We nabbed some time with Samsung's latest range of X-Series notebooks here at IFA. Like the X-Slim line from MSI, Samsung's range is aimed at those who want Apple MacBook Air-like thinness, but with more power than a netbook.
Naturally this comes at a price and, while UK costings weren't available, Samsung says the new models will cost between 699 and 899 Euros. As there are slightly heavier notebooks coming in at around the £500 mark, you're going to have to really want a thin and light model to shell out the extra.
The new X520, X420 and X120 slot in alongside the existing X360, which is being retained at the high performing end of the line. We may see the 11.6-inch X120 on sale in the UK over the next month, but it will likely make its full debut alongside the other two models. The X520 and X420's UK release date will coincide with the launch of Windows 7 on 22 October. Windows Vista Home Premium is the current OS in the spec, so it seems likely they'll have Windows 7 Home Premium, though Samsung couldn't confirm this.
If you like a diddy notebook, the X120 is superb (above and below). However, early variants will likely have a single core chip rather than the Intel Core 2 Duo processor which is included in the upper two models. All are ULV (Ultra Low Voltage) chips, although the exact versions that will be used are not clear. For our money, the X120 screen seems a little small, but it's largely due to the 16:9 format making it look that way.
The14-inch X420 is a perfect compromise and the extra power of the processor will tell (let's hope the X120 gets a Core 2 Duo too).
The 15.6-inch X520 looked a little oversized up against a plethora of tiny notebooks and netbooks, but Samsung clearly believes there's a market for it.
In terms of usability, there's a full keyboard on all three notebooks and trackpad so there's no netbook-esque compromise - you can see the X120 and X520 versions below.
The 6-cell battery in the notebook can last up to 9 hours it's claimed, and there's an option to continually charge to expand the life of the battery. All are extremely light - the X420 weighs 1.76kg, the X520 is 2.09kg and the X120 is 1.36kg. Other specs also seem generous - memory will vary between 2-4GB while storage will be between 160-500GB.
HDMI is included on all three, as are three USB ports, a webcam and a memory card reader.
