| Considerably larger (16.4 by 11.5 by 1.8 inches, 9.9 pounds) than the average portable computer yet packed with more high-end amenities than most stay-at-home PCs, Toshiba's new Satellite P25 series of "desktop replacement" notebooks is designed for discriminating individuals who won't accept anything less than the very best. This model, the stunning Satellite P25-S609, sits at the very top of the P25 lineup as one of the most capable and exciting notebooks manufactured to date. For starters, the Satellite P25-S609 is a true portable multimedia powerhouse. Toshiba has fitted the unit with a whopping 17-inch widescreen display screen capable of dazzling 1440 by 900 resolutions. It has added a pair of high-quality harman/kardon stereo speakers and enclosed a versatile DVD multi-drive through which you can not only watch the latest Hollywood releases and burn audio and data CDs, but also record your own home movies to DVD media. An nVidia GeForce FX Go5200 graphics chipset with 64 MB dedicated video memory ensures solid 3-D support for the latest games and 3-D graphics applications. Moreover, the unit is blazingly fast. Driving the Satellite P25-S609 is a high-end 3.0 GHz Intel Pentium 4 processor with a scorching 800 MHz system bus clock speed and Hyper-Threading Technology for more efficient CPU usage. Matched with this speedy processor is a staggering 1024 MB alloent of DDR SDRAM memory (expandable to a 2048 MB). Though the rated speed of this RAM is only average, there's so much of it that you can multitask to your heart's content. Other critical features include a huge 80 GB hard disk (more than enough room for a thorough roster of applications and a massive library of multimedia files), four high-speed USB 2.0 ports for plug and play peripherals such as scanners or external drives, an IEEE 1394 FireWire port for fast interaction with devices such as digital camcorders, and two Type II and Type III PC Card slots. Communication facilities include 802.11a/g wireless networking, 10/100 Ethernet LAN and an integrated 56K modem. The bundled software package features Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition, Microsoft Works, Intuit Quicken New User Edition 2003, and a variety of multimedia utilities. Battery life expectancy is not one of the unit's strong suits -- you can expect just 1.5 hours from the standard Lithium Ion cell. More About Microsoft Windows XP Media Center  What sets this PC apart is that it is powered by Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004, which offers the features, reliability, and power of Windows XP Professional, plus advanced digital entertainment capabilities. The Media Center interface offers you more types of entertainment to enjoy: TV, Personal Video Recording (PVR), Movies, Music, Photos, Videos, Radio, and DVD. Use the remote control to enjoy from anywhere in your room. TV & Movies  |  | | Watch TV when and how you want, and never miss a moment of your favorite programs. Pause and rewind live TV. Record a TV episode, series, or category. Automatically record a personalized selection of TV programs using Keyword Record. Media Center downloads the latest program listings for you and even wakes up from power-saving standby mode to record programs, so you can watch shows on your schedule. | | | |  |  Photos & Video | | Easily edit your digital pictures and digital videos, and then launch a dynamic slideshow complete with animated transitions and your favorite soundtrack. While viewing a picture, zoom in to see more detail. You can rotate, correct red-eye, and print your pictures using the remote. Play slide-shows straight from digital storage devices. | | | | | Music & Radio |  | | All your music is stored in one digital jukebox and using the remote, shuffle your entire music collection according to artist or genre or listen to your tunes through playlists that learn what you like. Tune in FM stations and pause live radio. Full-screen visualizations pulse to the beat of the music. Cool on-screen effects show music information, such as track title, track time, and artist. | |
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 Beautiful - a true lifestyle PC to make Mac users envious |
| Review Date: March 3, 2004 |
| Reviewer: Peter Wright, Calgary, Canada |
| First off, people on here who criticise this for low battery life are just silly. This is a desktop replacement, not meant for use in a car or on an airplane. If you saw it that would be obvious. I use it in the house, and only move it from room to room. Now to what matters, how do I feel about this after a month of usage. It rocks! I am a power user, very discerning. This is the most beautiful, fun to use PC i have ever owned. And I've even owned an Apple PowerBook G4 in the past. This is much more capable given the larger PC universe and range of software out there. It's fast, it's beautiful and it's making all my friends envious. Everything works perfectly, and the screen is truly beautiful! My only complainst is that at this price, bluetooth should come as standard. I use the networking 802.11g at home and it was simple to use and picks up the signal no trouble. I've used it for games, and inless you are at the bleeding edge of gaming you will find the nVidea graphics card amazing, can deal with all the current games out there, no matter now 3D intensive they are. Note: Call of Duty doesn't support widescreen, so it only occupies the left hand portion of the screen. Movies look great on here and software has lots of room to work with. If you want a PC that is fast and sexy to boot, without all the usual wires, go get this beauty! |
