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Watch out, OLED: Samsung bringing QLED Galaxy Book Ion and Galaxy Book Flex NT930X laptops in 2020

Watch out, OLED: Samsung bringing QLED Galaxy Book Ion and Flex NT930X laptops in 2020 (Source: Samsung)
Watch out, OLED: Samsung bringing QLED Galaxy Book Ion and Flex NT930X laptops in 2020 (Source: Samsung)
Samsung will launch the world's first QLED laptops early next year with the promise of 600-nit displays, Ice Lake, Wi-Fi 6, and GeForce MX graphics. LPDDR4x RAM will come soldered alongside an S Pen recess on the Galaxy Flex model.

Most consumer laptops come with TN or IPS displays. Higher-end models like the Dell XPS 15 or Gigabyte Aero 15 may come with IGZO or OLED panels that are generally brighter and more color accurate than TN or IPS. Soon, users will have yet another laptop display technology to choose from: QLED.

While QLED television sets have been available for years, this marks the first time that a laptop will sport the panel. QLED promises deeper and brighter colors than the usual IPS panel in a similar manner to OLED. But unlike OLED, however, QLED relies on a backlight for illumination and so contrast ratios won't be as pitch black as they appear on OLED. QLED should therefore be a middle-ground option between IPS and OLED with prices that will hopefully be more affordable than the $2000+ OLED laptops currently in market.

Samsung, who also happens to be the supplier for most OLED panels found on the latest laptops from HP, Dell, Razer and others, will launch two new Galaxy laptop models early next year equipped with 1080p QLED displays: the Galaxy Book Flex convertible and the Galaxy Book Ion clamshell each in 13.3-inch and 15.6-inch form factors. The larger 15.6-inch versions will get optional GeForce MX250 graphics while the Galaxy Book Flex 13/15 and Book Ion 15 will integrate an S Pen recess and a free DDR4 SODIMM slot, respectively.

All SKUs will sport Intel Ice Lake CPUs with Thunderbolt 3, a fingerprint reader, and up to 1 TB of NVMe storage.

Senior Vice President of Samsung's PC Mobile Communication Business YoungGyoo Choi calls the new QLED Galaxy laptops "powerful with unparalleled portability and display innovation."

While exact prices are unknown, we can expect both models to become available during the first half of 2020 meaning that these will more than likely be on the CES 2020 show floor for hands-on time. The spec tables below reveal impressive hardware and features considering the ultra-thin chassis designs.

Galaxy Book Ion 13

Galaxy Book Ion 15

Dimensions

305.7 x 199.8 x 12.9 mm

356.1 x 228.0 x 14.9 mm

Weight

0.97 kg

1.26 kg (External graphics model)

1.19 kg (Internal graphics model)

Display

13.3"QLED FHD Display (1920 x 1080)

15.6"QLED FHD Display (1920 x 1080)

CPU

Intel® 10th generation Core™ Processor (Comet Lake)

Intel® 10th generation Core™ Processor (Comet Lake)

Graphics

Intel® UHD Graphics

NVIDIA® GeForce® MX250 Graphics with GDDR5 2 GB Graphic Memory (External graphics model)

Intel® UHD Graphics (Internal graphics model)

 

Memory

Up to 16GB (DDR4)

Up to 16GB (DDR4) + 1 Sodimm

Storage

Up to 1TB SSD (NVMe)

Up to 1TB SSD (NVMe)

+ 1 SSD expandable slot

WLAN

Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+), 802.11 ax 2x2

Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+), 802.11 ax 2x2

Camera / Mic

720p HD / Dual Array Mic

720p HD / Dual Array Mic

Audio

AKG Stereo Speakers with Smart Amp

AKG Stereo Speakers with Smart Amp

Security

Fingerprint

Fingerprint

Keyboard

Backlit

Backlit

Battery

69.7Wh (Typical)

69.7Wh (Typical)

Ports

Thunderbolt™ 3 | USB 3.0 (2) | HDMI | UFS/MicroSD Combo | HP/Mic

Thunderbolt™ 3 | USB 3.0 (2) | HDMI | UFS/MicroSD Combo | HP/Mic

 

Galaxy Book Flex 13

Galaxy Book Flex 15

Dimensions

302.6 x 202.9 x 12.9 mm

355.0 x 227.2 x 14.9 mm

Weight

1.15kg

1.57 kg (External graphics model)

1.52 kg (Internal graphics model)

Display

13.3" QLED FHD Display (1920 x 1080)

15.6" QLED FHD Display (1920 x 1080)

CPU

Intel® 10th generation Core™ Processor (Ice Lake)

Intel® 10th generation Core™ Processor (Ice Lake)

Graphics

Intel® Iris Plus Graphics or Intel®UHD Graphics

NVIDIA® GeForce® MX250 Graphics with GDDR5 2 GB Graphic Memory (External graphics model)

Intel® Iris Plus Graphics or Intel® UHD Graphics (Internal graphics model)

Memory

Up to 16GB (LPDDR4x)

Up to 16GB (LPDDR4x)

Storage

Up to 1TB SSD (NVMe)

Up to 1TB SSD (NVMe)

WLAN

Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+), 802.11 ax 2x2

Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+), 802.11 ax 2x2

Camera / Mic

720p HD / Dual Array Mic

720p HD / Dual Array Mic

Audio

AKG Stereo Speakers with Smart Amp

AKG Stereo Speakers with Smart Amp

Security

Fingerprint

Fingerprint

S Pen

Built-in S Pen

Built-in S Pen

Keyboard

Backlit

Backlit

Battery

69.7Wh (Typical)

69.7Wh (Typical)

Ports

Thunderbolt™ 3 (2) | USB-C (1) | UFS/MicroSD Combo | HP/Mic

Thunderbolt™ 3 (2) | USB-C (1) | UFS/MicroSD Combo | HP/Mic

Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Ion NT930X
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT930Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT950Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT950Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT950Q
Galaxy Book Flex NT950Q

Source(s)

Samsung

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2019 10 > Watch out, OLED: Samsung bringing QLED Galaxy Book Ion and Galaxy Book Flex NT930X laptops in 2020
Allen Ngo, 2019-10-29 (Update: 2019-10-29)