Customer Reviews

Toshiba Satellite U305-S2804 13.3-inch Laptop (Intel Core 2 Duo T5450 Processor, 2 GB RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, Vista Premium)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I only just recieved this computer- purchased from Amazon- but so far I'm pretty happy with it!
After doing a LOT of research, I chose this laptop over the 12" swivel screen HP computer that I had had my eye on for months. The reviews for the HP put me off- I guess it has a short battery time (2 hours) which is silly for a laptop that is supposed to be portable! There were also a lot of complaints about the HP overheating. The Toshiba got much better reviews, and at the AMAZON price is a much better deal!
In sum, here are my main observations about the Toshiba:

Pro's
-It's fast- even with Vista!
-It looks "clean"- there are no extra buttons or junk on the keyboard
-Although the keys are shallow, there is little reistance when typing- it is easier to type on this laptop keyboard in comparison to others I have owned (HP's & Compaqs)
-It is small and portable, without leaving you squinting at the screen- in my opinion this computer is the perfect marriage of portability and functionality
-The battery seems to last a long time- I haven't timed just how long yet, I'll let you know when I do!

Cons

-Keyboard flex- read about this in some reviews and wasn't quite sure what this was going to be like until I got the computer- the keyboard does move when you type, BUT I don't see this affecting my working on it at all.

-Palm resting area near mouse pad (left corner) gets hot because the fan is right there. Again, not that big of a deal, its not hot enough to cause any injury

-Thicker than other models, but this is more of a cosmetic complaint than a functionality complaint

Overall I am LOVING this laptop, and am pleased that I purchased it!

I bought this laptop (Toshiba Satellite U305-S2804) in January 2008. It has a 1.66 Ghz Core 2 Duo processor (T5450) with 160 Gigs of Hard drive and 2 Gigs of RAM. I got it at a time when Amazon had it on the introductory price (about 200 clams less than the current price and the price lasted for only about 24 hours--yes, it was less than 700 clams). Needless to say (but I'm saying it anyway), I'm happy with the price. As for the product, not too shabby either.

Pros:
a) The screen is outstanding. It's hard to convey quality with just the resolution numbers of the screen (1280 x 800) since the numbers are about average. It is something that has to be seen (or take my word for it).

b) The speakers are good for laptop speakers. Of course they won't compare with your Bose speakers but the speakers on this Satellite have plenty of volume and bass (my main complaint for most laptop speakers is that they have very little volume and little bass)

c) 2 Gigs of RAM -- What more needs to be said? Although RAM is cheap these days, it saves you the trouble of buying more ram and installing it. 2 Gigs is enough for Vista. Also, it helps when you have a lot of apps open at the same time.

d) Core 2 Duo T5450 processor -- this is one of Intel's newer processors. It is better (more L2 cache memory) than the Pentium Dual Core T2330 and T2310. So don't pay more for a laptop with the Pentium Dual Core T2330 and T2310.

e) Has a built in webcam

f) Has a dial that you can use to adjust volume (many laptops do not have a dial. You have to adjust volume using software controls).

g) Very responsive laptop. Windows Vista Home Premium rocks!

h) The keyboard layout is spacious (even though the laptop is compact) and the keyboard is very quiet.

Bad:

i) Keyboard flexes under hard typing. There's plenty of keyboard flex especially if you're a "hard" typist (I am). If you apply a lot of pressure when you type, the keyboard will flex. If you're a light typist, I don't think it will be a problem. So far, I've found that the flex does not affect my typing but it is disconcerting. It's hard to fathom how a world class engineering firm like Toshiba can make a keyboard like this!?

ii) You cannot "dock" with this laptop. I think Toshiba gives you a docking connector only with their business class models (the Tecra line). The Satellite line does not have a docking station connector. (The dynadock is not true docking.)

iii) All plastic. This Satellite is made of all plastic. Even where your wrist rests and all around the keyboard area is plastic. I also own a Lenovo laptop (Lenovo 3000 N200) and that laptop has a metal plate where your wrists rest and all around the keyboard area is metal which makes the Lenovo very robust and sturdy.

iv) Wrists area does heat up. I think because the keyboard area is all plastic, heat dissipates slower. My Lenovo laptop feels cooler because the metallic material surrounding the keyboard probably dissipates the heat faster. Though the Satellite U305-s2804 gets warm, it is never so warm that it becomes uncomfortable. It does have pretty good cooling system (copper fins in the cooling area vs aluminium for most laptops).

