Samsung Galaxy Book Flex 2 Alpha (13") review

Samsung Galaxy Book Flex 2 Alpha (13") (2021) — the no-dGPU carry of the trio

The Galaxy Book Flex 2 Alpha at $739 is the integrated-graphics member of the 2021 Samsung trio: a Core i5-1135G7 with 16 GB of RAM. The flagged strength is mobility at 80 (+25% above the class median); the flagged weakness is the 16 GB memory ceiling, half the class median.

Where it holds up

Mobility posts 80 and portability 83.8 (high) — near the top of this batch's $739 shelf — and office productivity holds 62.75 (mid) with photo design at 37 (mid) for the light office day. Value posts 48.5 (mid), the honest middle for a five-year-old thin-and-light without a discrete card.

Where it falls short

The 16 GB ceiling is the flagged weakness, and the rest of the sheet reads its age plainly: performance 33.66 (low), gaming 23 (low), modeling 19 (low), engineering CAD 22 (low). Five years on, this is a writing-and-browsing machine with an excellent carry, and nothing in the data pretends otherwise.

Price and depreciation

No depreciation anchor is recorded (base $0); no curve or projection applies. The 2021 cohort rate is 9.44% per year — five years of decay already in the $739 price.

Alternatives to consider

The Galaxy Book Pro 15 at the same $739 adds the MX450 and photo design 84 for the same weight class; the Galaxy Book Pro 360 13 at the same price folds at 1.04 kg with the same sheet; the Galaxy Book 2 360 at $840 brings the 1235U generation if the budget stretches $101.

Bottom line

Fairly priced for the class. The pure carry of the 2021 trio: top-shelf portability for its money — bought knowing the low performance bands are the whole trade. The 1135G7 matches the Galaxy Book Pro 15 sibling — the MX450 there is the entire difference.