Rather than waiting for the ARM-based threat from the likes of Nvidia to invade its PC market share, AMD has plans to expand towards mobile devices in the form of Windows 8 tablets.

That's the message from new CEO Rory Read who was speaking to analysts in the States this week. "We have a huge opportunity in front of us," Read said. "How the world is using processors is changing rapidly. This is about stepping out of the shadows and leading."

The huge shadow that AMD stands in is, of course, Intel's - which has already embraced the tablet revolution and recently went public with its move into the smartphone arena with its Medfield chips.

AMD doesn't want to be left behind though and, while there are no declared smartphone plans yet, a mobile move is coming by the way of the Hondo low-power chip designed for tablets. Featuring a 40-nanometer manufacturing process, Hondo will combine processing and graphics in a single chip that AMD is calling an accelerated processing unit, or APU.

Lisa Su, head of global products at AMD, said Windows 8 tablets packing the chip would appear later this year. And, in 2013, we'll see Hondo's successor in the way of Temash featuring the new Jaguar processing core.

Read is aware that the company is entering a competitive arena. "We’re entering an inflection point in the market," he said. "We’ve got to see the opportunity in the market and execute on it. We have to build trust, change the architecture, and capture where the puck is going."

Read

Tags: Tablets Windows 8 AMD Hardware Intel

AMD Windows 8 tablets landing in 2012 originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:35:00 +0000

Just as Steve Ballmer promised when he mentioned a 1 February launch at CES, the Kinect for Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) is now officially available, alongside dedicated hardware for the motion gesture platform.

The Kinect for Windows sensor looks just like its Xbox 360 brethren truth be told, but is described by the Redmond based tech giant as "a fully-tested and supported Kinect experience on Windows" that has been built for developers.

It offers advanced speech and audio capabilities with the latest Microsoft Speech components; a macro style "near mode" making its short sighted skills a darn site better than ours (as close as 40cm in front of the sensor), improved skeletal tracking for picking out individuals and "a commercial ready installer that makes it easy to install Kinect for Windows runtime and driver components for end-user deployments".

"It’s been just over a year since we launched Kinect for Xbox 360, and we’re only starting to scratch the surface of what’s possible with Kinect," said Craig Eisler, general manager for Kinect for Windows.

"By offering hardware and software that’s designed specifically for Windows applications, we hope to inspire visionaries around the world to create transformative breakthroughs with Kinect - taking its gesture and voice capabilities beyond the living room into other industries such as education, manufacturing, healthcare, and retail."

Microsoft is said to be working with more than 300 different companies to build applications for Windows that use Kinect and it looks as if this doesn't just mean with the additional Kinect sensor. The Kinect's sensor tech, it seems, can be incorporated directly into a device as we recently reported with the curious case of the Asus Kinect laptops.

For now though, the official channel suggests using the new sensor. It's available in the States for $249 and will be hitting Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, and the United Kingdom soon.

Tags: Hardware Kinect Microsoft Kinect Microsoft Kinect SDK Kinect for Windows Microsoft

Kinect for Windows goes live with new hardware originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:35:08 +0000

LG announced two new Ultrabook models at CES?in Las Vegas, the Z430 and the Z330, and Pocket-lint was on hand to have a quick play with the new models. Check out our LG Z430 pictures and hands-on.

Just like with supermodel catwalks, it's all about being skinny in the Ultrabook game and the Z330 is one of the thinnest notebooks that we've heard of, with a waistline of just 14.7mm.

That's not just its thinnest point either, that's a constant. It weighs in at just 1.21kg too, over 100g less than the 13.3-inch MacBook Air for a device that gives you the same 13.3-inch screen size.

Other specs are a 9.9 second boot up time, a 256GB SATA SSD hard drive and a second generation Intel Core i7 processor.

Clad in metal you'll also get wireless screen sharing technology with Intel Wireless Display (Wi-Di), Thunderbolt support, Ethernet, HDMI out and a bevy of USB sockets.

We have to say that the keyboard is very comfortable to use, the trackpad big enough to allow you to get from one side of the screen to the other with a single stroke and overall we are very impressed with this skinny laptop.

Although we weren't able to give the Z330 a proper going over on the show floor our quick play with the new laptop suggests it is going to be easy and enjoyable to use.

The LG Z330 Ultrabook is expected to be launching some time before March. No word on pricing as of yet.

