Technological innovation has pretty much stayed the same for netbooks, so the real appeal of them now lie in areas of design or build quality as opposed to what's under the hood, and this is no different for Samsung's NB30, according to reviewer Scott Stein at CNET.
Samsung takes a more 'rugged user' approach by wrapping the NB30 in a more rugged and scratch-resistant shell, a hard drive free-fall sensor, and a water-tight, spill-resistant keyboard. Everything screams durability, except the "rugged style" isn't really and truly all that rugged.
For example, the keyboard, which Samsung bills as splash-resistant is limited to an exposure of a maximum of 60ml of fluid and provided that fluid is "removed within 10 seconds". 60ml of liquid isn't really a lot.
The review compares with other netbooks and found the NB30 to be middle of the pack. Pretty much what you would expect with netbooks these days. All in all, the rugged look is the only distinguishing feature, and doesn't quite justify the more expensive price, compared with others.
Source: Samsung NB30 Review @ CNET Asia