This laptop is compact, stylish and light. It has an outstanding LCD screen with good speakers (for a laptop), but the keyboard is disappointing.

I bought this product after much research and am very pleased. It is fast and very light to carry. I was looking for something very, very portable and this is just perfect. I was a bit concerned about the small screen before receiving it but it is not at all too small. The screen is sharp with great color and is easy on the eyes. It is highly recommended. In fact, I love it!!!

I've always like Toshiba laptops, since I have one model with this battery problem so I changed to hp pavillion series which is not a bad laptop either but it had this upper panel so sensitive that run DVD player program every time I accidentally pass my hand over it and it was a little anoying. Any way I recentlly had this Toshiba, that has been perfect for my work. Big hard drive, probably I will increase its memory up to 3gb for even better performance, excellent 13inches screen size, very light o carry. Haven't had any problem with Vista.

The only thing that I don't like is the quality of sound, but that's not a priority for me and if it were I would plug a pair of speaker. And that it gets a little warm on the left side beside the touch pad.

By the way the volume control is analog which gives you more control of the volume.

This notebook is very portable. Very convenient as compared to the 17" (bulky & heavy - good desktop replacement) & the 15". It is fast, runs multiple applications, quick start-up time. The Toshiba resolution on the screen makes it one of the best around. I have compared other brands, but they just don't seem to make it. Based on specs & cost, great buy. This is my 5th Toshiba notebook....I will stick with the brand.

Excellent seller, product as described and fast shipping. Very nice notebook, light responsive and meets my needs well. Recommended!

I just bought this computer (for 750 at Office Depot) and have been happy so far. I chose it over HP models because I have had bad experiences with HP and HP customer service in the past (why don't they send recovery disks with their products!?) and have heard good things about Toshiba from computer repair people (who had seen comparatively more Dell and HP computers coming in).

The keyboard does flex noticeably more than other brands, but it doesn't bother me at all when I am typing.

I do not know if this is a Toshiba or Vista issue, but my DVD/CD drive could not be found (Code 39). This was fixed by deleting a couple of files in the registry (sites online explain how to do it). I was not very happy about that problem, but again, it may not be Toshiba specific.

The blue LED lights on the computer annoy me (the word "Satellite" and power indicators), but the addition of extraneous bright lights to the computer seems to be a fad now, because other brands have them too. If anyone from a computer manufacturer is reading this, esp. if they are from Toshiba or HP, please give us a way to turn them off!

Considering its relatively small size and low price, I think this computer was a good buy.

Please note that I have not had this computer long. Because computers go out of date so quickly, and there were not many reviews for this computer on the Internet, I wanted to write a quick review now.

I bought my toshiba on SALE at a Super Price.... I love it, is mall, super fast for school work, watch movies, and a good size hard drive....ahh and it has a Built in Camera, good for video calls and pictures.... GOOD COMPUTER! I very Happy!

This is my 2nd Toshiba notebook. The 1st one was 17", and I find it very satisfactory. However, it's quite too big and take a lot of space in my bag. So I decided to find a smaller notebook and it has to be only Toshiba. I found this cute 13.3" Toshiba with full specification in many internet stores, but Amazon came up with the cheapest price. It didn't take long to get it after ordering. So far, one thing I notice about this product is the areas beside the mouse pad areas on both side (where I put my palms for typing)are getting warmer to hot after using for about 5 mins. Otherwise, this is a good quick notebook.

I like this computer. The small size is good for me. The graphics are sharp and bright.