Most netbooks sold today offer similar features, run on identical Atom powered processors and offer the same lightweight mobile computing options at very similar prices.

A bit newer to the game, Samsung is looking to nudge its way into a market traditionally populated by the likes of MSI, ASUS, Dell and Toshiba. And it's a pretty forceful nudge considering the entry, the Samsung N210 Netbook (known as the N220 in Canada). It has the all the same features of the competition but offers twice the battery power in nearly the same size.

We got to spend some time with Samsung's N210 and realized early on that despite its small size and totable weight, it acts more like a full featured notebook than a skimpy netbook. Its build quality is surprisingly solid - not unexpected given Samsung's reputation for designing solid consumer electronics.

One of its most striking features a glare-free, matte screen. Most "economy class" netbooks feature cheap, high gloss glossy screens that are so reflective as to be useless when view outdoors, or even in a airplane where lighting conditions are less than ideal. The N220's screen is decidedly not-useless in such conditions. Screen technology is Samsung's forte and they supplied the N210 with a very readable, reasonably bright, multi-functional screen that does okay with video and text as well.

Aside from the praiseworthy screen, battery life is the biggest feature netbook buyers should look for in devices that are made for traveling. By that token, the 7-hour battery life of the N210 is outstanding.

What's more, Samsung says you can get 11 hours out of a fully charged battery, though that seems only attainable on the ultra-conservative power settings; Wi-Fi off, lowest screen brightness, one program running at a time, that sort of thing. Essentially, 11 hours with the dial set on "pathetic." But 7 hours, that's awesome all by itself.

The Samsung N210 comes equipped with a 1.66GHz N450 Atom processor, 1GB RAM, 250GB HDD and Windows 7 Starter. Pretty standard stuff in terms of netbook hardware - upping your RAM to 2GB is highly recommended; a straightforward and relatively inexpensive upgrade that will noticeably boost performance and better enable multitasking.

For a diminutive little traveller in the sub-$400 price range, the Samsung N210's extended battery life and a matte screen makes it the better option than most competitively priced netbooks.