Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra: Review

Samsung just announced a few new Galaxy Book laptops and its new Galaxy phones. The Galaxy Book3 Ultra, which starts at $2,399.99, is the most expensive. Samsung showed off the Book3 Pro and Book3 Pro 360, part of the third generation, along with the Book3 Ultra.

The most important thing about the Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra is that it is a new, powerful device made for creators. It has the latest parts from Intel and Nvidia and a beautiful screen. We were able to see the devices in person before they were announced. The Book3 Ultra stood out from the others because it was made to compete directly with the 16-inch MacBook Pro. Read on to find out what we thought of this high-end creator laptop and what you need to know about the other Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra.

Strong specs: Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra

Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra isn’t being directly sold as a gaming laptop. But since it has a Core i7 or Core i9 CPU and an RTX 40-series mobile GPU, it has specs similar to most of the seven best gaming laptops of CES 2023. When the high-end configuration has 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, it’s easy to see where the Ultra got its name. Nvidia says that the RTX 4050 and RTX 4070 GPUs in the entry-level and high-end models of the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra “deliver up to RTX 3080 flagship-class performance at one-third of the power.”

We’ll have to put it through our benchmark tests to find out what the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra can do. But it will likely do better than a laptop with a GPU and CPU from the last generation. Based on tests done by Tom’s Hardware, the mobile versions of Intel’s “Raptor Lake” CPUs and Nvidia’s RTX 40-series GPUs are faster than their previous-generation counterparts. The Galaxy Book 3 Ultra could be a great gaming laptop because of this.

Lightweight design And Good Graphics: Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra

In the past, gaming laptops were big and heavy. Sure, laptops like the Alienware x14 and the Razer Blade 15 are thin, but when we think of gaming laptops, we think of the giant Maingear Vector Pro and the Acer Nitro 5. Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra falls on the lighter side of things. As we said in my hands-on review, the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra is so light that we almost thought it was the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360. It’s hard to believe that a machine this thin could have so many powerful parts, but Samsung has done it. It’s also an excellent alternative to this year’s big-ass laptops.

Beautiful 16-inch screen: Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra

The 16-inch screen on the Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra doesn’t bring anything new to the table. But that doesn’t mean that its screen doesn’t help sell it. It has the same AMOLED display technology as the company’s Galaxy S20 phones, like the new Samsung Galaxy S23.

Using the same technology on a screen that big is a big deal. During my time with the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra, we watched the trailer for the third season of The Mandalorian. We thought it looked great. Samsung says the laptop’s screen can be as bright as 400 nits and show 120% of the DCI-P3 color gamut. We won’t know if these claims are valid until we run our benchmark tests on the laptop, but based on my personal experience, our numbers will not be too far off.

Samsung Multi Control: Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra

Samsung Multi Control is a feature that comes with all the new Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra. This feature is Samsung’s attempt to copy how Apple’s products connect, which is pretty cool. Multi Control lets you use the keyboard and touchpad on your laptop to control your Galaxy phone. This lets you copy, paste, or drag files from one device to another. Galaxy tablets can also be used as an extra screen with the Second Screen feature.

Steep price: Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra

With the least expensive laptop costing $2,399 and the most expensive one going for $2,999, this isn’t a machine that most people can afford. Yes, the overall cost of the similar MacBook Pro 16-inch (2023) is higher, but that doesn’t change the fact that Samsung’s machine is out of reach for all but the most severe gamers and video editors.

FAQS

What is the price of the Samsung Galaxy Book3 Ultra?

Starting at $2,399, this laptop is costly. For that price, you should get a Core i7 processor, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 graphics, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. The rest of the specs are standard and pretty high-end, so the price is fair.

Does the webcam on the Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra work well?

The Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra has a 1080p Full HD webcam, just like the rest of the Galaxy Book 3 family. This is the standard for most high-end laptops in 2023, but it’s a big step up from older laptops, which almost always had 720p cameras. This should work well enough for meetings and video calls.

Can I upgrade the Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra’s RAM and storage?

Samsung sometimes needs to be more explicit about how its laptops can be upgraded, but we can make some guesses based on what we know about older models. Regarding the RAM, it’s likely that you can’t upgrade it since Samsung’s high-end laptops have never had that option. When you look at other powerful laptops that are this thin, you’ll notice that the RAM is also usually soldered on. This should be the case here as well.