Toshiba Satellite P105-S9339 Review

  Toshiba might not be the first name that pops into your head when you think about high end PC gaming (much less high end laptop PC gaming) but having recently given its latest Satellite gaming laptop a drive around the block, I think it’s safe to say that’s about to change.

The Design and Chassis: It’s pretty darn classy, if you’re a little bit more mature about your gaming and would rather not be seen walking around with a laptop that looks like it’s a leftover prop from some bad 90’s B-movie, you’ll appreciate the P105’s simple sleek curves and distinct lack of gaming bling. If it needs to it can actually look surprisingly normal, you can whip it out at the local Starbucks and manage not to look like the ultimate geek. There’s no ugly chrome, no weird and extraneous cheap plastic attachments, just an understated sense of verve in the form of a soft blue glow from the systems front mounted speakers. Keys and shortcuts are conveniently and intelligently laid out with ample space so things rarely feel cramped. I say rarely because the touchpad is perhaps just a little small to be completely comfortable, and because it’s offset to the left which kind of gets a little inconvenient during a heated gaming session. That said, the special tap activated backlight is quite useful, as well as the quick access provided to a number of software driven shortcuts, with options to quick-launch the web browser, volume control as well as activate various applications and multimedia functionality.

Read the rest of the review, after the jump!

  Toshiba might not be the first name that pops into your head when you think about high end PC gaming (much less high end laptop PC gaming) but having recently given its latest Satellite gaming laptop a drive around the block, I think it’s safe to say that’s about to change.

The Design and Chassis: It’s pretty darn classy, if you’re a little bit more mature about your gaming and would rather not be seen walking around with a laptop that looks like it’s a leftover prop from some bad 90’s B-movie, you’ll appreciate the P105’s simple sleek curves and distinct lack of gaming bling. If it needs to it can actually look surprisingly normal, you can whip it out at the local Starbucks and manage not to look like the ultimate geek. There’s no ugly chrome, no weird and extraneous cheap plastic attachments, just an understated sense of verve in the form of a soft blue glow from the systems front mounted speakers. Keys and shortcuts are conveniently and intelligently laid out with ample space so things rarely feel cramped. I say rarely because the touchpad is perhaps just a little small to be completely comfortable, and because it’s offset to the left which kind of gets a little inconvenient during a heated gaming session. That said, the special tap activated backlight is quite useful, as well as the quick access provided to a number of software driven shortcuts, with options to quick-launch the web browser, volume control as well as activate various applications and multimedia functionality.

 This brings us to the display, which is at once glorious and something of a disappointment. At 17 inches it’s a portable gamers   dream come true, it’s widescreen 16×10, large, bright and glossy. Images are sharp and detailed, with rich, vibrant colors, the only disappointment comes from the fact that the screen is incapable of reaching display resolutions of 1900×1200 -not that this would be a viable resolution or gaming on this system, but more on that later- instead the P105 maxes out at a respectable 1440×900.

Sound is also handled extremely well, with a pair of front mounted Harman Kardon speakers delivering an aural experience that’s at times, eerily three dimensional. The depth of the sound and richness of the bass is extremely satisfying, so much so that you actually feel inclined to listen to the speaker output rather than plug in a pair of headphones, which is saying something about a laptop speaker system.

Performance: That’s what matters most isn’t it?  2GB of system RAM, a Geforce Go 7900 GS with 256MB of dedicated GDDR3 RAM, and a 200GB hard drive all powered by an Intel Core 2 Duo T7200 processor, how does that sound? Pretty good I’d wager, perhaps a little disappointing however, is the fact that the P105’s hard disk drive only spins at 4200rpm, which definitely impacts performance.

 Still, you’ll be glad to know that the P105 delivers, but like all gaming PC rigs it’s got a resolution sweet-spot and that would be 1280×768. After extensive testing on a wide range of the latest games, including demos for the technically demanding F.E.A.R, Gothic 3, Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, Battlefield 2142, Just Cause, Call of Juarez and Titan Quest, I found that while the P105 struggled a little at higher resolutions, it provided generally smooth framerates with most effects turned on across all the latest games. That’s not to say games were unplayable at higher resolutions, just that at 1440×990, you’ll definitely have to start making some trade offs to get acceptable performance. Of course, all those games mentioned above are relatively new titles and quite demanding of even the latest high end desktops, performance in older games such as Doom 3, and Call of Duty 2 was much better at higher resolutions as the P105 delivered silky smooth framerates.

