2019 Notebook 9 Lineup (regular/pro/pen)

Notebook 9 | link

similar design as last year but they seemed to have heard the complaints and bumped the battery to 75WHr​

Notebook 9 Pen | link

new design (I dig the blue), looks super light too​

Notebook 9 Pro | link

also new design language, wish it came in something other than silver though
​

What do people think? I'm looking to replace my old Samsung Series 9 and have been considering these (along with other lightweight 13-inchers like the new Dell XPS or the ASUS S or maybe the HP Spectre).

 

I'm really liking the laptop and have been eyeing it. I've always like the confidence in the internal build quality if Samsung laptops. Most of it is all built in house.

As for the 9, I really like the new refresh. Might be in for one...

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

That Notebook 9 15" looks like a winner.

 

I've been searching but I can't find anything. Any idea when the launch date for these is?

I see the previous gen Notebook 9 15" is maybe $200 cheaper than it used to be on B&H. (Wasn't it $1699 US?) Unless I'm just forgetting how much it used to be.

I'm deciding between this and the LG Gram 17 I think as my next. Each one has some pros and cons. I really like the 17" in a 15" form factor of the Gram 17, also the 16:10 aspect ratio in the LG Gram 17 is really attractive, slightly higher resolution, and 17" size for coding/productivity. But the Samsung has the advantage of an MX150 so you don't have to plug in the eGPU just to play a less intense game. Doesn't seem like there's a wrong choice between these two. Also I think the Sammy has slightly better cooling, though you can probably reapply TIM to the Gram with decent TIM (kryo) and fix any throttling there, the previous gen had that issue and it doesn't look like they learned anything and changed the heat management. It's pretty anemic from the teardown I saw, so much wasted space in there that could have been used to make a slightly better heat management solution.

Was planning on dual booting Windows+Linux so if the Sammy only has one m.2 slot that would probably make part of the decision. Hmm... I'll have to stand by and wait for some proper reviews of these before I go all in.

 

Samsung has only said "Early 2019" so far, but historically it's been Jan/Feb. I wouldn't be surprised to see an announcement any day now.

 

Release date for the Pen models appears to be March 17th:

NP930SBE-K01US (13" i7, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD, UHD 620)

$1,400 | Amazon | B&H​

NP950SBE-K01US (15" i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, UHD 620)

$1,600 | Amazon | B&H​

NP950SBE-X01US (15" i7, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, MX150)

$1,800 | Amazon | B&H​

 

Confirmed: both the Pen and Pro officially go on sale March 17th. Specs and pricing here:

https://news.samsung.com/us/samsung-notebook-9-pen-notebook-9-pro-pcs-arrive-stores-march-17/

Availability

• The Samsung Notebook 9 Pen will be available for purchase on March 17, starting at $1,399.99 at Amazon and Samsung.com.
• From March 17 – March 31, 2019, consumers who purchase a Notebook 9 Pen on Samsung.com will receive a $100 eCertificate towards the purchase of a PC or PC accessories³.
• The Samsung Notebook 9 Pro will be available for purchase on March 17, starting at $1,099.99 at Best Buy and Samsung.com.

 

Just 3.28 lb and 3.44 lb for the 15" versions! These are the best notebooks/2-in-1s out there now.

Trackpoint and 15.6" screens would be on my wish list.. but once pricing settles down, I'm getting one of the 15s.

 

Anyone try the 2019 NoteBook 9 Pen (NP950)?
I am curious about battery life and keyboard typing feel and keyboard travel. I posted the same question's on a different Tablet site's Samsung forum where someone owns one.
I have not opened mine yet due to restocking fee and lack of reviews so far...

 

I've been using the NP930 for a few days now and I really like it. My NP900X3F from years ago bit the dust so I needed a replacement ASAP. I checked out the Pro at Best Buy, but I didn't like it - it's heavier with worse specs and a more boring design.

Anyway, the NP930 key travel is as shallow as you would expect for a laptop of this size, but I've had no issues with it. Battery life is just ok, although I haven't really been using any power saver settings just yet. It's odd that this machine can only be configured with an i7 because I feel like an i5 would have helped battery life just a bit. On the plus side, it does have a battery life extender, which limits max charge to 85%.

Feel free to hit me with any other questions.

 

Thanks a lot for your feedback!

I know this is subjective, but is the keyboard travel average, more than average or less than average for a laptop this size, in your opinion?
I know you haven't had any problems with the keyboard, as you put it, but how do you like the keyboard feel / experience compared to prior laptops you've owned? Better or worse?

When you say battery life is average, how many hours approx do you get (I know you are not using power saver settings [yet])? and is it below average for a laptop this size?
The 54Wh battery on this new one was supposed to dramatically improve battery life compared to the 2018 39Wh.

