Netbook Reviews : Best Price : Best Buy

Product Description

Life happens in places other than home. And life happens in colors other than shades of gray. That’s why we created the Samsung Go™ netbook. The Samsung Go is a compact, lightweight netbook computer that’s ready to go whenever, wherever. Feel like working at the park? You’re there. Think you’d be more inspired at the lake or beach? Get going. Just want to work in the backyard? That’s okay too. And since your life is fun and exciting, the Samsung Go netbook comes in four fun and exciting colors: Sunset Orange, Midnight Blue, Mint Blue and Jet Black. In fact, everything about the Samsung Go says fun and easy. Smoothly rounded corners simply look and feel better. A pebble-textured keyboard facilitates flying fingers, even those slippery from suntan oil. A spacious hard drive lets you bring along all your favorite music, photos, videos and movies. A 10.1″ wide LED-backlit LCD display is brighter than ever. And with a 10-hour battery, the Samsung Go is always ready to go, go, go. Are you ready to go? The Samsung Go ntebook makes the journey more fun.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #291 in Personal Computers
• Color: Sunset Orange
• Brand: Samsung
• Model: NP-N310-KA06US
• Dimensions: 7.30″ h x 10.30″ w x 1.10″ l, 2.70 pounds
• CPU: Intel Celeron 1.6 GHz
• Memory: 1000MB SODIMM
• Hard Disk: 160GB
• Processors: 1
• Native resolution: 10.1
• Display size: 10.1

Features

• 1.6 GHz Intel Atom Processor
• 1GB DD2R RAM
• 160GB Hard Drive
• Windows XP Home, Up to 9 Hours of Battery Life (6 Cell 8850mAh)
• 10.1″ wide LED-backlit LCD display

Amazon.com Product Description
Weighing just 2.9 pounds, the Samsung GO N310 netbook is one of the lightest netbooks in its class and it’s loaded with the latest technology for maximum performance. Distinctively styled, it’s designed by award-winning Japanese artist Naoto Fukasawa and features smoothly rounded edges that resemble a pebble that’s been worn down by wind and waterfall and its cover has a rubberized surface that more durable and easy-to-grip. In addition to this model in sunset orange (N310-13GO), it also comes in three other colors: midnight blue, jet black, and mint blue.

Customer Reviews

So far, so awesome!
I should preface this review by stating that before purchasing this netbook, I was not familiar with netbooks nor that familiar with the Windows operating system (I am a Mac nerd). My need for something cheaper and smaller lead me to purchase the Samsung Go. Truth be told, after I pressed the “purchase” button, I panicked! Is the screen going to be too small? Is the keyboard going to feel cramped? I would be using this for taking notes in class, but would I be able to get use to it after all my years of using a 17 inch Macbook Pro? A sigh of relief swept over me as I finished my first full day of classes. 4 hours of typing later and my hands felt as comfortable on the keys as if I had been using the keyboard for years. The screen was more than adequate for viewing (and my eyes are far from perfect). In fact, as I type this review on the Samsung Go, my Macbook Pro is slowly gathering cobwebs! I do miss my Mac OS…but am slowly getting use to Windows. As for the build of the system, it feels INCREDIBLY sturdy compared to other netbooks I have handled in stores. As a side note, I am a Neflix addict and the “Watch Instantly” feature is seamless on this little guy! So far I have yet to hit a snag that has me running back to my full size laptop!

Nice try for style, some drawbacks
I bought this version of the 310 while on holiday in the US as it is considerably cheaper there than the UK. Apart from price I was attracted by the 6 cell battery which extends the otherwise average battery life to a good 8 hours or so. But …. the larger battery does add to the weight (1.36Kg or 3 lbs) and means that there is a substantial bulge along the underside at the back, making it less sleek and portable than the standard version with the shorter battery life. The screen is clear and bright but quite reflective, making it a bit difficult to see in bright environments. The keyboard is pretty much perfect for me – no problems, but then I have quite small fingers. Performance is pretty much what you would expect as its innards are pretty much netbook standard components. Having said all this, the longer battery life really does make a huge difference to its useability. I find that I am using it far more than a previous notebook because i’m not having to charge it up all the time. So, the longer battery life makes a difference even if you are not taking long flights or train journeys. Am I happy with it? Pretty much, especially for the price. As a closet style victim I do still get a kick out of the lovely orange, slightly rubbery case. But I’m still looking forward to a 1 kg 12″ ultra-portable with an SSD drive and decent performance that’s under $1000. Or maybe I could get my work to buy me a Sony – don’t be silly I work for the NHS!

