Cut through the clutter, and buy a Toshiba Satellite 703 Laptop
Written: Feb 17 '03
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Pros: DVD Burner. Integrated Wi-Fi card. Video Output.
Cons: A little heavy. MS Works. Touch Pad sensitive.
The Bottom Line: Comparing laptops is difficult. List features that you need to live with and consider the extras as your selling points. Toshiba S703 will satisfy all of them, I'm sure!
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| dkmashino's Full Review: Toshiba Satellite 5205-S703 (PS520U-31P03V) PC Not... |
From the get-go, readers need to know my opinions slant heavily toward Toshiba laptops. I’ve owned five over the past 8 years and have not had any significant problems with any. In fact, my original Satellite 700 Series CS (circa 1994) still works even though I don’t use it.
I look at buying laptops like I do cars. And by that I mean, I realize from the outset that I can’t compare apples to apples across the different lines of manufacturers. If I did that, I’d go insane before I made a purchase. And so my methodology on deciding what type of car -- and in this case laptop -- to buy is based on certain benchmarks that I will set beforehand so that I can go basically on gut feeling and appearance of the product. This is exactly how I decided to buy my Toshiba Satellite 703 (S703) laptop.
I’ll organize this EPINION in the same way I listed the benchmarks that I set before going to the retailer where I bought my S703.
But first, a few words, overall, about Toshiba and their laptops. (And, by the way, this sounds overly-commercial but I assure you I am not a Toshiba representative). In any case, Toshiba’s laptops are worth every cent. Key is making sure you get the best price available as they will vary depending on demand and on the retailer. As I’ve said, this is my fifth laptop since 1994. And I am by no means a laptop afficionado or mobile computing maven. But I can speak well about Toshiba’s durability and reliability. My first Toshiba, a 700-Series CS model was white, had a 9” color screen, and was heavier than a brick. Over these years, Toshiba’s laptops have gotten more stylish, and actually are pleasant to look at. But as a testament to Toshiba’s workmanship, my first Toshiba has traveled with me to more than five countries, 30 states, and continues to function today just as it did in 1994 when I bought it. It’s a Windows 3.1 machine and I didn’t upgrade its software, but I do know it still works. Everything in between comprised a Tecra model, a Portege model, another Satellite model, and now this Satellite 703.
And now, about this S703 specifically:
Overall: This is a nice machine with blow-me-away features, and a great reputation. It’s not only one of only two laptop models available with a DVD burner (as of January 㢧 when I bought), it’s equipped with an integrated Wi-Fi access card. Those features alone make this laptop worth the purchase. But it’s also equipped with Harmon Kardon speakers and subwoofer, a unique touch pad cursor-direction device, and is reasonably equipped on the software, memory, and hard drive storage aspects.
I will organize my EPINION into sections that seem logical to me; in an order that shows important or unique features first, then generalized subjects/features after:
DVD Burner: No, not DVD drive, a DVD BURNER. Yes, BURNER! As far as unique, this is as best as you get. The only other company offering a laptop-based DVD burner is a 4-letter word beginning in “S.” What does this mean? It means you can burn your own video input files to a DVD for play in compatible TV-top players, and other DVD drives. The S703’s DVD burner is integrated with the CD burner. It’s one drive, one tray, two distinct functions. This by itself makes the S703 unique.
Wi-Fi Access Card: This is where it gets complicated. It’s not by itself, but understanding what this is if you’re not familiar is what’s complicated. Wi-Fi stands for ‘wireless fidelity.’ Basically, it means that in-office or in-home local area networks (LANs) and NIC-based internet access (like cable, DSL, etc.) can be communicated with using the S703’s integrated Wi-Fi Access Card. All you’ll need to get this done is a wireless access point (like a wireless hub) and your S703 would talk to it. The significance about this is that it’s integrated -- it doesn’t occupy a PCMCIA bay. For those who like to tinker, it may be a drawback because you can’t have ready access to the Wi-Fi component itself. But for me, this was a big selling point. As a separate, but related note: The S703 also comes equipped with a cord-based NIC. The rear of the S703 provides a receptacle for a Cat-5 cable where, if you prefer, your LAN or NIC-based access can be connected using the conventional Cat-5 cabling. So this means the S703 comes equipped with two separate access points for LAN/NIC-based access.
Touch Pad Cursor-Directing Device: This replaces a mouse or the eraser-type tracking node. As the S703’s cursor-directing device, it works fairly well. The Touch Pad is not only a touch-sensitive mechanism to direct your cursor, it is a backlit LCD screen that allows access to several unique applications such as a built-in calculator, word pad, and shortcut buttons to various S703 features. If you’re having difficulty grasping this feature, think of it as a PDA screen that offers several unique, proprietary applications that also happens to serve as the screen where you rub your thumb or index finger to move the cursor. The Touch Pad also comes with a scrolling device (up/down, and left/right) which replaces the wheel on newer mouse models all integrated into the flat Touch Pad screen. A less significant, but really cool feature about the Touch Pad is that it can be programmed to feature a screensaver-type display. In addition, several areas on the Touch Pad can be programmed to act as shortcut buttons for items such as “Close Window,” “Back” or “Next” for internet browsing, or even “Minimize” and “Maximize” for specific active windows. The only change I'd make with the Touch Pad is its placement. I feel that if it were placed about a half inch farther to the left than it is currently placed, it would interfere much less with my palm/hand movement while I type. Those who have this problem will appreciate my gripe about this.
