Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro review: Tastefully minimal, effortlessly functional

Time of India

17 hours ago

Samsung
has been making some great phones, and frankly, good laptops. That's been the equation for years, and if I'd be honest (again), nobody expected it to change. The Galaxy Book5 Pro breaks this pattern in ways that aren't immediately obvious, which might be exactly why it works.
This ultrabook from the house of Samsung doesn't chase trends or make bold promises. There's no revolutionary design language, no breakthrough performance claims, no features that haven't already existed in Samsung's Galaxy lineup earlier. Instead, Samsung has focused on execution: a razor-sharp AMOLED display,
Intel
's efficient Lunar Lake processor, AI tools that actually serve a purpose, and build quality that inspires confidence rather than concern.
The question isn't whether the Galaxy Book5 Pro is impressive, it's whether being very good at everything trumps being exceptional at one thing. At Rs 1,31,990, Samsung is betting that mature, balanced performance matters more than headline-grabbing specifications. Time to see if they're right.
Simple done right
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Undo
Samsung kept things refreshingly simple here. The matte graphite aluminium body feels solid without being heavy, and the 11.6mm thickness makes it genuinely portable. I've been tossing this into bags without a second thought, something I can't say about chunkier laptops.
The build quality impresses without showing off. No keyboard flex during typing marathons, no creaky hinges, and the one-handed opening works smoothly every time. These might seem like small details, but they add up to a laptop that feels reliable rather than precious.
The keyboard deserves special mention. The keys have just enough travel to feel comfortable during long writing sessions, and the backlight is even without being harsh. Having a full number pad on a 14-inch laptop is a nice touch for anyone dealing with spreadsheets regularly. The key spacing feels natural, and the layout avoids the cramped feeling that plagues some compact keyboards.
That trackpad? It's smooth, responsive, and spacious enough for all those Windows gestures. The click feels satisfying rather than hollow, another small win that makes daily use more pleasant. Multi-finger gestures work reliably, and palm rejection keeps accidental inputs to a minimum.
Port selection hits the sweet spot between modern and practical. Two Thunderbolt 4 ports handle charging and high-speed data, while USB-A and HDMI ports eliminate dongle dependency for most scenarios. The microSD slot is a win, I'd say, something quite rare to see on laptops, and also quite helpful for people like me who do daily dilly-dallying with pictures.
AMOLED goodness
This is where Samsung's display expertise really shines. The 14-inch AMOLED screen with its 2880 x 1800 resolution and 120Hz refresh rate is genuinely impressive. Colours pop without looking oversaturated, blacks are truly black, and text stays crisp even at smaller sizes.
The 120Hz refresh rate makes scrolling through documents and web pages noticeably smoother than traditional 60Hz panels. It's not just about gaming, everyday tasks feel more responsive and fluid. The difference becomes particularly apparent when switching between this and older laptops.
Colour accuracy impressed consistently during photo editing sessions. The wide colour gamut handles professional work without requiring external monitors for colour-critical tasks. HDR content looks punchy without being overdone, making this equally suitable for work and entertainment.
The 16:10 aspect ratio gives you more vertical space for documents and web browsing, a small change that makes a real difference during actual work.
It's a touchscreen, no surprises here, and while there's no stylus support (for Samsung hardware, it's a surprise), the finger-based touch interaction works well enough for most tasks. But I barely ever used this screen as a touchscreen. Although, if you do, the screen responds accurately whether you're scrolling through documents or pinch-zooming into detailed images.
Working outdoors became surprisingly manageable thanks to the anti-reflective coating and Vision Booster tech that automatically adjusts brightness based on your surroundings.
The quad-speaker setup with Dolby Atmos delivers full sound for such a thin laptop. The dedicated subwoofer helps with bass response while maintaining clarity. It's good enough for video calls, music, and casual movie watching without external speakers.
All-day companion
The Galaxy Book5 Pro comes with the Intel Core Ultra 5 226V inside, and the new Intel processor is the one built for sustained, real-world performance without drama. During my time with it, I did what I do with my everyday carry, I ran my usual mix of browser tabs, photo editing, video calls, and background apps. The laptop handled everything smoothly without performance drops or fan noise.
The 16GB of RAM (unfortunately non-upgradeable) proved sufficient for multitasking. Multiple Chrome tabs, Photoshop, and video calls running simultaneously didn't cause memory pressure issues. The 512GB SSD keeps boot times quick and apps responsive, though power users might want more storage.
Intel's Arc 130V graphics is competent, to say the least. While not meant for serious gaming, the integrated graphics unit handles design work, 4K video playback, and even some casual gaming without breaking a sweat. While this doesn't make the Galaxy Book5 Pro qualify as a graphics powerhouse, it does make it more versatile than previous generations.
Thermal management stays impressive, even during intensive tasks, the laptop remains comfortable and quiet. Fan noise rarely becomes intrusive, and the bottom never gets uncomfortably warm during lap use.
The Lunar Lake processors from Intel come with a dedicated neural processing unit, because why not? This is the system that handles all the AI chops on the hardware level itself, and Intel says it's capable of doing 40 TOPS of compute. In simpler words, the NPU is to power all the new AI shenanigans on Windows, and some more that Samsung has put from their end.
