiclet keyboard is wide,
meeting standard size, with big navigation buttons and shortcut keys integrated
into Function keys. Due to the device’s slimness, typing adventure is short but
response and feedback are good, thus after few hours getting along, our hands
didn’t feel tired of typing documents. It’s interesting that the keyboard has
backlight for night-working. Meanwhile, power button is placed in the right
corner near the hinge.
Like
many hi-end model, Series 9 owns a back-lit keyboard.
Touchpad is also a striking feature in the
new Series 9 as it supports multi-action better than previous ones did. There’re
on separate buttons, so touch pad is seamless, requiring slight pressure from
user. Additionally, it is very sensitive. With large space and little roughen
surface, the touchpad feels comfortable and no slippery to work with.
The
spacious touchpad
Samsung did installed many multi-touch
actions into the touchpad for up/down or right/left navigation. Three-finger flicking
up will open My Computer, flicking down opens fast interface of running
windows. Meanwhile, four-finger flicking up returns to Desktop or resumes to
last state of the windows. Besides, with one-finger flicking from right to
center, user easily calls out Charm Bar in Windows 8 when this action may feel
difficult with laptops having no touch screen.
