Samsung R590 review

Samsung’s R590 costs £638 exc VAT, but boy does it justify that. It uses Intel’s 2.4GHz Core i5-450M processor with 4GB of RAM, which really powered it through our application benchmarks. An overall 1.73 is the kind of score we’d expect if paying closer to a grand.

That isn’t the only fine statistic, however. Nvidia’s GeForce 330M averaged a hefty 72fps in our Low quality Crysis test and remained just about playable at 25fps in the Medium quality test.

So the R590 is a powerful piece of kit, and it adds to that with a fair dash of style and plenty of practicality. Samsung’s blue “touch of colour” finish is subtle enough to avoid looking tacky, but adds a little interest. The full-width keyboard is firm and usable, with a lovely action to the keys. There’s a number pad to the right, and the touchpad is responsive.

The 15.6in screen is very glossy, so this is very much a laptop for the softer lights of home rather than an office, and colours look slightly muted next to the most vibrant we see. But it’s sharp, the backlight is even, and both the hinge and the lid have a reassuring solidity that suggests a long and productive life.

The Samsung’s day-to-day stamina isn’t so hot. Given all that power and a 4,400mAh battery, we weren’t surprised to find the R590 lasting just 3hrs 45mins in our light-use test. It’s unlikely you’ll be buying a 2.63kg laptop for its portability, but it is a weak point.

It’s pretty much its only problem, however, with Bluetooth, a 500GB hard disk, an eSATA combo port and an ExpressCard/34 slot all making for an attractive feature list. If you want all-round power in a gorgeous chassis, the Samsung R590 makes a compelling case for itself.