Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 5G review: 5 things to know
Samsung's latest foldable Galaxy Book is a delight to use.
For a new laptop to succeed in a world filled with smaller screens, it needs to do two things: offer the ultimate in functionality, from ports to power; and have a form factor that wows.
The Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 is one of those laptops that promises to win on both these counts. It's got the power, thanks to an Intel Core i5 chip and 8GB of memory, and the 360 in its name means that it's a flexible thing, allowing you to shift from laptop to tablet and everything in between.
But how does it perform? ShortList has been using the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 as its main whip for a few weeks now - here are 5 things to know about the laptop.
- Make sure you have the best office chair around when using your laptop at home.
1. Its build quality is fantastic
Samsung has proven that it can make foldables work in the phone market, with the Samsung Galaxy Fold 3 and the Samsung Galaxy Flip 3 and it's using its hinge expertise here in the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360. This is a foldable laptop that offers up a good deal of flexibility in how you can use it.
Samsung has managed to create a laptop that is both light and ultra thin (its dimensions are: 302.5 x 202.0 x 11.5mm and it weighs 1.07kg) but at the same time it feels sturdy. The all-important hinge that allows you to switch the laptop into a tablet is incredibly well built and never once feels like it would creek under the pressure of too many movements. Add to this an aluminum lid (and magnesium alloy base) and what you have is a well- constructed computer.
When it comes to the keyboard, there is a nice level of depth to the keys so you feel like you are actually typing. Yes, it's shallow, given that it's on an ultra-thin laptop base but we had no issues when writing with it.
2. The screen is bright and sharp
We were really impressed with the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360's screen, apart form the black border that surrounds the thing - it's understandable why it is there as the panel offer a 16:9 ratio. It does, howeverr, frame a lovely 15.6-inch AMOLED panel.
The colours that this thing offers are pretty stunning. Watching a movie on the panel really shows off the AMOLED's capabilities, with the blacks offering up a good deal of depth while the rest of the colours ping. this is still a computer, so don't expect it to replace your TV but it is impressive stuff.
There is an added bonus with the screen - it's touchscreen. This means you can swipe things with your fingers or use the supplied S-Pen stylus that comes in the box. This is really handy when you are presenting something on the laptop and just adds a little more functionality to the device.
It would have been nice to have some caddy for the S-Pen on the device, however.
3. There are ports aplenty
Okay, so you may not get a chunky USB-A port but there are a number of ports on the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 that make it a powerhouse. There are three USB-C ports (one of those is also a Thunderbolt 4) and microSD card slot. That's because the Pro 360 supports 5G functionality, which makes it one of the best travel laptops around. While we can't guarantee you'll get 5G speeds on the thing while on a train (it all depends on coverage) this is a fantastic USP for the laptop and all that use it.
Oh, and there's a headphone jack which will make those Bluetooth-earphone haters very happy (but Bluetooth is also on board)
4. It performs great as a laptop and tablet
We've already mentioned some of the specs but we will reiterate here, as there is decent grunt under the hood of the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360. Our review unit included: an Intel Core i5, 8GB memory and 256GB SSD. This is plenty for normal work tasks and the like and will even get you playing some decent games on the thing.
The Pro 360 was always swift for us, with Windows 11 Pro working well on the device. We did hear the fan noise occasionally when using video services such as Zoom and Google Meet but it soon went once the laptop sorted itself out.
The Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 also comes to life when you use Samsung products with it, with the ability to share photos and other things really simply if you have a Samsung handset.
When you use the Pro 360 in tablet mode, the keyboard is disabled which means that you won't have to worry about random key presses when holding the thing. And we really liked using the S-Pen when the laptop is in 'tent mode'.
5. Battery life is exactly what you want
We got a decent 10 hours out of the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 5G when it comes to battery life, which is better than we were expecting, given the quality of the screen. But Samsung has definitely done some behind-the-scenes tweaking to make sure that the battery isn't sapped too much when doing everyday tasks.
The laptop did get warm on occasion but we were impressed with just how long it lasted, which is great given the portability of the laptop means that you will be regularly taking advantage of the 5G connectivity.
Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 5G: Final Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 5G is one of the most versatile laptops around with a fantastic USP: 5G connectivity.
If you are looking for a laptop that can do everyday tasks with ease, will flip into a tablet when you need it to and has S-Pen functionality, then the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 5G is the one for you.
