A stunning 2-in-1 notebook, the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook raises the bar for the high-end Chromebook market to exhilarating new heights.
What if a Chromebook appeared to be as excellent as, if not superior to, any current PC laptop? Based just on its sophisticated 4K screen and industrial style, might it be one of the greatest laptops? Several of those questions can be answered emphatically “yes” by the Galaxy Chromebook, however there are certain restrictions.
While you’re busy gawking at how surprisingly thin the Galaxy Chromebook is, you might not notice some of its interesting tricks. For instance, the keyboard deck has a camera, and Samsung’s S-Pen is docked in the side.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: Price and configurations
Samsung is presently offering the Galaxy Chromebook for steep discounts. It costs $699 (opens in new tab) on Samsung.com, down from $999 by $300. The Galaxy Chromebook is only offered in one configuration. It has a 256GB SSD, an integrated Intel UHD graphics chip, a 10th generation Intel Core i5 processor, and 8GB of Memory.
Ordering the Mercury Gray Galaxy Chromebook, which presently delivers in about a week, or holding out a few more weeks for the Fiesta Red colorway—which is worth the wait—are your only options for customization.
On April 6, 2020, the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook was released.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: Design
Although I don’t like to refer to technology as being pretty, the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook is an incredibly gorgeous 2-in-1 laptop. We put to the test a Galaxy Chromebook that was painted Fiesta Red by Samsung (there is also a less exciting gray variant), which shows how much a single coat of paint can accomplish. It makes most pricey laptops look meek by contrast.
I enjoy how the light strikes the Galaxy Chromebook and produces a glittering array of hues as I look at it under my desk lamp. Also, the contrast between the red and the silver trim on the laptop’s edges works well.
You’ll notice the incredibly narrow bezels on the top, left, and right sides of the display, which have the same 0.15 to 0.2 inch width as the Dell XPS 13’s InfinityEdge bezels, once you get over how vivid the red machined metal chassis looks. Although the MacBook Air 2020’s wider bezels are put to shame by this screen’s thinness, the bottom bezel is thicker at about 0.8 inches.
With dimensions of 11.9 x 8 x 0.4 inches and a weight of 2.3 pounds, the Galaxy Chromebook is smaller and lighter than any 13-inch laptop I’ve ever seen. That is not just somewhat smaller and lighter than the Google PixelBook Go (12.2 x 8.1 x 0.5 inches, 2.3 pounds), but it also beats the MacBook Air in size (11.9 x 8.4 x 0.6 inches, 2.8 pounds). Moreover, the Dell XPS 13 is bulkier and heavier (11.6 x 7.8 x 0.6 inches, 2.6 to 2.8 pounds).
The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook is a convertible 2-in-1, so you can turn the screen around to use it as a tablet or prop it up in display or tent mode by rotating the display up to 360 degrees. The Galaxy Chromebook’s hinge should be a little bit firmer, as it wobbles when you tap, I observed at this point.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: Ports and S-Pen
Review of the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook: Ports and S-Pen. The Chromebook’s microSD slot and power button are on the right, while the headphone jack, volume control, and power button are all on the left.
At first, you might not even understand what the small rectangular button on the right side of the Galaxy Chromebook is. You’ll probably chuckle at Samsung’s creativity after you click down and the back of the S-Pen stylus pops out.
Yet another minor detail that you might not notice? The upper right corner of the keyboard houses a fingerprint reader for unlocking the Samsung Chromebook.
Although you could use the screen capture, laser pointer, and magnifying glass features of the S-Pen in laptop mode, I wouldn’t recommend it. The Galaxy Chromebook’s hinge, as I previously stated, isn’t sturdy enough to remain stationary while you prod it with a finger or the S-Pen. Until I realized how my penmanship started to get a little erratic, I didn’t think this was a huge deal. The display still moves a little when you press it, even when it is fully turned around to lie against the Chromebook’s back in tablet mode.
