The key promises of the machine are a solid, small machine with a very long battery life.

Here’s an overview of the spec, plus 5 things we love about it and one thing we’d change:

Specification

First the specification – as usual with Samsung, good quality components and nothing that would make you worry.

• Intel Atom N450 1.66GHz Processor
• 250GB Hard Drive
• 1GB DDR2 Memory (upgradeable to 2GB)
• 10.1″ screen (1024 x 600)
• 0.3-megapixel Webcam
• 3-in-1 Card Reader
• Bluetooth 2.1 EDR
• 802.11b/g/n wireless
• Ethernet
• 3x USB Ports
• Windows 7 Starter Operating System

And now here are the 5 bits that we think make the Samsung N210 stand out ahead of many of Samsung’s competitors:

Build Quality

The Samsung N210’s build quality is noticeable immediately. The machine is very light, but very solid. It has obviously been built to carry around in a bag & use on the train without worrying about it taking the occasional knock.

Screen

The N210 has a 10.1″ screen, with a 1024 x 600 resolution. This is very clear, and the picture is great even if you turn the brightness way down. The resolution can be changed (to 1024×700 and 1152×864), but is clearest at the standard resolution. The machine also has a VGA output, meaning it’s really easy to plug it into an external monitor (perfect for in the office/at home). Perhaps my favourite thing about the screen is that it’s matte. Most netbook screens are glossy. Glossy screens look great in the shop, but are terrible to use in bright conditions where they reflect everything. I was really happy to see the N210 had gone for a nice, clear matte display instead.

Battery Life

Samsung have always tried to remain ahead of the pack when it came to netbook battery life. With the Samsung N210 they quote an 11.2-hour battery life. It’s very common for manufacturers to quote battery life figures way above those you’ll actually get when using the machines. I was therefore really surprised to find that I could get very close to 11 hours of actual use from the N210. This was at a screen brightness of around 40%. I expect at a higher brightness you’d still get 7 or 8 hours, meaning a full day’s work.

Weight

Though you can’t say much about it, the weight of this thing is definitely one of its key features. The N210 weighs a ridiculously small 1.3kg. In other words, about the same as a plastic 2-pint milk bottle.

Keyboard

As with older Samsung netbooks, the keyboard here is great. It fills the width of the machine, meaning you get something as close as possible to a full-sized keyboard. The keys themselves are designed quite cleverly too. Each key pokes through the case individually, meaning there are virtually no gaps between keys. This is great, as it means it’s very hard for any dirt to get under there, and gives a very sturdy feel when typing.

Anything Bad?

The only fault I’d pick with the N210 is I had to spend 10 minutes uninstalling various pieces of ‘trial’ software that had been bundled with it. I understand why they do that (they get paid to do it), and that I get the laptop cheaper as a result, but I wanted to mention this in the review anyway.

Where to Buy the Samsung N210

Out of the 12 sites we checked, Amazon are selling the Samsung N210 at the best price. Move your mouse over the images below to check their current price:

It’s tough to improve on the Samsung NC10. Even a year after its release, there is very little on the Netbook market that beats it.

BUT – if you’re really fussy – and you’re desperate to find a way to improve it – we suggest powering it up with a 9-Cell battery.

Why would you want to extend the already huge battery life?

The NC10’s battery life is awesome, but there is always room for improvement. Imagine a guaranteed work day with no need to charge? Or how about going away for a weekend without your AC adapter?

Well here’s the stats on the difference between your standard battery & a 9-Cell:

In other words – under the heaviest use – your standard battery would last 4 hours 46 minutes, while the 9-cell battery would last a massive 7 and a quarter hours.

I don’t know about you, but my standard battery lasts around 5 and a half hours under normal use, meaning I get around 9 hours from the better battery.

• Buy the White 9-Cell Battery at Amazon (£69.99)
• Buy the Black 9-Cell Battery at Amazon (£69.99)
• Buy the Blue 9-Cell Battery at Amazon (£69.99)

The screen is tiny (around 10 inches), but Samsung have cleverly allowed it to link to most standard monitors.

Here’s a selection of the best larger monitors available from Amazon.

* samsung nc10 dual monitor photo by smemon

Are you using the NC10 with a larger monitor? Let us know what you think!

Thank god they didn’t include a CD drive with the NC10: You’d be dragging an extra 600g around everywhere with you, just for the 1 time every few weeks you need it.

Having said that… when you do need an external CD drive, there are some decent options available. Here’s a selection of the cheapest external CD, DVD and DVD-RW drives around for the NC10:

CD-ROM Drives

If you just need to install software and turn your CDs into MP3s, these drives are simplest and cheapest.

