Laptop Computing Simplified
Laptops and tablets by Toshiba.
Toshiba has refreshed the Kirabook 13 high-end 13.3-inch Ultrabook laptop, upgrading the processor options to the latest Intel Core 4th Gen Haswell. The laptop still retains the sharp above-full-HD 2,560×1,440-pixel display resolution and 221 pixels-per-inch density, optional touchscreen, and magnesium alloy chassis.
Starting mid-2014, Toshiba will begin offering 4K Ultra HD resolution on select laptop models, the Satellite P50 / P55 and Tecra W50 / W55 in particular.
Pixel count on these world’s first 15.6-inch 4K notebooks will be 3840 x 2160 pixels, which translates to industry leading pixel density of 282 pixels-per-inch (PPI). This should result in incredibly sharp picture. Currently the highest resolution and highest PPI laptop displays are on a Samsung ATIV Book 9 Plus model and the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 2 Pro with QHD+ 3200 x 1800 resolution on their 13.3″ 276 PPI screens. Also, the HP Envy TouchSmart 14 optionally has the same resolution and 275 PPI on its 14″ display.
Toshiba has released the entry-level Satellite NB15t mini-laptop with a 11.6-inch touchscreen display. It’s available in stores now in form of the NB15t-A1302 model with the Intel Celeron N2810 dual-core processor at 2GHz, 4GB of RAM memory, and a 500GB hard drive.
The Toshiba C55-A5308 Laptop Essentials Bundle will be one of the 2013 Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals lineup at Best Buy. The C55-A5308 is a typical 15.6-inch budget configuration with a 720p screen resolution which is still an acceptable resolution for entry-level laptops, the lower-to-mid-end Intel Core i3 processor, ordinary-sized 4GB of RAM, a generous 7500GB hard drive, and a DVD writer. The only non-typical feature of the cheap Windows 8 notebook PC is the supplied HDD being larger than the average 500GB. Besides the laptop, for the price you get a mouse, sleeve case, anti-virus software, and a USB memory stick.
The 15.6-inch Toshiba Satellite C55-A5300 is currently one of the cheapest Windows 8 notebooks in the market. To hit the affordable $280 price point, Toshiba had to make a few concessions. Besides budget-looking chassis made of plastics, computing speed is low.
The Toshiba C55-A5309 model from the budget-class C55 Satellite series is an important low-cost laptop on the US market right now, because it’s a part of an attractive product bundle at Best Buy.
With a mediocre 15.6-inch 1366×768 non-touch display, the lower-end Intel Pentium 2020M dual-core processor, 4GB of RAM, a 500GB hard drive, and $330 price tag with extras included, the C55-A5309 is a typical run-of-the-mill affordable Windows 8 notebook PC. For the price, you get the laptop, a Logitech mouse, sleeve, Titanium anti-virus software, and a flash drive. Adding Microsoft’s Office Home & Student 2013 suite to the mix increases the overall price to $450, while adding a printer to all of these increases it to $550.
The W35Dt-A3300 is one of the Toshiba Satellite Click laptop/tablet hybrid configurations. The device sports a 13.3-inch touchscreen display and a detachable keyboard dock. The screen diagonal may appear enourmously large if you compare it to usual 10″ and 7″ tablets, but the resolution isn’t high. It’s 1,366×768 pixels on all W35 series models, so if you want a full HD screen you’ll have to look elsewhere. A good thing is that the display has IPS screen technology, ensuring the picture is good from all viewing angles.
Here’s a cheap way to experience Windows 8 with touch input on a full-size laptop. The Toshiba Satellite C55Dt-A5307 provides a 15.6-inch touch-screen and AMD’s computing technology for only $400.
The Toshiba Satellite P55-A5312 is a mid-range Windows 8-based 15.6-inch laptop, packing optimal components for entertainment at relatively low $630 price tag. Highlights of the hardware hidden inside its 0.8″ thin silver aluminum chassis consists of the latest generation mid-tier Intel Core i5-4200U dual-core processor with the Intel HD 4400 integrated graphics, 6GB of system memory, up from usual 4GB, and a 750GB hard disk drive, more than usual 500GB. A DVD burner is also supplied, rounding off this standard-class laptop.
The Toshiba Satellite Click W30t and W30Dt are laptop / tablet hybrid PCs sporting 13.3-inch displays and detachable keyboards. The W30t configurations all feature the Intel Core-series processors, whereas the W30Dt comes with the AMD A4-series chips. They are both mid-range Windows 8.1 machines in terms of internal component specifications and screen resolution and therefore won’t be priced high. They’ll start at $600 in the US and slightly more than 600 EUR in Europe, which are affordable prices for a hybrid PC.