a beautiful, efficient but expensive ultra-portable PC

Elegant, powerful, durable and flexible: on paper, the Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 ticks almost all the boxes for anyone looking for an original and high-performance laptop. A flagship not really cheap, but which does not disappoint.

Samsung does it again. After the very successful Galaxy Book3 Pro 360 that we tested last year, the South Korean brand is bringing its range of premium ultra-portable PCs up to date. By premium, we of course mean a most elegant design with impeccable finishes but also an Amoled screen that is still as attractive as ever and obviously a technical update with the arrival of Intel’s new Meteor Lake processor which, on paper, is wants more performance and less energy consumption. And for this PC, the “360” extension of its name marks as usual, the possibility of tilting the screen up to 360° to transform this large computer into a touchscreen tablet. Samsung even provides a stylus for taking notes or drawing if you feel like it.

However, premium also means high prices. And this new Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 is no exception to the rule. Available in two versions, armed with 512 GB or 1 TB of storage, this luxury PC is therefore sold between 2199 and 2399 euros at the official price. To make things easier, the brand is offering promotional offers from its resellers offering a carrying case and a 2 TB T7 Shield external SSD or, on its site, a Galaxy Tab S9 FE tablet (worth 529 euros ). Interesting, especially when we know that it can act as an additional external screen for the PC since it is part of Samsung’s Galaxy ecosystem. We were able to test this Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 for several days. Here is our verdict.

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360: unchanged design, so what?

To develop the chassis of its new Galaxy Book4 Pro 360, Samsung did not look very far. It is neither more nor less than that of the previous version. Lovers of new products may be disappointed, but that would be an injustice as this design is such a success. Simple, very refined, effective, sober… we simply cannot find any fault in it. So, you might as well reuse it. After all, Apple does exactly the same thing with its MacBooks and no one finds anything wrong with it.

We are therefore faced with an ultra-portable PC that is still as thin as ever with its 12.8 mm measured on the thickest part of the machine, near the hinge. It can therefore easily fit into a bag, large enough to still accommodate its size of 355 x 252 mm due to its generous 16-inch screen. In terms of weight, it is very acceptable at 1.66 kg. Premium class requires, the chassis is made of aluminum with a very nice finish.

On the left side, there are two Thunderbolt 4 ports, one of which can be used to recharge the battery and an HDMI 2.1 port for connecting the PC to an external monitor or television (up to the definition of 8K at 60 Hz or 5K at 120 Hz).

On the front, we have a USB-A 3.2 port, a jack socket and a MicroSD card reader. A fairly complete connection therefore (much richer than what we find on MacBooks) and more than sufficient for most uses.

Once opened, this Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 reveals a large keyboard with a numeric keypad, always just as appreciable. The keys offer real comfort of use. Quiet typing with an ideal stroke for those who type quickly.

At the top right, we note that the power key houses a fingerprint reader to unlock the device with Windows Hello. This will be the only biometric device. The Webcam housed at the top of the screen is not compatible with Microsoft’s security system for facial recognition. Damage.

Just below lies a large trackpad with a diagonal of 18.5 cm, slightly offset to the left of the palm rest. Left-handers may need to take a little getting used to it. However, it is very smooth and pleasant to the touch and above all, very responsive.

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360: a comfortable screen except outdoors

This Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 is equipped with an Amoled touchscreen panel capable of tilting 360° to fold onto the back of the chassis to transform the computer into a giant tablet. A principle that is still just as pleasant, even if a tablet of this size and weight (1.66 kg, remember) is not the most comfortable. However, this possibility opens the way to other uses for example, placing the PC three-quarters folded (tent format) in order to limit the bulk to watch a film for example.

Little extra, Samsung provides an S-Pen stylus in the box. You can therefore easily take notes or draw directly on the screen. Please note: unlike its S24 Ultra smartphones and the Galaxy Note before them, no location is provided to store the stylus in the computer. At most, it can be hung on the top of the hood using a magnetic system. It’s not very practical and you have every chance of losing it on the way.

For this screen, Samsung has therefore used a well-made Dynamic Amoled 2X panel. It offers a very comfortable 16-inch display surface for working or having fun with 3K definition (2880 x 1800 pixels) and a refresh rate that can go up to 120 Hz. The contrasts are perfect and the colorimetry ideally adjusted at the output of the cardboard. Several predefined profiles are also available to suit individual tastes.

