"This is a cheap and powerful laptop that ticks all the major boxes and over-delivers on performance and battery life"
John Hillman
The Samsung R530 is that rare and exotic creature that only comes along once in a while. It is a powerful machine with a fast processor and a nice screen that you can get for under £450, which basically makes it a gem in these difficult and straightened times.
It may not look like the most exciting one ever made but I challenge you to find me a 15 inch laptop with this much RAM and a dual core Intel processor for less cash – legally of course!
What we like most
The Samsung R530 is an ideal laptop to have around the house and despite its budget price will perform tasks at a quick pace. The Intel Core 2 Duo processor delivers enough oomph to get on with pretty much any home computing task and, with 3 – 4 Gb RAM and the new Windows 7 OS, it manages to deliver a genuinely pleasant computing experience all round.
The 15.6 inch screen is a nice size and thanks to the integrated Intel GMA 4500M graphics can display HD video. It has a 1366 x 768 pixel resolution and is fine for watching movies on, although the graphics aren’t really suitable for 3D gaming.
Keyboard-wise you get a well-designed and sensibly positioned keyboard which includes a useful numeric pad on the right hand side for easy number crunching. You also get an HDMI and VGA for rigging up your Samsung to another TV or monitor, which is another thing you won’t always find on a laptop for under £400.
Although it’s a powerful laptop the battery still gives you around four hours usage which is very good when compared to other laptops in this price range.
What we like least
There are a couple of small things to consider. First up is the fact that at 2.4 Kg the Samsung R530 is not a massively portable machine and will be better suited to those of you looking for a good laptop top keep around the home.
The second consideration is the fact that the speakers are what can only be described as tinny – as tinny as a Heinz Baked Bean factory in fact. However anyone who knows anything about audio will tell you that it doesn’t come cheap, so our advice is get yourself a pair of external speakers with the money you’d save on this laptop and plug them in.
This is a cheap and powerful laptop that ticks all the major boxes and over-delivers on performance and battery life, with a very nice keyboard and a cool screen. In the midst of these recessionary times it’s no surprise that this is proving to be such a popular machine. It’s almost as though those designers at Samsung saw the recession coming – spooky!
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Processor Speed
2.2 GHz
Processor
Intel Core 2 Duo T6600
RAM
Up to 4 Gb RAM
Screen Size
15.6 inch
LED Backlit 1366 x 768 pixel resolution
Graphics
Intel GMA 4500M
Hard Drive Storage
Up to 320 Gb Hard Drive
Battery
Li-on 6-cell
Multimedia
Realtek HD Audio
DVD drive
Speakers
Headphone Jack
Microphone Jack
Ports
3 X USB
1 x SD/SDHC/MMC card reader
1 x HDMI
1 x VGA
1 x Ethernet
Weight & Size
380mm (W) x 36mm (H) x 256mm (D)
2.4 kg
Connectivity
Wireless LAN 802 n
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
This Samsung laptop looks set to give the Apple MacBook a run for its money. It looks smart and has the brains that count, making it all the more appealing!
The R530 comes in a very robust, black and red casing and its casing is actually engineered to reduce the risk of scratches and fingerprint marks. That’s a good start!
It contains a 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T6600 processor, an integrated Intel GMA 4500M graphics, 3Gb of RAM and 320Gb hard drive. This is a great deal of power considering the price you pay – it is a budget laptop that doesn’t scrimp on the essentials.
It sports a 1,366×768 pixel resolution that can handle HD video beautifully. The display is bright and crisp and its glossiness makes watching movies a dream – though beware of glare when working in bright light.
The battery lasts a satisfying four hours and weighs around 2.4kg, which isn’t bad for a 15 inch laptop.
Sometimes it’s the little touches that count, and the R530 comes with a 17-key numerical pad on the keyboard which is great for people who work with numbers.
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