Samsung Galaxy Book4 Ultra 16" NP960XGL-XG1US Graphite 2024

The Galaxy Book4 Ultra packs a gorgeous 3K OLED screen and RTX 4070 power into a sleek body, making it a beast for creative work. But a disturbing number of users report the screen cracking from normal use, and Samsung's support is no help. It's a phenomenal laptop with a potentially fatal flaw that makes it hard to recommend at $3,000.

This thing rips. The Core Ultra 9 and RTX 4070 combo chews through video renders, 3D modeling, and code compilation without breaking a sweat. In our database, the GPU sits in the 89th percentile, making it one of the best on the market for a non-chonky workstation. The 32GB of RAM is a standout too. Just know that under heavy load, the fans kick in loud and that 49Wh battery drains fast, so keep the charger handy for serious work.

Stacked against the Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max, the Galaxy Book4 Ultra has a brighter, more vibrant touchscreen and better gaming chops thanks to the RTX 4070, but the MacBook's build quality and battery life are in a different league. The ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 offers similar GPU power in a smaller, more portable package for less cash, though you sacrifice the big 16-inch OLED. The Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 10 will out-muscle it in raw gaming performance and cooling, but it's a brick by comparison. The Book4 Ultra's main edge is that display, but the durability concerns make it a risky pick against these more reliable rivals.

At $3,000, you're paying a premium for that stunning OLED panel and the thin-and-light design wrapped around serious horsepower. The raw specs are competitive, but the value proposition crumbles when you factor in the widespread screen fragility reports. You're essentially gambling on whether your unit will be one of the unlucky ones, and that's a tough pill to swallow for a laptop this expensive.

The Galaxy Book4 Ultra is Samsung swinging for the fences. You get a gorgeous 16-inch 3K OLED touchscreen, a Core Ultra 9 processor, and an RTX 4070 crammed into a surprisingly thin 1.86kg chassis. On paper, it's a creative professional's dream machine that can also game after hours.

But there's a catch, and it's a big one. A worrying number of owners report the screen cracking under normal use, and Samsung's warranty support seems to be a dead end for that issue. It's a $3,000 laptop with a potential ticking time bomb for a display, which makes recommending it wholeheartedly really tough.

If you need a laptop that can survive life in a backpack without a prayer, skip this. The screen fragility reports are too common to ignore. Look at a MacBook Pro or a Lenovo Legion Pro instead if build durability and warranty support are non-negotiable.

This is a laptop for the spec-obsessed creator who values a jaw-dropping screen and Samsung ecosystem integration above all else, and who is willing to roll the dice on the screen durability. If you baby your gear and never travel without a padded sleeve, the performance and display are genuinely top-tier. For everyone else, the risk of a cracked screen with no support is a dealbreaker.