Review: LG Notebook PC Z360
By Mike Wheeler
By Mike Wheeler
Not that long ago you couldn’t buy a Samsung notebook in Australia for love or money – they just didn’t do PCs. Televisions, phones, DVD and Blu-ray players and cameras were their lot. Then in 2009 they decided to hit our shores with a new range of netbooks, notebooks and tablets – and they’ve hardly taken a step backwards since.
Fast forward to 2013 – enter LG. With no profile at all so to speak of, the has decided to take on a crowded portable PC market with its Notebook PC Z360 and Tab Book (which will be reviewed at a later date), both of which we managed to get in our hot little hands when doing pieces for CyberShack TV.
First up the Z360’s form factor. Very nice – and different. Its skin is a glossy white plastic, which looks smart, and will no doubt make it stand out from the crowd on the store shelves. It’s reasonably light and comes in at just over one kilogram – not as light as some of its contemporaries – but not that you’d really notice.
Its utilises the Windows 8 operating system, and while its 13.3-inch screen is not touch-enabled, it is Full HD (1920×1080) so watching movies, television programmes and any other media means you have great resolution.
As with any portable PC, it does have a built-in camera, however we are surprised that it only has a front-facing shooter and not a rear-facing one, too. What is even more perplexing is that it is only 1.3 megapixels, which we think is underspecified for such a PC. We took a couple of pics, and they were a little grainy for our liking. We’re thinking that maybe, like the recently reviewed Acer Iconia A1 whose front-facing camera is only 0.3 megapixels, LG might see this function as something for video conferencing only as opposed to taking snaps and videos while out and about.
Storage is okay, with a solid state drive that gives you 128GB and there is 4GB of memory, while it’s powered by a 3rd generation Intel Core i5 processor. Connectivity is impressive with 2 USB 3.0 ports, headphone output, 2 microSD slots, and a standard HDMI plug in.
The only real issue we had with the device was the mouse. We didn’t really like it because we like something more tactile. It’s almost a touchpad as opposed to the normal trackpad where you physically push it down and there is an audible click. This mouse gives you the kind of experience you expect from a touchscreen, which, to be frank, felt weird. We didn’t feel as comfortable as we’d have liked navigating around the desktop/tiles of the unit.
Overall, we’d give this a “could do better” rating, but at the same time we have to give LG kudos for not backing away from a market that is already over-subscribed. In other words, more choices for consumers is a good thing. Will it scare the bejesus out of current ultrabook and notebook manufacturers? No, but they will know that LG has arrived.
Pros: Great processor, nice form factor, excellent connectivity
Cons: Mouse issues; camera not up to spec
3.9 Shacks Out of 5
RRP
$1,399