Awesome Desktop Replacement
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| Review Date: January 15, 2004 |
| Reviewer: , |
| This laptop is everything it is said to be. It is a desktop replacement, you can't be weak and be able to take this laptop around with you all day. From the 17" screen to the DVD burner, it amazes me every day. This computer is a little on the pricey side, but right now you can get a $200 rebate. As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for. I believe this machine will last quite a while. I have not had a use for Toshiba's customer service, but I am pretty sure that I would be able to get adequate service from them. I bought this laptop from a seller on eBAY. The only thing with eBAY is the problem of fraud. You have to be careful who you pay. Be sure that they at least take Paypal, but better yet use Escrow or COD. If you want a great laptop, get a Toshiba, in my opinion, it kicks all the big brand name's ass. |
What I should have bought
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| Review Date: March 22, 2004 |
| Reviewer: , |
| I bought my wife a new Powerbook. This is what we should have bought. A friend has one and it is incredible. The fit and finish are fantastic. I am kicking myself for not looking around more before I bought. |
Highly recommended for multimedia work & gorgeous screen
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| Review Date: July 15, 2004 |
| Reviewer: Stacy Munn, Seattle, WA USA |
| This computer (next to my beau) is the light of my life. I've had it for 11 months and am head over heals in love. I use it for photo manipulation with Photoshop CS, web development with Dreamweaver MX 2004, animation creation with Flash MX 2004, authoring multimedia projects with Director MX, a bit of music mixing with Adobe Audition, streaming music from Rhapsody, listening to NPR and watching DVDs. All my peripherals (Epson Photo printer, iRiver mp3 player, SanDisk media reader, cordless mouse) plug and play nicely together, all at the same time. The big, beautiful monitor is the best feature. Watching DVDs in bed is such a treat! The computer is a dream to type on. Feels like there are shock absorbers or pockets of air beneath each key. The harman/kardon speakers are the only drawback. Having heard the speakers on the Toshiba Satellite 5205-S704, which are fantastic, rectangular speakers that actually raise up above the keyboard area, I had high expectations. But the volume on the P25 speakers is far too low. I overcome this with Creature speakers plugged in. Whilst I wouldn't want to transport this computer with me every day due to the weight, it does fit in my bike messenger bag for those occasional trips across town or overseas. Not many laptop backpacks will fit the 17" screen. The WiFi is wonderful. Even in a small apartment. I love being able to take it to the kitchen table, the living room couch or the bed with no cords dangling off. I've worked on 2 laptops and 4 desktop computers for multimedia in the past and this one is by far the best. |
At last!
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| Review Date: December 30, 2003 |
| Reviewer: Martin Lass, Australia |
I've been waiting I don't know how long for a laptop/notebook that really IS a high-end desktop replacement, not just in the advertizing, but actually--and not just a throw-together from an unheard-of company, but from a major player. Toshiba has finally done it!
It blitzes the field on most major points: massive RAM (expandable to 2GB), although I would have liked to see faster RAM, generous hard drive (80GB, 5400rpm), although I would have liked to see 7200rpm, huge screen that is perfect for wide-screen movies, built-in TV tuner, the latest Wi-Fi capability built in (802.11a/g), four USB 2.0 ports, FireWire port, although the placement of this port is not ideal, legacy parallel port, although it has no legacy serial port, dual monitor support, external CD controls, DVD-Multi drive that does EVERYTHING in one 'box'!, built-in modem and ethernet, PCMCIA cardbus Type I and II, Harmon/Kardon speakers, although I am disappointed that Toshiba did not include the sub-woofer as with previous models, and so much more.
My only other disappointments (but not enough to dampen my enthusiasm) are the short battery life (1.5 hours, but this is to be expected with such a powerhouse), not the best bundled software (MSWorks instead of MSOffice?? Come on, guys!), average soundcard (but this is no problem with the plethora of USB and PCMCIA soundcards now available), and not the maximum graphics RAM (64MB... would have expected 128MB in an extreme machine like this).