Tags: Laptops CES2012 LG LG Z330 Hardware Photos Ultrabooks

LG Z330 pictures and hands-on originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:57:00 +0000

Officially speaking, the Samsung Series 9 laptop is not an Ultrabook - at least, Samsung has chosen not to call it one much like Apple hasn't bothered including the MacBook Air either. Instead, Samsung announced a couple of lesser machines at CES 2012, so Pocket-lint went hands-on to see if they're still impressive enough.

The kindest way to describe the Samsung Series 5 is by not comparing it to the Series 9. The Series 5 should not, ever, under any circumstances go double dating with the Series 9. It makes it look plump, dowdy and touch dull. It would sit ignored in the corner while all eyes were reserved for the other laptop.

Like we say, it's rather unfair because the Samsung Series 5 is something you'd otherwise feel proud carrying around on your arm. There are two models to choose from. There's the 13.3-inch version with integrated graphics or the 14-inch model with a dedicated GPU and an optical drive to enjoy as well. The price you pay for the latter is really in the body mass department which takes it up from 1.38kg to 1.84kg and that's pretty heavy for an Ultrabook. One has to wonder whether the disk drive is really worth it in this day and age?

Each has 8GB of RAM to play with and 300nit screens which are certainly perfectly good. Naturally, there are also Intel Core i5 processors at the helm and the choice of SSDs up to 16GB in size with the?ExpressCache system to ensure fast starting and launching of apps, as we've seen on previous Samsung notebooks.

Neither laptop is wildly thin, despite the 14.9mm measurement at their thinnest, but they do have decent looking isolated keyboards and standard two-button trackpads which are easy enough to use, if slightly underwhelming.

So, unfortunately, despite trying to avoid it, the only way to sum up the Samsung Series 5 is by saying that they're perfectly good but they're just not as exciting as the Series 9. You'd also have to look at what Acer and Lenovo offer in the Ultrabook space as well.

No word on prices just yet, but we'll update when we know. Placed at ?800 or less and they could really kick up a storm. Cost any more and they might just get lost in the crowd.

Tags: Laptops Ultrabooks Samsung Samsung Series 5 CES2012 Photos Hardware

Samsung Series 5 Ultrabooks pictures and hands-on originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:17:00 +0000

Toshiba already has an Ultrabook; the Toshiba Portege Z830, but that didn't stop the Japanese company from showing off a second model at CES in Las Vegas this year.

Currently billed as a concept rather than a finished product, the "14-inch Ultrabook Design" stands out from the Portege model already on sale because it comes with the company's Satellite badge.

Talking to a spokeswoman for the company, Toshiba confirmed to Pocket-lint that the model, if it was to go on sale, would offer a "more affordable" Ultrabook that the one it already sells. ?

According to the accompanying specs on the stand the new Satellite Ultrabook would feature a 14-inch HD TruBrite display, a sleek, lightweight design with an aluminium finish. It would also feature Toshiba's Hi-Speed Start technology as well as Intel's Rapid Start technology. Users would also get USB sleep and charge.

Ports spotted down the sides of the laptop include HDMI, Thunderbolt, an SD card reader, Ethernet and, of course, USB.

No word on when the new laptop might be on sale but if we hear anything, we'll let you know.

Tags: Laptops Toshiba Ultrabooks CES2012 Hardware

Toshiba Satellite Ultrabook concept pictures and hands-on originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:15:00 +0000

The Logitech Cube?is a small, mouse-like presenting tool released by the PC accessories maker?Logitech and Pocket-lint was on hand to have a play at this year's CES in Las Vegas.

The first thing struck us is how damn small the cube is. When we first saw the official press pictures at the beginning of the month we expected the device to be the size of a pack of cards at least, but in the flesh it is smaller than a box of matches.

That means that you are controlling it with your fingertips rather than it sitting with your hand cupping it like you would a normal mouse.

The idea is that the top features a touchscreen surface that allows you to move your finger up and down to scroll. Left click is at the front of the top and right click in the middle.

In use and we found it no problem at all to navigate around the Windows PC that the mouse was connected to.

Where the Logitech Cube really shines is for presenting. In the hand and the device automatically knows that it is no longer on the desk and lets you click it to push forward in your PowerPoint presentation. Flip it over and it lets you go backwards. It really is that easy.

If you give a lot of presentations this pocket friendly gadget is well worth checking out.

The Logitech Cube costs ?80 and will be available in the next couple of weeks.