I’m not sure how frequently I’d use the S-Pen (I hardly ever use the iPad Pro’s 2nd Gen Apple Pencil), but Samsung deserves praise for how seamlessly it was incorporated into the Galaxy Chromebook’s exterior. This makes it difficult to misplace the tiny stylus and establishes a norm that other businesses ought to follow.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: Display
The 13.3-inch 4K AMOLED panel on the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook has brilliant, colorful picture quality and incredibly low bezels, which are everything you could want in a high-end laptop. I observed incredibly vivid blues when the camera tracked a school of fish underwater and brilliantly inky black tones when spores floated away against a dark background while watching UHD nature films on YouTube.
A quick side note: 4K video is still lacking for Chromebooks. Outside of nature movies, there are very few options available right now, making it difficult to convince people to purchase 4K Chromebooks, especially given the battery trade-offs. Although YouTube has some 4K content, Disney Plus and Netflix should eventually support Chrome with UHD content.
Our colorimeter shows that the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook delivers 224% of the sRGB color spectrum, which is significantly more than the Pixelbook Go’s 108%, the MacBook Air’s 113%, and the XPS 13’s 108%. This shouldn’t come as a huge surprise considering how highly saturated the colors are on Samsung screens, particularly those found on the company’s smartphones.
OLED panels can be challenging to test for brightness, so we took two measurements of the Galaxy Chromebook’s AMOLED panel. It measured 357 nits in average brightness (based on light gun readings from the four corners and the center). That is less bright than the 386-nit MacBook Air but comparable to the 368-nit Pixelbook Go. The 1080p version of the XPS 13 was the brightest of the trio with 417 nits, while the 4K panel was rated for 301 nits.
The Galaxy Chromebook outperformed the competition with a score of 536 nits on our test of OLED display brightness, which measures the highest brightness in the display’s center in a single window.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: Audio and cameras
I was impressed by how such a small notebook could produce sound loud enough that I could hear it in nearby rooms as the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook played Run The Jewels’ “Ooh La La” throughout my living room. I did note that the bass was a little light, and it continued as I turned on Jay-“S. Z’s Carter” and Daft Punk’s “Instant Crush,” even though the sound remained clear at maximum volume.
The Galaxy Chromebook offers two cameras, with the standard 1-megapixel webcam providing the most functional image quality. On Zoom calls, your coworkers will be able to see you, however the pictures I took of myself were grainy and unimpressive.
At the upper-left corner of the keyboard deck, there is a crisper 8-megapixel sensor. Intended for users who wish to shoot photos with the 2-in-1 in tablet mode, this camera captured sharper photos than the webcam, but they were still not as good as the cameras on my iPhone 11 Pro Max, or even the last couple of iPhones. Also, it was awkward using a 13-inch tablet as a camera.
The Galaxy Chromebook outperformed the competition with a score of 536 nits on our test of OLED display brightness, which measures the highest brightness in the display’s center in a single window.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: Keyboard, touchpad and touchscreen
The clicky keys on the Galaxy Chromebook were functional, but I’m not really fond of them. For starters, this keyboard reminds me a lot of the shallowButterfly-switch keyboard that Apple is thankfully phasing out of its MacBooks. On the 10fastfingers.com typing test, I tested my speed at 69 words per minute, which is a little slower than my average of 80 wpm.
The 4.6 x 2.3-inch touchpad on the Samsung Chromebook makes navigating fluid and quick. My two-finger scrolling and three-finger motions in Chrome were quickly recorded by the frosted-red rectangle (which contrasts with the cherry-red keyboard deck).
The 13.3-inch touchscreen on the Samsung Chromebook was similarly responsive to my touches while I browsed the internet and opened the app drawer at the bottom of the screen. I observed that web pages scrolled just as smoothly when I used the touchpad as I pulled them up and down.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook is the first convertible laptop that actually makes me think of a sports car, I realized while I was writing this review. This Chromebook screams luxury, from its vibrant Fiesta Red color scheme to its strong performance and precise structure. If only its battery life didn’t make me think of a gas guzzler that runs out of gas way too quickly.
Check out the Google Pixelbook Go if you want a Chromebook with better durability and a lower cost (but less speed and style). The 1080p Dell XPS 13 boasts a ton of battery life and superb performance if you could handle rocking Windows 10. The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook is still worth a test drive for anyone seeking for a Chrome OS notebook with a stunning screen.
