Toshiba Satellite U205-S5002 Laptop Computer

4.1lbs and great features!

By pineapple  Nov 14, 2006 | 4 out of 5 found this Toshiba Satellite U205-S5002 Laptop Computer review helpful

Pros: Features! Battery managment, fingerprint, weight, price.

Cons: A bit lacking on software. And a strange IE quirk(read on)

Purchased this laptop in October after my Compaq died.(lucky thing all my data was backed up on a huge external) I was impressed with Toshiba from my former job... we were supported by and provided Toshiba units when we needed to go portable. Well, h...ere goes... First thing that caught my attention - small size. Second, weight... then that wonderful fingerprint reader! It has a great magnesium case which feels substantial and doesn't flex like my other laptops. And the whole unit seems to be built extremely well. the hinges do not protrude and moves with a good amount of "stick." Now the "guts." The display is bright!!!! And very adjustable when it comes to dimming and lightening. Also all the keys fit to your hands. My hands are a bit wider than normal, (I wear an XL golf glove) so this keyboard is wonderful compared to other "thin and light" notebooks. The keys have a great tactile response to them and just the right about of "spring" that I like. No 10 key and a truncated "enter" key but everything falls into place. An excellent feature this notebook has is the biometric reader(fingerprint reader) and the battery managment system. MS - XP tries to help manage the power but stick with the Toshiba Power management software... it's terrific! I get over 4 hours each time. I keep testing it because i can't believe I get nearly 4 hours and 43 minutes each time! It's great! The Toshiba power management system is nearly infinitely adjustable and it even helps to manage the cooling fan, and processor speed to conserve battery power.... all programmable when you reach certain battery levels! Did I mention how wonderful and bright the display is? Well, it's great even out in the sun! I watched a DVD out on my patio while working on a few projects. I can see the screen glare-free as long as a huge reflective light souce was not directly behind me. Quck access keys on the top part of the keyboard area to play dvd and music cds, smallish touch pad which is perfect for this unit, 3 usb2 ports, 5 into 1 card reader, DVD writer... yummy! All in a 4.1lbs package... oh with shock protection(locks the hard drive for less or no damage upon drops and shocks.) All the necessary ports and connectivities too. The wireless works wondeful and is pretty quick to find networks and lock in on them. The quirk.... IE... IE,.... internet explorer... perhaps I need to reinstall IE7... while I am doing searches and writing emails, IE has a tendancy to "stall" and I am typing away until I look at the screen and notice that I typed 2 sentences that are not on there... just yet(or may never get on). There seems to be a "lag" from time to time. Partially, I think it has something to do with moving the unit around on my lap as I type and perhaps the sensitivity of the touch pad. But, it could very well be IE on this unit too.... just not sure. I will have to isolate and slowly figure out what it is that causes the "stalls." So many wonderful things about this unit.... oh, and another thing... you don't have to lug around a heavy bulky power unit to convert ac electric. The unit is quite nice,small and light. This Toshiba is by far the best laptop, I've gotten... and for $1200.... (100gig hard drive and Core Duo!) a great buy! Read more Less