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Samsung’s first stab at Microsoft’s new ARM-powered Copilot+ PCs is the Galaxy Book 4 Edge, which promises to finally offer the speed and battery life to properly compete with Apple’s MacBook Air.
The new ultra-thin and light laptop comes in a choice of 14- or 16-inch screen sizes and includes the fastest of the new Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chips, which aim to dethrone Intel as the preferred laptop chip.
The machine starts at £1,399 (€1,699/$999.99) and costs £1,700 for the top-of-the-line 16-inch version, according to the review, making it a premium PC that competes directly with those from Microsoft, Dell and Apple.
The laptop’s exterior looks similar to many other Samsung Galaxy Books. While the smooth aluminum frame, tapered edge, and one-handed opening give a premium feel, the design is anything but inspiring.
The touchscreen is the star of the show. A bright, crisp and fluid OLED display that helps everything look its best. It’s a fingerprint magnet and isn’t as bright as some of its rivals, but the screen has an anti-reflective coating that makes a real difference when working under bright lights.
The keyboard is fairly typical for a laptop, with a reasonable but not top-notch typing experience. But the touchpad is comically large and feels like a waste of space. It’s smooth and accurate, but it’s the older mechanical kind that only clicks toward the bottom, which isn’t as good as the top-of-the-line haptic touchpads found on premium rivals from Microsoft, Apple, and others.
The speakers are decent, but they project from the bottom of the device, so they’re easily blocked if used on your lap or a couch. The webcam supports several fancy AI effects, but it doesn’t have facial recognition, instead relying on the fingerprint scanner on the power button to unlock the device, which isn’t all that convenient.
Specifications
Screen: 14- or 16-inch 3K AMOLED display, 2880 x 1800 (120 Hz)
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite
RAM: 16 GB
Storage: 512 GB or 1 TB
OS: Windows 11 Startup
Camera: 2 megapixels (1080p)
Connectivity: Wifi 7, Bluetooth 5.3, 2x USB4, Headphones, HDMI2.1 (USB-A and microSD 16-inch only)
14 inch Dimensions: 312.3 x 223.8 x 10.9 mm
14 inches weight: 1.2 kilos
16 inch Dimensions: 355.4 x 250.4 x 12.3 mm
16 inches weight: 1.6 kilos
Snapdragon speed, but where’s the battery life?
As one of the New generation of PC Copilot+ The Samsung Galaxy Book is equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon Elite X Arm chip, which is also found in Microsoft’s latest Surface Pro. However, the top model Galaxy Book has a slightly faster version of the chip, giving it an 8% power boost in the processor and around a 21% improvement in graphics.
The difference in everyday use will be minimal and is mostly there for show. But push it to the max and the Samsung is the fastest of the current generation of Snapdragon X-powered laptops. That puts it on par with the best Intel Core Ultra laptop processors and Apple’s M3 in the MacBook Air, which isn’t bad at all.
The Arm chip brings with it the same app and accessory compatibility issues as the Surface Pro. Most apps will work fine, but any that haven’t been updated for the Arm chip will run relatively slowly on a translation system or not at all.
Performance may be top-notch, but the Galaxy Book’s battery life doesn’t quite live up to expectations. It lasted about eight hours of work using a mix of browsing, writing, chatting, and note-taking apps. That’s enough for a workday and in line with what you’d expect from an Intel-powered machine, but it’s a far cry from the best in the business that can last twice as long.
Forget about AI
The Galaxy Book has the same fairly mediocre AI features as the Surface Pro and other Copilot+ PCs. Most of them aren’t worth the money, though some can be useful, such as automatic subtitles.
However, the laptop does have solid integration with other Samsung gear you might own, like Galaxy phones or headphones. You can remotely mirror your phone’s screen on the PC, use a tablet as a second screen, cut and paste between devices, and automatically connect your headphones. If you already own other Samsung gear, these features can be fantastic.
Sustainability
Samsung doesn’t provide an expected lifespan for the battery, but it should last more than 500 full charge cycles at least 80% of its original capacity.
The laptop can usually be repaired and the price is calculated on a case-by-case basis, but it cannot be upgraded. The laptop contains recycled plastic in its casing. Samsung offers exchange and recycling systems for some older devices. The company publishes annual sustainability reports but not impact assessments for individual products.
Price
The Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Edge costs from £1,399 (€1,699/$999.99) for the 14-inch version and £1,499 (€1,799/$1,099.99) for the 16-inch version.
For comparison, the Galaxy Book 4 starts at £599, the Galaxy Book 4 Pro starts at £1,699, the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 starts at £1,049, and the Apple MacBook Air M3 starts at £1,099.
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Edge proves that ARM-based PCs can deliver the performance to compete with the best. It’s fast, quiet, and maintains peak performance even when unplugged – something that laptops with Intel or AMD processors can’t achieve.
But where it falls short is in the promise of long battery life. At eight hours of operation, it only matches Intel machines, which supposedly consume more energy, and falls far short of Apple’s MacBooks, which last up to twice as long.
The screen is great, the keyboard is decent, and the old-school trackpad is huge. The machine is certainly thin and light, particularly in its 16-inch version, as we tested it. But the design is rather boring.
The Galaxy Book 4 Edge is a good machine, but not a great machine. Unless you’re a Samsung fan and can take advantage of the company’s broader ecosystem, such as its Galaxy phones and headsets, there are better Copilot+ PC options available for a similar price.
Advantages: Excellent 14 or 16 inch OLED display, excellent performance, cool and quiet operation, USB4, HDMI 2.1, USB-A and microSD (16 inch only), acceptable speakers and webcam, thin and light, good integration with other Samsung equipment.
Cons: expensive, app and accessory compatibility issues persist for the Arm chip, battery life doesn’t live up to expectations, AI features are disappointing, there’s no facial recognition, the design is uninspiring, there’s no 32GB RAM option or upgradeable storage.