A very comfortable screen therefore, except outdoors. Despite the Vision Booster mode developed by Samsung which automatically increases the brightness of the screen in difficult conditions, in direct sunlight for example, we were not convinced. The Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 lacks a little punch to be comfortable to use outdoors in good weather with a little too low brightness. As for the anti-reflective treatment, if the South Korean highlights the use of Corning Gorilla DX glass which resists scratches and eliminates, in theory, up to 75% of reflections, that doesn’t stand out, there too , especially to the eyes. The panel turns out to be very shiny, a fairly recurring problem with touchscreen panels. This is one of the few missteps of this PC. Samsung will have to rework its copy on this point, especially since some of its televisions equipped with Oled screens benefit from truly effective treatment against reflections.

Sound-wise, it’s a pleasant surprise. This ultra-portable is based on four speakers from AKG (owned by the Korean giant) compatible with Dolby Atmos. As long as you don’t push the volume too high, you can enjoy a sound that is completely correct and suitable for following the dialogues of a film or series. The inevitable lack of bass prevents you from listening to music in optimal conditions, but after all, that’s not really the purpose of a laptop.

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360: performance worthy of its price

Technical sheet

Like many players in the world of microcomputers, for this new iteration of the Galaxy Book4 Pro 360, Samsung turned to Intel’s new flagship chip to power its machine. It is therefore the duo formed by the Core Ultra 7 155H and the Intel ARC GPU which is at work in this machine. A chip whose performance we have already been able to appreciate with the Asus Zenbook 14 Oled, one of the very first PCs to have it on board a few months ago. As with the Asus PC, this Galaxy Book presents very good results with our various benchmarks.

Supported by 16 GB of RAM and a 1 TB SSD in our configuration, Intel’s Core Ultra runs demanding applications without flinching. The fluidity is there and even – this is not usual on this type of very fine machines – the games prove to be completely usable. And not just the occasional headlines. More demanding games can also be run as long as you don’t be too demanding on the level of detail.

This is appreciable especially as the heating seems rather well controlled. When pushed to its limits, the Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 starts to blow discreetly enough not to disturb the atmosphere. Good game.

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360: a well-established ecosystem

If you already own Samsung equipment (smartphone, tablet, television) this Galaxy Book will easily blend into this small world. A bit like Apple, Samsung is also developing an ecosystem allowing all its devices not only to recognize each other but also to interact easily. For example, it will be possible to use the screen of a Galaxy Tab tablet as a second monitor or to easily exchange files between the PC and a Galaxy smartphone, use the mobile camera as a webcam, etc. An efficient and fairly complete software suite, provided you have other Samsung devices. Otherwise, you will have to make do with the Link with Windows function to associate your smartphone with the PC and benefit from the possibility of exchanging SMS or taking calls for example.

Note that this Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 powered by an Intel Core Ultra 7 chip must also be comfortable with artificial intelligence tools. While waiting for the arrival of CoPilot in Windows 11, we can already use it in particular for image editing in the Gallery app (the same on Galaxy smartphones).

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360: increased autonomy

The Intel Core Ultra chip that powers this PC had already proven to us on the Asus model its ability to show measured energy consumption. This is confirmed here. The PC has a 76 Wh battery and is quite economical. In streaming reading on Netflix, we achieved more or less the same score as on the Asus Zenbook, i.e. a little over 15 hours. With more intensive use, particularly in office automation, Web and photo editing, the Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 also holds its own with 13 hours of battery life. Not bad at all.

For recharging, Samsung provides a 65 W charger. Allow almost two hours to recharge from 0 to 100%. One hour of charging allows you to recover around 50% of the battery.

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360: should you fall for Samsung’s new luxury ultra-portable?

This new version of the Galaxy Book Pro 360 is a success. The processor update with a Core Ultra 7 was obviously expected but nevertheless welcome. It gives this PC a little more power and especially more agility in the graphics area. We still appreciate the care taken in the design and the comfort of use linked to the large Amoled screen. It’s a shame, however, that this one isn’t more punchy to remain perfectly usable whatever the light conditions. Its hybrid mode which transforms it in the blink of an eye into a large touchscreen tablet, assisted by a stylus, also remains a very appreciable asset that you don’t come across everywhere. And for those familiar with the Samsung world, the machine is even more pleasant to handle since it includes all the brand’s graphic and usage codes. Finally, there remains the question of price. This Galaxy Book4 Pro 360 is classified in the premium ultra-portable PC category and the entry ticket is to match. But here we have a quality PC built to last.