Samsung R580

For a price tag of below $900 most people would expect a desktop replacement laptop with a just above average processor and other components but the Samsung R580 is one of the few models to buck the trend. Looking great in a dark maroon and black chassis the laptop screams corporate class with its smooth rounded curves and scalloped cover. Opening the lid reveals a full keyboard with numeric keypad and large chiclet style keys. This makes the keyboard very comfortable to use but a little cramped because some of the keys have been shrunk to make other keys fit just right. Samsung have made the touch-pad small so that it doesn't interfere with typing, while adding multi-touch options so that the touch-pad is a little bit more useful.

At 5.5 pounds the Samsung R580 feels quite lightweight while its 15.6 inch LED backlit screen is clear and has vibrant colors. It is also one of the few laptops within its class to have an Intel Core i5 430M processor which delivers performance on the same level as most multimedia and gaming laptops. It also packs in Nvidia GeForce 310M discrete graphics allowing it to do everything from playback smooth HD video and playing many 3D games to doing a little video editing and 3D rendering. Combined with its 1366 x 768 pixel resolution and a Blu-ray combo drive and you have a laptop that can handle pretty much whatever you throw at it. The laptop's 4GB of DDR3 memory and 500GB hard disk drive help to make things even more stable and memorable.

In terms of connections the Samsung R580 has a number of unique features including high performance wireless-n wifi, a HDMI port, an eSATA/USB combo port and an ExpressCard expansion slot. Other features include a VGA port, integrated stereo speakers and three more USB ports to go with an SD card reader. For such a mainstream laptop, the Samsung R580 has some very good sound, making it great for both Blu-ray movies as well as listening to music. Unfortunately the six-cell battery only gives it a battery life of two hours and 30 minutes which is good enough for most mobile situations but not good enough for most mainstream mobiles which have a battery life of five hours and above.

Overall, the Samsung R580 has been very aggressively priced by Samsung as it offers performance that very few laptops in the same class can achieve. While it can do practically everything smoothly and comfortably, it isn't really the best mainstream laptop to go mobile with. Granted, it does offer a reasonable amount of battery life in a pinch, but it definitely works much better as a stationary or fixed position desktop replacement laptop since it outperforms most laptops and desktops in the same class. The awesome price sweetens the deal immensely making it ideal for the gamer and multimedia enthusiast who doesn't need the extra mobility of a laptop but more the excellent performance that only the Samsung R580 can bring.