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May 23, 2017

toshiba Qosmio F60-10J Battery

Both $650 laptops (the newer 1525-139B and the older 1525-121B) have six-cell batteries, but that's not always the most useful number to look at. Most laptop batteries are labeled for 56Wh (or watt hours), which means they can hypothetically power a 1-watt load for 56 hours. The 1525-121B had a standard 56Wh battery, while the 1525-139B has only a 41Wh battery, which one would never notice without taking the battery out and reading the fine print stamped on it--as the batteries (and systems) look pretty much exactly the same.Thus, our shorter battery life, and one more area where budget-minded PC makers are apparently trying to shave a little cost from their systems. So the lesson here is that there's now one more bit of fine print you need to read carefully before buying a laptop.The model we were supplied with contains an Intel Core i3 processor, 4GB of RAM and, for some ridiculous reason, is apparently only available over the phone directly from Dell. The company also told us that this laptop retails for around £900. That seems implausible, though, as the Core i5 and i7 models, which are available as normal through Dell's online store, start at £890 for the base i5 model up to around £1,250 for the base i7 model. We'll treat our review sample as a preview model until more definitive details emerge concerning the laptop's availability.

The E6420 aims to be an all-round business performer. As such, it's going to have to put up with a life on the go as you lug it from conference centre to conference centre, whipping it quickly in and out of that lovely leather bag you got for Christmas.At 352 by 24 by 324mm, it doesn't exactly qualify as an ultra-portable laptop, though. Nor is it particularly light. Still, it's nowhere near as gargantuan as the mind-blowingly huge Asus NX90, so it will happily make a home in your briefcase. If you're going to carry it around all day, we'd suggest going for a backpack-style case, rather than one you carry in your hand. That should help you out with its 2.4kg weight. The lid is wrapped in a sheet of grey, brushed aluminium that, together with the classic Dell logo, gives off an air of professionalism, mixed with a certain lack of imagination. The E6420 isn't a beautiful laptop -- it doesn't have the sleek edges or wafer-thin design of the Samsung Series 9 -- but it certainly has a smart design and it's sure to look at home in a meeting room full of suit-clad ladies and gents.

The brushed metal also helps this laptop to feel incredibly sturdy. We subjected it to our usual prods and pokes and couldn't detect much in the way of flex. The steel hinges also don't bend at all when you quickly open and close the lid. Overall, we have no worries about taking this machine on the road -- it really feels like it could take a beating.Inside, the laptop is somewhat less appealing. Gone is the attractive brushed metal, replaced by stylings reminiscent of the old VTech laptops some of us had as kids. Plain plastic abounds.Rather than opt for the more popular isolated keyboard, Dell has slapped in an old-school model with edge-to-edge keys. They're very large keys so there's no mistaking what you're pressing, but they have a slightly rubberised feel, which causes quite a bit of friction when typing. That resulted in us making more mistakes than normal when typing at speed.

The E6420's interior isn't as hardy as its exterior. The keyboard flexes a fair amount when you press down on the keys, for example. Thankfully, the lid clicks in place with a sliding clasp, so you can keep the laptop hunkered down like a frightened turtle when in transit. The edges and wrist rest are made from a rubberised plastic. Whether you like the look and feel of rubberised plastic is a matter of taste, but we found its presence led to unwanted friction on our wrists, which became rather annoying.The keyboard is apparently spill-resistant, so, if you chuck your coffee over it during a nervous spasm when the boss walks past, it shouldn't be a problem. We tested Dell's claims by chucking a glass of water over the keys. The water drained away in a charming fashion, but we reckon it somehow shorted one of the USB ports, as, subsequently, the port continually tried to identify a non-existent device that it insisted was plugged in.As the E6420 didn't seem to cope very well with a targeted, small amount of fresh water, we'd advise exercising the usual amount of caution when you have a cup of coffee anywhere near this machine.

Most companies strive to create distinctions between their small-business and consumer laptop lines, sometimes to the point of creating whole new designs that aren't available otherwise. Most of these business laptops aren't of much interest to the average person, but sometimes a sleek design and a good price make a laptop appealing to nearly anyone. The Dell Vostro V series has been that way for us for well over a year now. These slim ultraportables resemble distant cousins of the Adamo, but start at a fraction of the price. The only catch: the last model we reviewed, the slim Vostro V130, had a battery life that was far too short, and a low-voltage processor that wasn't fast, either. The new Vostro V131 addresses both processor and battery life, with new second-gen standard-voltage Core i-series processors and much better battery performance, while keeping an aggressive price.

