Product Listing

Samsung Q30 Centrino Ultra Slim Notebook

By Justin Ong - 2 Jul 2005

Wrapping Up

Wrapping Up

After a good bout with the Q30, it became clear why Samsung chose the ultra lightweight and portable Q30 as the notebook to mark their entry into Singapore and countries in the region. Not only was the notebook a crowd pleaser in form factor and design, the build quality was topnotch as well. There aren't a lot of slim, 1kg notebooks lying around as it is and certainly not many can look the part and still stand up to the elements of daily use with minimal care to its glossy exterior.

Hardly any major functions were compromised in the company's pursuit to push the weight down to a competitive level and this was evident by its 6-pin FireWire jack, 4-in-1 card reader and a separate CompactFlash reader. When combined with its twin USB 2.0 ports, the comprehensive set of modern connection ports meant the Q30 is also an ideal mobile editing station for photographers and amateur filmmakers on top of its conventional craft as a mobile workstation.

Moving deeper into the performance of the notebook was where we found the multimedia luster that's probably more eminent in heavier and bulkier mainstream notebooks. The glare type 12.1-inch widescreen display was excellent for a personal movie getaway, but as technology limitations would have it, the pair of tiny tweeters was too soft to be of any noteworthy audio purposes other than the alert tones of Windows and audio-encoded web pages.

The Q30 was also deadly silent in day-to-day operation, made possible by the ULV Pentium M processor, which did away with the need to employ an active cooling system that's commonplace in mainstream notebooks. However, do be warned that the chassis can get very hot to the touch shortly after powering on the unit. A full-sized keyboard is always welcomed on notebooks and for the slim Q30, a set of soft comfortable keys are what you can expect to find for your typing regime.

Here comes the shocker - the price tag. All the build quality, components, features and styling that made the Q30 a distinctive notebook meant an inevitable price premium of about US$2,400. This probably wouldn't matter to those with deep pockets, but for the rest, careful consideration is almost a certainty since that's no small sum to part. This might lead to questions such as the lack of Bluetooth and PC Card slot for those who insist on getting the absolute bang for the buck. While that's a consideration left to the potential buyers, from our point of view, we are pleased with what the Q30 had to offer (which includes the two different battery packs). With its trendy design and eye-catching styling, don't be surprised to find yourself drawing some attention with curious heads turning your way as the Samsung Q30 is more than just your plain Jane Centrino notebook. To sum it up in a few words, the Q30 is an elegant and lasting mobile workhorse.

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