LG P330 vs P310

[UPDATED 31/10/2012]

LG-P330
OS Name	Microsoft Windows 7 Enterprise
Version	6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 Build 7601
OS Manufacturer	Microsoft Corporation
System Name	LG-P330
System Manufacturer	LG Electronics Inc.
System Model	P330-UE4UK
System Type	x64-based PC
Processor	Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2435M CPU @ 2.40GHz, 2401, 2 Core(s), 4 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date	INSYDE POCHSF03, 11/7/2011
SMBIOS Version	2.7
Installed Physical Memory (RAM)	4.00 GB
Total Physical Memory	3.95 GB
Available Physical Memory	2.88 GB
Display Adapter	NVIDIA GeForce GT 555M
Display Adapter RAM	1,023.81 MB (1,073,545,216 bytes)
Wifi Type	802.11n Wireless LAN Card
WiFi Adapter Type	Ethernet 802.3
Hard Disk Model	INTEL SSDSA2CW120G3
Hard Disk Size	111.79 GB (120,031,511,040 bytes)
Screen Resolution (MAX)	1366 x 768

LG-P310
OS Name	Microsoft Windows 7 Enterprise
Version	6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 Build 7601
OS Manufacturer	Microsoft Corporation
System Name:	LG-P310
System Manufacturer	LG Electronics
System Model	P310-S.CPRAY
System Type	x64-based PC
Processor	Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU P8400@ 2.26GHz, 2267 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 2 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date	Phoenix Technologies LTD ELGRSF08, 10/29/2008
SMBIOS Version	2.5
Installed Physical Memory (RAM)	4.00 GB
Total Physical Memory	3.99 GB
Available Physical Memory	2.98 GB
Display Adapter	NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT
Display Adapter RAM	512.00 MB (536,870,912 bytes)
WIFI Adapter	Intel(R) WiFi Link 5300 AGN
WIFI Adapter Type	Ethernet 802.3
Hard Disk Model	Crucial M4-CT256M4SSD2 ATA Device
Hard Disk Size	238.47 GB (256,052,966,400 bytes)
Screen Resolution (MAX)	1200 x 800

LG P330 LG P310

Here's a quick comparison between two of the most powerful 13" laptops being available in the market. I've been owning LG P310 for two years now and i must admit that i've been very satisfied by the looks and performance of it. Recently, I own its successor LG P330, so I wanted to give out my personal opinion on how this new unit performs and looks like compared to my old P310. So, here we go...

Both laptops are equipped with SSD drives. LG P310 has a Crucial M4 drive which is faster than the Intel 320 that’s on P330. However, boot time is a bit faster on P330 and ‘Disk Data Transfer’ score is about the same on Windows Experience Index. That’s because old LG P310 cannot take advantage of SATA III transfer rates and works with the rates of SATA II. The main disadvantage of LG P330 is that the Crucial M4 is not working on it, in order to check out the performance of it. [UPDATED: See below]

I don’t want to make this post long, so I’ll continue by writing down the things I like and don’t like on LG P330, and the parts where I am disappointed with it.

Screen resolution and quality is worse than predecessor LG P310. Size is obviously smaller and sometimes I think that I look directly at pixels. Although the old model is built on a TN panel, I believe the quality of the picture is much better than the LED offered in P330. Colours are around the same on both displays, but letters appear sharper and clearer on the LG P310.

WiFi is another big disappointment. I sit in the kitchen and wireless signal on LG P310 is twice as strong as the one I get on LG P330. In fact, the signal on new P330 is so low that sometimes gets disconnected as well. The result of this is obvious when downloading at the same time in both laptops and the LG P330 gets much lower speeds than P310.

I prefer the keyboard of LG P310. That’s just a matter of taste. Before, I could reach easier keys like HOME and END. For example print-screen button needs the function key in the LG P330. A back-lit keyboard would be very nice to see in this LG P330 as its dark colour makes keys harder to see when typing in a low light environment.

I miss the volume knob on the right side of the LG P310. Rising up and lowering the volume was so easy with it. Pressing it also was bringing it to the mute state. Now, you need to use two hands to change the volume settings, as everything is done through the function key again.

Camera quality is around the same. I found the camera on P330 a bit better in quality, but frame rate is obviously slower. Also, blue light next to camera, that is turning on when camera is operating on P310, is a nice aid of being visible in the dark, and also to being able to know when the webcam is functioning. Too bad that the light is missing from P330.

Video card and CPU power is much better on LG P330 than its predecessor. This can be seen by the Windows Experience Index as well. The low value that is given by the WEI on ‘Desktop Windows Performance for Windows Aero’ is due to the fact that benchmarks were done with the Intel HD 3000 and not the Geforce 555GT.

Design and battery life is quite nice. I like the dark blue colour given on P330.

Overall I am a bit disappointed by the new LG P330, compared to its predecessor LG P310.
Here are the key-points of this review:
• There is a very limited options of working SSDs for this laptop. I hope that a new bios will solve this issue soon.
[UPDATED: New bios F12 solves the problem]
• A backlit replacement keyboard would be very nice to see in the market soon.
• WIFI signal is very poor. I would like to know if anyone has changed the WIFI card with something else and its results.
• A higher quality replacement screen would be a really nice option to have as well. A full 13.3 inch IPS display without camera to fit the narrow bezel would be great in my opinion. If not an IPS, a good panel like the one that appear on the HP Envy series is a must.

[UPDATE: M4 SSD now works in AHCI mode on LG P330]
Yesterday I flashed the bios firmware with the new version F12. I swapped the INTEL SSD with the Crucial M4 I had on LG P310, and installation of Windows 7 went flawlessly. However, I still do not get the benefits of SATA3 on LG P330, as hard drive's read performance is around the same but writing is much lower. Something is going wrong. Any advice is appreciated. Look at the screenshots below to see the difference between the read/write performance on LG P330 and P310.

LG P330 LG P310

[UPDATE: Better write performance results, after installation of IRST]
After installing of Intel Rapid Storage Technology, here are the new results of the performance tuning. Writing performance is better but still reading performance results are not the desired.

P330 with IRST installed

Downloads
[BIOS] XNOTE LG P330 for System BIOS Ver F12

 

Here's the expected performace of Crucial M4 as of another review:



Crucial M4 256GB Review

 

Nicely written comparison. Kudos to you.

I did not have any signal strength issues with mine, but the performance was definitely poor. The BIOS does not contain whitelists so any card should be safe. Forum members have tested the Intel 6300, Intel 6205, Killer 1102 and Killer 1103, all of them working. Replacing the module is easy.

The P330 was slated to arrive with an IPS display, so that alone leaves the option open for a successor (P335?). I think the reason they changed their mind was to push their new Shuriken display technology (screen and webcam in one module, also seen in the HP Folio 13). With a wide variety of ultrabooks heating up the competition, I don't see LG being able to compete against the likes of the Asus Zenbook U500 without a premium screen of their own.