This laptop is the last of the 17inch desktop replacement models released by Toshiba with the ever reliable Microsoft XP-Home. All other 17-inch laptop models are offered with Vista Operating system, and you and I know how difficult it can be for a multimedia fan to use Vista, with all the UMA security codes. This laptop is offered with XP and the ability to upgrade to Vista at no cost.



Why does CoolTOYZ continue to offer 17inch laptops? With a Laptop you can not change your LCD display. Without a doubt a 17inch widescreen laptop is a desktop replacement and because of the size of the screen there is corresponding real estate in the laptop's body to put all features / ports / drives in one mobile machine. You get a large, sharp, bright display as well as a Full-sized keyboard complete with a separate numeric keypad (ehem for gamers, este accountants). While a 17inch is not for everyone, anyone who is heavily dependent on the images for their work like graphic artists, video editors, and even CAD engineers really have NO alternative.

We are offering the P105 for the growing niche of CoolTOYZ customers looking for a desktop replacement for sharing torrents, movies, photos, music and blogs with friends while on the road, in school or in coffee shops. There is nothing like a 17incher with a beautiful display, and powerful audio to satisfy this market[/i]. The P105 is marketed as a mutli-media machine and this review will focus mainly on the multi-media offering of this notebook. The Toshiba Satellite P105 is one of the most affordable 17inch multimedia notebooks in the market right now. You get a zippy Core2 Duo processor, a 17-inch Widescreen TruBrite display and premium Harmon/Kardon speakers! We agree with Toshiba that the P105 is "Feature Rich. Value Priced".

Everyone knows a laptop's looks should not be your first consideration when buying a laptop, but in reality this factor plays a bigger role than all the impressive specs and technical performance we often share. In today's world, looks and style does count; luckily this laptop looks great. There's no denying it, this laptop has style. It is black with a matte silver interior finish with piano black speakers that looks refined and understated. The silver media buttons at the top of the keyboard blend in well yet are easy to read and push. Rounded edges slim down the profile, which at 15.5 x 10.8 x 1.4 inches is hardly imposing. The the design is sleek, simple and clean; and if this classy laptop package will be displayed prominently in your home or office - its impressive looks will turn a lot more heads than your run-of-the-mill PC.



If you're looking to use your laptop for ripping music, video and photo editing, checking e-mail, surfing the Web and basic office works like typing, spreadsheets and power point presentations; the Satellite P105 has plenty of performance to meet your needs. The new Intel Core2 Duo T5500 with 1.66Ghz processor, 2MB of L2 Cache and 667Mhz front side bus speed, makes simultaneous multi-tasking quick and painless. It should comfortably run any desktop application you throw at it, from heavyweight 3D rendering tools to video encoding; and can process multiple applications, and carry out some of the most demanding multi-threaded programs. It is also Windows Vista compatible for those who are thinking ahead. You probably already know RAM is one of the main factor in determining the speed of your computer. 3072mb of memory(expandable to 4 Gigs) in the Satellite P105 means that the processor’s performance will not be held back by constant swap file access, as is often the case with laptops. These days, the extra RAM should be treated as a necessity rather than a luxury, especially if you plan to do a lot of multi-tasking like listening to audio while typing a report.

The 17inch LCD Widescreen TruBrite display reminds us that of that not all displays are made equal and side-by-side comparison at the shop will reveal the reality. Toshiba is known for its high quality screens and this laptop's display is no different. The display illumination is rated above average with 82.5%, and the maximum brightness with 150.6 cd/m² are clearly superior than many higher priced laptops. The result are images that are sharp and the colors are brilliant. Native resolution for the display is 1440 x 900 pixels and the 16:9 ratio aspect makes movies more enjoyable because you're sitting close to the laptop. The display is not only superb for playing DVD and computer games, but also good for presentation to client and deskwork, giving users excellent experience on both digital entertainment and productivity. Watching DVDs and Videos on this laptop may become addictive.



Contributing in making the viewing experience so enjoyable are the built-in Harman/Kardon stereo speakers. On most laptops you get horrible sound, this is not the case here. This P105 has Intel High Definition Audio sound chip and Toshiba has has gone the extra mile with the top-of-line Harmon/Kardon speakers. The branded speakers offered a distinct and wide dynamic range and got impressively loud without distorting. These speakers produce some of the best sound we've heard from a notebook, delivering clean tones with a good level of bass despite the lack of a sub-woofer. If you enjoy using your laptop or computer for watching videos/movies than the great sound on the Satellite P105 should play a major factor in your buying decision.

A neat feature that's garnering increasing popularity among notebook vendors is a one-touch start-up button that enables users to play multimedia files without waiting for Windows to boot up. Toshiba's implementation has been dubbed "Express Media Player" is quick to activate and proved useful in playing media from a CD or DVD without having to boot into Windows. Lined horizontally along the top of the keyboard are six handy buttons for controlling audio/video playback. In addition, the front bezel contains headphone and microphone jacks, as well as a volume wheel so you don't have to drop everything to fiddle with audio settings mid-film.



The widescreen footprint has allowed Toshiba to squeeze in a full-sized keyboard complete with a 10-key numeric keypad. The keys behave more like those on a desktop than on most notebooks, with a deep key plunge and solid responsiveness, which is also great for gaming. Below the keyboard on the palmrest is a fingerprint sensor that can biometrically lock down all data, simplifiy user authentication with single sign-on support and signing in to frequently visited Web sites easy. This feature has previously been exclusive to business notebooks, so it's great to see it filtering down to multimedia products as well.



Viewing your photos should be easy enough with a six-in-one media card reader (SD /SD-IO /MS /MS-Pro / MMX /xD) and if you intend to store those photos, your movies or your music on the P105, your storage needs are catered for by a 100GB SATA hard drive, while backing up files is trouble free thanks to a dual-layer DVD writer that not only allows you to watch a DVD movie, but you can also burn your data to free up storage space. Other features of the Toshiba P105 include Integrated Ethernet LAN and Intel Wireless LAN 802.11abg for networking. Card slots include 1 Express Card Slot Supports CardBus and 1 PCMCIA Slot with Type II PC Cards support that should make it easy to purchase a PCMCIA TV Tuner for added mutlimedia freedom (PCMCIA TV Tuner Available for purchase)

Toshiba's Satellite P105 is a competent multimedia workhorse that could easily replace most regular desktop PCs. The major selling point must be the great crisp 17 inch screen with superb visuals and excellent sound from the Harman/Kardon speakers and you get powerful processing power and storage subsystems as a bonus. If you're looking for a reasonably priced notebook with excellent mutli-media features, the Toshiba P105 is an excellent choice for work and play. There's little to complain about the P105.

Our Buying Tips:
1. Select Three(3) Laptop that fits the requirement and the budget
2. Visit the store
3. Sit Down and compare the laptops side-by-side. Nothing like actual comparison.
4. View if the Display meets expectations... check dead pixels also
5. Check if Audio is Acceptable.
6. Check Battery Life
7. Inquire about the Warranty Policy
8. Take a Deep Breath and decide.

"Paying for what you can Experience and Buying from a Shop is for Your Peace of Mind... Units available for immediate purchase".