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The model is an important one for Samsung, as previous budget models have impressed us with their stylish design and competitive pricing. The Q45, for example, still has a place on our A-List in the value laptop category.

The clean lines of the R410's silver and black chassis certainly didn't disappoint, though, and with a sub-£500 price it looks set to easily undercut the already-reasonable Q45.

As well as the model shown to us the R410 will be offered with black

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interiors, and some intriguing "patterned versions". We'll bring you more details on these as soon as we can.

All models, though, will share Samsung's now trademark black glossy lid.

The notebook's widescreen 14in TFT panel, manufactured in-house by Samsung, offers a clear and sharp desktop of 1,280 by 800 pixels, powered by a Radeon Xpress 1250. This may rule out gaming, but is perfectly respectable for a notebook of this price.

Models will vary from 512MB to 4GB of RAM, and from a 1.73GHz Celeron to a 2.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo. Storage will stretch from a standard 80GB to 320GB.

In coming weeks it will emerge just what products Samsung piece together for the UK market from these options, and how competitively they can price them.

The only issue that we could see was weight. At well over 2kg this is far from the carry-everywhere notebook for students that the marketing brochures make it out to be.