Samsung N510 review

Netbooks might have been the big, or rather the endearingly tiny, new thing on the laptop scene for a time, but the initial excitement has all but evaporated. Now, with the Samsung N510, the company is seeking to reignite the passions of consumers by pairing Intel’s Atom with Nvidia’s much-touted Ion chipset.

The N510 doesn’t impress right away, however, with a physique that’s inoffensive rather than drop-dead gorgeous. But, resembling as it does the offspring of Samsung’s NC10 and N110 netbooks, the N510 is certainly no ugly duckling. Blending a curvy, slimline physique with a silver strip that arcs around the edges, it’s only once you set it against the sharply-tailored likes of the Asus Eee PC 1101HA that it begins to look ordinary.

But, underneath that Clark Kent exterior lays a superpower in the world of netbooks. We’re not talking about the same old 1.66GHz Intel Atom N280 processor, the gigabyte of memory, nor the 160GB hard disk, but rather the presence of Nvidia’s Ion LE graphics chipset.

Before you get too excited, be aware that Nvidia’s Ion LE is no miracle worker. It does, however, add gaming capabilities where there were previously next to none. It won’t turn an Atom-powered netbook into a gaming behemoth capable of taking on the likes of Crysis – but, nevertheless, the Samsung manfully struggled to an average of 17fps at 1,024 x 768 and the lowest detail settings in Crysis.

Fire up the likes of Trackmania Nations Forever and the N510 is in its element. Even at the 11.6in display’s native resolution of 1,366 x 768, the Ion LE helped the Samsung along to a smooth 27.1fps.

And, more importantly, there’s even enough poke to decode 1080p video. Install a media player that supports hardware acceleration – such as the free Media Player Classic Home Cinema – and in addition to enjoying high-definition files on the 11.6in display, you can also hook the N510 up to a large-screen HDTV or projector courtesy of the HDMI port on its left-hand edge.

The one stumbling block at the moment is the lack of acceleration for high definition YouTube and iPlayer video, although we hope that will be rectified soon.

That 11.6in display is also impressive. Its matte finish keeps distracting reflections at bay, and the 1,366 x 768 resolution is generous by netbook standards. Quality isn’t stunning, with slightly weak contrast leaving colours and skintones looking washed out, and narrow viewing angles occasionally give cause for aggravation, but it’s bright by netbook standards and good enough for all but the most colour-critical applications.

There’s precious little wrong with the keyboard. The keys have a firm, positive feel, and we quickly found ourselves touch-typing away without a care in the world. We still don’t understand why Samsung insists on moving the Windows key over to the right-hand side of the space bar on some of its laptops, but it’s something most people should quickly become used to.

The final hurdle is that of battery life, and even here the N510 triumphs, achieving 6hrs 30mins in our light-use test. It might not be up the N110’s lofty standards, but even though it dwindles to 3hrs 44mins under intense use, it’s more than enough for all but the longest of jaunts away from home.

Intel’s Atom processor is never going to power a gaming speed-demon, then, but Nvidia’s Ion LE is enough to hoist Samsung’s N510 well above the average netbook. It inevitably comes at extra cost, but with a 1,366 x 768 display and decent media abilities, the N510 is a netbook that will entertain you as no other will.

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