Under-performer
The processor inside the SB is a dual-core Intel Core i5-2410M running at 2.3GHz, and while 4GB should be considered a minimum spec these days, there were no signs of a slowdown when the SB was being asked to think fast. There's a spare SO-Dimm memory slot ready for more Ram if you find you need it.
PCMark 7
Longer bars are better
PCMark Vantage
Longer bars are better
3DMark 06
Longer bars are better
PCMark Vantage returned a decent score of 5820. Neither of the SB's two GPUs qualifies this laptop as a gamer’s machine, but a final score of 5084 in 3DMark 06 suggests you should be able to get reasonable framerates on older games if you can keep image quality in check.
However, within an hour of getting the SB out of the box it was clear that it has a bit of an Achilles Heel. Like almost all laptops, it needs active cooling to stop the processor going into meltdown, but unlike most others the fan is pretty loud - when it’s working hard you’ll easily hear it from the next room if there’s nothing else going on. Not only that, but it doesn’t take much to prompt the fan into life, either.
PCMark Vantage Battery Life
Battery life in Minutes
Longer bars are better
It may have been the hyper-active fan - along with choosing Speed mode - that produced the SB’s shocking intensive use battery result of just 89 minutes, which makes it of limited use for those who really push their laptops during their commutes.