2016/17 ATIV Book 9 with Kaby Lake COMING SOON: 13.3" and 15.0" versions

Hello!
I had an XPS 15 but had to return it at work. Wasn't that happy with it anyway. Now I am considering this new Samsung 9. Problem is that I live in Germany. My wife will visit the USA in april so she could bring one home. Problem is that I don't know if and how i can return it, to Amazon.com, if it turns out a dissapointment.

I do not like the idea of a cheapish plastic feeling laptop. Great for portability, but I use my laptop at home on the sofa. When I go somewhere I hve my phone or tablet.

I also saw a Lenovo Ideapad 710s in a store which really looked good, but that doesn't come in 15 inch. Also saw a great 14 inch HP Spectre in silver, but, again, doesn't come in 15 inch.

This is hard. I wish I could read better and thorough reviews about this Samsung 9. I am also considering buying last years version, but that hasn't got backlight keyboard. LG gram is not my taste.

Now what?

What would be a good second hand buy you guys think? With Windows 10, good battery life, good screen and keyboard? Anybody has a tip for me perhaps?

I hope Mobile Tech Review comes with another review of the 15 inch model...

 

Yeah, I just meant the 2017 models.

 

Lisa just published a review of the LG Gram 14"

 

"reception is good,.. its its .. pretty good. .. its not exeptionally good. .. its its ... average."
so typical for a mtech review, there is no bad, its always kinda ok..
and pro: pleasing display?? with this average blacklevel, for nowadays bad contrast, you have to calibrate it AND glare like a mirror??
the only positive thing about these reviews is that you get a good look from inside and outside of the notebook.

anyways, isnt this a samsung series 9 thread?

 

Yea, but we comparing it to its competitors.

 

That's a pretty solid product from LG. You could see when she stacked them on top of one another that the 14" Gram has the same footprint as the Samsung 13.3".

Lisa spoke about how her 14" Gram touchscreen was more reflective than the Samsung 13.3" (which is also glossy, but better with reflections). However, you have to keep in mind that the 14" Gram non-touch panel option (which Lisa doesn't show or likely have for testing) would be less reflective and more similar to the Samsung 13.3".

Overall, the 14" Gram seems to dominate the Samsung 13.3" with respect to battery life, thicker metal build, and aesthetics. Lisa mentioned she preferred the Samsung keyboard over the Gram, but the difference didn't sound that much better. The X1 Carbon has the best keyboard of the 3.

I would rank the laptops:

1. 14" X1 Carbon
2. 14" Gram
3. Samsung 13.3"

I give the X1 Carbon the edge over the LG Gram due to:

1. Best keyboard on market
2. Better trackpad
3. Choice between 1080p or 1440p matte display options on the Carbon
4. More advanced ports (i.e. Carbon has two Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports and DisplayPort)
5. Carbon has 4G LTE connectivity

*** Battery life on the Carbon and Gram appear to be even. ***

In conclusion, I personally could not justify purchasing the Samsung 13.3" at all. It's simply not even in the same ballpark as the Carbon or Gram.

And if you're in the 15"/15.6" market, I would also choose the 15.6" Gram or XPS 15 over the Samsung 15".

 

@foodie009: Lisa from MobileTechReview gets a score of 3824 for the 13 inch Notebook 9. (The LG 14" had a score of 3501.) Were you running your test on battery or AC power?

 

I'm actually now leaning towards the Acer Swift 3. The extra inch of screen and 0.6 lb weight savings on the Samsung isn't really worth the $400 premium.

And there's also the Swift 5, which weighs about the same with similar specs as the L01US again at a cheaper price.

 

Well, wouldn't the counterargument be that the Samsung 15" sports a 2GB graphics card instead of just integrated graphics?

 

Following all the reviews, the new Samsung Notebook 9 13 inch seems to be the winner for what I want. Compared with the LG Gram, it is lighter, less glossy and brighter screen, better keyboard and and trackpad, more memory. The only downside is less battery life, and potentially more flex, which doesn't bother me that much. I hope Lisa does a head to head...

 

@huberth

I am pretty sure I ran it on AC. Windows might been running some background tasks like File Indexing in the background though, so that could have affected it. I re-ran the benchmark today, and here is the updated result:

PCMark (Home - Accelerated) [ http://www.3dmark.com/pcm8/18776773]

 

15" Samsung Notebook 9 (2017) Review from MobileTechReview is out now:



The most enthusiastic review so far!

@foodie009: Did you notice any brightness driver issues?

 

THANKS!!!

 

@huberth No I did not notice any brightness issues.

Few other interesting observations that I can share with you guys after a few days of usage:

1. Surprisingly snappy
I don't fully understand why, but it does not get constipated under high load the way Surface Book or Lenovo X1 carbon does - those just tend to freezy when performing cpu intensive tasks, but this one remains very responsive.

2. Outdoor mode is awesome
The extra brightness makes the laptop usable on the bus / outside, which is an awesome perk.

3. Fingerprint reader is faster than the one on IPhone 6s
And much-much-much faster than the facial recognition on the Surface Book.

