The Toshiba Satellite Pro S300 is a desktop replacement size laptop. Toshiba loaned me one to take a look at for a review from a small business perspective.
Bottom line: I like it.
The first thing for me, is that it’s big. Normally, I’m a tiny laptop person. And this baby ain’t tiny. But it’s big in a way that makes sense. I can appreciate how this would be a great alternative to a desktop for a small business.
I like:
- The screen. Bright, lovely. Makes me want to show it off to other people. And it is big enough to share a slide show with another person.
- The lid latch. Does exactly what it should: keeps it shut until you open it.
- The keyboard. A pleasure to type on. With a little Caps Lock light right on the key. Easy to read key labels. The satin-y feel of the surfaces. (I really, really liked the keyboard.)
- The two-prong plug. Nice for travel or for home offices.
I don’t like a few things:
- The case flexes oddly when you pick it up wrong. I wonder if it will affect durability. Not a huge concern, but it feels a bit odd when you grab it from the wrist rest area.
- The warm breeze out of the left side. I’m warm enough, thanks.
- The USB ports are too far forward. If you plug in a USB mouse, the cord is now in the way of using the mouse near the laptop.
- Trial ware. Especially for small business. I’d rather get nothing, than to get a trial copy of Microsoft Office.
One thing worth noting:
- Runs XP. I’m used to Vista now, so I found this… unusual. For small business, I don’t think Vista is the same kind of issue as it is for big businesses. I don’t see this as good or bad, just noted.
So, for a large laptop, I liked it, more than I thought I would. And I’m going to miss typing on that keyboard….
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James sent me an email with his suggestion that anyone who wanted to use this or a similar laptop as a second computer could use the openoffice.org suite which is able to import and export most Office documents while traveling and thereby avoid the expense of having two licenses for MS Office.
James, thanks for the idea. For more ways to add useful software to a new laptop, see our Cheap Small Biz Software Guide.