Review Toshiba Satellite R830-11C Notebook
Right now you can hardly move for notebooks with the hardware combination of Intel Core i5-2410M and Intel HD Graphics 3000 graphics. Just recently we presented a large number of them as part of the Intel TestIT!2011 project. So how can a notebook distinguish itself from the crowd? Toshiba's simple answer to this question is to put the same hardware into a smaller 13.3-inch subnotebook, targeting a different price range. The case is made of magnesium instead of plastic, the screen is matt, and an SSD has been used instead of a conventional hard drive. But in exchange, the user will be asked to cough up almost 1000 Euros. Find out in our review whether the Toshiba Satellite is worth it. Dell Inspiron 1545 battery
In terms of its appearance, the subnotebook makes an excellent first impression. The case is slim, weighing barely 1.48 kg, and its shape and design contribute to its elegant look. The choice of magnesium makes the case very attractive, and also more robust than a plastic one. However, the size of the gaps between different parts of the case does vary a little in places. Fujitsu LifeBook E8020 battery FUJITSU LifeBook T5010 battery
In its closed position, the lid can be made to flex inwards with very little effort. You can feel the lid pressing against the screen from behind. The lid could also do a better job of withstanding twisting forces. The two display hinges have a high-gloss covering which contrasts well with the otherwise black case. The hinges hold the lid firmly in its place, but cannot prevent it from wobbling back and forth a little when you open it. Annoyingly the hinges are also so tight that you can't open the lid with one hand. The base unit is just too light and gets pulled up with it. HP HSTNN-LB42
With the laptop open, you are faced with more matt magnesium surfaces. These are very resistant to fingerprints, but they do show up the dust. On the other hand, the chassis effortlessly withstood our pressure tests. The palm rest was completely unfazed and did not move one millimeter. The keyboard also proved to be very stable, only flexing a couple of millimeters in the centre when subjected to strong pressure.
You can upgrade the Toshiba Satellite R830 via the two access panels on the underside of the base unit. However, they only give you access to the hard drive and the two RAM slots. HP 511872-001 battery ASUS N75SL Battery Toshiba PA3465U-1BRS battery
Performance
At the heart of the 13.3-inch notebook is an Intel Core i5-2410M processor. This is a mid-range processor from the latest generation of Core i processors, based on the Sandy Bridge architecture. The i5-2410M is a dual-core model with a base speed of 2.3 GHz per core. Thanks to Hyperthreading the processor is able to process four threads simultaneously. If more power is needed at a particular time, the system can dynamically overclock the system. Depending on demand, either both cores can be overclocked to 2.6 GHz or one core can be overclocked to 2.9 GHz. In this way it is possible to give the processor performance another boost, although this will only happen if the processor is adequately cooled. With a TDP of 35 Watts the processor is quite frugal, and doesn't need an excessively elaborate cooling system, which is sure to be an advantage in a 13.3-inch notebook. ASUS N51 Battery LENOVO IdeaPad Y560 battery Dell Inspiron 630m battery
The processor contains an integrated graphics card, which is a great benefit to the system. It allows the notebook to do without a dedicated graphics card, which would have used up a lot of additional energy. The integrated graphics unit is an Intel HD Graphics 3000. Compared to earlier models, the HD Graphics 3000 integrated graphics card has gained in power, now sitting at the same level as an entry-level graphics card like the Nvidia GeForce 310M. This means that you can generally play some older games on it without problems, and even some newer games (for instance StarCraft 2). However, you do have to accept some sacrifices in terms of quality and resolution with the more modern games. Integrated graphics cards are primarily designed for basic tasks like working on office documents, surfing the net, or playing videos, not for games. Especially with a notebook like the Toshiba Satellite R830, you can assume that it will focus on the business and office side of things, rather than gaming. HP G62 battery SAMSUNG N150 battery