Granted, $499 as a starting price for the Vostro V131 doesn't land you a Core i-series CPU; instead, you get a 1.1GHz Intel Celeron ULV 847 processor, which we'd recommend avoiding at all costs. Most people (us included) would choose the $599 model instead, which bumps up to a more reasonable second-gen Intel Core i3-2310M CPU. Our $799 version has a Core i5-2410M processor.In the field of thin 13-inch laptops, it's hard to find good ones for less than $700. For $599, this slim 13-incher could be a perfect solution for some. At higher prices, it's likely that you'll find equally good options elsewhere. Squared-off at the edges and universally slim throughout (unless you add an optional six-cell battery like the one included in our configuration, which adds a little bulk to the back end), the Vostro V131 is, like the Vostro V130, a sleek, angular laptop that feels almost ThinkPad-like.

The laptop's magnesium alloy and anodized aluminum construction lend it a solid heft, with a weight that just tips over 4 pounds. The laptop also has elements of the Adamo in its clean design. The Vostro V130 comes in a dull silver color, unless you spend an extra $30 for Lucerne Red. The slight hinge-forward design of the top lid leaves a little back lip jutting out behind the opened-up lid, like the Inspiron R and XPS designs. The AC power cord plugs into the back lip, which is otherwise left blank. Ports and heat vents line the sides, unlike the previous Vostro V130. It's an improvement for ease of access. Like the V130, the V131 lacks an optical drive to save space.The Vostro V131's keyboard has changed since last year's V130, adopting an island-style chiclet keyboard instead of the V130's flat keyboard with raised key surfaces. This is true not just with the Vostro, but with the rest of Dell's laptops. The chiclet keys are even easier to differentiate, and fewer accidental keys are pressed. There are some annoyances: volume and brightness aren't function-reversed and have no dedicated buttons, and a column of page up/page down keys on the right side cramp easy access to the Enter/Shift keys. Backlighting is an option that comes standard on certain models of the Vostro V131, including this $799 configuration. Dell claims the keyboard is spill-resistant; we don't do spill tests on our laptops, but we'd still avoid accidentally pouring liquids on anything that says "resistant" rather than "proof."

The power button lurks above the top left of the keyboard; on the right, two discrete buttons launch a quick-access computer settings dashboard and Dell Support Center, while a third programmable button can launch any number of actions or applications.A wide, matte black palm rest frames a square multitouch touch pad with discrete buttons beneath. The pad is smaller than what you'd find on Apple's MacBook Air, but it's responsive and has all the requisite multitouch gestures enabled. On the far right there's an included fingerprint reader for added log-in security and password protection. Even though this is a business-targeted laptop, however, it lacks VPro and other IT-oriented features normally seen on bigger-business models. The 13.3-inch screen has a native resolution of 1,366x768 pixels and has a matte coating, which helps protect against glare. We wish we could say we loved the display more, but color and images wash out very quickly at even moderate viewing angles. Despite the front edge of the Vostro V131 looking like it has stereo speakers, it only has a mono speaker. It reaches an acceptable volume and sound quality isn't overly tinny, but most people will prefer headphones.

The included Webcam has a 1,280x720-pixel maximum resolution, and looked much better than average. The array microphones included in the Dell Vostro V131 are also far better than the average laptop; our recorded voice sounded crisp and distinct.HDMI, Bluetooth, and dual USB 3.0 ports round out an up-to-date set of ports and connectivity options on the Vostro V131. Mobile broadband--in either WiMax, LTE, or 3G broadband--can also be added into certain configurations. The Vostro V131 lacks an optical drive, but it does have a fingerprint reader (apples and oranges, but many businessfolk probably prefer the latter). The Vostro V131 is also Intel Wireless Display-enabled, which can transmit HD-quality video and audio to a nearby TV outfitted with a WiDi adapter box. This could come in handy for PowerPoint presentations--but don't forget to buy that WiDi adapter.

