Toshiba Satellite C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302 Affordable 15.6″ Laptop with Intel Celeron CPU

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The 15.6-inch Toshiba Satellite C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302 is one of the cheapest laptop PCs with Windows OS. The 230-dollar notebook is based on the low-end Intel Celeron N2840 “Bay Trail” dual-core processor, 4GB of RAM memory, and a 500GB hard drive. These components are good enough for the daily chores of the average user, but aren’t suitable for computationally intensive video editing tasks and similar stuff.

The C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302 (two different names for the same specs) is a budget machine in other aspects, too. The 15.6-incher has a standard display resolution of 1366-by-768 pixels and lacks IPS technology for wider viewing angles. The keyboard has no backlight but it is spacious and has a dedicated numeric pad, while the trackpad utilizes mechanical click buttons. The notebook incorporates a DVD optical drive, stereo speakers, a front 720p web camera, three USB ports, HDMI vide jack, Wi-Fi and Ethernet LAN network connections, and a multiformat card reader.

Toshiba C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302 Top View

The 4 cell 32Wh battery isn’t capacious, but given the CPU is a power-efficient one, you can expect the C55-B5302 to last about 5 hours on a charge.

The notebook has a matte black plastic chassis. The design is minimalistic and somewhat dull, but other notebooks at similar price points aren’t great lookers either. The system is 1″ thick and weighs in at 4.8 pounds, so it isn’t bulky by no means.

C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302 2

Specifications of the Toshiba Satellite Toshiba Satellite C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302

Here are the specs of the Toshiba Satellite Toshiba Satellite C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302 with descriptions of its features. For comparison against other laptops, you can use the "Compare Specs" button.

Brand Toshiba
Screen Size 15.6-inch

This is by far the most popular laptop screen size. It provides a lot of screen real estate, while avoiding bulkiness of the 17.3" laptops.
Screen Resolution 1366x768 pixels HD

This is an entry-level screen resolution, oftentimes found on budget laptops. It doesn't deliver picture sharpness and space on the screen like the Full HD or higher resolution laptop displays do.
Touchscreen No

This laptop doesn't support touchscreen input.
Other Display Specs TN type

Displays based on the old TN technology lack wide viewing angles you can find on IPS screens. The colors may look washed out or inverted at certain viewing angles.
Processor (CPU) Intel Celeron N2840 dual-core 2.16-2.58GHz 1MB cache (User Benchmark CPU score: 13)
Graphics (GPU) Intel HD integrated graphics of low-end CPUs (only for the lightest gaming)
System Memory (RAM) Size 4GB RAM

4GB is a small RAM size for computing in 2023. For smooth operation of a laptop during everyday tasks, at least 8GB is recommended.
Data Storage 500GB HDD

This is a very good capacity, but HDD is a slow type of storage.
DVD Optical Drive DVD writer
Keyboard & Input Non-backlit keyboard with dedicated number pad

The keyboard has a separate numeric pad on the right side of the keyboard, but it has no keyboard backlight.

Touchpad with separate physical click buttons

The touchpad features physical left and right click buttons, as opposed to click buttons integrated into the touchpad surface.
Speakers & Audio Stereo speakers

As usual, the device features a pair of built-in stereo speakers.
Camera Front-facing web camera

Laptops usually feature a frontal webcam located on the display bezel. This laptop is no exception.
Wi-Fi Wireless 802.11N

802.11N is an old Wi-Fi standard, precursor of the 802.11AC and the latest 802.11AX with improved data transfer speeds and connectivity. 802.11N is rarely used in modern laptops.
Ethernet Network Port Yes

This laptop has an Ethernet LAN port for wired internet and networking connectivity.
Bluetooth No

This laptop has no built-in Bluetooth module.
Mobile broadband (4G LTE) No
USB Ports 2 x USB 2.0 + 1 x USB 3.0

A total of three full-size Type A USB ports.
Video Output Ports 1 x HDMI

HDMI is a widely used digital video output port. You can find HDMI-in ports on most computer monitors and TVs.
Media Card Reader SD card reader

The laptop has a slot for full-size SD memory cards, used in many digital cameras. You can also use microSD cards with a card adapter.
Battery 4-cell 32 Whr lithium-ion
Weight 4.8 pounds
Height 1"
Width 15"
Depth 10.2"
Windows Version Windows 8.1

Windows 8.1 is eligible for free upgrade to Windows 10 Home. Check Windows.com for more info.
Warranty 1-year

A typical laptop warranty.

