MBA 11.6 ultimate vs. Samsung 9 Series 11.6 inch

[612kimx1853]

Hi. I am a newbie to this forum and need to get a laptop in the next few weeks. I was about to order the MBA 11.6 Ultimate when I came across this:

http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/15/samsung-9-series-laptops-to-include-11-6-inch-model/

From the provantage website, its supposed to come out in 5-7 days.

So I am at a lost for which one to get. The Samsung seems to have newer internals, i.e. Sandybridge (no turbo boost though), USB 3.0, though I am not sure if these are better. Also it only comes with 2gb ram and 64 gb ssd though I don't know if these are upgradeable. Design-wise, I like the MBA 11.6 Ultimate more. I am going to be using this computer primarily for word, office, movies, music, very light photo editing, and statistical software packages (STATA, SAS, Matlab).

Does anyone have any suggestions. Thanks in advance!

P.S. Another possiblity might be going with the MBA 13 with 1.86 ghz, 4gb ram, 128 gb ssd.

 

[KPOM]

USB 3.0 is nice since it's significantly faster than USB 2.0 and faster than eSATA at some tasks.

To me it comes down to whether you plan to run Windows as your primary OS. If so, then the Samsung is your best bet. The Core i3 would be faster, and Windows 7 isn't as taxing as OS X on the GPU. If you want to run OS X, then the MacBook Air is your only choice unless you feel like hacking.

Note that the Samsung doesn't taper as much as the MacBook Air. They did do a good job with the weight, though. Samsung seems like one of the few Windows notebook manufacturers who "gets" the MacBook Air concept.

 

[612kimx1853]

USB 3.0 is nice since it's significantly faster than USB 2.0 and faster than eSATA at some tasks.

To me it comes down to whether you plan to run Windows as your primary OS. If so, then the Samsung is your best bet. The Core i3 would be faster, and Windows 7 isn't as taxing as OS X on the GPU. If you want to run OS X, then the MacBook Air is your only choice unless you feel like hacking.

Note that the Samsung doesn't taper as much as the MacBook Air. They did do a good job with the weight, though. Samsung seems like one of the few Windows notebook manufacturers who "gets" the MacBook Air concept.

Yes, I like the design of the MBA more. I am comfortable using either Windows 7 or OSX. Right now, I use Windows 7 a bit more but that can change.

Would the Core I3 be faster? It is set at 1.33 ghz and doesn't turbo boost. Think it has a faster FSB though. Is there a big difference in terms of GPUs? For 720p video off youtube, do you think the Sammy can handle that?

 

[Funkymonk]

The core i3 should be faster and I suppose it beats the air in that. But the air beats the samsung in graphics. Everything else looks equal to me so it comes down to OS amd since you use windows I guess you should go with the samsung. I bet it could handle 720p videos just fine.

The series 9s are made of a metal called duralium that's apparently very light and strong. I wish some reviews would come out for this thing because I find this laptop very exciting.

 

[612kimx1853]

The core i3 should be faster and I suppose it beats the air in that. But the air beats the samsung in graphics. Everything else looks equal to me so it comes down to OS amd since you use windows I guess you should go with the samsung. I bet it could handle 720p videos just fine.

The series 9s are made of a metal called duralium that's apparently very light and strong. I wish some reviews would come out for this thing because I find this laptop very exciting.

The only thing that makes me hestitate is the 2gb ram and 64gb ssd. Not sure if they are upgradeable. I am leaning towards the MBA. The samsung looks like fingerprint magnet.

 

[Cerano]

The core i3 should be faster and I suppose it beats the air in that. But the air beats the samsung in graphics. Everything else looks equal to me so it comes down to OS amd since you use windows I guess you should go with the samsung. I bet it could handle 720p videos just fine.

The series 9s are made of a metal called duralium that's apparently very light and strong. I wish some reviews would come out for this thing because I find this laptop very exciting.

the 1.33ghz core i3 wont outgun the 1.6ghz c2d

 

[hcho3]

No thanks. Apple has way way better customer service and support than Samsung. If I haven an issue with my MBA, I know apple will back me up for sure. With samsung? Not really...

I also hate those drop ports that samsung 9 series has. Oh.. that's right. It's the design from first generation MBA and samsung copied. I do not like samsung. They never come out with original ideas.

