Samsung Ativ Book 7 review: The look is fine; the feel is not

Benchmarks are the best way to gauge a notebook’s prowess with applications such as office suites, photo and video editors, video players, games, and the like. Aesthetics are another important consideration, because you'll likely be staring at the thing for the next several years. By those measures, Samsung’s $1060 Ativ Book 7 Ultrabook (model NP740U3E-K01UB) is a fine machine. But a notebook must also feel good in your hands—unless you rely on dictation software, you have no other way to use it. And on that score, I found this laptop a major disappointment. ROBERT CARDINSamsung Ativ Book 7 is pretty enough to look at, but actually using it can be problematic for touch-typists. The Ativ Book 7 has a gorgeous brushed-aluminum finish. But if you wear a watch with a metal wristband, take it off before you lay hands on this computer’s keyboard. The noise produced as one metal scrapes the other is enough to curdle a glass of milk into cottage cheese. Reliance on integrated graphics doomed the Ativ Book 7's gaming performance. After my ears recovered from the horror, I once again laid my hands on the home row of the Chiclet-style keyboard. Such shallow-travel keyboards are common among Ultrabooks—they’re practically a necessity to achieve the required thinness—and I’ve touch-typed on more than my fair share of them. But the keys on the Ativ Book 7 travel such a short distance and deliver so little tactile feedback that I found myself constantly making typos. To read this... Continue reading at 'PC World'

[ PC World | 2013-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ammo Books: Publishing in Small, Medium, and Large

For an indie publisher to launch its first line with a $300 art book takes guts and vision, but that’s what Ammo Books’ founders Paul Norton and Steve Crist did in 2006 when they published 3,000 copies of Gonzo by Hunter S. Thompson and sold out in less than a year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Appleton to head fiction at Hodder Childrens Books

Jon Appleton has been appointed to the newly-created post of editorial director for fiction at... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jones to leave The Book Depository

The Book Depository’s IT director Will Jones is departing the company after four years.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Viking: early book sales ‘promising’

Stationery retailer Viking has reported a “promising” start to its bookselling... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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War Horse UK's bestselling book

Michael Morpurgo's War Horse (Egmont) was comfortably the bestselling book in the UK last... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Germany joins World Book Night

World Book Night is continuing its international spread, with Germany now set to join the UK... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones launches 'book club' promotion

Waterstones has launched a "book club" promotion, with the strapline: "Books you... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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German book retailer to restructure to face digital challenge

The earnings of German book retailer Thalia's parent group Douglas Holding will be hit by the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Saqi Books launches non-fiction imprint

Independent publisher Saqi Books is to launch a new non-fiction imprint, with plans to publish... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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US book sales hold up, despite Borders collapse and ebook growth

Print books sales in the US fell 9% in 2011, with strong growth in digital sales appearing to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Chinese Writers Sue Apple for Allegedly Hosting Pirated E-books

A group of Chinese writers has filed a lawsuit against Apple, alleging that the company's App Store sells pirated versions of the authors' works. Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2012-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Decoder: Author Found on Penguin's Web Site Signs Book Deal

An imprint of Penguin Group USA discovered Kerry Schafer after she posted samples on Bookcountry.com, a site that lets writers share their work. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2012-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Elton John's first book to Hodder

Hodder & Stoughton has acquired music star Sir Elton John's first book, Love is The Cure... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Aperture Debuts ‘The PhotoBook Review’

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Buzz Books at Winter Institute

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Watson joins 10 'unputdownables' for TV Book Club

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[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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R&J Spring Book Club titles announced

Harper has scored two of the eight spots in Richard & Judy's Spring Book Club, with the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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SMP Looks to Capitalize On Ghonim's Revised Book Tour

At least one publisher is looking to capitalize on some last-minute changes to Wael Ghonim's upcoming book tour to promote Revolution 2.0. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Watson joins 10 'unputownables' for TV Book Club

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[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Printed book sales fall as Christmas digital sales rise

Physical book sales in the final week of the year totalled £22.5m — down 70% week on... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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