Toshiba - Satellite Laptop with Intel® Centrino® Processor Technology

This a pretty good laptop computer. I had a Fujitsu A6020 and the battery life s*cks big time. This one gives me at least 2.5 hrs., when watching a DVD movie. Longer most likely if I just use it for surfing and video editing. I would have given it 5 stars but the one that bothered me was the switch for the on/off switch for the wireless. I like to turn it off when I am not going to use the net for a while to save battery power. After doing it for, I would say 10X, the switch is getting loose! Hope it doesn't fall off or I will have to use a small tool to slide it off and on.

I spent 3 weeks researching laptops online before I finally narrowed it down to 2 (this one and a Sony). I got this laptop 1 1/2 weeks ago (when it was still on sale) primarily for my digital photography. I wanted to shoot tethered and be able to download and view my pix on location. I needed something fast with a large screen and sizable storage space but affordable. The Toshiba A305-S6858 fit that bill to a T! I had looked at a Sony at the store, but honestly the Toshiba seemed far sturdier and durable than any of the other namebrands, and the keyboard was easier to use and the touchpad more responsive, as well as the webcam had a better picture. It's faster than my desktop and downloaded my pix in a heartbeat (over 49 gb worth). Even web surfing it ran very quickly and loaded the screen in no time. I love the wide screen although I find even after calibrating, the colors are washed out and a bit bluish even when viewing at the 'sweet spot'. I do my editing on the desktop so I wasn't bothered by that, just so I could check focus accuracy at high resolution. The screen would be fine for viewing pix, web or even movies if you're not a super stickler for 100% accurate colors (many people might not even notice the difference). It does come with the Media Center like XP has so you can watch DVD's by using the slide out DVD drive. The webcam is clear, bright, and easy to use and I like that it's built in along with a fairly sensitive mic. Has stereo speakers built in too and an FM tuner (if you use the little antenna that comes with it). Battery life is about 3 1/2 - 4 hours just doing normal activities at the battery saving setting. It comes with an A/C adaptor so you can use it plugged in, and the battery charges while you do. The battery charges quickly in just a few hours. It also has a setting so you can charge USB devices (mp3 etc) even when it's turned off. The Wifi works pretty good, I haven't used that much yet, but seems to pick up a good signal and work well in the hotspots I've tried it in. I've seen reviews about how 'hot' it gets, but I haven't had a problem with it. It does get warm but not anything I'd call 'hot'. I do use a USB wireless mouse but even using the touchpad after a few hours running it's not anything but warm. The bundled software is kinda a pain. I should have spent the extra for Best Buy to take it out (optimize), but I'll muddle through getting it out eventually. Norton is a bad program and I had already updated my desktop to the Trend Micro several months ago, and strangely enough that's what Best Buy recommended anyways. LOL Many people have complained about the 'fingerprint magnet' of the new fusion finish, and I'll agree it does show the prints alot. I just keep a dust cloth in my bag and the prints wipe off very easily unlike the non slick type keys I've encountered on desktop models. Honestly it's not a problem for me since I can't see the fingerprints on the keys when I'm using them anyways, I just clean it off before it goes back in the bag. I don't mind the weight too much considering I'm usually hauling photo equipment around too, but I suppose if you were carrying this around a campus or something for awhile then the weight might be a problem for some. Overall I'd say for a budget you can't beat the speed, screen size, sturdiness, and features on this Toshiba. You won't be sorry if you buy this.

The only two problems I have with this are that the battery is big and does not sit flush with the base. This is somewhat a good thing. Because it is so big, you get about 3-4 hours off of a full charge and when it is on a table or surface, it lifts up the laptop on an angle, so it can vent out the hot air and it gives you a more comfortable angle for typing. The keyboard does take a little getting used to if you can type without looking on other keyboards. Other than that, this is what other companies should look at when they make a new laptop design.

Positives: The keyboard has the best feel of any laptop keyboard I've ever used. Feels sturdy. Runs cool. Battery is made to tilt keyboard instead of having it be flat, which is great for typing. Speakers are located just above keyboard so the sound isn't muffled and they are good speakers for a laptop. Display is crisp and sharp. "N" wireless capable. Vista is even OK, even though it is a resource hog (but this laptop handles it well even if Vista uses 2GB of RAM just for the OS). The ReadyBoost part of Vista is good, and you can make the settings OK by configuring it using the "classic" settings. Still perfer XP, though. Haven't really tested battery life yet, but everyone else says about 3 hours which is good for a laptop. The Toshiba utilities (such as DVD burning, support, and DVD playing software) are nice and not included with most systems out of the box. Great deal - got it at my local Best Buy for $607 (plus 18 mo. financing) and it is nearly identical (slightly slower front side bus and an integrated, not separate, graphics card, and slightly slower DVD burner are the only differences) to the new model that sells for $950. Negatives: Keyboard gets fingerprints easily, but just need to be wiped off. Battery not being flush with case is good for typing, but bad for carrying it around. Don't like that the USB ports are near the front of the case and not all on one side. Don't like the back right side location of the power cord (also not an "L" input) and would rather it be on the back. Because it is a 64 bit OS it utilizes the processors better, but many programs even a couple months or less old won't work on it because they are made for a 32 bit OS (though some 32 bit OS designed programs will work fine). Overall a great laptop for a great price. The positives far outweigh the negatives. Very happy with the purchase.

