Samsung NC20 Netbook Review
Samsung were late arrivals at the netbook party, but have been working overtime to catch up. Their latest offering, the NC20 is an upgrade of the NC10 and addresses many of the problems users found with the earlier model. The main drawbacks of the NC 10 were the 1024 x 600 10 inch display which was difficult to read and the small touchpad which made for awkward usage. While these issues have been taken care of, with a 12.1 inch display, is the NC20 still an ultra portable netbook, or a hybrid netbook and laptop mixture? Let’s see.
First of all, the specs:
Via Nano U2250 Processor – 1.3 GHz
12.1 inch WXGA display – 1280 x 800
1 GB DDR2 RAM
160 GB
Windows XP Home SP3 operating system installed
Bluetooth, wireless, webcam and all the other standard features are present.
The body of the NC20 is made of plastic but it feels extremely strong and rigid. The matte finish means that fingerprints affecting the looks of the netbook are not a problem.
The display is exactly what you would expect from a netbook. Images are clear and colors bright. There are 8 brightness settings and 2 is adequate for most work and extends battery life. Colors fade when viewed from acute angles, but then this is meant for purely personal use by someone sitting directly in front of the screen.
The 83 key keyboard is conventional in layout with a few small exceptions. The dedicated Pg Up and Pg Dn keys are a good idea as is the big backspace key. The keys are white with gray marking which is quite soothing to the eyes – many of us need to look and type!
The touchpad is bigger than that of the NC10 and is almost the size of a full size laptop touchpad. Below the touchpad is a single mouse button that is hinged in the middle so it functions as the usual 2 buttons.
Audio output comes from the 2 speakers located under the palm rests. Sound quality is not great – it never is in a netbook, but the NC 20 provides more clarity and volume than most of the competition.
It may be petty but I found it odd that the power supply does not have an LED to indicate that it is connected to the mains supply. There is a light in the front of the unit that glows green when it is connected to the mains but turned off and blue when it is on. Why tamper with accepted design features like looking at the power supply to see if it is connected?
Unlike most netbooks the NC20 does not use the Atom processor. But the VIA nano is comparable to the Atom in every respect, except for an insignificant need for more power.
Coming back to the question of whether this is a netbook – the answer is yes. Most netbooks are used as a second computer for traveling. With is 12.1 inch screen and big keyboard, the NC20 can function either as a second computer or a the primary one, subject to reasonable use.
Rating:
Value for money – 3/5
Appearance – 3/5
Flexibility in use – 4/5
Overall – 3/5