It's a backlit LED panel, which can be switched off and in standard mode looks incredibly bright. Even dropping the NC10 down into Maximum Battery Mode, which takes the screen down to its minimum level, you'll still find it more than usable.

However, what really makes this Netbook stand out is the sheer quality of the keyboard. Until now, the MSI Wind has clearly been the most user-friendly but having used the NC10 for the last few days, we feel it has beaten the MSI into second place.

It fills the entire width of the 260mm chassis and are 95 per cent full-sized. The keystroke is quite short but the keys feel incredibly sturdy, as you type and you'll soon find yourself typing with relative ease. Secondary function keys are small but at least Samsung has added a full compliment, which is something you won't see on the likes of the Dell Inspiron 9, for example.

The touchpad is rather small and the use of a dual-click single strip mouse button will have its detractors but overall we found navigation was easy.

MSI made a mistake with the Wind by releasing it with a 3-cell battery, which undermined it's otherwise all-round usability. Samsung hasn't made that mistake, as the 6-cell battery more than lives up to expectations. In standard mode, Battery Manager Normal, we managed to get 298 minutes, which at just shy of five hours is highly impressive.

Dropping down into Maximum Battery Life mode we managed to eek a further 26 minutes from the system, to get an overall battery life of 324 minutes. Simply put, if battery life is high on your list of requirements, this is the Netbook to opt for.

The design incorporates nothing new in terms of features, so you'll find three USB ports - one on the right-and side, two on the left - VGA-out, Ethernet port and mic and headphone jacks. One nice touch is that icons down the side of the keyboard highlight where they are so you don't need to pick the machine up to locate the USB port, for instance.

On the front of the casing you'll find the obligatory Secure Digital slot, which supports SD HC. Stereo speakers are located on the base of the machine and while the quality is tinny what we found impressive was the volume, which is far better than we've heard on any other Netbook.

So, has the Samsung NC10 been worth waiting for? Clearly the answer is yes. While it does nothing new, it takes all the proven good points of other devices, tightens them up and delivers an excellent package at a great price. It'll be interesting to see how other companies respond but for the time being, Samsung has set the benchmark for 10-inch Netbooks and set it high.