4. Very easy to scratch
This is one thing that I definitely don't like about this laptop - you can scratch it just by looking at it. I used Macbook 12" for about 1.5 years, and had no scratches / scuffs on it whatsoever. I already have a number of scratches on the back of the laptop, and a few scuffs on the lid. Recommend putting some kind of protective case / sticker on it...

 

@foodie009 , can you go into a little more detail on the Samsung keyboard? Are you experiencing unusual missed keystrokes? Are they snappy and easy to type fast on?

 

Samsung why silver keyboard???

 

@Jacks0n - Samsung does have the "Crush White" and "Coral Blue" versions of this laptop with gorgeous white keyboards for sale....in Korea and Hong Kong. You can probably get one of those through eBay if you really want.

@vvb8890 - the keyboard is quite nice. I don't think I have experience any missed strokes or had any frustrating moments with it yet. I am not a professional typist though, so I cannot comment on the CPM/WPM speeds, etc. Here is my subjective view on keyboards:

Tier 1 - Awesome:
Original IBM/Lenovo keyboards

Tier 2 - Excellent:
New chiclet style Lenovo keyboards, Surface Book, old Macbook Pro keyboard.

Tier 3 - Very good:
Samsung Notebook 9

Tier 4 - Okish:
LG Gram, New Macbook Pro keyboard (butterfly v2)

Tier 5 - Don't do it:
Macbook 12 keyboard (butterfly v1), slim Asus notebook keyboards

Sidenote #1: For what it's worth, I really didn't like the keyboard on the Dell XPS 15. The keys felt very small and very plasticy - like the cheap plastic you find on the $400 budget laptops. I also kept mistyping and pressing the wrong keys for some reason - that really got on my nerves quickly.

Sidenote #2: Don't get tricked into thinking that new Apple "butterfly" keyboards are comfortable to type on. I had Macbook 12" for 1.5 years, and while owning it I was "very happy" with the keyboard once you "get used to it". Now that I have sold it, I can tell you that's absolute bs - the keyboard was barely acceptable at best, but I did like the small form factor and weight a lot. The new Macbook Pro keyboard is better, but honestly I would take Surface Book / Lenovo / Samsung any day over it. The old Macbook Pro keyboard was excellent though.

 

@foodie009
re: "1. Surprisingly snappy
I don't fully understand why, but it does not get constipated under high load the way Surface Book or Lenovo X1 carbon"

Did you have 8GB RAM in the Surface Book or Lenovo X1 carbon?
If so, it most likely is the 16GB RAM that makes your Notebook 9 so snappy.

 

@huberth
The Surface Book has 16GB while the X1 carbon has 8GB, and no RAM was not the bottleneck. When running either one under 100% CPU load, both system feel very slow and unresponsive when launching apps / browsing the web - the Samsung feels a bit more responsive for some reason. The only thing that comes to mind is CPU throttling, but I have not verified it.

 

Thanks for the reply.

I've tried the Acer Swift 3 and Swift 5 keyboards. The Swift 3 keyboard is excellent - very tactile and snappy. The Swift 5 has far less travel but it's still pretty responsive.

 

Does anyone know the specifications of the USB-C port on the Notebook 9 15"? Required amperage for charging, display outputs, etc.?

 

1 x USB-C™ [up to 5Gbps, 4K display out with optional adapter, Charging]
One cable for everything. Recharge with USB. It’s easy to power up your Notebook 9. Use the same USB-C charging cable you use for your smartphone and other electronic devices. With just one cable, you can keep working even while you’re riding in a car, waiting for a flight or up in the air.
http://www.samsung.com/us/computing/windows-laptops/15-18/np900x5n-x01us-np900x5n-x01us/

USB-C chargers typically provide about 3 Amps:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/3017...-every-device-we-have-to-chase-the-dream.html

 

They seem pretty confident that it has a wide range of uses. There are a lot of laptops on the market with USB-C ports that only do some things or only charge at a certain amperage, like 2.25A instead of 3A.

 

The voltages offered by the charger is the other factor. The USB-C Power Delivery spec includes negotiation between the computer and charger. My Dell Latitude 7370 wants 20V. The charger supplied for it is 45W (20V, 2.25A) but it will work with another charger I bought which is rated at 30W (and includes 20V, 1.5A) but reports suggest that it won't work with a charger which doesn't offer 20V.

So the key factor for these Samsungs is to figure out the expected input voltage from a USB-C device.

John

 

Likely throttling. Perhaps the Samsung has better cooling to allow for longer turbo. Or perhaps improvements in the kaby lake chipset as there were multiple issues with Skylake iirc.

Is there an official Samsung thunderbolt dock?

