|
|
|
Samsung Series 5 Wifi Chromebook Review
Product Summary
This is a different kind of computer and not one that will be ideal for everyone—or anyone? The gamble here is whether or not you are going to like using the new Google Chrome OS. Everything on this laptop is designed to work via the internet. This gives the Chromebook the advantage of storing everything on Cloud, versus a hard drive that can, and likely will, go bad at some point. However, this gives it the disadvantage of having to be in range of a wifi or 3G signal at all times. Most things you are used to doing on a Windows or Apple operating system will not work on this computer, but you can do some light gaming, and some business and home computing. The jury is out on this laptop; people seem to love it or hate it. If this computer interests you, you might be better off considering a tablet.
The Features
The Samsung Chromebook has a screen that is too small for a laptop, but not small enough for a netbook. If you want something in between these two, this might be your computer. If you want a big, clear picture for watching videos, stop reading now. This 12.1” LED backlit widescreen display gets a maximum of 1280 x 800 pixel resolution. It runs on an Intel Atom 1.66 GHz dual-core processor, which is typical of many netbooks. The Chromebook has 2GB of RAM, and this is interesting twist on hard drives, only 16GB of storage. The reason the Chromebook can get away with such a low capacity for storing files is because nearly everything you do on this computer is done online and everything you save is stored on Cloud. The battery life is decent. The Chromebook gets 8.5 hours of life before needing to be plugged in, which will get you through most plane rides or a workday away from an outlet. It supports wireless LAN, IEEE 802.11 b,g,n networking, and is 3G capable. It comes with a sound card, microphone, and SRS Premium Sound technology, and High Definition Audio. Its video viewing is supported by Intel GMA 3150 Dynamic Video Memory Technology 4.0, and as previously mentioned, the most significant feature of this computer is the Google Chrome operating system. It is super fast on the startup with the ability to go from off-mode to up-and-running in 8-seconds. The Chromebook has integrated graphics, a multi-gesture button-less touchpad, and a 1MP integrated camera. There’s no optical drive on this machine and the price is right for what this computer is—I think. It’s hard to tell since this is really the first computer of its kind. Users aren’t quite sure where this machine fits in to today’s users’ computing needs.
The Design
The Samsung Chromebook has a nice design. It’s small, sleek, and light-weight. It is 11.6” wide, 8.6” deep, and only 0.8” thick. Tack on a weight of only 3.3 lbs and you have one very portable computer—just don’t go too far or you may get out of wifi range and the computer will be rendered useless.
What Users Say
As previously mentioned, this computer is not going to do what most users do on their Apple and Windows computers. It is almost entirely web-based, which users have mixed feelings about. On the one hand users like storing their files on Cloud, where it is safe from the dangers of hard drive failure, but are annoyed that, for example, editing pictures requires them to upload a picture to the internet, edit it online, and then download it to their hard drive for storage. Also, if a friend or co-worker tries to send you a zip-file, you are out of luck. The Chromebook does not support zip-files at all. Users aren’t overly fond of having to be online to use most functions but some say it doesn’t affect them most times. Users like the design and weight, and love the 8-second startup speed. They think the speed of the Intel Atom processor leaves a bit to be desired, and are perturbed that Samsung made the odd decision not to include backspace and cap lock buttons.
Final Thoughts
The Samsung Chromebook is certainly a horse of a different color. The problem being that most users like their horses to be of a traditional color. Google is known for being a leader, which means trying new things and taking risks. They have done this with the Chrome OS, but it isn’t clear what they had in mind in terms of filling a computing niche with this bold move. If you are in range of a wireless network and want to do light gaming, browse the internet, or watch some videos, you may be okay, but unless you have $400 you’re looking to spend to try something new for the sake of trying something new, you’ll probably want to stick this computer at the bottom of your list. It needs some work.