Since the pen is not a requirement, I am wondering if I should go with the new 2019 non-pen version of the Notebook 9 which has a 72 or 74Wh battery. Aside from the pen and battery they seem very similar. But there is no launch date announced...

My main requirements are a very comfortable /good keyboard, great battery life and small size /low weight.

The Lenovo X1 Extreme I bought (40% off promotion) several months ago looks nice and is great overall, but it does not have good battery life, which is its biggest drawback by far. The keyboard, while very good (it's a classic ThinkPad keyboard), actually requires too much actuation force 78 grams which takes away from the experience unfortunately.
The LG Gram 15 has great battery life, a small size for a 15.6 laptop and the keys are okay, but I am not sure about the flex in the chassis.

 

I can't find any specs for the exact distance of the key travel, but to me the distance feels slightly better than average. In terms of feel though I'd say it's my favorite keyboard that I've owned, and second favorite that I've tried on a machine this size (my favorite probably being the current HP Spectre).

I'm not going to try to speculate on battery life yet because I just don't have enough data. I, too, considered waiting for the non-pen version, but as you said there hasn't been anything really announced about it and I really needed a laptop sooner than later.

Size and weight are great! It's both smaller and lighter than even my old NP900X3F. As I mentioned before, the Pro is oddly heavy in comparison. The regular non-pen is supposedly lighter though.

Other things I like:

• Ocean Blue color is really nice
• Microsoft Precision drivers create a responsive touchpad (HP Spectre, for example, uses trash Synaptics)
• USB-C adapter included
  
• Speakers get crazy loud (although there is distortion above 90%)
• Fingerprint reader works great and is super convenient
• Great thermals and noise, seems to historically be a strength of Samsung, particularly compared to other OEMs
• I was shocked at how fast the wifi is. Maybe this is just me coming from an old laptop. My Comcast plan is 150 down, and this thing gets 140-170 regularly. Not super scientific, I know, but thought I'd mention it.
• Did I mention that I love the Ocean Blue color? both the Pro and the Regular are boring silver colors

Nitpicks:

• The hinge is tight and you can't quite open it with one finger without lifting the laptop off the table. Maybe this is a good thing for a flip?
• Touchpad is physically small, though admittedly it couldn't be much bigger on a 13"
• Battery LED is on the deck and thus not visible when closed
  
• Some bloatware
• FN key commands are the same color as the regular keys

Future wishlist:

• 16:10 or 3:2 aspect ratio

Hope this helps!

 

Thanks, yes all your feedback does really help!

Yes, size / weight, keyboard and battery life are my 3 main criteria in a laptop. Seems only battery life is not fully confirmed (no reviews yet). I also like the Ocean Blue and the all aluminum exterior.
I could wait for the non-pen version of the 2019 Notebook 9 (15") with the larger 75Wh Hexa battery if I really wanted to, since I have the Lenovo X1E (40% off post-Black Friday deal) in the meantime. However there is no release date for the non-pen version and I am one of those people who enjoys new Tech and who likes instant gratification...
Decisions, decisions.
LG Gram 15 is another contender with excellent confirmed battery life, but while it can survive a drop from staggering heights, its case build quality is somewhat debatable. Also the keyboard is not the greatest (tried it out). Anyway, since this is a Samsung forum, I won't diverge any further on that...

I assume the keyboard and travel on the new 2019 NB 9 non-pen edition will be the same as this 2019 NB 9 pen version?

 

PS: I originally thought the NB 9 was 15.6" like other laptops in this size class. It only being 15" vs 15.6" might * end up being a deal breaker since, at times, I use the laptop for work (when away from home) and I want to maximize screen real estate without moving up to 17 / 17.3" which lacks portability.
15.6 has always been that sweet spot for me (balance between screen real estate and portability).

* I say 'might' above because I have not seen 15 and 15.6 side by side and maybe the difference will be manageable (or even negligeable).

 

Interesting, I just assumed it was 15.6" as well. Had I realized it was 15.0" I might have considered moving up to get the additional keys and screen space without giving up too much portability.

Another random update: my battery drain in standby mode was initially really bad (~50% in 24 hours). After changing some settings and getting a BIOS update it's gotten much better (~5% in 24 hours).

 

Thanks again for the feedback
To be safe, given there are still no official reviews with comparative battery life and keyboard feel and travel, I returned the NB Pen unopened to avoid $240 restocking fee.
I might wait for the 2019 Notebook 9 given it has the 75Wh Hexa battery.
I tried the old (2018?) non-pen notebook in store today and keyboard may be decent enough.
Hopefully 15.0 vs 15.6 will be manageable for the times I am away from from home and need to use it for work and need maximum real estate.
Down to these contenders
LG Gram 15
Asus Zenbook 15 UX533FD
Upcoming 2019 Samsung Notebook 9 15 (75Wh)
2919NB 9 Pen (only 54Wh may be a deal breaker.