Tags: Hardware Mice And Keyboards Mice Logitech Logitech cube CES2012

Logitech Cube pictures and hands-on originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:17:00 +0000

Dell has laid down its markers and entered the Ultrabook arena, launching a 13-inch model as part of its XPS brand. The new Dell XPS 13 is light, portable and powerful and has some interesting details that we're really excited about.?

First up is design. Sure, it looks a lot like the MacBook Air, but that seems to be the Ultrabook norm. What we especially like is the use of premium materials. The aluminium lid is partnered beautifully with the 13.3-inch 1366 x 768 display, which is edge-to-edge Gorilla Glass. At 300 nits it's pretty bright too and looked sharp and vibrant when we got our hands-on it.

Flip the notebook over and you'll find a carbonfibre base. Cyclists beware, not only is this notebook going to be slim and light enough to take on the move, but it's constructed from the sexiest material on the road. It measures 6mm at the thinnest point, rising up 18mm and has a footprint of 316 x 205mm, surprisingly small for a 13.3-inch model. It weighs 1.36kg.

But sitting between these two sections, the deck of the XPS 13, is something of an oddity. The backlit chiclet keyboard is lovely and the glass trackpad is as silky smooth as one you'll find on a MacBook, but the rest of the deck has a slightly tactile feel to it, which is different.

We've only spent a short period of time with the Dell XPS 13 so far, but we can appreciate the attention to detail that has gone into it. There are no stickers, which liberally adorn the palm rests of most notebooks, instead you have a (removable) metal panel in the bottom of the XPS 13 giving its Windows credentials.

Around the side of this Ultrabook you'll get a push button battery life indicator. Connectivity isn't the widest of the Ultrabook clan - there is no Thunderbolt here - but you do get USB 2.0, USB 3.0, DisplayPort and a 3.5mm headphone jack, along with the usual wireless options.

Internally you'll get a choice of Intel Core i5 or i7 processors, 4GB of memory and graphic courtesy of Intel HD Graphics 3000. It's SSD all the way too, with a choice of 128 or 256GB drives.

A smart feature of the Dell XPS 13 is Intel Smart Connect Technology. This will wake up and connect to a friendly Wi-Fi connection when the laptop is in standby to update applications like email, meaning you can come down in the morning, lift the lid and find you're already up to date. It can be disabled if you don't like it, but it sounds like an interesting feature we're now used to from smartphones.

In our brief play with the XPS 13 it proved to be fast to start and open applications, but we can't verify much more on the performance front until we've spent longer with it. It felt solid and free from flex. The keyboard gave us a nice action and the trackpad didn't immediately throw up any problems, so it's a great start for the first Ultrabook from Dell.?

It's slated for a mid-March launch and prices are yet to be announced, but talking to a Dell spokesperson has lead us to believe that it’s not going to be ridiculously expensive.?

Tags: Hardware Laptops Dell Ultrabooks Intel CES2012 Photos Dell XPS 13

Dell XPS 13 pictures and hands-on originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 22:34:40 +0000

Samsung has pulled the covers off its take on the Ultrabook. The Samsung Series 5 Ultrabook will come in two sizes, 13- or 14-inches, and offer you a light and compact notebook.

The 13-inch is, obviously, the more portable of the two, weighing in at 1.38kg (should you opt for SSD), with the 13.3-inch anti-reflective display offering a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels, and a brightness of 300nit.

It will be powered by an Intel Core i5 processor with up to 8GB RAM and graphics powered by internal Intel HD Graphic 3000, and be 14.9mm at the thinnest point.

The 14-inch model on the other hand will be a little heavier at 1.84kg, but you do get the AMD Radeon HD7550M 1GB GPU to power the visuals. There is also space to cram in an optical drive, making this a veritable mobile powerhouse.

Both will offer you a 16GB iSSD with ExpressCache to ensure fast starting and launching of apps, as we've seen on previous Samsung notebooks.

The Samsung Series 5 Ultrabooks were released in Korea in December 2011 and now make their way to the UK. No word on prices just yet, but we'll update when we know.

Tags: Laptops Hardware Samsung Samsung Series 5 Ultrabooks Intel CES2012

Samsung Series 5 Ultrabook touches down originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 22:45:00 +0000

Belkin has announced its new Thunderbolt Express Dock at CES 2012 in las Vegas, which promises some pretty spectacular speeds for any Ultrabook or Macbook user.

