I have never been the type to enjoy having too many gadgets in my home. I prefer to have a few select devices that can do multiple things. My phone and computer are constantly being used around my home, and since I always have these devices on me, I never had a reason to get another piece of gear. However, the Samsung Galaxy Book is a device that has found a space in my regular lineup. It is the perfect companion to keep with me at all times of the day.
The Samsung Galaxy Book is a tablet designed by Samsung to compete against the likes of the Microsoft Surface. Both are attempting to be a regular computing device that you can take with you no matter where you go. They are designed to offer the power of a laptop while also providing the mobility and ease of access one would get with a tablet. The Samsung Galaxy Book did just that and provided me with a full laptop experience no matter where I took it.
Looks and Specs
The Samsung Galaxy Book is a gorgeous device. Featuring a clean polished-metal body, the tablet is very beautiful to look at. The bezel frames the screen and really pushes the clean look that Samsung is aiming for. The keyboard case has a nice matte grey finish and really accents the device’s profile. Coming in at 1.42lbs and 9mm thick, the Galaxy Book is very sleek. The screen is 10.6″, which is plenty of space. Video playback looks okay on the TFT LCD display and with a resolution of 1920 x 1280 I didn’t struggle to see anything.
| Samsung Galaxy Book 10.6” Product Specification | |
|---|---|
| DISPLAY | 10.6" TFT FHD (1920x1280) |
| CHIPSET | 7th Gen Intel® Core™ m3 processor, Dual Core 2.6GHz |
| LTE SUPPORT | LTE Cat.6 (300Mbps) |
| MEMORY | 4GB + 64GB/128GB eMMC microSD up to 256GB |
| CAMERA | 5MP FF |
| PORT | USB 3.1(Type-C), Micro SD |
| SENSORS | Accelerometer, Hall, Light |
| WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, 2X2 MIMO, Bluetooth® 4.1 BLE |
| GPS | GPS + GLONASS |
| DIMENSION, WEIGHT | 261.2 x 179.1 x 8.9 mm, 640g(Wi-Fi) / 650g(LTE) |
| BATTERY CAPACITY | 30.4W / up to 10hrs, Fast Charging |
| OS/UPGRADE | Windows 10 |
| SAMSUNG SERVICES & APPLICATIONS | Samsung Notes, Air Command, Samsung Flow |
| VIDEO | Recording: FHD(1920X1080) @30fps Playback: 4K(3840X2160) @30fps |
The Samsung Galaxy Book doesn’t only look good, it runs well. Behind that screen is a 2.6GHz Intel Core m3 processor. Going alongside the CPU was 4GB of RAM and a 64GB solid state drive. The dual speakers in the device were plenty loud and will be more than enough to let you watch anything without the need of headphones. However, if you do want to use headphones, the device does come with a standard 3.5mm stereo jack. All of this is powered by a 4000mAh battery that takes advantage of Samsung’s fast charging technology. I never struggled to run any programs I would need in my daily work.
OS and Programs
Speaking of programs, the Galaxy Book comes equipped with the Windows 10 operating system, which meant that all my regular programs were ready and available to me. In fact, they were all so readily available to me that I rarely needed my laptop except for gaming. Watching videos, grab the Galaxy Book. Send lengthy emails, grab the Galaxy Book. Reading news or eBooks? Grab the Galaxy Book. Between my phone and the Galaxy Book, I was able to do 90% of my daily activities without needing my laptop or my computer.
Unfortunately, the Samsung Galaxy Book is not the best when it comes to gaming. Without an external graphics card, anything that you want to play has to come from the CPU’s integrated graphics card. This meant no The Witcher 3, but I did run games such as Runescape and Hearthstone. The Galaxy Book could run the likes of Diablo 3 and similar games but the lack of a mouse is what hurts the device.
Peripherals
Normally, I would have plugged in some peripherals and got to work, seeing what I could do. However, one of the biggest issues with the Samsung Galaxy Book is that there isn’t a USB port. There is a USB-C port on the device, but there aren’t that many mice on the market that use USB-C. This meant that any tasks where I required the precision of a mouse were done on my computer rather than the Galaxy Book.
However, not all hope is lost. Included with the Samsung Galaxy Book is the S Pen. The S Pen isn’t anything brand new to Samsung devices, but it is used really well here. The screen is perfectly sized so that I could easily scribble any notes or thoughts I had. I am no artist, but the S Pen does plenty and will be more than welcome in the hands of anyone who wants to scribble down thoughts on the fly.
The Samsung Galaxy Book became my go-to companion device. Whenever I needed to do something that my phone couldn’t handle or that required more power, I reached for the Samsung Galaxy Book. However, the device is not without its shortcomings. The lack of USB meant that I couldn’t plug external storage in, and without a dedicated GPU I won’t be playing many games on it—but that’s not what I use it for. The Samsung Galaxy Book is a great piece of companion technology but it won’t be replacing my computer anytime soon.