 

Tried the old Notebook 9 Pen (13.3") and old Notebook 9 15" in a store today. I was impressed with the NB 9 keyboard; it felt noticeably better than the pen version; given that and the fact that it and the new generation have a big 75 Wh battery, I may wait for the new 2019 NB 9 15" and not try the NB 9 Pen (only a 54Wh battery) assuming Samsung's NB 9 Pen and NB 9 keyboards have not changed from 2018 to 2019.
If i wait for the 2019 NB 9 (non-pen) to come out, I hope can live with a 15" screen instead of 15.6" and that I am willing to let go of my Lenovo X1 Extreme (mainly due to short battery life and disappointngly high keyboard actuation force).
Ironically a big part of the reason I sold my Dell XPS 15 9560 and got the Lenovo X1 Extreme is that a good keyboard was a major priority for me. Lenovo seems to use several keyboard suppliers in the SAME model, so they can feel different!

 

Hi!. Two questions related to Notebook 9 Pen.
1) I saw 13" version at Fry's and I couldn't see screws on a bottom panel. Is it easy to open the panel? How? (I'd like to replace an SSD with another 2TB one).
2) The spec says that it supports UFS & MicroSD Combo. Are there any compatible UFS cards available?

 

I am stuck with samsung's series 9 since 900x3B, and have had 7 different of these till date.
Just got the latest 13 inch pen version (np930-SBE) have used it for the last few weeks now, practical battery life is coming out to be between 7 - 8 hours, moderate use ( Browsing , youtube, medium brightness) in comparison last year's non pen version, was getting me 10- 12 hours, but this one is definitely prettier and feels solid.. .finish and build quality is stunning, speakers are improved, and keyboard is better as well.
This is just close to ideal what a laptop can be...My future wish, a 4k screen with 10 hours battery and 100 gm of weight cut somehow... and I would stick with that for the life of mine.

 

Nice! I agree the build quality and in particular the keyboard are really great. Are you having any issues with standby mode? I get a weird touchpad lag for a minute, but only after standby mode:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/strange-touchpad-issue-2019-notebook-pen.828614/

I've been using hibernate exclusively to avoid this, but it's not an ideal solution.

 

I hibernate, rarely do I use sleep, but couple of times when I logged off in sleep mode, I noticed high battery drain in comparison to previous book 9s.
Didn't notice any touchpad lag after sleep.
Why is hibernate not an optimum solution?

 

I also experienced higher-than-expected battery drain in Sleep mode - yet another reason I've stuck with Hibernate.

Generally, the benefit of Sleep is that the computer wakes faster from this state than it does from Hibernate.

 

Currently using the NP900X3E.... it's great.... but getting old.

Need a replacement to keep me just as happy for just as long.

XPS 13 9380 non-touch .... or .... Notebook 9 Pen 13/15" ??

Unfortunately I can't see the XPS where I live.... but I can see Samsung models. Main issue I see with the Pen is the screen glare. I technically don't need, or really want, a laptop with touch screen/pen.... but maybe the complete package is better and more fun. Thoughts?

 

I actually had the same dilemma (I don't care about a touchscreen or pen) and the 9380 was in my top 3 contenders as well. The Notebook 9 Pen is super small and light with great build quality and a solid keyboard, so I still went for it. I will say if you are spoiled from the old Series 9 matte displays, you will notice a difference in glare, but I can't say that it's worse than most laptops in this category. For reasons I don't understand, very few manufacturers offer matte displays anymore.

 

Thanks Sky. Although the Pen might be a great option, warranty issues might be a deciding factor. I spend most of my time living outside the US and believe the Pen might only be serviceable under warranty in the States. Is this correct? ... or is there an option for an international warranty?

Last question.... you had 3 contenders.... Pen, 9380, and ?

 

I was looking at the ASUS S13, but I wasn't willing to wait for it to release.

 

https://www.samsung.com/us/computing/memory-storage/memory-cards/mb-fa256g-am-mb-fa256g-am/

 

I just bought the Notebook 9 Pro 15" (256GB) NP940X5N-X01US directly from Samsung.com - it looks like it's the only Pro 15" they're currently selling. There's some nice discounts for it right now as part of their back to school sale - if you're interested, be sure to sign up for education discounts with a student/teacher email address too if you can. It comes with a quad core i7 8550U CPU, AMD Radeon 540 GPU, 16GB DDR4 RAM, and 256GB SSD.

