This Toshiba Portege R500 review will mainly highlight the unique features that make this notebook a great system. Toshiba is known for designing unique laptops with innovative technology, and this one in particular is the first ultraportable, ultra-light, and ultra-thin model to have an optical drive. In addition to the optical DVD SuperMulti player and writer, this system also has a Core 2 Duo processor, fingerprint reader, widescreen display WXGA, WiFi, Bluetooth, Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950, and more.
The appearance of this notebook is pretty impressive and stylish. It’s another notable highlight. As mentioned above, it’s very thin and light. It measures less than 1″ and weighs less than 2.5 pounds. The Toshiba Portege R500 is silver with rounded edges which produce a nice, space-efficient shape. When closed, the machine is very flexible. This can be a bad thing for those who intend to travel a lot; the lid isn’t as durable as it should be, which can cause damage to the screen.
The full sized keyboard is really nice and easy to use. It features home and end keys, which is a bit unusual (but pleasantly so) for an ultraportable notebook. One reason why this system is so small is that there is no wasted space on the keyboard or touchpad. However, the touchpad is still large enough to provide comfort and excellent responsiveness.
The sides of the notebook are also worth talking about in this Toshiba Portege R500 review. On the left side are two USB ports, VGA port, headphone and microphone jacks, volume button, and WireFire connection. On the right side is an Ethernet jack, one USB port, an on and off switch for Wi-Fi, and an SD memory card slot. Last but not least is a PC card slot and DVD+/- optical drive door.
The battery life isn’t the best, but it’s still pretty good. The R500 can last anywhere from three to five hours, depending on the performance settings. The best way to save power is to work outside, as there is a button to turn off the backlight for the LCD display. The screen is transreflective, meaning it can use natural light to make the display appear brighter. Needless to say, this saves a lot of power and energy, which increases the notebook’s lifespan a bit.
Consumers who don’t mind the somewhat flimsy lid will find this to be a pretty good computer. As mentioned above, it is extremely light and portable despite having an optical drive. To save money, shoppers can use Toshiba Portege R500 coupons. There are many coupon offers and discounts available at internet computer stores that sell Toshiba notebooks.
Aug 31