Being a Copilot+ PC, the Galaxy Book5 Pro gains access to
Microsoft
's AI-powered features, like Recall (yes, it's finally out), and the usual Studio Effects and Cocreator. Now, these features work just like they do in any Windows Copilot+ PC, but what I like is they work alongside Samsung's own AI tools without feeling redundant or overwhelming. The overlap is minimal, and each tool serves distinct purposes in daily workflows.
Now, about Samsung's Galaxy AI suite, I'd say it's as practical as it could be. Instead of adding features just to tick boxes, they've focused on tools that might help users solve some of their real problems. AI Select is one such feature.
So, Samsung's AI Select works much like how Circle to Search works on Android phones. It lets you circle anything on screen for instant contextual search. It sounds gimmicky but proves genuinely useful for research and fact-checking. Circle a restaurant name, get reviews and directions. Circle a product, get prices and specs. Simple but effective.
Live Translate is also a nifty addition and works better than Windows' AI-powered translation. Real-time translation and captioning for video calls work entirely offline and are actually accurate.
Then, there's Photo Remaster, brought in from the Galaxy phones. As the name implies, it applies subtle enhancements to images, it cleans up noise, improves quality, all using AI, saving up the time someone would spend on post-processing a picture. The results look natural most of the time, but some pictures do turn out to look artificially boosted or over-processed.
Now, AI being useful is quite subjective, and most of them are simple party tricks, like Cocreator and Photo Remaster, but some are productive as well, like Recall and AI Select, they actually save you time during daily workflows. So, if you are someone who thinks you'd be using AI to assist in your work, the AI features here create a comprehensive experience that feels cohesive rather than fragmented.
Oh, and the laptop has a "generous" 2MP webcam, which works like any other webcam, just fine for video calls. It too has some AI features like auto-framing, lighting adjustments, and face tracking, and these just work to make you look as good as possible.
Let's talk ecosystem. Samsung has a big ecosystem of products, they have phones, tablets, watches, earbuds, and even a gazillion home appliances. Now, Samsung expects those having a Galaxy phone to eventually buy a Galaxy Book at some point in time, so they have built some cross-device features, much like Apple's.
If you're already using Samsung phones, the ecosystem integration works seamlessly (just like any other ecosystem). File sharing happens without thinking about it (think AirDrop, but call it
Quick Share
), phone calls can be answered directly from the laptop, messages sync instantly, and you can also control a Galaxy phone through the trackpad on the Galaxy Book. And Samsung also has the SmartThings app for Windows as well.
Continuity features just work between devices without the usual Android-Windows friction. But only until you have a Galaxy phone. The experience is quite less polished if you were to use a non-Samsung Android phone. Thankfully, Quick Share works as usual, but then other continuity features are handled by Windows' proprietary app, which misses out on the cool features, like Samsung's Phone Link.
The ecosystem features also require commitment, they work best when you're willing to use Samsung's apps and services over alternatives. If you prefer Google Drive over Samsung Cloud or Spotify over Samsung Music, some of the seamless integration magic disappears.
Windows 11, as a whole, feels polished here, with Samsung's additions enhancing rather than cluttering the experience (which isn't the case usually). However, if you prefer a pure Windows 11, then pre-installed apps can be removed easily.
Battery performance impressed consistently. Samsung's optimistic 21-hour video playback claim translates to about 13-15 hours of mixed real-world use. Power management adapts intelligently based on your workload. Light tasks preserve battery life, while demanding applications get the performance they need. It's the kind of smart behavior you want but rarely notice until you're using a laptop that doesn't have it.
The efficiency gains from Intel's Lunar Lake architecture really show here. Unlike previous generations that required constant power management tweaking, this laptop just works through extended sessions without dramatic performance drops as battery levels decline. So, in short, full workdays without power anxiety.
The 65W USB-C charger is compact and won't weigh down your bag, and the fast charging provides enough juice for several hours of work in just 30 minutes of plugging in.
The takeaway
Here's what Samsung got right with the Galaxy Book5 Pro: they made a laptop that doesn't try to be clever. No gimmicky features, just competent execution across every component that matters. It looks well-designed, visuals on it look gorgeous, and it handles real work without breaking a sweat. At ₹1,31,990, you're paying for that consistency, not just the hardware specs. Sure, the non-upgradeable RAM might sting power users, and creative professionals will miss having a dedicated GPU, but for most workflows, these limitations rarely surface.
What stands out most is how little stands out, if that makes sense. The laptop wakes up instantly from sleep, stays quiet most of the time, and doesn't suddenly become sluggish when the battery hits 30%. The AI features work when you need them without constantly interrupting your workflow. Even the ecosystem integration feels natural rather than forced, assuming you're already using Samsung devices. It's the kind of experience you expect from a laptop at this price point, and you get it with this one.
Samsung has finally made a laptop that feels as polished as their phones, which honestly took longer than it should have. Samsung's bet here is simple: being very good at everything trumps being exceptional at one thing. The Galaxy Book5 Pro delivers on that promise consistently. If you need a laptop that just works without drama, this is it.
Our rating: 4/5
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