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Samsung GO N310 Netbook Review - 6.75/7

Samsung have truly arrived with the re-branded 10.1″ GO N310. They were a late entrant into the netbook market, but came out with no-nonsense, functional and goodlooking models. Now they’ve come out with the GO N310 which has a really creative new look and battery life in excess of 8 hours. This well and truly pushes Samsung into the top rung of netbook makers. Sure the netbook has similar specs and runs the same as most of its other competitors, and at $479 where it originally debuted at, the GO N310 was a tad bit expensive. But prices have been slashed all the way down to $349.95 on amazon, making this a really good choice to go with.

Samsung GO N310 Netbook Review – Top Features

• Unique Pebble Design – The GO N310 has been conceptualized by Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa. The rounded pebble look is awesome and the N310 looks great from all angles. The lid is made out of a grainy rubber and this netbook feels much more solid than its plastic cousins.
• Keyboard Rocks – The board is almost full size and features raised keys which make it a pleasure to type on. The GO N310 keyboard also has nano-sized silver ion powder which keeps it bacteria-free.
• Screen – The 10.1 inch screen on this netbook is glossy, but it doesn’t degenerate into a blinding glare at different viewing angles.
• Decent Pre-installed Apps -  The software options on the Samsung are actually functional and not frilly little annoyances. The list includes Cyberlink’s Youcam, McAfee Security, Samsung Battery Life Extender and Samsung Magic Doctor.

Samsung GO N310 Netbook Review – Drawbacks and things to keep in mind

• Performance is average – The GO N310 falls squarely in the midst of average when it comes to performance.

Samsung GO N310 Netbook Review -Ratings

1. Price and Value for money – 1.0 Star. At less than $350 on amazon, great great great!
2. Speed and Performance – 0.75 Star. The GO N310 doesn’t have any out of the ordinary specs, and performs admirably with the stuff its got under its bonnet.
3. Screen – 1.0 Star. One of the better 10.1″ screens around.
4. Keyboard, Touchpad, Useability – 1.0 Star. We love the keyboard, the touchpad is nice with a single mouse button. It didn’t take us more than a few minutes to be completely at ease with the interface.
5. Portability and Battery Life – 1.0 Star. The battery lasts for a good 8 hours, even with WiFi kept on and the GO N310 weighs in at 2.9 lbs.
6. Looks and Design – 1.0 Star. We absolutely love the design. Even though it’s composed of rubber based material, it feels so much more solid in our hands than all those plasticky netbooks.
7. Connectivity and Extensibility – 1.0 Star. The GO N310 has all the slots we expect from a netbook, but as a bonus, features Bluetooth 2.0 EDR.

This gives the Samsung GO N310 an overall rating of 6.75 out of 7 Stars.

Samsung GO N310 Netbook Review – Our Recommendation

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again. In the over-crowded and commoditized netbook market, you need aesthetics to really stand out. The Samsung GO 310 captures that sentiment exactly. The guys at Samsung have come out with a netbook that works. But it looks better while doing it, and is more comfortable than others. It barely has any flaws and gets the highest score we’ve ever awarded. At $349.95, it would be a crime not to buy this netbook.

Samsung GO N310 Netbook Review – What have buyers on Amazon said?

Pros:

1. “The screen is sharp and bright, easy to read, the keyboard is adult sized, and the unit looks and feels solid.”
2. “This is the third netbook our household has purchased. The Samsung is far and away the best of the lot (previous: Asus and Lenovo).”
3. ” The internal WiFi card is very fast. “
4. “It is not only aesthetically pleasing, but the casing is very durable and has a good strong feel especially for such a light machine. All in All, I think this computer is awesome.”
5. “I watched two Netflix movies and had no problems.The Samsung is unbelievably quiet. Even when the fan runs it is virtually inaudible. “

Cons:

1. “Frequent / annoying pop-ups for security, driver and Windows updates.”
2. “Now to my only quibble, and it isn’t really much, but the sound is…well…tinny.”
3. “The power supply gets super hot while computer on and PS plugged in.”

The Samsung GO N310 is available on amazon in 4 colors. They are priced at $349.95.