Light and Sweet
This is my second netbook and I’m very impressed with this nice little machine. My first was an early ASUS EEE 8.9″- hard for me to type on and the screen was not so easy on my middle-aged eyes. Although this Samsung has similar specs to the ASUS, it is a much better performer. The LED screen is crisp and easy to see. It runs quick and loads web pages nice and fast. The design is both thoughtful, sturdy and of very high quality. Overall, a hassle-free, easy to use and transport netbook. I don’t think the battery life is really nine hours- but I had the machine on or in sleep mode all day and didn’t come close to running the battery out. While price may be a bit higher than others, it’s worth it to have a painless small computer. Also, I got my Samsung last week- the price has already begun to move downwards. So look for your best deal.

Product Description

Life happens in places other than home. And life happens in colors other than shades of gray. That’s why we created the Samsung Go™ netbook. The Samsung Go is a compact, lightweight netbook computer that’s ready to go whenever, wherever. Feel like working at the park? You’re there. Think you’d be more inspired at the lake or beach? Get going. Just want to work in the backyard? That’s okay too. And since your life is fun and exciting, the Samsung Go netbook comes in four fun and exciting colors: Sunset Orange, Midnight Blue, Mint Blue and Jet Black. In fact, everything about the Samsung Go says fun and easy. Smoothly rounded corners simply look and feel better. A pebble-textured keyboard facilitates flying fingers, even those slippery from suntan oil. A spacious hard drive lets you bring along all your favorite music, photos, videos and movies. A 10.1″ wide LED-backlit LCD display is brighter than ever. And with a 10-hour battery, the Samsung Go is always ready to go, go, go. Are you ready to go? The Samsung Go ntebook makes the journey more fun.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #186 in Personal Computers
• Color: Jet Black
• Brand: Samsung
• Model: NP-N310-KA05US
• Dimensions: 7.30″ h x 10.30″ w x 1.10″ l, 2.70 pounds
• CPU: Intel Celeron 1.6 GHz
• Memory: 1000MB SODIMM
• Hard Disk: 160GB
• Processors: 1
• Native resolution: 10.1
• Display size: 10.1

Features

• 1.6 GHz Intel Atom Processor
• 1GB DD2R RAM
• 160GB Hard Drive
• Windows XP Home, Up to 9 Hours of Battery Life (6 Cell 8850mAh)
• 10.1″ wide LED-backlit LCD display

Amazon.com Product Description
Weighing just 2.9 pounds, the Samsung GO N310 netbook is one of the lightest netbooks in its class and it’s loaded with the latest technology for maximum performance. Distinctively styled, it’s designed by award-winning Japanese artist Naoto Fukasawa and features smoothly rounded edges that resemble a pebble that’s been worn down by wind and waterfall and its cover has a rubberized surface that more durable and easy-to-grip. In addition to this model in jet black (N310-13GBK), it also comes in three other colors: midnight blue, sunset orange and mint blue.