As Pocket-lint recently reported, the Thunderbolt system will be coming to PCs in a big way in 2012 and this device is set to jump on the back of this introduction. The Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock enables Macbook and Ultrabook users to hook up a multitude of USB devices onto the dock and then connect to their laptop through a single cable - very handy.

The upshot of this is that you'll be able to watch Full HD videos at the same time as transferring large data files and viewing online content at gigabit Ethernet speeds.

And as we can expect a raft of Ultrabooks with the new Thunderbolt port, one of the latest being the svelt Acer Aspire S5, this should prove a popular device, as now you don't have to be a lover of Mac to get the full benefits associated with the tech.

"People purchase the MacBook Air and Ultrabook for ultimate portability, but constantly plugging-in and unplugging numerous cable-connected peripherals is an annoying and time consuming ordeal," said Martin Avilla, general manager of Belkin’s Core Business Unit. "The Thunderbolt Express Dock provides a much-needed solution that creates a cleaner, faster, more productive workspace and reliable connectivity to desktop devices and the Internet."

The Thunderbolt Express includes three USB 2.0 ports, one Firewire 800 port, one HDMI port,? one 3.5mm Audio port, one gigabit Ethernet port and two Thunderbolt ports (one upstream and one downstream) for daisy-chaining to another Thunderbolt compatible device.

Timing for launch is also crucial, so it's good that the Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock will be launching in the autumn of 2012 for $299, which coincides nicely with the expected Q2 launch of the Aspire S5.

Tags: Belkin Hardware Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock PC accessories Thunderbolt CES2012

Belkin Thunderbolt Express dock caters for upcoming Ultrabooks originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 13:15:00 +0000

Acer has kicked off the Ultrabook flurry at CES 2012 by unveiling the Aspire S5, described as the "world's thinnest Ultrabook", and the Aspire Timeline Ultra.

The new Acer Aspire S5 is a slimline notebook, only 15mm at the thickest point, featuring a 13.3-inch display, going up against the MacBook Air. It packs in an Intel Core processor and SSD to ensure speedy performance, but otherwise the tech specs are still something of a mystery.

Acer is keen to stress the design of this new Ultrabook however, describing a "delicately curved" chassis with a mag-alu alloy palm rest and cover. We liked the look of the Aspire S3?(pictured above), if not the overall build, and hopefully this second-gen Ultrabook will move things forward a little.?

Adding another flourish of detail is what Acer are calling the MagicFlip I/O, which is essentially a cover for the ports (HMDI, USB 3.0, Thunderbolt). According to the details, you press the button and it flips down, ensuring a clean and sleek design when they are not in use. You'll also get Dolby Home Theater tuning, as we saw on the predecessor.

Acer has also announced the launch of the Aspire Timeline Ultra range. Coming in either 14- and 15-inch screen sizes, the new models will promise 8 hours of battery life, an Intel Core processor, dedicated graphics for intensive 3D gaming and even a slim DVD-Super Multi optical drive.?

Acer says you should think of it as a slimmer and lighter version of earlier generations of the Timeline series. The new range will measure just 20mm thick.

Other specs include an SSD/HDD storage option, Dolby Home Theater, HDMI and USB 3.0 ports, as well as the company's Instant On and Always Connect tech (common to both models) that lets users manage their multimedia and data on all their devices at anytime, anywhere - even from sleep.

"The Ultrabook is much more than just a product segment. It's a new trend that will become the mainstream for mobile PCs, and customers will see the unique features gradually extended across Acer's notebook family",?said Jim Wong, president of Acer Inc.

The Aspire S5 will start shipping in Q2 2012, the Aspire Timeline Ultra in Q1 2012, no word on pricing just yet.

Read

Tags: Hardware Acer CES2012 Acer Aspire S5 Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra Ultrabooks Intel Laptops Thunderbolt

Acer Aspire S5 brings Thunderbolt to Ultrabooks originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Sun, 08 Jan 2012 21:20:00 +0000

Logitech has made the humble mouse square for 2012 as it looks to re-imagine that lump of plastic that sits next to your computer.

Called the Logitech Cube, the new accessory supposedly "offers everything you want in a mouse, and effortlessly becomes a presenter when you need it."?

When used as a mouse, the Logitech Cube scrolls when you swipe your finger along the main panel giving you a similar experience to your touchscreen smartphone, says the company that has been making mice and keyboards for decades.

To use the Logitech Cube as a presenter, Logitech says that all you need to do is lift it in the air and moments later it’s in presenter mode.