Harman Kardon Speakers: This isn’t significant in that I don’t think users will be having their S703 act as the base for a party’s music arrangement, but it is worth mentioning. Harman Kardon makes great audio equipment and their integrated speakers and subwoofer in the S703 is no different. It replicates most sound really well except for heavy-bass samples. But all in all, it’s a laptop, not a floor-based component system. This is as good as you’ll get in any other laptop -- probably even better!
The preceding were what I thought are unique features of the S703. Here are more generalized subjects:
Design: Overall, the S703 looks like a good machine. To me it looks a little like an enlarged pocket mirror. Consider it: Imagine your wife’s or significant other’s compact make-up mirror and enlarge it to about 13” wide. That’s what the S703 looks like. It’s shiny, in a blue hue, and curvy in certain places. The only drawback on design is that I would’ve thought that with the curves on the cover (behind the screen), that the keyboard would’ve been a little more ergonomically placed for better palm support. Other than that, design is not bad; and since it’s not ugly, I was able to get beyond any gripe I would have had.
Hardware: The S703 comes equipped with hardware that rivals even some desktops. For starters, the DVD burner is a huge selling point; as is the integrated Wi-Fi Access Card. The S703’s speakers are worthy of a mention (above), as well as the Touch Pad (also above). A couple other noteworthy items are the integrated SD Flash Memory Card receptacle, the infrared port so that the S703 can send or receive files or signals from such devices as an infrared Palm/Pocket PC devices as well as infrared communication with printers, and other peripherals, the S703’s infrared remote control that can help with PowerPoint presentations, two PCMCIA bays, two USB receptacles, video output receptacles, and other compulsory receptacles for serial connections, IEEE link connections, microphone, headphone, and others. Several items are worth explaining a little more at length; and they are:
Infrared Remote Control: For road warrior office professionals, this may come in handy more than you think. The S703’s infrared remote control can help with across-the-room control of cursors for PowerPoint presentations, audio/video controls, and limited other controls such as powering-down, and switching between applications.
Video Output: The S703 comes with video cables that let you connect it to your television for several unique reasons. For one, use the S703 as a DVD player. Secondly, and more importantly, with this video output set-up, your television can pinch-hit as a secondary monitor. The proportions are different, so you will end up seeing some icon and desktop movement on the television format, but basically, this negates use of an intermediary video projector. To facilitate this, the S703 uses a function key to allow users to switch between several modes: 1) S703 Screen display only, 2) S703 Screen & TV display, or 3) TV display only. Not all laptop manufacturers equip their laptops with this feature. This was a selling point for me.
Software: The S703 comes equipped with a host of pre-installed bundles. Along with other software bundles that help users control and manipulate the DVD and CD burners, control some system mechanisms, and the host of online options, the S703 is equipped with Microsoft Works. This was a bummer for me. I hate MS Works and could have lived with it if this version of Works was equipped with MS Word. But it wasn’t, so it will be replaced with MS Office at my expense. The S703 also comes equipped with a new-user version of Quicken.
Battery: Because of the switch to lithium-ion batteries from others such as Nickel Metal Hydride, the S703’s battery life is respectable. I haven’t field-tested it yet, but I’ve been able to get more than two hours of use out of it without a flinch from it. As with all other Toshibas, the S703 is equipped with software that lets users preset the type of resources that can be cutback while in battery power as opposed to direct electrical input.
Screen: The S703’s screen is 15” diagonally. It’s great. Resolution is great, and color representation seems respectable. All the talk from laptop aficionados about screens drawing too much time from battery life is moot for me. All I cared about was the size, how great it looked, and if the colors were real-life.
Weight: The S703 probably weighs a little more than other less-large laptops. But that wasn’t the point for me. Whatever it weighs is fine with me.
How I chose it: Like I said before, my approach at choosing a laptop is similar to buying a car. I’ll set certain benchmarks -- or minimums -- that I can live with, and once those minimums are sufficient on the models I’m looking at, I can concentrate on less-technical items. I wanted a laptop with sufficient memory (512 MB), sufficient storage space (60 GB), a CD burner (yes), a pretty good screen (yes), and a reputation for durability and reliability (yes). All the other features the S703 is equipped with were gravy. After those benchmarks were set, I considered: looks and color, additional or unique features, software, and price. The S703 looks great, the DVD burner and Wi-Fi access were huge selling points, and though MS Works was a drawback, its price was reasonable.
I’m not a laptop aficionado. Owning five in the past 8 years doesn’t make me one and I won’t pretend to be a ‘techie.’ But I do know the S703 satisfies all of my needs for what I wanted, and certainly appealed to the ‘Wow factor’ in me. It was worth the $2,100 I spent.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $2,099
Operating System: Windows
Processor: Other
Processor speed: over 1000
Screen Size: 15 inches
RAM: More than 256
Internal Storage: CD-RW and DVD
Hard Drive (GB): Over 50
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Epinions.com ID:
dkmashino
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Location: Honolulu (Oahu), Hawaii
Reviews written: 19
Trusted by: 2 members
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