Customer Reviews

Nearly Perfect
Fantastic machine. It feels a bit weighty for a netbook but not near as heavy as the laptop I replaced it with. The case feels slightly rubbery and very comfortable to carry and hold. The entire machine feels incredibly well built. There is no latch for the display but it stays closed and opens with excellent resistance. The screen opens up to about 135 degrees from closed and stays exactly where it’s placed all along the path. The screen is very very bright when turned all the way up. With a touch of the FN-UP or FN-DN button the brightness can be changed to 8 different levels. I stay between level 4-6 depending on light conditions. Even level 1 and 2 can be seen clearly even outside. The colors are incredibly vibrant and gorgeous. I thought the shiny screen surface was going to produce too much glare but rarely do I notice it. The glare is most noticeable outside in bright light. I was also concerned about the single bar track pad button. But it works just fine. I generally just tap the pad for my buttons anyway. I only ever use the bar for dragging files and such. The track pad is a little on the short side so I increased the speed of the pointer to a more comfortable level. Also I was about to turn off the scrolling feature of the right and bottom edge of the track pad to give me more room but I’m starting to like it so I left it on.
Now to the good stuff. The keyboard is perfect. Each key is on an island with good spacing. All the keys are normally proportioned and well placed. The arrow keys are in the perfect position. I have very large hands and do a lot of typing on this machine. I’ll say again. I don’t just surf and check email. I do a lot of typing and the keyboard feels incredibly comfortable. Not just comfortable for its size. But just plain comfortable. I would have to go out of my way to hit the wrong key. The keyboard is fantastic. It was also the main reason I bought this particular netbook. The built in network has great range and has worked flawlessly with my WEP protected G network. It found my network on boot. I put in my key and it connected immediately. I have never had to mess with it again. The FN-F9 Key toggles the Wireless on and off and I use it all the time. As soon as I enable it again I’ve got a connection within just a few seconds and am surfing again. The range of the card is better than my laptop using its external Belkin PCMCIA card. And while that card seemed to prefer certain angles to my router this built in wireless doesn’t seem to care. No mater what orientation I’m at even at significant distances it just keeps chugging.
I was ready to uninstall all the default software as soon as I got it but Samsung did a great job of just installing what is needed. I did however uninstall the McAfee Security Suite. It ran fine and worked pretty fast with a lot of features. But I like Avast for my antivirus and Sunbelt for my firewall. They both installed perfectly and run great. I pretty much just left everything else installed as received.
The little guy boots fast. The fan is so quiet I’ve never even heard it run. I can at times feel some heat coming out the left side so I know its churning in there but I can’t hear it. The bottom of the machine doesn’t get hot like my laptop did. Just on the extreme left side toward the back can I feel some warmth but only if I’m really pushing it. When I say pushing it, I’ll have Chrome running with GMAIL, Facebook and Google in each tab, Winamp Lite v5 playing some music, Yahoo Messenger running with the built in webcam and YWriter5 open just typing away. The computer doesn’t even stutter. Sometimes I’ll stop Winamp but leave it running and watch an episode of friends over the network on Media Player Classic decoding with ffdshow. It runs as smooth as can be. Unbelievable. The screen is half height and full width but honestly I don’t notice too much. Haven’t really messed with the resolution though beyond the default. I have at times hit FN-ESC to put the thing in standby. Then I press the power button after a while and in a few seconds I’m back and running again. I’ve also used hibernate with no problems though it takes longer to come back than standby. But honestly the battery life is so long that I really don’t need to do either. I generally just close the lid and walk away. The thing runs forever on a charge. I mean forever.
For sound I use headphones. The jack is on the left in front. The volume is on the well placed arrow keys using the FN key. In fact the most used functions are screen brightness and volume. All four are on the arrow keys front right. Thank you Samsung. The mute key though is FN-F6? I may remap that to another key. I expected nothing from the speakers but I told Windows XP they are speakers in a keyboard and turned on the included SRS utility. They sound quite decent but almost no bass at all. Still though, not near as bad as I was expecting. They don’t distort or rattle. They just don’t give any low end.
I bought a 2GB memory module to upgrade the memory. But now seeing how fast it runs with the installed 1GB I’m wondering if it’s even necessary. I’ll edit this later if I notice any difference. I may also upgrade the hard drive though I still have a lot of room left. The default install asks for the drive to be partitioned to hold a backup of the default install. I went ahead and let it do this but if I find myself running out of drive space I may just delete that partition. I prefer to use Drive Snapshot for my backups anyway.
Also the fist thing you should do after getting yours set up is go into system bios and change control of Screen Brightness from Auto to User Selected. That way it will remember what your brightness setting is instead of it going back to default on every boot.
I think I covered most of it. A little more expensive than most other netbooks but absolutely worth every penny. Great job Samsung.