That means you can simply click the top of the mouse to advance to the next slide in your powerpoint presentation, and if you need to go back simply turn the mouse over in your hand and click again.?

The Logitech Cube is expected to be available in the US and Europe at the beginning of January 2012. It will be available online only at www.logitech.com for a suggested retail price of ?59.99.

It will be available in both black and white.

Tags: Hardware Logitech Mice Mice And Keyboards CES2012 Logitech cube

Logitech Cube: PC mouse goes square originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 05 Jan 2012 10:09:00 +0000

Desktop PCs aren't the most exciting aspect of the tech revolution, but we do still have a soft spot for svelte looking all-in-one machines. Show us a man that didn't go "oooh" after a first Apple iMac glance and we'll show you a liar.

And now, it seems, HP is after Apple's crown in the sexy computer stakes after unleashing the HP Omni 27, the first 27-inch AIO from the under-fire company.

And whilst it can't compete with the top range iMacs on the display level (a sufficient 1080p, but that's not as impressive as the 2560x1440 resolution on Apple's machines), it certainly does on price - starting at $1,199; $500 less than the 27-inch Apple machines.

And the hardware and performance should more than match up as well, with a Intel i5 2400S quad-core chip, 6GB of RAM and up to 2TB of space. Sadly, only Intel HD graphics but there is a Blu-ray option available as well as HDMI in, a TV tuner and HP's Magic Canvas software. There are two USB 3.0 ports, four USB 2.0 ports, a six-in-one memory card reader and the screen has a 25-degree angle tilt.

The HP Omni 27 is set to hit US shops next week and UK shops on 20 February. A price-tag has yet to be written up in the Queen's finest GBP.

Tags: Hardware PCs HP Omni 27 HP All in one PCs

HP Omni 27 takes on iMac in the big-screen AIO stakes originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 04 Jan 2012 11:28:00 +0000

With all new Apple laptops comes a new port - Thunderbolt. It promises to deliver super-fast transfer speeds to Thunderbolt drives or devices, so getting a file from A to B isn't something that takes you longer than getting across town on a Friday night in rush hour.

So can the super-fast, super-expensive Little Big Disk solve your storage needs?

Design

It's called the Little Big Disk because it is just that - an oxymoron - Big in file size, small in actual size - geddit? Anyway, random naming jokes aside, the small drive measures 85x40x145mm in size and weighs 650g. That's surprisingly heavy for the size of the box, and that's most likely down to the fact that it is made of metal. The metal is clever though, its ribbed design acts as a heatsink to save firing-up the internal fan constantly.

The front of the unit features the only button on the drive, and it just so happens that it glows blue when on. We suspect blue was chosen because red would remind you of HAL9000 and give you the hebegebies.

Memories of the scene "What are you doing Dave..." who echo in your mind every time you went to delete a file. Frightening.

Back to the design of the Big Little Disk and the back of the hard drive casing features the power socket, and two Thunderbolt ports. Frustratingly there are no other interfaces like Firewire or USB and that means that if you've not got a Thunderbolt port on your computer you're stuffed.

While that might seem like a stupid statement on a drive clearly advertised as designed for Thunderbolt, it means that if you want to plug your drive into your colleagues computer you had better hope they had upgraded to a brand new Mac.

Thunderbolt and the daisy chain

Thunderbolt technology was initially developed by Intel and originally called LightPeak. You can have up to six Thunderbolt devices connected to each other in a big daisy chain. That can be six hard drives, a couple of monitors (depending on which Mac you have), or a combination of the two.

While we weren't able to test the system with multiple Thunderbolt hard drives, we were able to test it with a standard monitor with a DVI to DisplayPort adapter. While our MacBook Air took a few seconds to recognise the connection, it works as it should.?

Performance

While the Big Little Disk looks pretty, we aren't too fussed about looks here. We want performance, and the knowledge that the drive is going to perform.

Rather than opt for a standard hard disk drive giving you a 1TB of data, here you get two 120GB SSD drives that work together to deliver 240GB of storage. That will either be on-par with the hard drive in your computer - if you are a MacBook Air user - or faster, if you are a MacBook Pro user who hasn't upgraded to an SSD already.

For testing purposes we used a 1.8GHz Intel Core i7 MacBook Air with 4GB 1333 MHz DDR3 RAM running the latest build of Mac OS X - version 10.7.2.

