Toshiba Satellite 1415-S173 Laptop (1.80-GHz Celeron, 256 MB RAM, 30 GB Hard Drive)

by Toshiba

Product Details

Product Manual [3.84mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 12.8 x 11.2 x 1.7 inches ; 8 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 14 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00006LS92
• Item model number: PS141U-01F3WV
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 24, 2002

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Although it isn’t the most powerful portable on the market, the Toshiba Satellite 1415-S173 notebook will effectively handle most day-to-day computing tasks and a variety of multimedia applications without breaking your bank account. If you don’t have a compelling need for the most recent top-of-the-line components, the 1415-S173 is a wise choice.

Toshiba takes advantage of the recent glut of high-end processors by utilizing a cost-effective yet very capable 1.8 GHz Intel Celeron. It has paired this CPU with 256 MB of PC1600 DDR SDRAM (expandable to 512 MB), a 400 MHz system bus, and a 16 MB nVidia Go 420 graphics controller. While this level of performance won’t be enough to satisfy 3-D artisans or hard-core gamers, it's more than enough for most standard notebook purposes.

The 1415-S173 isn’t just for business either. Using its multifunction DVD/CD-RW drive, you can watch a movie or play a music CD, burn your own compilation audio disc, or archive your important files. Whatever you do, the system’s generous 15-inch TFT active-matrix display will capably render your images at resolutions up to 1,024 x 768.

You’ll find lots of other goodies inside the unit’s 12.8-by-11.2-by-1.7-inch, 8-pound frame, including a full-size 85-key keyboard, 12 one-touch Internet and multimedia buttons, a convenient touchpad pointing device, a sizable 30 GB hard disk, and a convenient 3.5-inch floppy disk drive. The system features a wide variety of connections, including three USB ports for plug-and-play peripherals, two multipurpose PC card slots, a 56K modem for low-speed connectivity, and 10/100 Ethernet support for high-speed surfing and e-mail access.

Toshiba has equipped the 1415-S173 with a broad range of popular software, including Windows XP Home Edition, Microsoft Works, Intuit Quicken Basic 2001, and Norton AntiVirus 2002.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The best at this price point, January 15, 2003

By 

Balaji Ramanathan "balajithegreat" (hoffman estates, il United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Toshiba Satellite 1415-S173 Laptop (1.80-GHz Celeron, 256 MB RAM, 30 GB Hard Drive) (Personal Computers)

I was looking for a decent laptop for under $1000 and this Toshiba model fit the bill perfectly. I wanted a laptop with CD-RW and DVD drives, a minimum of 256MB RAM and 30GB hard drive space. Obviously, I was not looking for a professional laptop that is super-thin and light. I was looking for something that can be a decent replacement for a desktop without paying $2000 for the privelege.
This model has a very fast processor (it is Celeron, but if you are like most computer users, anything over 1 GHz is overkill!), pretty spacious hard drive and the ability to record CD's and watch DVD's. If you are into games that require 256MB of video RAM, this is not the laptop for you, but I watch DVD's on this laptop (on just battery power) and it plays back flawlessly.
The laptop also comes with MS Works software, software for creating CD's, WinDVD and other goodies. Overall, a steal for under $1000 (you can get it for under $1000 even though the list price is over $1100 right now). It also has a huge 15" screen as opposed to the 14" screens that most low-end laptops have.
The main disadvantages of the laptop that I see are: (1) no serial port. This can be taken care of by using up one of the 3 USB ports and a USB to serial conversion cable. (2) The maximum resolution of the screen is 1024x768 (I am used to 1280x1024, so this is a bit of a pain in the neck). (3) Only 2.5 hours of battery run time. (4) On the heavy side at almost 8 lb (including battery, not including charger, adapter etc.).

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good mobile desktop - one of the best in this price range, December 28, 2002

By 

Dave (Portland) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Toshiba Satellite 1415-S173 Laptop (1.80-GHz Celeron, 256 MB RAM, 30 GB Hard Drive) (Personal Computers)

This is a very good machine for users looking for a mobile desktop. It has all the key features for a mobile desktop: powerful Intel CPU, DVD, CD-RW, 15" screen, plenty of RAM and HDD space.

The CPU was built by Intel to be used in desktops, not notebooks; that mean it uses more power and runs a little hotter. Toshiba has been using desktop CPU in their low cost machines because they cost less. If (like many users) you tend to plug your notebook in and use it at a desk, then this is a pretty good deal. If you are looking for a thin, light, long life notebook that will sit on your lap for long periods, then this isn't the machine for you (those machines are much higher up the price ladder).

The graphics on this notebook are okay, but they won't run newer 3D games very well. They are great for moderate gaming, CAD work, or watching DVDs. In all fairness there are very few notebooks in this price range that have 3D gaming quality graphics. The HP xt125 is an exception to this rule if you really want a gaming capable notebook (it has it's own tradeoffs like a 14" screen). If you "want it all" you will have to spend a bit more money.

This is a low cost notebook so you don't quite get everything. The quality of the components is good, but not first rate, the battery life isn't a long as more expensive offerings, and this isn't a notebook built for hardcore gamers. But if you want a powerful computer you can carry around with a large screen, then you won't find many that compare in this price range.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome, January 22, 2003

By 

"monst-ruo" (Miami, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Toshiba Satellite 1415-S173 Laptop (1.80-GHz Celeron, 256 MB RAM, 30 GB Hard Drive) (Personal Computers)

This machine is awesome for its price! I bought it 2 weeks ago and Im very satisfied so far. Although the 1415-S173 features a Celeron, the lite chip from Intel, it has a full 256 KB of L2 cache so its performance nearly matches those of the far more expensive Pentium 4 chips (since until Northwood core arrived, P4s featured 256 KB L2 caches). Besides, the processor is a mobile battery-friendly chip.

The laptops hard drive is pretty fast and spacious; its DVD/CDRW unit works flawlessly and is among the less noisy units Ive ever seen. It burns CDs at a 24X speed! DVD or DIVX reproduction is as smooth as a silk (not to mention DIVX encoding, is fast!). Ok, it has only 16 MB of video memory but those are real MB, not shared ones, so their performance is a way better if compared to most laptop graphics within the price range. Also, the graphics chip, which is what really makes the difference, is a speedy GeForce 4 Go 420! (NOT an ATI M6-C). This machine shines in games (they look gorgeous in its huge and bright 15 screen), even in some newer ones like NFS 6 or Unreal Tournament 2003 (maybe it doesnt matches the standards of high end desktop graphics of course, but those titles were still perfectly playable).

My only complaint about this machine is its weight you should have strong shoulders if you want to carry it around. However, I still give it an A+