Something to look forward to: Samsung unveiled a number of new laptops today as part of its Galaxy Unpacked event, including a gaming laptop. The Galaxy Book Pro and Pro 360 are premium ultrabooks that look to take on Apple’s MacBook Air and Microsoft’s Surface Laptop. While one is a traditional clamshell design, the other is a 2-in-1 that folds into a tablet, both of them powered by Intel Tiger Lake chips.
The Galaxy Book Pro comes with either 13-inch or 15-inch Full HD AMOLED screens. Both get Intel’s 11th-gen processors (i3/i5/i7) and the larger version is available with Nvidia’s MX450 graphics. RAM starts at 8GB and can be maxed out to 32GB, while storage tops out at 1TB.
Each model sports a full complement of wireless connectivity including Wi-Fi 6 and 6E, however, only the 13-inch model gets LTE. Those who desire ports will be mostly satisfied as the Galaxy Book Pro has a USB Type-C (w/ Thunderbolt 4), USB 3.2 Type-A, a headphone jack, and microSD card slot.
The Galaxy Book Pro 360 has largely the same specs with slight differences. It upgrades to a Super AMOLED display and folds over itself to become a tablet. The 13-inch version gets 5G connectivity instead of LTE, and the Nvidia MX450 discrete GPU is not an option on the 15-inch like the regular Pro. Finally, the RAM maxes out to 16GB on the 13-inch version. All models arrive with Windows Hello fingerprint readers.
With the basic specs out of the way, let’s talk about some of the extra features. The Pro 360 comes with a much thicker S-Pen which should make it easier to hold. Unfortunately, there is no silo for the S-Pen to be stored. Both Pro series laptops double as SmartThings hubs for smart home and automation tasks. Samsung is also making it easier to transfer media and files from other Galaxy devices similar to what’s offered in Apple’s ecosystem using Airdrop.
Samsung is very proud of its Super AMOLED screens. The company claims that they produce less blue light than regular LCD displays which will hopefully cut down on eye strain. Additionally, an “Intelligent Color Engine” will optimize the color profile depending on what you’re doing. For example, watching movies will shift to a more vivid and bright profile, while something like photo editing will change the profile to deliver better color accuracy in pictures and photos.
Speaking of colors, the regular Pro comes in mystic blue or mystic silver while the Pro 360 comes in mystic navy or mystic bronze. Obviously, the Galaxy Book Pro line is aimed squarely at those who want a thin and light ultrabook that doesn’t necessarily skimp on power when needed. While there will be those who are disappointed at the lack of an AMD option, Intel Tiger Lake chips should prove plenty powerful for everyday tasks.
The Galaxy Book Pro starts at $999 for the 13-inch and $1,099 for the 15-inch model, while the Pro 360 starts at $1,199 for the 13-inch, and $1,299 for the 15-inch version. Preorders are now open with an expected shipping date of May 14.