Samsung N150

The NC10, Samsung's first netbook computer, impressed us because it had a longer battery life and better keyboard than others on the market at the time of its release.

The N150 is one of many follow-ups, with a new Intel Atom processor that uses less power than the older version, so its battery should last even longer between charges.

This is the only major advantage of the updated processor. It has the same performance as the older model and so it does not make any noticeable difference in use. But it increases the N150's battery life beyond what Samsung achieved with the NC10. We measured seven hours during light use, which is a very good showing for a portable computer.

The rest of the N150's specification is as you will find in other netbooks, with 1GB of memory, a 160GB hard disk and a 10.1in screen. It also comes with Windows 7 Starter Edition, a version of the Windows operating system designed for netbooks.

The version of Windows has a number of restrictions though. For instance, it does not support the transparent interface found in Windows 7 Home Premium. Windows 7 was not quite as responsive on the N150 as other PCs, and less so than Windows XP on other netbooks.

Samsung sent us a white version with a red trim around the sides (the black version was a pound cheaper at the time of writing). Five blue lights on the front edge indicate the power status and hard disk activity.

The plastic chassis does not give the impression that it’s particularly strong, although it was no weaker than similar computers. It's fairly light and thin, though again no more so than other netbooks. The keyboard is the weakest aspect of its design: the keys are small and too close together, which made typing difficult.

The screen uses an anti-reflective coating which makes it easier to see in direct light. This especially helps when working with the screen brightness turned down, which Windows 7 does automatically in Power Saver mode. With such a long battery life though, there is less need to dim the screen to save power when the netbook is not connected to mains power.

The N150 is underwhelming. Samsung's choice of keyboard style is not easy to type on and while the battery life was impressive, other netbook and mini-laptop manufacturers have caught up with Samsung, and now offer models with batteries that can last for roughly the same amount of time.

It's good value for money, but since the rest of the specification is standard, the N150 lacks a unique aspect that would make it a must-have purchase.