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User Reviews and Q&A on the Toshiba Satellite Toshiba Satellite C55-B5101 / C55-B5100 / C55-B5302

Below you can read and submit user reviews, questions, and answers about the laptop. Thank you for your contribution.

Current rating: 3.33 out of 5 stars
  1. Question

    Bruce Corte

    Can the CPU in this laptop be upgraded or is it destined to its OEM Celeron CPU?

    • Dan

      It’s soldered onto the motherboard, so you can’t upgrade it like in a desktop PC.

  2. Question

    Michael Nedd

    Hello,
    Could you please advise as it regards to the memory upgrade possibilities for the Toshiba Satellite C55-B5101?

    Part No. : PSCMLU-08D0EJ
    Serial No.: 3F040989P

    Thank you

    • steve martin

      I’ve upgraded mine to 8gb of ram and a 1 tb solid state hard drive

  3. Bright

    how many ram slots are available?

  4. Bright

    how many ram slots has this laptop

  5. 3 out of 5

    Shay

    Nice computer. I got it as a gift. I wouldn’t buy it for myself because it seems to be designed for a left-handed user. The material (plastic) used to make it is not as durable as some; it has easily cracked after being bumped into a wall. Also, the zoom function has malfunctioned from the beginning. Sometimes, when using the keypad, it just does its own thing, zooming up to 500% or even down to 25%. This has made it frustrating to use at some points. Another frustrating matter is that the adapters wear out quickly. They seem made to do so; otherwise they would come with an L-shape. When my second adapter died lately, I was weeks without using the computer, and when I finally got (a universal) one, the battery had also died. This didn’t happen with my previous laptop. However, it is a nice computer, and I would recommend it because it does the job and is very economical.

  6. 2 out of 5

    mlaugh

    Very slow computer…………so bad I cant use it effectively. I understand its an entry level but…………….wow this is bad.

    • Henry

      It’s not the computer that’s slow…it’s that sad excuse for an OS that’s slowing it down…Windows! I run linux on mine and it’s fast!!

    • steve

      you are so right Henry. I installed Mint 18 cinnamon and upgraded to 8gb ram and a 1 tb solid state hard drive. love it after all these years

  7. Enrique

    Can i install 8gb of memory ram?

  8. 5 out of 5

    samantha

    I have the C55-b5100 and it actually DOES have bluetooth and this laptop has been amazing for the price paid. I think that when reviewing a computer and blogging about it the actual facts should be researched.

    • Jesse Bassett

      I second the fact that this laptop has built in bluetooth as I am using it now.

  9. robert

    I wish to add mouse. Con one be added without using one of the USB connectors? Does this machine have wireless capability for this (Bluetooth without using dongle, Wifi)? What brand of mouse are recommended?

    • Danijel Z

      The laptop doesn’t have built-in Bluetooth, so the only option is to get a Wi-Fi mouse if you want all USB ports to remain free. Unfortunately, there’s only a few Wi-Fi mice available on the market. In fact, I found only 3:
      HP X7000 Touch Mouse with Wi-Fi
      Targus Wi-Fi Laser Mouse AMW58US
      and HP WiFi Mouse (smaller than the previous two)

      You can find all of them on Amazon.com and read reviews about them there.

  10. Alisa

    Hello, does anyone know, does this model have 110 or 220 V power? Or both, and they just switch? Thanks.

    • Roberto

      They switch automatically

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