***EDIT***
I did upgrade the memory from 1GB to 2GB using Crucial Technology CT25664AC800 2GB 200-pin SODIMM DDR2 PC2-6400 Memory Module. Actually the CT25664AC667 would have worked too for about $3 less. After running it through it’s paces I’ve concluded that I don’t see much of a performance increase. If I used more memory intensive apps that require a lot more swap memory on the hard drive then maybe I’d see a more dramatic improvement. On the other hand the 2GB module is only about $20 so still glad I did.
I also disabled the scrolling feature on the track pad. I wanted the extra space and I kept hitting the scroll area by accident. Instead I added two tap zones on the left side of the track pad. One for Right Click and one for Mute.

***EDIT***
I did upgrade the hard drive to a Western Digital Scorpio Blue 500 GB Bulk/OEM Hard Drive 2.5 Inch, 8 MB Cache, 5400 RPM SATA II WD5000BEVT. The Hitachi I pullled out used about 700ma where this new WD uses about 450ma. The WD is supposed to be absolutely silent though I never really heard the Hitachi run either. And although I don’t ever hear the drives heads, I can hear the drive spinning if I press my ear up close to the computer. Sounds like fan noise. The Hitachi may also have sounded like this. I don’t remember but it’s still very quiet and doesn’t bother me. If you’d like to compare the acoustical or thermal specs before purchasing a new drive the one that came with my Samsung was Hitachi Travelstar 5K320 2.5″ Mobile 160GB SATA Hard Drive, 5400, 8MB. I used Drive Snapshot to backup the Recovery partition and the C and D partitions onto an external USB drive. Then I changed out the hard drive and booted ERD Commander on my old Targus external USB CD/DVD drive. I used Drive Snapshot to restore all three partions in the correct order. 1)EISA Recovery (around 6G) 2)C Drive 3)D Drive. Be aware that all three partions are Primary (no extended partitions here) and the second one (C Drive) is the one marked Active. When I restored the D Drive I just let it take up all the rest of the hard drive space.
There is no compartment door to change the drive. The bottom cover of the computer must be removed. But it is thankfully very easy. Remove the battery. Remove all 11 grommets (4 feet and 7 small plugs) by sliding something sharp and tiny past the grommet and hooking under and pulling up. I used a dental pick. Remove all 11 screws under grommets (phillips). Remove SD dummy card. You do not have to remove memory cover. Pry bottom cover off using fingers only by gently working around the edges with gentle pressure. No need for guitar pick or anything else to pry. The bottom cover comes off very easy. Hard Drive is next to memory module on the bottom of the computer. Remove 3 tiny screws (phillips) from drive caddy. Pull up slightly on front of drive enough to clear plastic tray and slide out of connector. Should come out very easily. Remove 4 screws (phillips) from drive caddy and swap drives. Put caddy screws back in to new drive. Lay drive and caddy back up against connector holding the other end of the drive up slightly to clear plastic rim. Push drive back onto connector good and tight. Lay drive back down and make sure all 3 tiny screw holes are alligned. If not cinch the drive up into the connector better. Put 3 tiny screws back in and tighten. Place the bottom cover back over the unit sliding the VGA connector in first. It should snap back in place easily. Put all 11 screws (all the same size) back into the bottom of the unit. Do not over tighten. Replace all 4 rubber feet and 7 plugs. The plugs are actually tappered to the shape of the cover and are keyed to fit only one way. All except the middle one. Put the battery and SD dummy card back in and you’re done.

Fantastic!
Got this to travel with. Surprised it works so well. No problems with powering up and using. Lots of “functions” you need to access the Samsung help guide to learn about and use. LONG battery life. Got the Samsung external DVD reader/writer here on Amazon (about $52.) Easiest installation. Can watch three movies on a flight. Bottom of netbook has little feet so that there is air circulation under it and I have not had a problem with overheating… but I generally put a little something under the netbook to make sure there is more air under there. Hard drive is partitioned so you have a C and D drive.. save to D just in case things crash. Put it in my purse everyday. Lifesaver with the Goggle maps.

Love it.
I love this little laptop. I’m a writer and I was looking for something with a long battery life and this is it. I can use it all day without plugging it in. They keyboard isn’t so small that it’s a pain to type. I’ve already written a screenplay using it. It’s slick looking and draws a lot of attention which is nice. Packed full of features with a bright screen. Can’t go wrong. I love this laptop!