Samsung Series 5 Ultrabook NP540U3C-A01
| Article Index |
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| Samsung Series 5 Ultrabook NP540U3C-A01 |
| Specifications |
| Hardware Teardown |
| Testing - Features |
| Testing - Benchmarks |
| Final Thoughts |
Product(s): Samsung Series 5 13.3'" Ultrabook (NP540U3C-A01CA)
Provided By: Samsung Canada
Price: $1,064.99 CDN (At time of publishing)
Introduction:
Ultrabook has been quite a buzz word for the past year or so with more and more manufacturers jumping onto the Ultrabook bandwagon. One of the top Ultrabook makers has been Samsung and we are excited to be taking a look at a brand new addition to their Series 5 lineup, the NP540U3C-A01CA.
Samsung's Series 5 lineup of Ultrabooks is their mid-range solutions for someone looking for an ultrabook with a good mix of features and value. Samsung also has Series 3 Ultrabooks (value) and Series 9 (high end) Ultrabooks.
This particular Ultrabook we are going to be taking a look at retails at around $1,064.99 CDN (this review unit we received is a Canadian sub-model A01CA of the NP540U3C model).
Over the years I have personally gone back and forth between "portable" and "powerful" laptops, but thanks to Intel's i5 and i7 CPUs and the new ultrabook standard, we've seen some pretty slim and sleek ultrabooks that still pack quite a punch.
Let's take a closer look at the Series 5.
Closer Look:
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Inside the box you will find your brand new Series 5 Ultrabook, a power adaptor, and a box with a few papers in it, that's all. Luckily you probably aren't too worried about anything else other than getting your brand new Ultrabook out and powered up.
As soon as you get this ultrabook out of the package you'll be impressed by just how thin it is in addition to how nice it looks (thanks to the brushed aluminum top cover).
Once you open up the Ultrabook you'll notice the screen is nice and glossy (which makes taking a good picture of the screen a real bugger).
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Like with most Ultrabooks, there aren't a ton of ports on the unit due to the small overall size. The Samsung Series 5 has 3 USB ports (two 2.0 ports, one 3.0 port), a SD card slot, an Ethernet port, an HDMI port, and an audio (headphone) jack. Nothing too crazy in terms of ports and pretty standard across most makes and models of Ultrabooks.
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The keyboard included with this model is a standard chiclet-style keyboard. This is pretty much the standard issue keyboard on most Ultrabooks and overall has a decent feel to it. Don't expect a "Mechanical" keyboard feel to these types of keyboard as they are typically a softer feel than your traditional keyboard but overall are comfortable enough to do some serious typing on without any issues.
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Most Ultrabooks do not feature an Ethernet port anymore as the port itself is wider than the whole unit. Many other Ultrabook makers included a USB dongle which allows you to plug into an Ethernet cable if you need to.
Samsung has done something a little different on the Series 5 with their Ethernet port that opens and closes. If you travel very often you will know that every once and a while the only internet connection available is via an Ethernet cable and having the port built-in is nice because it saves you having to carry around a USB Ethernet dongle "just in case".u
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