 

[neko girl]

Differences as I understand them:
-The processor and graphics don't necessarily seem to be superbly better for the Samsung or worse for the MBA. I'm not sure how Core i3 architecture compares to Core 2 Duo with an nVidia chipset. You might want to see if the Samsung beats the MBA's battery life (I sort of really doubt it).
-In terms of graphics I don't believe even the Intel HDA on Sandy Bridge is on parity with 320M. It may be good enough, however.
-Samsung has USB 3.0 (for what it's worth)
-Samsung has an RJ45 Ethernet jack
-Samsung has Wireless Display - if you have a compatible television, or a Wireless Display receiver, you can basically use a TV (or anything else) as a secondary display, even for DRM content. With the MBA you can Air Display, but Apple's Air Display infrastructure is limited to movies, and even then mostly only videos that conform to Apple's restrictive codec requirements (MP4 only, more or less).

I would say the biggest disadvantage the Samsung has is the Windows OS, as your MBA can safely run Mac OS X and Windows & (parallels is really fast on the MBA).

Also, the Samsung 2GB 64GB model is $1164, which is $150 more than the equivalent MBA, and $200 more than a refurbed MBA with the same specs.

I hope this helps you!

 

[wisty]

It's nice to see that the MBA isn't a rip-off compared to equivalent PC netbooks.

People keep comparing the MBA to Atom-based, plastic-cased netbooks with platter drives. So many threads with "OMG THE MBA IS LIKE $500 MORE THAN THE INSIPID MINI!!".

Quality netbooks cost about the same as the MBA.

This Samsung looks like a quality netbook, and it's more up to date than the current MBA, but it's not miles ahead. If you like OSX, then the MBA is for you.

 

[Funkymonk]

Lol I didn't even see the price of the samsung. Get the mba

 

[GadgetX]

It's nice to see that the MBA isn't a rip-off compared to equivalent PC netbooks.

People keep comparing the MBA to Atom-based, plastic-cased netbooks with platter drives. So many threads with "OMG THE MBA IS LIKE $500 MORE THAN THE INSIPID MINI!!".

Quality netbooks cost about the same as the MBA.

This Samsung looks like a quality netbook, and it's more up to date than the current MBA, but it's not miles ahead. If you like OSX, then the MBA is for you.

Hmm I think you're confused on the definition of a netbook. Which the MBA definitely is not nor is the Samsung Series 9. No way would a $1000 computer still be considered a netbook...

On a side note I really wish Samsung would've put an AMD Fusion processor in the 11.6" version and knocked off a couple hundred dollars from the retail price. Oh well...

That being said I do love the design of the MBA but I think the 9 looks better. I was considering buying a MBA as my new computer but will wait and see how the 9 Series 9 does... You should really wait until reviews are out before making a decision one way or another.

 

[MRU]

Hmm I think you're confused on the definition of a netbook. Which the MBA definitely is not nor is the Samsung Series 9. No way would a $1000 computer still be considered a netbook...

Read the posters comment again. They are not confused, they are saying that the MBA is not a netbook and wish that people stop referring to it as one.

 

[Kauai]

Read the posters comment again. They are not confused, they are saying that the MBA is not a netbook and wish that people stop referring to it as one.

Really? I just read his comment and it seems to me, too, like he is calling it a netbook. He refers to the 9 as a netbook and then says "like the MBA".

The MBA definitely isn't a netbook.

Netbook = Computer with minimal power so as to mainly be used for web browsing.

Portable Notebook = A small notebook but still sufficiently powerful to run notebook programs, applications etc.

 

[aniketroxx]

lol If you love apple then don't look at configuration APPLE ROCKS

 

[KPOM]

Something to keep in mind about the Samsung is that USB 3.0 partially makes up for the lack of internal storage. A USB 3.0 SSD would be about as fast as the internal one.

 

[wisty]

Really? I just read his comment and it seems to me, too, like he is calling it a netbook. He refers to the 9 as a netbook and then says "like the MBA".

The MBA definitely isn't a netbook.

Netbook = Computer with minimal power so as to mainly be used for web browsing.

Portable Notebook = A small notebook but still sufficiently powerful to run notebook programs, applications etc.

Well, I did refer to the MBA as a netbook.

You are right, technically, it's more like an ultraportable, which the same thing as a netbook but it uses very expensive high quality parts (like ULV CPUs), not cheap parts (like Atoms).

