![]() ![]() The base is fortunately more rigid compared to something like the Yoga 910, though it doesn't come close to the MacBook Pro 15 or XPS 15. The lid here is far more susceptible to twisting and bending than both the XPS 15 and Spectre 13 and feels extremely fragile despite the clean minimalist look. Dell has proven that this doesn't necessarily have to be the case with the excellent InfinityEdge XPS 13 and XPS 15 designs, but we can't say the same for Samsung. We're always wary of thin displays and narrow bezels simply because there is a higher chance of a more flexible lid. Rigidity is perhaps the weakest aspect of the design. It's definitely understated in design compared to the lengths competitors go to create more unique looks such as the piston hinges of the Spectre 13, brushed concentric surfaces of the Zenbook 3, or distinctive wristband hinge of the Yoga 900 series. The lack of any glossy finishing or brushed surfaces make the system appear plastic with a similar gray color tone to the MacBook Pro. The notebook utilizes thin metal treated with "Micro Arc Oxidation Technology" and the result is a slightly roughened and textured matte surface from top to bottom. Our first impression of the new Notebook 9 is how incredibly lightweight it is without resorting to cheap plastic materials. For this review, we'll see how the Samsung stacks up against these more popular Ultrabooks in the market. A lot has changed since then with the 15.0-inch Samsung sandwiched between new competitors in both the 14-inch space ( ZenBook UX3410, ThinkPad X1 Carbon) and the more common 15.6-inch space ( VivoBook S510, XPS 15). The NP900X5N with Kaby Lake is the first Notebook 9 model to stop by our labs in over three years. A smaller 13.3-inch version of the Notebook 9 (NP900X3N) exists as well with similar features as the NP900X5MI that we'll likely check out in the near future. A second lower-end SKU (NP900X5MI) with the i5-7200U CPU, 8 GB of RAM, 30 Wh battery, and no dedicated GPU is also available, but we could find no such configuration in stock at least in North America. The latest model in the underrated series is the 15.0-inch Notebook 9 Always (NP900X5N) with a Core i7-7500U CPU, FHD glossy display, GeForce 940MX GPU, 16 GB of RAM, 66 Wh battery, and 256 GB NVMe SSD as reviewed here for approximately $1400 USD. The even lesser-known ATIV Book 5, Book 6, and Book 8 models all exhibit great displays and runtimes in very lightweight designs that mimic the MacBook Air series. At CES 2016, for example, the Notebook 9 refresh was but a small desk with only a handful of demos in the sea of Galaxy Tabs and other Samsung products. Samsung laptops don't receive nearly the same marketing push or recognition as the almighty Galaxy S series of smartphones and it's a bit of a shame as the ATIV Book/Notebook 9 flagship series has always scored quite well in our tests.
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