Samsung X460 Notebook Review
Samsung has unveiled yet another X series stunner to hit the ‘slim-n-light’ segment. A little while ago, it was the 13.3 inch X360, which was said to be lighter than Apple’s MacBook Air, and was touted as the thinnest among its kind in the world. Now, it’s the 14.1 inch X460 with a rewritable DVD drive, that neither the X360 nor the Air can boast of.
The X460 can offer stiff competition to those notebooks such as the Lenovo Thinkpad X300 that were quite a threat to the X360. As the launch becomes imminent, one wonders what the X460 promises to deliver. Or is it just a refurbished version of the X360?
Talking about refurbishing, it should be noticed that some engineering must have gone into arriving at a screen size of 14.1 inches (LED, WXGA, 1280×800) as compared to the 13.3 inches of the X360. Although heavier than the X360, when this 4.1pounds (1.9 kg) notebook is compared to other 14.1 inch laptops in its category, it still comes across as the lightest one.
The X460 amazingly manages the same thickness as its 13.3 inch sibling, inspite of being loaded with an optical DVD burner. Moreover, it comes with all essential features that the mobile workaholic would require, and even promises functionality that is yet to be surpassed.
The glossy LED screen including the glossy bezel looks great in combination with the elegantly designed keypad, the large mouse tracker with the neatly fitting buttons below it, and the brushed aluminum strip that contains the glowing blue power button and the speakers.
The indicator lights on the bottom left of the wrist-rest and the finger print reader on the right blends well with the unit, giving the X460 a seamless appearance. The notebook is elegant to look at and great to feel. Being on the go could mean checking emails with greasy fingers during a quick snack. Therefore Samsung uses its Silver Nano Technology that it uses in home appliances, in order to keep the keyboard bacteria-free.
The X340 is driven by the Intel Centrino 2 processor which, in combination with the 1066 MHz FSB, handles application traffic at ease and without bottle-necking. Its 3GB DDR3 memory as compared to the standard but expandable 1GB of the X360 handles multi-tasking well. It’s probably the 320GB Hard disk drive that makes it heavier (not to forget the weight of the 6-pack battery) than the X360, which houses a 128GB SSD.
Although SSDs are lighter and more durable in the long run, a HDD may allow quicker data transfers, just what the professional roadie is looking for. Also imagine the amount of office data and personal files that could be stored. Although it does not promise a full day’s battery runtime, the X460 assures 5 hours of quality performance with its 6-cell battery.
Backup becomes very important when working with continuously updated office data, and the Super Multi DVD writer with LightScribe labeling can burn valuable data into DVDs. Wi Fi connectivity while on the go is offered by 802.11a/b/g/n draft in combination with Bluetooth 2.0+EDR for quick linkage to a PDA or wireless accessories. LAN connectivity is also made possible by Gigabit Ethernet card.
Video calling is made possible by the 1.3 megapixel webcam and integrated microphone. Gaming can be a blast with the dedicated nVIDIA GeForce Go 9300M GS graphic card, with 256MB of memory reserved for the action and without putting any pressure on the main memory.
Three USB 2.0 ports are provided on the right, the left and the rear side. A 7-in-1 card reader on the front side allows the usage of a variety of memory cards. Then on the right is the ExpressCard slot. On the left there is one microphone in, one headphone out, a D-SUB port and an Ethernet port. On the rear is an HDMI-out interface for connecting the X460 to a Television.
The £999 price (including VAT) is the real clincher, considering the package one is getting. Besides, it can be a real silencer for its competitors.