LaCie promises average data transfer rates of around 480MB a second and we easily achieved this. It took us under five seconds to transfer a 1.45GB file from the MacBook Air SSD drive to the Little Big Disk. On the return it took six seconds.

Transferring a 43.71GB iTunes folder with 8008 files took us 3 minutes 16 seconds. That's damn fast.

Our final test was to see how quickly we could create a Time Machine image of our system with the drive connected. The system backed up our 143.73GB image with almost 1m files in 57 minutes.

Software

In the box you'll get a handful of LaCie utilities including Intego and LaCie's own Backup Software even though the drive is Time Machine compatible. MacBook Air users be warned this comes on a CD.

Verdict:

There is no doubting the speed capabilities of the Little Big Disk. File transfer whether it is a single file or multiple files are fast. Thunderbolt certainly lives up to its claims.

On the design front, the Little Big Disk is small, stylish, and will look good on your desk, although we did notice some light leakage from the power light at the side of the device. Something we didn't expect on a device this highly-designed.

So what's the catch? Well the small drive isn't very portable. The accompanying power pack is still pretty large, and there aren't any other transfer options as a backup.?Then there's the price. In the UK it's ?750 ($899 in the US) and that's a hefty prize for something that will expand your storage, especially if you aren't too fussed about the speed.?Laughably, you don't even get a Thunderbolt cable for that price.

If the price or portability isn't an issue, then this this is certainly the best way to expand your Mac with a drive that will be as fast, if not faster, than your current internal offering. Just make sure you know how you're going to use those blistering transfer speeds, because if it is just to store your MP3 collection this new super fast tech will be wasted on you.

?

Tags: Hardware Hard drives Storage LaCie Lacie Little Big Disk

LaCie Little Big Disk - Thunderbolt Series originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 28 Dec 2011 13:00:00 +0000

We can safely say that in 2011, PC manufacturers have stepped up to the mark when it comes to design. Although Apple has had a fairly long headstart, we’ve seen more head-turning design in the Windows market thanalmost any other time, and not just at the high-end either.

Samsung has been in the thick of it and the Series 7 Chronos, or 700Z, is no exception. But this isn’t an Ultrabook, fighting it out in the thin and light stakes, but a fully-fledged notebook, packing in the power, but without sacrificing portability and design.

Design

We’ll get the MacBook Pro likeness out of the way now. There are a number of points that bring Apple’s notebook to mind, from the drop-down hinge, to the large trackpad to the keyboard. The cutout on the leading-edge to let you open the lid is identical, both in size and design. That’s no bad thing in our book because we love the MacBook Pro and it certainly makes the 700Z look good, while remaining functional, even if Samsung will find it hard to escape the copycat gibes.

The Chronos features a 15.6-inch display, which is impressive given the size of the chassis. It measures 362.1 x 238.5 and sits at 23.9mm deep. It weighs 2.29kg, which isn’t too heavy, but obviously isn’t designed to compete with something like the Samsung Series 9 on the portability front. The result is that you get plenty of display for your money, and a bezel slimmed down to let the screen out. Strength comes thanks to the metal backing, which helps give a premium finish and keep the 700Z mercifully free from fingerprints.

The deck of the 700Z sees the keyboard sitting in a slight recess, which stops the keys protruding above the wrist rest, which should mean they don’t touch the display when you close the lid. The wrist rest gives you plenty of space, so as a “latptop”, it’s a comfortable machine to use.

The body is plastic, as is the underside, but it feels solid enough and has been considerately designed, so it looks good from all sides. The sculpting around the base gives the illusion of slimness when sitting on a desk or table, and clever touches, like a drop-down section on the Ethernet port, have let Samsung stick to smart lines throughout.

Keyboard and touchpad

A backlit island-style keyboard spans the width of the deck and a lot has been crammed in, as a full numberpad sits on the right-hand side. Given the space available there are few compromises in terms of key size. The main QWERTY keys are well spaced and offer an excellent action, which feels precise. You can change the brightness of the backlighting too, which is always welcomed, controlled by the extensive function controls across the top.

Other shortcuts include the usual, brightness, volume, etc, but we like the fact that you also get access to Samsung’s Easy Settings, which are used to control some of the hardware settings. We’re not always fans of additional settings menus, but these are well implemented and clear, which is the important point.