• Black External USB CD Drive – £19.99
• White External USB CD Drive – £17.99

CD-RW/DVD Drives

These drives let you read DVDs & CDs. They also let you burn CDs yourself – great if you need to transfer stuff to & from your NC10.

• Black External USB CD-RW/DVD Drive – £39.99
• A Cheaper Black External USB CD-RW/DVD Drive – £35 inc shipping!
• White External USB CD-RW/DVD Drive – £34.99

DVD RW Drives

Read & Write DVDs, and read & write CDs too. If you want a totally flexible drive for reading & writing DVDs, go for one of these. As they only cost a few pounds more than CD-RW/DVD drives (if that) these are your best bet if you’re not sure what you’ll need.

• White Dual Layer DVD+/-RW Drive – £39.99
• Black Dual Layer DVD+/-RW Drive – £39.99

There you have it – the complete selection of slimline black/white external drives for your Samsung NC10.

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OK, so it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but it actually look great and works. The colour isn’t the wishy-washy pink of some other laptops, the slick top looks very expensive (like a £2-grand sony!) and the spec is identical to the other colours.

Best of all is pricing. Whereas most merchants priced the other colours a little higher at launch, Dabs are offering a decent price and Amazon is currently taking orders at a ridiculously low price.

Move your mouse over the image below for the latest Amazon price:

The kit is solderless and looks surprisingly straightforward. There are no ‘how to’ videos available yet, but the instructions are available in PDF format .

You can tell most of these reveiwers have actually had the machine & given it a good test. A few are in-depth with several pages of benchmarks, images, videos.

I’ve included a quick quote from each that sums up the overall tone of the review.

1. Laptop Mag:

Until now, no other netbook has been able to match the 10-inch MSI Wind’s endurance, strong performance, and spacious keyboard. Samsung’s NC10 is the only product that provides comparable—and even improved—features for a lower price. 4 stars out of 5.

2. Tackling Technology:

Overall I am very happy with the NC10. I know it’s going to make a great travel companion for me on the road and in the air. It will be especially useful on those longhaul flights between Europe and South America, where trying to use a heavy 17″ desktop replacement is a complete waste of time given the lack of space (even in business class). I won’t even need the in-seat power with 8 hours battery life more than a enough juice between sleep on the longest of journeys.

3. Bit Tech:

The Samsung NC10 is, quite simply, the best netbook money can buy at the moment. While there’s no one feature that puts it head and shoulders above everything else out there, the combination of superb build quality and attention to detail gives the NC10 a distinct edge over the competition.

Things like the matte finish which doesn’t attract fingerprints (I’m not a fan of the White, but there are Blue and Black variants as well), the excellent keyboard and one of the best screens we’ve seen on a netbook to date just demonstrate the thought and effort Samsung has put into this little device.

4. Digit Geek:

The Samsung NC10 is a superb product which outperforms all the other competitors especially when it comes to battery life and keyboard. It is aptly priced and is a very good buy. It does have some minor shortcomings, but they almost disappear when compared to its positive aspects.

5. The Chronicles of a Geography Nerd

I cannot imagine upgrading for a while because it has the right combo of screen size, screen resolution, and keyboard usability. The Eee was lacking in those areas.

6. Techno Talks

I think the forte of Samsung NC10 is its long battery life, which is capable of lasting up to 7 hours and 34 minutes, with the built-in Samsung Battery Manager 2.0. Among all other netbooks available today, this is touted to be the longest battery life.

7. Netbook Now

The NC10 might not be the best looking netbook out there – It has a white matte lid but with its smooth, rounded square edges, it has a much more professional look than a lot of other netbooks. The NC10 measures 10.3 x 7.3 x 1.2 inches and weighs 2.8 pounds.

8. Sammy Netbook (if you read just one of these reviews in full, make it this one)

The Samsung NC10 to date has handled everything that I’ve thrown at it with very reasonable performance. I am fast getting the impression that this little netbook will be able to run everything that I need on the move and do it a solid fashion.

9. Slash Gear

It’s always tricky to say “this is the best machine”, especially with new netbooks being announced seemingly every day, but Laptop Mag are calling the Samsung NC10 “the most well-rounded 10-inch netbook on the market.”  It undercuts the MSI Wind for price and only lags behind it on trackpad size; for the moment, the NC10 is where the sensible 10-inch netbook money must go.

10. TechRadar

So, has the Samsung NC10 been worth waiting for? Clearly the answer is yes. While it does nothing new, it takes all the proven good points of other devices, tightens them up and delivers an excellent package at a great price. It’ll be interesting to see how other companies respond but for the time being, Samsung has set the benchmark for 10-inch Netbooks and set it high.

Found another review that should be here? Let us know in the comments.