Samsung Unveils Galaxy Book2: 12-Inch, Snapdragon 850 with X20 LTE, 20 Hrs

Samsung today has introduced the Galaxy Book2, its newest attempt to create an always on, always connected convertible PC. For the new 2-in-1 notebook, Samsung opted to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 850 supercharged mobile SoC and rates the battery life of the device to 20 hours. Like the rest of the Windows-on-Snapdragon systems, the Galaxy Book2 runs Windows 10 S. Meanwhile, unlike the original model, the Galaxy Book2 will be offered in only one configuration (at least initially).

The Samsung Galaxy Book2 detachable notebook comes with a 12-inch sAMOLED display featuring a 2160×1440 resolution and a 3:2 aspect ratio. The device is based on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 850 SoC (four Kryo 385 cores at 2.96 GHz, four Kryo 385 cores at 1.7 GHz, Adreno 630 GPU) which is accompanied by 4 GB of DRAM, and 128 GB of NAND flash storage. The system’s wireless connectivity includes Snapdragon X20 LTE modem (Cat 18, 5CA, 4x4 MIMO, up to 1.2 Gbps DL, up to 150 Mbps UL and 802.11ac Wi-Fi.

On the wired side of things, the Galaxy Book2 is outfitted with two USB Type-C connectors, a microSD card slot, and a 3.5-mm TRRS audio header. When it comes to imaging, the convertible PC uses an 8 MP rear camera, and a 5 MP front-facing sensor. As for audio, the system has a built-in microphone as well as Dolby Atmos-badged stereo speakers. Since the Galaxy Book2 is a convertible machine, it has the same set of sensors as tablets, including an accelerometer, a gyro, a light sensor, and a geomagnetic sensor. In addition, the system has a fingerprint reader for a biometric authentication.

The first-generation Galaxy Book used Intel’s dual-core 7^th Gen Core m3 and Core i5 “Kaby Lake” processors along with a standalone LTE Cat 6 modem (up to 300 Mbps DL). The switch to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 850  boosts both LTE performance and battery life of the laptop. Furthermore, without disclosing capacity of the battery it uses, Samsung rates Galaxy Book2 for up to 20 hours of autonomous work, up from 10 hours in case of the previous-gen convertible. It should be noted that the 256 GB SKU from the previous gen has not carried over.

Moving on to portability of the Galaxy Book2. Samsung claims that the system is 7.62 mm thick (0.3 inch) and weighs 840 grams (1.85 lbs), but does not elaborate whether it mentions the tablet itself, or the tablet with the keyboard.

Samsung’s Galaxy Book2 will be available online from Samsung, Microsoft, and AT&T, for $1000 starting November 2. Later in November the product will be available in retail from AT&T, Spring, and Verizon. While the price of the convertible laptop does not seem particularly cheap, it should be noted that the Galaxy Book2 bundles both the keyboard and stylus, rather than being sold separately (for up to $250 on competing products).

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