A ULV CPU and an SSD does push up the price, which is why I find it a little annoying when people compare the MBA to a cheap netbook.

Compared to the Samsung (another ultra-portable), the MBA doesn't look so expensive.

 

[GadgetX]

Compared to the Samsung (another ultra-portable), the MBA doesn't look so expensive.

Agreed. For its category I think the MBA is a steal. I remember how stupid I thought the MBA was when Steve Jobs first pulled it out of a manila envelope with a price close to $2000 IIRC. But Apple has done a lot over the years to bring the price down considerably and I think they've finally hit the sweet spot for $999. Hopefully Samsung follows their lead.

 

[AppleScruff1]

No thanks. Apple has way way better customer service and support than Samsung. If I haven an issue with my MBA, I know apple will back me up for sure. With samsung? Not really...

I also hate those drop ports that samsung 9 series has. Oh.. that's right. It's the design from first generation MBA and samsung copied. I do not like samsung. They never come out with original ideas.

What issues have you had with Samsung customer service?

 

[hcho3]

What issues have you had with Samsung customer service?

1. Samsung promised update on galaxy S phones with 2.2, and apparently most of people still don't have them. Nice job.

2. I had issue with their TVs, and they never called me back. I got keep running around.

3. They don't have store like apple where you can take laptop for quick repair, advice and learn how to use their devices. No.

4. My families owned their cameras and had issues. It was under warranty, but they tried to charge us for something we did not do. The camera was damaged while in transit and they were like, "We don't care."


Do I have to go more?

Feel free to like samsung, but their service is crap. The hardware and software means nothing to me without customer service to back it up for warranty.

I would stay away from samsung for my life especially their phones and cameras.

 

[bloodycape]

3. They don't have store like apple where you can take laptop for quick repair, advice and learn how to use their devices. No.

You would be surprised how much service can vary from Apple store to Apple store. I've experienced it.

And I dunno why people keep comparing cpu speeds of different architecture as they aren't directly comparable. Both have gpu that are quickly being outdated, but that not what this market here is looking for. As long as it can play HD(be it flash, mkv, or HTLM 5)video with battery life than can at least last 4 hours that's all that really matters.

 

[hcho3]

You would be surprised how much service can vary from Apple store to Apple store. I've experienced it.

And I dunno why people keep comparing cpu speeds of different architecture as they aren't directly comparable. Both have gpu that are quickly being outdated, but that not what this market here is looking for. As long as it can play HD(be it flash, mkv, or HTLM 5)video with battery life than can at least last 4 hours that's all that really matters.

Apple has stores, and samsung doesn't even offer one.

 

[AppleScruff1]

1. Samsung promised update on galaxy S phones with 2.2, and apparently most of people still don't have them. Nice job.

2. I had issue with their TVs, and they never called me back. I got keep running around.

3. They don't have store like apple where you can take laptop for quick repair, advice and learn how to use their devices. No.

4. My families owned their cameras and had issues. It was under warranty, but they tried to charge us for something we did not do. The camera was damaged while in transit and they were like, "We don't care."


Do I have to go more?

Feel free to like samsung, but their service is crap. The hardware and software means nothing to me without customer service to back it up for warranty.

I would stay away from samsung for my life especially their phones and cameras.

You've really only provided a few vague anecdotal examples which would be as valid as someone saying Apple customer service is poor based on an incident or two.

 

[Grolubao]

Buy the Sammy and put Ubuntu on it

 

[Aegis90]

Hmm I think you're confused on the definition of a netbook. Which the MBA definitely is not nor is the Samsung Series 9. No way would a $1000 computer still be considered a netbook...

On a side note I really wish Samsung would've put an AMD Fusion processor in the 11.6" version and knocked off a couple hundred dollars from the retail price. Oh well...

That being said I do love the design of the MBA but I think the 9 looks better. I was considering buying a MBA as my new computer but will wait and see how the 9 Series 9 does... You should really wait until reviews are out before making a decision one way or another.

actually I think there is a $1000-ish computer that is considered a netbook. It's called the Sony X...

 

[2IS]

the 1.33ghz core i3 wont outgun the 1.6ghz c2d

4 threads
Higher memory bandwidth
Higher Instructions Per Cycle

I'd say the i3 would outgun the C2D by a bit.