(Pocket-lint) – Samsung has announced a new family of Galaxy Books for 2021. But with three different models in the line-up, how are you to choose one from the other?

We’re diving through the details to help you figure out which is the best laptop for you.

Price and availability

• Galaxy Book: From £699
• Galaxy Book Pro: From £1099 (13.3in), £1199 (15.6in)
• Galaxy Book Pro 360: From £1199 (13.3in), £1249 (15.6in)

The Galaxy Book is the most accessible with the 8/256GB Core i5 model starting at £699 in the UK – internationally with the Core i3 model you’ll likely find a cheaper starting price.

There’s a jump to the Galaxy Book Pro starting at £1099 for the Core i5 8/512GB or Core i5 8/256GB LTE model 13.3-inch.

The Galaxy Book Pro 360 is the most expensive, starting at £1199 for the Core i5 8/512GB 13.3-inch.

All models will be available to pre-order from 28 April, with general availability from 14 May.

Design and build

• Galaxy Book (15.6in): 356.6 x 229.1 x 15.4mm, 1.55kg
• Galaxy Book Pro:
  • 13.3in: 304.4 x 199.8 x 11.2mm, 0.87kg
  • 15.6in: 355.4 x 225.8 x 11.7mm, 1.05kg
• Galaxy Book Pro 360:
  • 13.3in: 302.5 x 202.0 x 11.5mm, 1.04kg
  • 15.6in: 354.85 x 227.97 x 11.9mm, 1.39kg

All of the new Galaxy Book models sport a similar design: they are thin and light, finished with matte colours spanning Mystic Blue/Navy and Mystic Silver, with other colours available in other regions.

They all use premium materials for a solid finish, with the Galaxy Book and the Galaxy Book Pro 360 both finished in aluminium bodywork, while the lightest of the lot – the Galaxy Book Pro – also uses magnesium alloy to keep the weight down.

The Galaxy Book Pro 360 has a slight twist on the format, with a display that’s a lot more flexible, able to laid flat or folded into tablet mode for more versatile working.

The Galaxy Book is the cheapest model, but is noticeably thicker than the others, and heavier too.

There’s reasonable physical connectivity across these notebooks, each having at least two USB-C connections with the Pro models also offering Thunderbolt 4 through one of these ports.

The Galaxy Book Pro 360 misses out on USB-A, while both other models offer this older port for convenience – as well as HDMI for external displays.

All models also support microSD, some offering SIM slots for LTE versions.

Display

• Galaxy Book: 15.6in, LED, FHD
• Galaxy Book Pro: 13.3 or 15.6in, AMOLED, FHD
• Galaxy Book Pro 360: 13.3 in 15.6in, Super AMOLED, FHD

There Pro models take a step ahead of the regular Galaxy Book in offering AMOLED displays, while the entry-level device is an LED display.

That means the two Pro models will offer the better quality display with richer visuals, also offering better calibrated displays for more accurate colour representation.

All offer the same full HD resolution – 1920 x 1080 pixels – but it’s the Galaxy Book Pro 360 that then goes a little further.

We’ve already mentioned that the Pro 360 has a more flexible display, but it’s also the only touchscreen in the range – and it supports the S Pen, meaning you can do a lot more with it.

Unfortunately, there’s no where to store the S Pen in the chassis of the Pro 360, so you’ll just have to tuck that into your pocket.

Power and battery

• Galaxy Book: 11-gen Intel Core i3/i5/i7, Iris Xe, 8-16GB RAM, 256-512GB storage, 54Wh battery
• Galaxy Book Pro: 11-gen Intel Core i5/i7, Iris Xe, 8-16GB RAM, 256-512GB storage, 63/68Wh battery
• Galaxy Book Pro 360: 11-gen Intel Core i5/i7, Iris Xe, 8-16GB RAM, 256-512GB storage, 63/68Wh battery

All the new Galaxy Book models are based around 11-gen Intel Core hardware, offering i3, i5 or i7 models depending on the region. In the UK, only i5 and i7 models will be offered, so check local availability.

RAM starts at 8GB with 16GB an option, while SSD storage starts at 256GB with 512GB the step-up.

All have onboard Intel Iris Xe graphics.

The Galaxy Book has the smallest battery at 54Wh, while the Pro models move to 63Wh for the 13.3-inch model, or 68Wh for the 15.6-inch models.

All models will charge through USB-C, with a 65W charger meaning you can charge all your Samsung devices with just the one charger.

Summing up

Samsung is offering good-looking laptops in the Galaxy Book range, all with a quality finish and reasonable power on offer.

The real differences lie in the display, with the Galaxy Book Pro 360 offering functions that the others don’t – while the Galaxy Book is likely to be the premium workhorse of the trio, offering a lighter body for those on the move and a great looking display.

All run Windows 10 Home, all offer 720p front camera and dual array mics and all offer Dolby Atmos sound – with the Pro models getting AKG tuned speakers. Samsung is keen for these notebooks to work within the Samsung ecosystem efficiently, with easy switching for products like your Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro and syncing with your phone.

Writing by Chris Hall.