Samsung Q310-34P

Bundled Software

Besides the Windows Vista Business operating system (Samsung opted for this version of Vista in order to satisfy both business and mainstream customers, as Business contains all of the features of Home Premium), the Q310-34P comes preinstalled with Adobe Acrobat Reader, LightScribe, a 60-day trial of Microsoft Office Professional 2007, and a slew of Samsung’s homegrown utilities. These include Easy Battery Manager, Easy Display Manager, Easy Network Manager, and MagicDoctor (a program that diagnoses various aspects components of a notebook and offers solutions to potential problems). Samsung backs the notebook with a one-year standard warranty and 24/7 tech support.

Verdict

The Samsung Q310-34P is one of the better-designed 13-inch notebooks we’ve tested, and it offers good performance. However, the business-oriented $949 Lenovo ThinkPad SL300 offers nearly double the endurance of the Q310-34P (without charging an arm and a leg for an extra-capacity battery) and the $200 cheaper HP Pavilion dv3510nr features an extra gig of RAM, discrete Nvidia graphics, and a backlit keyboard (although it lasts an hour less on a charge). If good looks and an excellent Vista experience is what you want, the Q310-34P is a tempting option, but other 13-inch notebooks offer better bang for your buck.