Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 Review, has Samsung finally done it?
In the last few years, Samsung has launched a number of Galaxy Books. Despite having good specifications and a popular brand name, they have not been widely accepted by the people. But, Samsung is planning to change that with their Galaxy Book Pro 360.
The laptop comes is available in clamshell or convertible two-in-one in 13-inch and 15-inch form factor. Samsung is targeting a very specific audience with its OLED display and its three-pound weight. The laptop is made with the help of a relationship between Samsung and Intel, which has further allowed Samsung to add this product to their Galaxy ecosystem.
It's not all gold
In this review, I will mainly be talking about the 15-inch model. But most of the things can be applied to the 13-inch model as well. It starts at $1300 which is on par with other premium two-in-ones and comes in three colors i.e. Mystic Navy, Mystic Bronze, and Mystic Silver.
The Galaxy Book 360 is a very thin and light laptop that can be seen when you pick it up, which remains even when it has been folded into tablet mode adding to the overall mobility of the laptop.
Galaxy Book Pro provides people with a laptop-like experience similar to a smartphone meaning it turns on and unlocks instantly, is always connected, provides the same performance even if it is not plugged into the charger, and the included stylus enhances the experience when using the laptop in tablet mode.
Even though it is not compulsory for you to own a Samsung phone to have the full experience the laptop has its own downsides like it only has a fingerprint sensor built into the power button which is insanely fast, there is no appropriate place to store the included stylus (It can be attached to the back of the laptop through magnets, but those magnets are not that strong and if you are keeping it in your backpack the stylus will fall off), the webcam is only 720p which is similar to what most laptops have but here it looks worse than any other webcam; the images are all blown out, the image is overexposed and the added beauty features makes it even worse. The hindge is also not too sturdy and wobbles while it was being used.
The Icing on the top
Samsung makes it easier for you to collaborate with your laptop in case you have a Galaxy Phone by allowing you to link it with windows through a drop-down in the Quick Settings panel for the Your Phone app on Windows 10, which will allow you to replicate your phone on your windows laptop. The application also allows you to view your notifications, text, make/answer your phone calls, view photo gallery and also open and use your apps.
Samsung has also added a Quick Share feature that allows the user to seamlessly share the files from their phones to the PC and vice-versa; meaning if you have taken a photo from your Android phone and want it on your PC to make edits to the same or for some other reason, you can easily share it using the share option and send it using the Quick Share option.
Samsung also includes a bunch of their own application which I would not consider to be bloatware because they have kind of unique features like:
Samsung flow which is a simplified version of My Phone app which includes file sharing and Quick Share feature. These features are still new to windows 10 and are not perfect they have their own problems like the Quick Share did not work instantaneously for me 100% of the time.
Smart Switch which allows the user to move apps, settings and files from an old PC to the Samsung Galaxy Book.
A Quick Search type feature which makes it fast and easy to find files on the laptop and a SmartThings application that allows you to control and monitor all the Samsung connected smart home appliances.
Samsung Settings application provides features for better privacy while you are on the web along with a kill switch within the application that enables a button which when clicked on will disable the webcam and microphone of the laptop. The settings application also allows you to tweak the performance of the laptop to your liking.
Samsung states that the laptop can be used for a total of 20 hours continuously, but that was not the case, I got around 11-13 hours of battery life based on my workflow. The 1080p (Full HD) AMOLED display has excellent color accuracy, but because it is glossy and does not get bright enough due to max 286-nits of brightness it is very difficult to view it outdoors or incase you are sitting under a bright light. The laptop also has the latest WiFi 6E support.
The included S-Pen works seamlessly with the laptop and feels good while taking notes, drawing. While using the S-Pen there was a lot of problem with palm rejection; but it can be improved with the help of a setting that blocks the touch input while using the pen.
The keyboard of the laptop felt great, even though there is not a lot of key travel. The trackpad/touchpad is large and accurate. The laptop comes with a combo audio jack, Thunderbolt 4 USB-C port, two regular USB-C ports, and a microSD card slot which can be used to increase the storage of the laptop.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy Book 360 is a nice premium two-in-one laptop with its own pros and cons, but the good thing is it does not rely on only Galaxy Devices to provide its full experience.
The weight of the device can be considered to be its biggest benefit along with its premium build quality. The processor inside is also very capable with plenty of RAM and storage. The port selection is also decent and the screen looks beautiful but does not get significantly bright.
In the end, I would say that the laptop even with its downsides can be considered worth the buy as it offers a few features that other two-in-one laptops don't and all the downsides should not affect most people while using it in their day to day tasks.
Thank You for Reading
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