Protech Review: Samsung N150 Verizon Wireless Review

Samsung N150 Review

N150 Series Black Netbook Computer - NP-N150-JP05US

Samsung N150

Review Summary:

The Samsung N150 is a low-performance netbook with an extremely low price from Verizon.

Pros

Good battery life
Low cost with Verizon 3G service

Cons

Difficult to upgrade
Weak performance
Low-resolution screen

Samsung N150 Verizon Wireless Full Review

Low-performance, low-cost "netbooks" remain a popular computing solution for many consumers and business professionals despite the fact that these little laptops lack the capabilities of full-featured notebooks. Why bother with a netbook when you can just use a smartphone? Verizon Wireless believes the large keyboard, physically larger screen, USB ports and Windows 7 interface are all reasons to buy the Samsung N150 netbook. Oh, and let's not forget that you can buy it for $30 with a two-year contract and stay connected to the internet anywhere the Verizon network has coverage.

Our Samsung N150 (NP-N150-HAV1US) features the following specifications:

Intel Atom N450 processor (1.66GHz)
Windows 7 Starter (32-bit)
10.1" WSVGA (1024 x 600), Non-Gloss, LED Back-lit display
1GB DDR2 RAM
160GB hard drive (5400rpm)
Wired Ethernet LAN: 10/100 LAN
Wireless LAN: 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth: Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
1.3-megapixel webcam
Verizon Wireless 3G GOBI 2000 with VZAccess Manager software
Verizon Wireless SIM Card
6-cell battery
Dimensions: 10.4 x 7.4 x 1-1.4 inches
Weight: 2.75 pounds
Price: $469 or $29.99 with 2-year contract from Verizon

Build and Design
The design of the Samsung N150 is, in a word, "average" for a modern netbook. The matte black exterior combined with a burgandy red stripe of color around the edges delivers a simple consumer-oriented netbook appearance with a touch of business class. The plastics used in the construction of the chassis are high quality enough to avoid creaking sounds when you squeeze the netbook, but the plastics are thin enough that you feel that netbook flexing under the pressure of your fingertips.

The screen lid provides a similar level of protection when compared to the plastics in the rest of the netbook. If you press firmly on the back of the display you will start to see distortions on the screen, but the lid is strong enough to protect the display while the N150 rattles around in your briefcase or purse. The N150 feels relative sturdy when the netbook is completely closed and the screen hinges offer enough resistance to make you feel like you're getting your money's worth. On the inside the keyboard feels solid in its tray with very little flex or movement. The palmrest also holds up well, although if you have adult-sized hands your palms will hang over the front edge of the netbook and almost rest on your lap or the desk surface depending on where you work.

Taking a look at the bottom of the Samsung N150 reveals this is one of the least upgrade-friendly netbooks we've seen. Most netbooks have one massive access panel on the bottom of the laptop or two smaller panels that allow you to remove the RAM and the the hard drive in order to upgrade these components yourself. The N150 only features a small panel over the RAM slot allowing you to upgrade the RAM. Accessing the hard drive and wireless cards requires you to completely disassemble the netbook.

That being said, it's doubtful that the majority of people buying this netbook from Verizon will upgrade any component ... even adding a 2GB stick of RAM is unlikely for most N150 owners.

Ports and Features
The Samsung N150 features three USB 2.0 ports, VGA-out, headphone jack, microphone jack, SD card slot and Ethernet. Of course, if you purchase this netbook from Verizon you also get the built-in Verizon WWAN card for broadband internet access anywhere the Verizon network has coverage.

Front: Activity lights and SD/SDHC/MMC card slot.