When all is said and done, though, I'm stoked! I've taken out extra insurance on this baby! |
|
Toshiba Satellite P25-S609 Media Center Laptop (3.00-GHz Pentium 4 (Hyper-Threading), 1024 MB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive)
Product Description
Moreover, the unit is blazingly fast. Driving the Satellite P25-S609 is a high-end 3.0 GHz Intel Pentium 4 processor with a scorching 800 MHz system bus clock speed and Hyper-Threading Technology for more efficient CPU usage. Matched with this speedy processor is a staggering 1024 MB alloent of DDR SDRAM memory (expandable to a 2048 MB). Though the rated speed of this RAM is only average, there's so much of it that you can multitask to your heart's content.
Other critical features include a huge 80 GB hard disk (more than enough room for a thorough roster of applications and a massive library of multimedia files), four high-speed USB 2.0 ports for plug and play peripherals such as scanners or external drives, an IEEE 1394 FireWire port for fast interaction with devices such as digital camcorders, and two Type II and Type III PC Card slots. Communication facilities include 802.11a/g wireless networking, 10/100 Ethernet LAN and an integrated 56K modem.
The bundled software package features Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition, Microsoft Works, Intuit Quicken New User Edition 2003, and a variety of multimedia utilities. Battery life expectancy is not one of the unit's strong suits -- you can expect just 1.5 hours from the standard Lithium Ion cell.
More About Microsoft Windows XP Media Center
What sets this PC apart is that it is powered by Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004, which offers the features, reliability, and power of Windows XP Professional, plus advanced digital entertainment capabilities. The Media Center interface offers you more types of entertainment to enjoy: TV, Personal Video Recording (PVR), Movies, Music, Photos, Videos, Radio, and DVD. Use the remote control to enjoy from anywhere in your room.
Product Details
Video Reviews
Customer Reviews
If you want a PC that is fast and sexy to boot, without all the usual wires, go get this beauty!
All my peripherals (Epson Photo printer, iRiver mp3 player, SanDisk media reader, cordless mouse) plug and play nicely together, all at the same time. The big, beautiful monitor is the best feature. Watching DVDs in bed is such a treat!
The computer is a dream to type on. Feels like there are shock absorbers or pockets of air beneath each key.
The harman/kardon speakers are the only drawback. Having heard the speakers on the Toshiba Satellite 5205-S704, which are fantastic, rectangular speakers that actually raise up above the keyboard area, I had high expectations. But the volume on the P25 speakers is far too low. I overcome this with Creature speakers plugged in.
Whilst I wouldn't want to transport this computer with me every day due to the weight, it does fit in my bike messenger bag for those occasional trips across town or overseas. Not many laptop backpacks will fit the 17" screen.
The WiFi is wonderful. Even in a small apartment. I love being able to take it to the kitchen table, the living room couch or the bed with no cords dangling off.
I've worked on 2 laptops and 4 desktop computers for multimedia in the past and this one is by far the best.
It blitzes the field on most major points: massive RAM (expandable to 2GB), although I would have liked to see faster RAM, generous hard drive (80GB, 5400rpm), although I would have liked to see 7200rpm, huge screen that is perfect for wide-screen movies, built-in TV tuner, the latest Wi-Fi capability built in (802.11a/g), four USB 2.0 ports, FireWire port, although the placement of this port is not ideal, legacy parallel port, although it has no legacy serial port, dual monitor support, external CD controls, DVD-Multi drive that does EVERYTHING in one 'box'!, built-in modem and ethernet, PCMCIA cardbus Type I and II, Harmon/Kardon speakers, although I am disappointed that Toshiba did not include the sub-woofer as with previous models, and so much more.
My only other disappointments (but not enough to dampen my enthusiasm) are the short battery life (1.5 hours, but this is to be expected with such a powerhouse), not the best bundled software (MSWorks instead of MSOffice?? Come on, guys!), average soundcard (but this is no problem with the plethora of USB and PCMCIA soundcards now available), and not the maximum graphics RAM (64MB... would have expected 128MB in an extreme machine like this).
When all is said and done, though, I'm stoked! I've taken out extra insurance on this baby!
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