Purchased on 10/8. A great value for the price. I have had 4 laptops and so far I am extremely pleased with the overall performance. A great idea on the battery elevation; the screen is very clear and does not have high glare; runs quiet; boots up quickly; connects fast to wireless; nice graphics; speakers are great (best I've ever had on a laptop); finish is easy to clean and attractive; I really like the lighted keyboard and touch control for speakers, dvd player, etc.. Now-what I don't like--My choice for this laptop was specifically for the hard drive size, speed and webcam. Hard drive and speed are great--webcam is terrible! We spend 6 months away from family and it was very important to me to be able to have an integrated cam so I can keep in touch. The quality of picture is bad, grainy and I've tried all the settings but nothing improves. Even the default settings are bad. The camera at times just goes black and I have to shut it down and turn it back on. Every time I try to use it on SKYPE (which was recommended by Toshiba by a little sticker next to the webcam), I get the Blue Screen of Death that won't allow me to do anything except shut down and reboot in safe mode. I have contacted SKYPE and Toshiba and to be honest, Toshiba support leaves a lot to be desired. They have no explanation except to try and update drivers. Well, gee...this is brand new and according to everything I try to upgrade, it's all up to date. I've spent hours and hours trying to fix the problem and so far, nothing's worked. Tonite I will do a complete system recovery to factory settings and see if that helps. If it doesn't work I will go out and buy an external webcam and uninstall the Chicony cam (which, by the way has no website to upgrade drivers..go figure!!). My other complaint is Vista 64-bit...I would rather have Win XP or even Vista 32-bit..never any trouble with them. The last problem is minute but something that bugs me..the power cord is on the side which sticks out. I've had 2 Dells and the power cord is in the back which is great. It's enough to have USB ports with stuff sticking out and then to deal with the cord is a bit much. Other than the above, I do like this laptop. I am just very disappointed in the time I have spent with no satisfaction to try and fix the very feature I felt was important to have.

I bought this laptop about 2 weeks ago and I love it! Being my first computer, I'm not sure how to compare it, tho I have used other laptops before. The whole laptop has problems with fingerprints, but that's nothing. I love how theres a touch row in the back of the laptop where I don't even have to press a button to have the sound off. I was ULTRA excited about this buy when I saw it had a webcam since I never used one before. I immediately turned on the webcam and in a few seconds all you could see was black and little specs of light where a lamp behind me was on. That problem was most likely because of poor lighting around me. This computer is fast and my mom loves the mahjong that came with it. The screen is big and clear, basically awesome :D The speakers look really cool and provide great sound. I almsot bought a Dell for $50 dollars less, but found this one and found it had twice the capacity as the Dell. (I bought it when it was on sale for 799) I'm really excited about this computer, and I love how it is better than my own desktop comp. The only thing that bugs me is that my wireless internet is not working at home, which is not the laptops fault. I REALLY recommend to buy, and also to have the Geek squad install all of your starting up stuff. It saves time and annoyance. Hope this helps :)

This is the second laptop i have ever owned and it is terrific! I purchased this laptop for school and i have 0 complaints! It's battery last me up tp four hours sometimes and it runs so cool that its hard to tell if you have even had it on. It's light and very stylish. I get compliments on it everywhere i go and i have never been so happy with a computer before this one. The only issue is the keys. They are very shinny and they get smudged immediatley. However this really does not bother you, trust me, i havent bothered to whipe them down because you cant even tell let alone care. I would definitley recomend this laptop to anyone! Its great. Awsome buy! =D

I purchased this computer online for $729 after researching this model and other brands for months. I wanted a durable, fast and reliable computer that we could use for school and have the flexibility to use around the house on the wifi. Once I received it, I was able to immediately start using it right out of the box. The wifi worked flawlessly once I entered the code for my dsl modem into the security key box. THe wifi is so sensitive that it found numerous signals even those up to 1/4 mile away at some local motels. It is 64 bit so some software pakages won't work right away. This was true when I hooked up a Pinnacle HD stick tv tuner to it. No worries, I just went to the website and downloaded the 64 bit program. works flawlessly. I also just purchased a wireless printer. can't wait to get that going as well. I am extremely pleased with my purchase and hope to get many years out of this. This is my 2nd Toshiba. Great work Toshiba