Rear: Nothing

Left: DC-input, Ethernet, one USB 2.0, and audio jacks

Right: Wireless on/off switch, two USB 2.0, LAN, VGA, Kensington Lock slot

Screen and Speakers
The display on the Samsung N150 feels like a bit of a step backward in the netbook market. Most modern netbooks have switched to display panels that feature a 1366x768 resolution similar to larger notebook screens. Unfortunately, the screen on the N150 uses an older style 1024x600 LED-backlit panel. This means that many web pages might not display properly on the screen and even some Windows menus might not fit on the screen due to the extremely low resolution. In short, you need to be prepared for horizontal or vertical scrolling. In addition, this screen doesn't support 720p playback (which requires a display with a minimum resolution of 1280x720) so you can forget about YouTube HD. That said, the CPU and integrated graphics have trouble with HD content as well.

The panel itself is easy to read--at least with my eyes--and text doesn't appear to be that small compared to other mobile devices. If you can read small text on a mobile phone, you should be able to view the screen without any problems. Viewing angles were average compared to other notebooks, with colors starting to invert or distort when the screen was tilted about 15 degrees forward or back. Horizontal viewing angles were much better and the matte screen prevented unwanted reflections.

The small speakers on the Samsung N150 netbook are located under the front edge of the palmrests, angled down toward your lap. On a hard desktop surface they are loud enough to fill a small room with sound since the audio "bounces" off the table and moves forward toward the user. If you're using this netbook as a "laptop" then you should expect the audio to be muffled since the downward-firing speakers will be blocked by clothing. Sound quality was average or below average compared to other similarly sized netbooks, with virtually no bass and weak midrange.

Keyboard and Touchpad
The Samsung N150 features a cramped keyboard with traditional-style keys. Most of the keys are only a fraction smaller than full-size notebook keys, but the function keys and the arrow keys are painfully small in order to fit inside the 10-inch footprint. The keyboard is comfortable for typing quick businessemails, Facebook updates or making a quick online purchase, but don't expect to type your autobiography without developing severe hand cramps. In other words, this keyboard is intended for short term travel or light usage while web browsing. If you intend to use this as your primary system, you might want to consider buying an external keyboard for any time you plan to be typing for several hours.

The touchpad on the N150 is small. When I say small, I mean that I can almost cover the entire touchpad surface with my thumb turned sideways. The touchpad itself includes multi-finger gesture support which lets you scroll, pinch-zoom in and out, and rotate via the touchpad. Of course, if you have large adult-sized hands it won't be easy to fit two fingers on the touchpad and perform a gesture at the same time. The matte black texture of the touchpad surface matches the rest of the netbook and sensitivity was excellent without any adjustment needed. The two touchpad buttons are located under a single touchpad "rocker switch" with a small indent separating the left and right buttons. The button press is shallow with an audible "click" when used.

Performance and Benchmarks
There really isn't much point to even having a performance and benchmark section in the reviews of most netbooks. Virtually all Atom-based netbooks deliver weak multi-tasking performance, slow application switching, slow application launching (uless they're upgraded with a solid state drive) and weak video performance thanks to Intel's integrated graphics. That said, most average consumers who aren't actively watching video or multitasking with several Microsoft Office applications think these netbooks offer "good enough" performance.

Indeed, if all you want to do is check email, browse some websites, update social media like Facebook and Twitter, or type a few pages of text into Microsoft Word then the N150 will get the job done. More importantly, the Verizon network allows you to do all that even when you're not close to a Wi-Fi hotspot. If you purchase the N150 from Verizon then it will come pre-loaded with Verizon'sVZAccess Manager software which lets you connect to the web at the touch of a button.

The only "potential" issue with using Verizon's 3G service instead of Wi-Fi is potential signal loss when you're working indoors. I was able to get a download speed of several Megabits per second (Mb/s) while using the Verizon network outdoors, but indoors where the signal was abstructed by walls and ceilings my download speed would commonly drop to less than 0.25Mb/s. In contrast, a typical Wi-Fi connection at a coffee shop might give you 7.0Mb/s or faster speeds. In short, Verizon lets you stay connected from anywhere, but you'll probably want to use Wi-Fi when you have the opportunity.