REVIEW: Samsung Odyssey 2 gaming notebook deserves your attention

We tested the Odyssey 2, Samsung's second generation gaming notebook. It features a metal design and powerful configurations. But it's worth? Check out!

Do you know that saying that says: "In a team that doesn't win, it doesn't move"? Because the Samsung moved a lot in its line of gaming notebooks Odyssey. The first version, which had a salty price and questionable hardware that did not even have an SSD, gave way to a Odyssey 2, released in October 2019, much more mature, with powerful configurations and an elegant and flashy look.

But could the news from Odyssey 2 justify their price, which is close to R $ 9 thousand? We analyzed the most powerful version of the notebook, equipped with a processor Intel Core i7, 16 GB in RAM, GPU Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 and SSD in 512 GB, and our analysis you can see in the following lines.

Design and finishing

The Odyssey 2 has a metal finish that gives the notebook a feeling of robustnessMetal finish gives the notebook a feeling of robustness (Photo: Reproduction / Samsung)

Right away, we see that the Odyssey 2 evolved, and a lot, in relation to the first Odyssey. The notebook left the plastic housing and adopted a metallic look, which gives the model a feeling of robustness and a certain elegance.

However, a deeper comparison is enough to realize that it has an even more sober design. LEDs? Only on the On / Off button. The elaborate lines also give way to straight lines, which reminds you of a traditional notebook.

But he doesn't shy away from some details gamer: the display support, for example, has a single hinge in the middle, in which the Samsung comments that it helps in the dissipation of heat. It looks interesting and stands out from the conventional designs of this type of computer.

Regarding doors and entrances, the Odyssey 2 accompanies a normal quantity, but for the price it could be more complete. On the right are two doors USB 3.0 (standard A) and an entry 3.5mm for headphones. J on the right has an entry HDMI, another port USB 3.0, a door USB-C is Ethernet. Unfortunately, there is no memory card reader.

Keyboard and touchpad

Samsung Odyssey 2Keyboard looks small, but has great quality (Photo: Reproduo / Samsung)

My relationship with the keyboard Odyssey 2 it was love and hate. In the first days of use, I found the keys quite small when playing titles FPSwhere one miss click (wrong touch, in free translation) can be sorely missed. But just a matter of custom. The keys are very comfortable and the controls are almost instantaneous.

Different from the first Odyssey, the second generation keyboard is also backlit, but brings the characteristic color of the line, in red. It is not possible to change the color of the keyboard, but its intensity can be adjusted by the program Samsung Settings.

Another significant difference from the first Odyssey O touchpad. In the first generation there was a LED around, giving a much more cool look. The second verse removed the LED and increased its size, giving more emphasis to touch and controls.

Screen and audio

The Odyssey 2 has a very good 15.6-inch Full HD screen, but it could be 2KVery good 15.6-inch Full HD screen, but it could be 2K (Photo: Reproduo / Samsung)

O Odyssey 2 brings a screen PLS LCD in 15.6 inches and resolution Full HD. There is also an anti-reflective layer, as well as a refresh rate 144Hz (the only line to have this number) and support for Nvidia G-Sync.

Delivering what it promises, 144Hz they make the visualization of contents much more fluid, without locks, ideal at the time of that frenetic steel game. In addition, more unfavorable viewing angles do not cause loss of visibility, since the anti-reflective layer works very well.

In general, there is nothing to complain about the Odyssey 2. Despite the panel PLS LCD, the colors are very vivid and the brightness intense. For the price of the notebook, I expected that at least the resolution would be 2K. However, most titles can be played with their maximum graphic potential in Full HD.

There is already surprising audio, within the limitations that we have seen in several speakers. The sound is loud and clear, but sins in the low and medium. As we always do, an adjustment in the equalization was able to mitigate the lack of bass, but, in doubt, use headphones.

Performance

Excellent Odyssey 2 gaming performanceExcellent gaming performance (Photo: Reproduo / Samsung)

O Odyssey 2 it has some options that differ in configurations. The tested version has a processor Intel Core i7-9750H 2.6 GHz, 16 GB of memory DDR4 RAM, video card Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 in 6 GB, one NVMe SSD in 512 GB it is a HD with 1 TB of storage. With such a configuration, we can expect no less than excellent performance when testing with all games in our library.

