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October 13, 2008 9:00 PM PDT

Samsung goes slim with X360, X460 laptops

by Michelle Thatcher
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When Samsung announced the X360 earlier this year, we were jealous. Here was a 2.8-pound laptop with a 13.3-inch display, 1.2 inches at its thickest, that we were sure we'd never see in the United States. But with Samsung's entry into the U.S. laptop market, we now have a chance to get our hands on this MacBook Air competitor.

Samsung X360 (Credit: Samsung)

Samsung is offering two fixed configurations of the X360: the $1,899 version has a 1.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo U9300 processor and a 120GB hard drive, while the $2,499 version bumps it up to a 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo U9400 processor and a 128GB solid-state drive. Both models include integrated Intel X4500 graphics, 4GB of 1,066MHz RAM, and an LED-backlit WXGA display.

Like the MacBook Air, the X360 lacks a built-in optical drive. But unlike the Air, the X360 is stocked with connections. In addition to 802.11a/b/g/n and Bluetooth, the X360 includes an Ethernet port plus an ExpressCard slot, three USB 2.0 ports, VGA- and HDMI-out, headphone and microphone jacks, a seven-in-one memory card reader, and a connector for a docking station.

Even with all that, it's still amazingly thin and lightweight; when we picked it up, we could hardly believe we were holding a fully functioning computer. If the X360's six-cell battery provides the 10 hours of battery life that Samsung claims, it'll be a winner for frequent-flyers who like to travel light.

Though it's certainly eye-catching, the X360 isn't the only laptop in Samsung's X series. The 14.1-inch X460 offers a slightly larger 14.1-inch screen, discrete graphics, and an optical drive in a 4.0-pound package. As with the X360, there will be two configurations of the X460: a $1,699 version includes a 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P7350 processor and a 250GB hard drive, while a $1,799 version is built on a 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 processor and 320GB hard drive. Both models include 256MB Nvidia GeForce 9200M GS graphics, 4GB of 1,066MHz RAM, and a built-in DVD burner; the X460's ports and connections match those of the X360.

Both the X360 and X460 will be available by mid-November at such online retailers as NewEgg, Buy.com, CDW, and Amazon.

August 29, 2008 2:12 PM PDT

Samsung takes on the MacBook Air

by Dan Ackerman
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For years now, Samsung has made laptops for pretty much every market except the US, and generally, we've been pretty fine with that arrangement (the Q1 Ultra UMPC is as close as they've gotten here).

But now, we're eager to get our hands on the just-announced Samsung X360. This 13-incher apes the super-slim look and feel of the MacBook Air, but adds a lot of the ports and connections missing from Apple's system. The X360 has a multi-card reader, three USB ports, an ExpressCard/34 slot, Ethernet jack, and HDMI and VGA outputs. And it still manages to keep the weight down to 2.8 pounds (if you get an SSD hard drive), and is between .66 and 1.2-inches thick.

The online rumor mill points to an October release in the $2,000-plus range, but that likely doesn't include the American market.

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