Samsung’s next Chromebook may trade a 4K screen for better battery life

Following a leaked render earlier in the week, more information on Samsung’s Galaxy Chromebook 2 has found its way online, including details on pricing. A marketing slide shared by Microsoft tipster WalkingCat suggests the device will feature a 13.3-inch QLED screen with DCI-P3 wide color gamut coverage, a 10th-gen Core i3 processor and somewhere in the ballpark of 12 hours of battery life. It will also reportedly include louder speakers, WiFi 6 connectivity and a slightly heavier frame than its predecessor.

p.s. how about 699? https://t.co/DDSdmTiDu3

— WalkingCat (@_h0x0d_) December 23, 2020

For context, the first Galaxy Chromebook includes a 4K AMOLED display and a 14nm 10th-gen Intel i5 CPU. That combination of components is the main culprit behind the Galaxy Chromebook’s notoriously bad battery life. In his review of the 2020 model, Engadget’s Nathan Ingraham found he couldn’t get even four hours of use out the Galaxy Chromebook before its battery died. The claim in the above slide suggests Samsung got the memo on battery life.

In a subsequent tweet, WalkingCat said the Galaxy Chromebook 2 will cost $699. We can’t know for sure yet, but that price point likely refers to the entry-level model. That price tag would make the Galaxy Chromebook 2 significantly more affordable than its $999 predecessor and put in more inline with other premium Chromebooks like the PixelBook Go. The slide suggests Samsung plans to release the Galaxy Chromebook 2 in February. With CES 2021 mere weeks away, we’ll likely learn more about the device, and many others, soon.