I've been assessing my options for weeks, and nearly bought the new XPS 15, the cheapest i5 version with no dGPU. I'm glad I held out; the 9 Pro 15 looks like it offers more bang for even less money (especially with the discounts right now): double the RAM, an i7 instead of i5 CPU (though 8 gen instead of 9 gen), a dGPU, and it's a foldable 2-in-1 with a touch screen and a built-in stylus. The XPS 15 has a matte screen, but reviews of similar Notebook 9 Pro models say the 500-nit "outdoor mode" is more than enough to compensate for glare.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it'll be as good as I want it to be. Should be here next week; I'll post some more thoughts on it then.

 

Curious how your experience has gone. Considering picking up the same from BestBuy for $1050. My X3G's batter is dying

 

Specs here: Notebook 9 Pro 15" (256GB) NP940X5N-X01US

I've been meaning to write a review. I can say my experience has been fantastic overall. The advantages are many:

• It's professional looking and lightweight, so it easily can be brought into the office.
• The screen is impressive, with beautiful colors. I especially like "outdoor mode," which makes the screen plenty bright (it still doesn't handle reflections as well as a matte screen obviously, but it's much brighter than most laptops I've come across, and the brightness helps quite a bit). The increased screen real estate compared to a 14" is definitely noticeable (it's also noticeably not a 15.6" laptop, but the 15.0" has been working well for me).
• I love how it has two USB-A ports and a USB-C port--so many laptops are ditching USB-A these days. The keyboard is a bit mushier than ideal, but it's still a good typing experience. And personally, I love the fact it has dedicated home/page up/page down/end keys. The keyboard backlight is a plus too.
• Its performance is plenty good enough for office work; it's snappy and can manage a lot at once without slowing down. I'm really appreciating the fact it has 16GB of RAM; I don't use it as a gaming machine, but I typically have enough browser tabs and MS Office windows open to eat through around 8GB of RAM.
• The foldable display is a nice bonus; I've used it a few times on its side to read a PDF vertically (which I've found makes PDF reading easier), and I've folded the keyboard all the way back to free up table space while watching a video. I mostly still use it in its regular orientation, but I appreciate the flexibility.
• The S-Pen is another nice bonus. It's not as good as an Apple Pencil, but it's a more-than-adequate stylus, and I love that it doesn't have to be charged and that it fits inside a compartment within the laptop itself. (Though you have to be careful with this--a couple times I put it in the compartment the wrong way and then had to use pliers to yank it back out.)
• Battery life is great for my purposes (probably 6-7 hours with the screen brightness turned up relatively high, more with it dimmer).

The main drawbacks are two--the placement of the power button and the speakers:

• The power button juts out from the left-side next to the full HDMI port, which makes it too easy to accidentally hit while moving the laptop around in your hands. This hasn't been a big issue, but I have hit it a few times without meaning to.
• The speakers aren't the best and are placed on the laptop's underbelly, firing downward. The laptop gets louder and clearer if it's elevated. This personally hasn't been a huge issue for me, because as subpar as the speakers are, they're still a step up from my MSI GS43VR's awful speakers--and I'll often use my external speakers at home or headphones anyway.
• One other, smaller quibble: the power cord connector is quite thin, and I worry it might not be sturdy enough to withstand much damage, but I've had no problems so far.

All in all, I really like this machine and I'm glad I got it. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a professional-looking office machine that's lightweight and has a great screen, and especially for people looking for a good 2-in-1 or a light gaming device. I honestly didn't buy it for either of those functions, but it's great to have them. This device offers so much of the functionality of something like a Surface device at a fraction of the cost. I hope it continues to work well for a long time to come!

 

Thanks, sorry for the delay. I ended up getting the 9 Pen 15" (no GPU) instead. I can say it is also a very sleek machine and thus far a worthy successor to my X3G. I did have to get a tiny ravpower charger to replace the samsung wall wort.

 

A little over a year later, and my review still holds. I remain very happy with my purchase. I recently bought a Dell external display that I connect to the notebook over USB-C, and it serves to both send an image to the display while also charging the notebook. It's a nice touch, and I no longer use the note book's proprietary charger while I'm at home.

The notebook continues to work well, and I see no reason to upgrade. Which is a good thing too, because I don't believe Samsung has refreshed the Notebook 9 Pro 15" this year; it's still offering the NP940X5N-X01US as far as I can tell.

 

19 months later, I still love my Pen, with one exception: This touchpad issue seems unsolvable. I even tested it on a brand new unit in a retail store and it's present.

It's a workhorse in every other aspect. I'm going to hold onto mine until Samsung gets around to adopting 3:2 displays