 

Not from Samsung. But here is a review of the different TB docks available:
http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-thunderbolt-dock/

According to it, the only TB3 dock shipping now is the CalDigit TS3 Lite Thunderbolt 3 Docking Station:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6Q38B2/?tag=thewire06-20&linkCode=xm2&ascsubtag=WC66233
(but it does not support Laptop Charging)

The OWC Thunderbolt 3 Dock will come out in April and has laptop charging:
https://eshop.macsales.com/preorder/owc-thunderbolt-3-dock/

(Per Samsung Spec Sheet, the Notebook 9 15 inch has Thunderbolt 3
https://news.samsung.com/us/CES+2017+Samsung+Notebook+9+15”+Fact+Sheet )

 

This dock and adapter stuff is pretty ridiculous and kind of detracts from the appeal of tb3, as great as it is. Am I to assume that monitors and TVs that will be released in 2017 or 2018 will have an usb-c input so we can eventually eliminate the need to these docks/adapters?

 

I find docks useful. They allow you to have monitor, keyboard, backup drive, optical drive, speakers, etc. plugged into the dock and only need to unplug one cable to take the laptop on the road.

 

That's true, but you'll have to unplug the dock and bring it with you if you plan on plugging your laptop into a tv or a remote monitor, unless you have adapters.

I do like the dock for its ability to add ports that a slim device like an ultrabook doesn't usually have the space to provide, I just don't like the current state of things where USB-C is a port that is capable of doing so much, but all of the devices that connect to it still use different plugs (USB3, HDMI, Displayport, etc). Once the USB-C is universal on both sides of the spectrum I think it'll be great.

The dock will still have it's place as a useful addition, but it won't be the necessity that it is today.

 

Has anyone besides Foodie have the new Samsung Notebook 9? I'm still waiting for Fry's to have one on display.

 

Thanks. Strange how long TB3 has taken to roll out. Slow clap for Intel.

It has a full size HDMI 2.0 as well so leave the TB3 dock at your workstation.

It would be cool to see TVs with TB3 ports. Imagine a streaming stick the size of a flash drive that didn't need an extra power cable. Unfortunately, it will be 10 years before those TVs are commonplace in hotels. Monitor's with built in hubs should be coming soon.

 

Why would you have to use a USB c to USB c cable? You can already buy USB c to hdmi or display port cables.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Because if everything had a usbc port a usbc-to-usbc is the only cable you would need.

 

But you would need multiple USB-C ports on the laptop to handle different duties like charging and video output, unless you want to carry a hub dongle. Most laptops only have one USB-C port except a couple (useless) ultrabooks.

 

Can anyone verify whether the 15" Notebook 9 has PWM or not?

Is there a way to test it without special equipment?

 

I was just told by a Samsung customer service rep on live chat that all their laptops use PWM.

 

Pwm is bad?

 

Yes. It can cause eye strain and headaches.

 

Oh damn. Does the new LG have the same issue?

 

Here's a brief but useful description of PWM. Many (most?) displays use it as a method to control the backlight brightness, particularly at the low brightness levels. Many, however, only use PWM at the low brightness (when, I presume, it's not possible to dim the backlight LEDs further without them going off completely) and even this is not a problem if the PWM frequency is very high.

John

 

So, I went to Frys again and the 14 Inch lg they have on display is broken. The screen went black and is flickering. I asked one of the employees and he was like I guess it's broken. I tried restarting it but to no avail. LOL....

 

Here is a PWM ranking of laptops. Unfortunately it does not include Samsung and LG laptops.
' http://laptopmedia.com/top-laptop-pwm-ranking-rated-by-negative-impact-on-eyesight/

How to test for PWM yourself
The simple method:

• 1. Do you have a fan in the office? Try to put it in front of the screen and see if you can spot the flickering when looking through the rotating fan. If you see flicker then you know that the LEDs are running at a low frequency.

• 2. Use the camera on your smartphone. Start the camera app and point down towards the keyboard, then quickly up towards the monitor. Do you see flickering lines running from left to right? Then the LEDs are running at low frequency. Note that most smartphone automatically adjust the camera to avoid showing the flicker so it is important to start by pointing down towards the keyboard (or another place without that is not too bright).
  from: http://www.flatpanelshd.com/focus.php?subaction=showfull&id=1362457985

@foodie009: Could you run this test on your Notebook 9 15inch?

 

whats the sense of doing tests to prove pwm if you dont see that its flickering??
so if this doesnt flicker with lowest brightness setting, who cares..

if this is the same display as the 2016 model, then there is no flickering at all.
and it gets pretty dark on lowest brightness, which is a great thing.

can pls an owner of the 15" read the monitor ID/Model?

2016 15" model:
Monitor ID SDC504A
Manufacturer SAMSUNG
Model 150HL01-C01
Manufacture Date 2015

 

Oh wow, I see these lines in my HP Monitor. I just did the smartphone test on my HP 27vx. Wow, no wonder I get eye strain.

So this is PWM? Is it bad on my monitor and laptop?

 

this is a samsung thread.

 

Your monitor may not have PWM. Check out the monitor on the right in this video:

 

I was able to get my hands on the 15" Samsung. I did the pen test and yes, it does have PWM, on all levels except full brightness.

The 15.6" LG Gram does not have any PWM.

 

My laptop in my video is a Samsung

 

Samsung Notebook 9 15 Ext review: Quite possibly the best 15-inch Ultrabook

http://www.windowscentral.com/samsung-notebook-9

He gives it 5/5 stars.