The Vostro V131's least expensive entry-level config is $499, but only comes with a Celeron processor, along with 2GB of RAM and a 7,200rpm, 320GB hard drive. Our $799 configuration has a Core i5 processor, 4GB of RAM, and a 500GB 7,200rpm hard drive. RAM can be expanded up to 6GB.While last year's Vostro laptops had low-voltage Intel Core i-series processors, this year's crop has full-fledged versions. The 2.3GHz Intel Core i5-2410M CPU in our model is the same processor we've seen in the HP Envy 14 and Sony Vaio SA, to name a few. It performed on par with those laptops in our benchmark tests, to no great surprise. It's more than capable for most computing needs, including multiple-program multitasking and even some more-intensive projects like video editing.The Vostro V131 has no discrete graphics options; Intel HD 3000 graphics is all that's available. They're adequate for most people, and can even handle some basic gaming. Street Fighter IV ran at 13.5fps in native resolution and 2x antialiasing. Hey, you can't blame us for being curious, but it proves our point: hard-core games won't play well on this, not that you'd expect that out of a slim 13-inch business laptop.

The term "thin and light" has flexible meaning in the laptop world. Currently, to be truly thin, a PC must be in the same range as the MacBook Air. Still, plenty of 13-inch laptops survive in a thicker range that would have been considered thin a few years ago, but which seem merely normal today. The Asus U31SD-A1 is just that sort of laptop. Its thickness is more akin to a 13-inch Apple MacBook Pro, but Asustek Computer's laptop lacks an optical drive. We reviewed a nearly identical Asus U31JG laptop a few months ago, noting that it was a solid computer but lacked an up-to-date Intel processor. The U31SD-A1 has a second-gen Core i3-2310M CPU and improved Nvidia GeForce 520M graphics, along with a markedly better battery life than the U31JG. It's an improvement in every way.But all of this is packed into a chassis that feels uninspired and is topped off with a middle-of-the-road screen and speakers. If you can live with that--and a lack of higher-end features such as USB 3.0--then the U31SD-A1 might be right for you.

At $799, it's a solid performer, but considering that similar laptops like the Toshiba Portege R835 can be had for the same money, this doesn't seem like quite the bargain it's cracked up to be. However, for back-to-schoolers who need all-day battery life, the U31SD-A1 could be a sweetly sized and priced purchase. The Asus U31SD-A1 has the same design and body as the U31JG-A1 we reviewed back in March. Our design impressions remain the same. While the U31SD-A1 is a compact laptop, it's not really a looker. Its brushed-aluminum lid and palm rest are reminiscent of those on the Asus UL30A that we reviewed years ago, but times have changed: laptops like the Apple MacBook Air and the Samsung Series 9 have redefined thin, making this laptop seem comparatively chunky. In fact, it is surprising that this 13-incher lacks an optical drive: similarly thin laptops such as the Sony Vaio S and the Toshiba Portege R835 include one.

Glossy black plastic surrounds the keyboard and upper screen while the keyboard deck and touch pad have a brushed silver metal finish, giving the laptop a two-tone look. It's not a look that stands out. While this may seem like we're being sticklers, design is a big factor in what makes a portable laptop comfortable and easy to use, and the slightly bulky chassis just isn't eye-catching. At 4.2 pounds, this laptop's just light enough to feel travel-friendly, but it's heavier than the Sony Vaio S and Toshiba Portege R835.The raised-key keyboard has comfortable spacing between keys, but a slightly mushy key feel. A row of Page Up/Page Down buttons on the right side squishes and pushes the Enter and Shift keys in a bit, making them hard to find by feel.An inset multitouch touch pad is smaller than average, making two-finger gestures a bit harder to pull off. The textured surface had mixed responsiveness in our testing. A mirror-finish plastic rocker button-bar beneath feels much like those of other Asus laptops; we'd prefer easier-to-click discrete buttons. The terrible mouse button bar is a long-standing Asus issue that never seems to get fixed, no matter how many times we knock it.

Above the keyboard, it looks like there are two symmetrically laid-out power buttons on the upper left and right sides; however, the one on the right is the actual power button, while the one on the left launches the Quick Start OS, a pared-down, faster-booting collection of applications that includes a Web browser. Quick-start OSes are meant for the impatient, and are a poor attempt to offer up what speedier-booting systems such as the iPad and MacBook Air already do far better. We never find ourselves using quick-start OSes; we'd rather boot Windows 7 and put our laptop to sleep between sessions. Need to quickly check e-mail or a Web link? That's what a smartphone is for.The 13.3-inch, 1,366x768-pixel-resolution glossy display is inset from the upper lid, forgoing any edge-to-edge glass. This makes for a bit less glare, but the display's clarity and viewing angles are average at best. Text and images are very readable, but colors aren't ultravibrant. It's a middle-of-the-road display.

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