Vista performance was an absolute breeze, the P105 scored a 4.8 on Microsoft’s newfangled standardised Vista rating system, which might not sound stunning, but actions speak louder than words (or number) and never once did the P105 stutter because of a lack of hardware muscle. That said, you’ll want to ensure that all your drivers are up to date before delving into gaming as Microsoft’s latest operating system is still a little rough around the edges.

Notable Features: In addition to all that’s mentioned above, the P105 also includes a number of neat additional features such as a built in S/P DIF port, which allows you to plug into your living room surround system should the built in speakers just not provide enough oomph. Further to this, there’s also the option of outputting to you HDTV utilising the systems DVI-D output port (very, very nice). That’s not all though, there’s also S Video TV out support, IEEE-1394 and 4 USB 2.0 ports and a built in biometric fingerprint scanner if you’re the type that can never seem to remember your password or simply think alphanumeric passwords are so 2005.

Battery Life: With gaming laptops and battery life, you pretty much have to expect the worst and hope for the best, which is why I was pleasantly surprised that the P105 delivered just over 2 hours with Wi-Fi off. It’s also worth noting that the laptop is usually pretty quiet unless things get particularly heated on screen.

Final Thoughts: The P105’s overall performance is quite commendable, its sense of style refreshingly understated in the high end laptop gaming field and the overall design of the product marries both form and function admirably. Although you can’t pick them up directly from ToshibaDirect, you can get a pretty good idea of where to pick one up from nearby retailers.

At $2099, the P105-S9339 might be a bit pricey for some, so if you don’t actually need Vista Ultimate, you might want to check out the P105-S9337, which is pretty much identical to its big brother, except for the fact that it features the slightly less feature rich Vista Home Edition. You can also find out more about Toshiba’s gaming laptops and special offers by visiting their dedicated gaming page at Toshiba’s Game Zone.

Product Technical Specifications:

Processor: Intel Core™2 Duo T7200 @ 2.0GHz
Operating System: Genuine Windows Vista™ Ultimate (32-bit)
Memory Size: 2048MB
Display Size: 17.0″ Widescreen
Display Type: Widescreen XGA+ with TruBrite™ Technology
Display Resolution: 1440×900
Graphics Engine: GeForce® Go 7900 GS
Graphics Memory: 256MB GDDR3
Hard Drive Size: 200GB
Hard Drive Speed: 4200rpm
Optical Drive: DVD-SuperMulti drive (+/-R double layer)
Wireless LAN: Intel® PRO/Wireless 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g)
       
Also includes:

Bluetooth * : Bluetooth® V2.0 + EDR
Input Devices : Hot Key Functions, Windows Key Function, Internet Launch button, 103 key US keyboard with 10 Key Pad, CD/DVD Buttons, Dual Mode Pad, Express Media Player CD/DVD launch button
Security: Finger Print Reader, Security Cable Lock Slot, Hot Key Security, Password Security
Modem: V.92 Modem
LAN: 10/100/1000
Audio: Harman/Kardon® stereo speakers, Headphone jack (stereo), Microphone jack (mono), Windows Sound System
AC Adapter: 120W (15V 8.0A) Auto-sensing, 100-240V / 50-60Hz input
Battery Type: Li-Ion (6000mAh)
PC Card Slots: 1-Type II PC Card Slot
PC Express Slot: 1-ExpressCard™ Slot
Media Port: Choice Of: 5-in-1 Bridge Media Adapter, CD Play/Instant Play Button, S/P DIF output port (shared with headphone port), DVI-D output port
USB Slots: 4-USB (2.0)
iLINK: i.LINK™ IEEE-1394
S-Video: TV-out (S Video)