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Toshiba Satellite T215D-S1150RD: Review

Posted to Notebooks 2011-01-02

If you are a student gearing up for the new semester or a home user who wants a notebook with simplicity, then the Toshiba Satellite T215D-S1150RD is one of several budget-friendly laptops to consider. This model is the thinnest and lightest yet in the Satellite series, so if portability is a priority then you will bond with this notebook nicely. Despite being ultra-portable, the T215D-S1150RD surprises us with a full-size keyboard and touchpad, among other user-friendly features. If you are thinking about upgrading to a newer laptop, then you should definitely consider this Toshiba.

At just 11.2" x 8.2" x 1.03" in dimensions and 3.3 lbs in weight, this Satellite series notebook is certainly not one to be underestimated in quality and features. Although battery life is only an average 5 hours and no optical drive is present, the majority of customers have felt that this model is still very well worth the money. If you plan on playing graphics-intensive video games or editing HD video, however, you may want to check out a higher-end model.

Rating:

4.4 out of 5

Value

Overall, this model is a great value; however, perhaps the biggest disappointment in this notebook is its lack of an internal optical drive. In our age of digital media, consumers enjoy watching DVDs or burning CDs on their laptops. The only option here is to purchase the DVD/CD drive separately. Needless to say, Toshiba makes a case for its Satellite series notebook by comparing it to the average netbook. This ultra-portable computer makes up for any features that netbooks lack, at the price of shorter battery life. If you don't mind the minor faults, then this is a good value.

Features

Featuring a 1.3GHz AMD Athlon II Neo Dual-Core Processor K325, this computer combines the power of 2GB DDR3 RAM and the ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4225 graphics engine to bring the best performance and video to its 11.6-inch LED-backlit display. Because it utilizes shared memory, this notebook may not be the best solution for gamers, but multi-tasking users will enjoy the benefits of improved performance. This model comes with a 320GB hard drive, 802.11b/g/n wireless, Ethernet LAN, webcam w/microphone, memory card reader, VGA port, HDMI port, two USB 2.0 ports, and one eSATA/USB 2.0 combo port with "Sleep and Charge" capabilities.

Summary

Overall, the Toshiba Satellite T215D-S1150RD is one of the better alternatives to the standard netbook. This ultraportable laptop tosses aside the limitations of netbooks by offering consumers a more powerful graphics chipset and more processing power than computers of similar price. Although there is certainly room for improvement, such as the built-in features, for the price it will be difficult to find a more-fulfilling Toshiba notebook. If you only want to spend a few hundred dollars on a laptop, then this is one of the many wise solutions for your needs.

Pros

Stylish- ultraportable notebook with fusion chrome finish
Improved- the notebook that all netbooks should be
Featured- includes Wireless-N, Ethernet, HDMI, and eSATA
Powerful- updated AMD processor with ATI Mobility graphics
Improvable- lacks features seen in similarly-priced full-size laptops

Cons

There are no cons for this product