Samsung ZX310 review: first look

Samsung’s laptop division have two things to boast about at this year’s CES: the elegant sliding tablet TX100 and equally elegant ZX310.

Make no mistake, this is a beautiful laptop. The whole chassis is made from a metal called duralumin, which Samsung claims is “twice as strong as aluminium”. It certainly felt tough in the hand, but perhaps more importantly for the ZX310’s target buyer it looks rather nice too.

The only problem you’ll find is fingerprints. Not only because the ZX310 is glossy but also because people will want to reach out and touch it.

As the photo above shows – courtesy of Samsung rather than taken by me on the show floor, as you may be able to guess – it’s also thin. At a claimed 16.3mm it beats the new-look Apple MacBook Air 13in by 0.7mm, although it’s not clear whether Samsung’s stated depth includes the feet or not.

The 13in screen packs a punch too. Samsung claims a 400nits brightness rating; most laptops top out at around 250nits. It looked striking on the show floor, which is quite an achievement under all the lighting.

Samsung is pricing the ZX310 at the sort of level you’d expect for a premium, ultra-thin laptop that has the MacBook Air in its sights: I was told to expect £1,399 inc VAT when it arrives in March, which is likely to be about £100 cheaper than the equivalently priced Air.

Exact specifications aren’t clear yet, but the ZX310 uses the latest low-voltage Core i5/i7 processors and a solid state drive. This, Samsung claims, means the ZX310 can boot up in under 12 seconds.

Read more: Samsung ZX310 review: first look | PC Pro blog http://www.pcpro.co.uk/blogs/2011/01/07/samsung-zx310-review-first-look/#ixzz1ARceL2ye