Toshiba Satellite Pro L300 Review
The Toshiba Satellite Pro L300 pitches itself as a business notebook meant for the serious user who is all about work. It has all be basic feature that a business notebook requires without any additional bells and whistles. The first impression one gets of the notebook is of a solid, simple, tough and reliable computer that does exactly what is supposed to, no more and no less. How accurate is this impression? Let’s see.
With a 15.4inch WXGA display and Intel Centrino processor technology, the L300 has the basics in place. The screen colors are bright and crisp. The backlighting is fine when used indoors and should be adequate under most outdoor conditions. Viewing presents no problems from nearly any angle. Performance wise, the L300 does not have any difficulty running multiple programs – its core 2 Duo 2.1 GHz processor and the 160 GB hard drive are up to most demands. While the performance cannot be rated as exceptional, surfing the web, checking mail and opening documents all at the same time is fast and smooth enough to satisfy most normal users.
Ports are what you would expect on a notebook of this class – 3 USBs and an optical drive. HDMI and S-Video would have been nice, but then this is a business notebook, so they are not really required. The speakers on this notebook can only be classified as average, but again, this is not an entertainment laptop. The sound is clear enough at moderate levels but becomes distorted at high volumes. Headphones are best option.
Heat is not an issue with this notebook. It just does not get warm. No part of the body get too warm to hold comfortably and the keyboard remains cools even after extended use. The fan starts as soon as there is a little heat buildup and clears it away very quickly. Similarly noise is not a problem. The L300 is quiet enough to use in a library. The only noise is a very slight hum when the fan starts up and the usual optical drive sound.
The one accessory a serious business user may need is an extended life battery. The installed battery can give a maximum of about 3 hours 30 minutes of operation when in the power saving (low to medium performance) mode and at full performance it drops down to about 2 hours. Since this may be a bit low for most business users, a 9 cell battery would be a good idea.
The L300 has a functional looking plastic body that should stand up well to normal wear and tear. The keyboard is very well spaced out and exceptionally comfortable. Most users will not have problems of hand or finger fatigue even after many hours of typing.
All in all, this is a good mid range business notebook offering all that a normal business user would expect. It may be a little heavy for carrying, but since many users may want to watch a movie after finishing the day’s work, the 15.4 inch screen makes sense. However, this is not a gaming notebook. Its great for work and movies but nothing more.