Samsung charges premium prices for the Galaxy Book5 Pro, but €1699 for 16 GB RAM and a 512 GB SSD is excessive

Samsung's Galaxy Book5 Pro 14 is a very thin ultrabook for everyday tasks. Priced at €1,699, the base model is already quite expensive, especially considering the hardware specs with the small Intel Core Ultra 5 226V (Lunar Lake) including 16 GB RAM and a 512 GB SSD. This is even €250 more expensive compared to a similarly configured Apple MacBook Air M4. In a direct comparison, the Air is the better overall package (faster processor, passive cooling, longer battery runtime), even though the Galaxy Book5 Pro has advantages in terms of screen (120 Hz OLED) as well as connectivity (Wi-Fi 7).

There are better equipped models, but the model with the Core Ultra 7 258V with 32 GB RAM and a 1 TB SSD increases the price to €2,299. 600 Euros more for just 16 GB more RAM and 512 GB more SSD storage is a rip-off and cannot be justified in any way.

The Galaxy Book5 Pro 14 is not a bad device, but is better than the rivals. We have already reported about the issues with the OLED screen (comparatively low brightness, low-frequency PWM flickering). Some rivals are much better in this respect, like the less expensive Yoga models from Lenovo. Samsung's laptop also falls behind in terms of battery runtime. The Lunar Lake processor has already improved the situation, but many rivals simply manage a couple of hours more, especially at an adjusted brightness level.

The market already adjusted the prices to a certain extent and our review unit is already available for less than €1,500. This is still plenty of money and Samsung should either make a better laptop or reduce the price to sell more units. Please see our comprehensive review of the Galaxy Book5 Pro 14 for more information.