Resident Evil 2 ran with the settings at most with the 60 FPS spiked without any loss of performance. J in Devil May Cry Vhowever, there was a slight drop in pictures when there were many elements in the scene. The settings were set in the ultra.

For lovers of open world games, the Odyssey 2 hold your xar Assassins Creed: Odyssey with mastery. The game was set at Very High with 100% rendering scale and there were few moments when FPS they were around 50-55.

However, the user is able to redirect all processing to games with Beast Mode, which can be configured using the software Odyssey Control (which we will discuss later) or by the shortcut on the function key F11. The mode really works and delivers better performances than the traditional mode.

Of course, all this power has revs and it comes in the form of heat and noise. The temperature of the Odyssey 2 arrived at 80 degrees while playing games on Beast Mode, in addition to the loud noise of operation of the robust coolers Jet Blade, making gaming without a headset very uncomfortable.

Even though it is a notebook focused on games and that stays most of the time plugged in, battery life could be a little better to enhance its mobility. Around 2 hours navigation, playing videos and listening to music, the battery dropped to 35%. Considering that neither games were played, the result is disappointing.

Odyssey Control software

Samsung Odyssey Control the Odyssey 2 control centerOdyssey 2 command center (Photo: Reproduo / Samsung)

The software Odyssey Control the performance control panel of the Odyssey 2. Here the user can configure the desired display using a few presets, how FPS, RTS, RPG, and AOS. In addition to being a tool for analyzing notebook performance data, managing screen shots taken during gaming and activating the Beast Mode, previously commented.

The software is very intuitive and gives total control to users who understand little of overclocking and yet they want to extract the maximum power that the notebook can provide.

Now, in addition to Odyssey Control, a Samsung filled the Odyssey 2 with factory software like an operator smartphone. The user finds applications for notes, RAM, voice recording, workstations, in addition to antivirus McAfee Life Safe. This would not be so uncomfortable if these applications were useful, however, the user will find more complete experiences with other programs available on the market.

Completed

O Odyssey 2 it really proved that in a winning team it moves, yes. It represents a natural evolution of the first Odyssey, with a more elegant and robust design, extremely powerful configurations and extra features that can handle even the heaviest game. For the price of R $ 8,527, what is missing is a 2K screen, as well as more complete doors.

However, if you are looking for a powerful notebook, this is the one Odyssey 2. Did you like the notebook? Leave your opinion of the comments.

Technical specifications of Odyssey 2

Model Samsung Odyssey 2
Screen 15.6 ″ PLS Full HD LED anti-reflective, G-Sync – 1920 × 1080 / 144Hz
Video NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Graphics 6 GB GDDR6
Processor Intel Core i7 9750H (2.60 GHz to 4.50 GHz, 12 MB L3 Cache)
Memory 16 GB DDR4
Storage 512 GB SSD NVMe1 TB HDD
THE Windows 10 Home
Connectivity 802.11 ac wave2 (2 × 2) Bluetooth 5.0 Wi-Fi Card
Drums AC Adapter Power 160 WBattery 54 Wh
Doors 1 power connector1 HDMI output1 USB-C3 USB 3.01 Ethernet input1 headphone / microphone output (combo)
Typing Standard Backlit Keyboard Portugus-BRClickpad
Security TPM Module
Multimedia Stereo speakers (1.5W x 2) Dolby Atmos Built-in microphone Webcam HD VGA
Dimensions andWeight 35.8 x 27.1 x 1.99 cm
Color black
Price R $ 8,599.00

Samsung Odyssey 2

  • Finishing and design – 9.5 / 10
  • Screen and audio – 8.5 / 10
  • Performance – 10/10
  • Operating system and features – 9/10

9.3 / 10

Final considerations and cons and cons

Odyssey 2 represents a natural evolution from the first Odyssey. It brings well-finished design, powerful configurations and really interesting extra features.

Pros

  • Metal finish;
  • Sober and beautiful design;
  • Screen with high brightness and good viewing angle;
  • Excellent performance;
  • Operating system and interesting features;
  • loud and clear audio;
  • Very good keyboard.

Cons

  • Screen could be 2K;
  • Too many pre-installed programs;
  • It heats up a lot;
  • Webcam microphone is not good.