If we have a criticism of the keyboard as a whole, however, it’s that the main keys are offset to the left as a result of the included numberpad. We’d rather not have that numberpad and have everything centralised, but if you’re a number-cruncher then it’s nice to have that in a notebook that isn’t huge. There are different versions of the Series 7 and we’ve seen the smaller model without a numberpad included, but you can’t buy all models in all territories, more’s the shame.

The trackpad is large and buttonless, but left and right “clicks” work as normal. It’s multitouch and a number of gestures are in place to help you navigate. Most work well enough, although you do get the feeling that Windows perhaps isn’t as adept at responding as Mac OS is: the two finger scrolling isn’t quite as slick, but the surface of the trackpad is beautifully smooth and amongst the best we’ve seen on a Windows notebook.

We did find that sometimes it would grab things with trailing finger, so for example we’d find that we were dragging a folder, rather than just moving the pointer. Again, it’s a minor point and something we’re sure you’ll get used to.

The hardware

Lying within, you’ll find an Intel Core i7 CPU, clocked at 2.2GHz, backed up by an impressive 8GB of RAM. Graphics come in the form of the AMD Radeon 6750M and you’ve got at 7200rpm 750GB hard drive for storage. There is also a card reader on the leading edge which will accept an SD card in its entirety, so there is no problem leaving a card in place while you travel about. A slot-loading DVD drive sits on the right-hand side too, which is impressive.

In addition, the 700Z is equipped with what Samsung is calling ExpressCache. This is an 8GB SSD that boosts key tasks. It isn’t directly accessible by the user, but reduces startup times and the launching of often-used applications. As a result, you can start from cold and be online in about 30 seconds.

The 15.6-inch display offers you a resolution of 1600 x 900, sharp enough and the size means it’s comfortable work on two documents side-by-side. It’s reasonably bright and ably assisted by the anti-glare finish, making it a good choice for those wanting to work in brighter conditions. Within the Easy Settings you’ll also find a range of display options, including picture profiles which let you change the colour temperature of the monitor to suit what you’re viewing.

We love the vivid colours of the “sharp” option. This feature also has an auto mode, so when you fire up a video the profile changes to better suit video playback.

You also have plenty of physical connections on offer. The right-hand side offers a single USB port - ideal for a 3G dongle - while the left-hand side provides you with DisplayPort, two USB 3.0 sockets, Ethernet and HDMI. You get a 3.5mm headphone/mic socket too.

Performance

The result is that the 700Z is a pleasure to use, whether it’s for work or leisure. There is plenty of power on tap for more intensive tasks and plenty of space to work. The finish of the display means it’s great for those working on the move, even if the size of the Series 7 makes it less attractive than something like an Ultrabook.

Samsung's claim about starting fast ring true, and that saves you time every time you fire-up the 700Z. It's also fast to open and close applications thanks to that Core i7 CPU and there is no problem handling your movies: we were impressed with how quickly and smoothly high definition videos played back, ably assisted by a boost from the display.

The extra keys might not just be put to use for number crunching, because although this isn't a gaming laptop by any measure, having a dedicated GPU means you can play some respectable games, albeit not at the highest settings. Overall there is little sign of lag as you wait for things to get going, close or switch applications.

Of course, what you don’t get is a replaceable battery. The emphasis on design does mean that this is a sealed unit, so you can’t just throw a spare battery in your bag if you are out of the office for a long day out. Of course there are power saving options, including an “eco” mode.

You’ll probably get around 6 hours of working life from the battery, dependent on usage of course - if you fire up more intensive applications this will be cut drastically. Samsung has also put into place something called “Battery Life Extender” which claims to limit charging to 80 per cent, thereby extending the life of the battery. You’ll have to play with all the settings to see what works and what doesn’t, but with a battery that isn’t user serviceable, it might be worth trying.

Verdict:

Overall the Samsung Series 7 is an impressive notebook. It looks good, it feels good and it has had some considerate control tweaks from Samsung. You might consider it a copycat design, but you'll save yourself about ?500 over a similar Apple machine, with this 700Z coming in at around ?1000.

We’re not sold on the keyboard arrangement however. Although the keys are very nice to use, the offset makes this a computer that might not suit those who aren’t going to get regular use of the numberpad. By contrast, it could be exactly the thing, if crunching numbers is what you do.

With plenty of power on offer and a great display, it’s still just about light enough to be portable, but we have to commend Samsung in making efficient use of the display space.

Tags: Laptops Hardware Samsung Samsung Series 7 Chronos

Samsung Series 7 Chronos 700Z originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:48:49 +0000