Toshiba really has given the small subnotebook a powerful processor in the form of the Intel Core i5-2410M. This is also apparent from the processor benchmarks. In the Cinebench R10 Single Rendering (64 bit), the Satellite R830 performs well with a score of 4556.0 points. This puts it on the same level as 15-inch notebooks which are also equipped with the i5-2410M processor. The Satellite R830 even positions itself right out in front. It also scores well in the Cinebench R10 Multi-rendering (64 bit), its 9653 points placing it amongst the front-runners. For example, we see similar results from the 14-inch Fujitsu Lifebook LH531 (2410M, HD Graphics 3000) with 9659 points, or the Acer Aspire 3830TG-2414G75nbb (2410M, GT540M) which is also 13.3 inches and scores 9651 points. In the Cinebench R11.5 CPU 64 bit benchmark, the subnotebook scores 2.6 points, putting it level with the other notebooks which have an Intel Core i5-2410M. The processor's Turbo Mode seems to take effect smoothly during heavy CPU usage. Lenovo L09L6D16 Toshiba PA3819U-1BRS
We tested the system performance of the Toshiba Satellite R830 using the PCMark Vantage and PCMark 7 programs. In the PCMark Vantage test, the subnotebook scored 8351 points. This places it just behind the MSI GT780R (2630M, GT560M) with 8599.0 points. The integrated SSD is particularly helpful to the subnotebook here. In the hard drive category (PCMark Vantage HDD score) the Satellite R830 scores 24,659.0 points, putting it in the top 20 of our database of tested notebooks for this category. Acer Aspire 5742G Battery Dell GK479
The PCMark 7 benchmark tells a similar story. The subnotebook reaches 2,936.0 points, finishing just ahead of the Dell XPS 15z (2620M, GT 525M) with 2,633.0 points. In this test too, the SSD is a significant factor in achieving the good result.
During everyday use, you do notice the effect of the SSD, particularly in the rapid start-up and short program load times. The absence of vibrations and noise from the drive is another substantial point in favour of SSDs. HP HSTNN-Q44C battery Acer Aspire 5750 Battery IBM FRU 92P1141
To test the graphics performance of the Intel HD Graphics 3000, we turn once again to the tried and trusted 3DMark 06 benchmark. As expected, the graphics card takes a position very low down in our table, with a score of 3629.0 points. Compared with other notebooks that also rely on the Intel HD Graphics 3000, the Satellite R830 is average. But for a 13.3-inch notebook, the Satellite acquits itself quite well, and can hold its head high in the presence of the 15.6-inch models with similar hardware. For example, it is the equal of the HP Pavilion g6-1141sg (2410M, HD Graphics 3000) which we reviewed recently, with its 3651.0 points. Asus A32-K93
The built-in Toshiba THNSNC128GMLJ solid state drive (SSD) has a total capacity of 128 GB. That might be quite small by today's standards, but the system profits enormously from the speed of the drive. Windows is clearly faster to start up and wakes up more quickly from standby. The access time of 0.2 milliseconds makes every conventional notebook hard drive look old, as these have access times of around 17 - 20 milliseconds. The SSD's average transfer rates are also much higher. The SSD achieves 154.7 MB/s, while a standard 2.5-inch hard drive with a speed of 5,400 rpm will only manage between 80 and 100 MB/s. An SSD is also much less sensitive to shocks, as it doesn't have magnetic discs inside, and it is quieter. However, the Toshiba drive used here doesn't stand a chance against high-end SSDs. Unusually, the SSD in this review model did produce some unwanted noise when subjected to heavy use. Lenovo G560 battery Toshiba PABAS174 Asus K52F Battery Asus Eee PC 1015PEM Battery
Verdict: Gaming
For a gaming test, we once again turned to StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty and Call of Duty: Black Ops. While the first of these is a strategy game which can run on most machines on the medium details setting, the other is a classic 3D shooter.
As you would expect, StarCraft 2 ran smoothly on its lowest settings on this small subnotebook. The Satellite R830 gave a refresh rate of 61 fps with the lowest resolution and lowest details level. However, if you increase the resolution and the details settings only slightly, the frame rates deteriorate rapidly and the game becomes unplayable. Sony VGP-BPL8 DELL Alienware M17x R3 battery Dell Inspiron 5100 battery
Call of Duty: Black Ops is pretty much unplayable on the Toshiba Satellite R830. Even on the lowest details and lowest resolution, the game still stuttered. Generally 24 fps is the point at which the human eye starts to perceive the gameplay as smooth; Call of Duty came in below that at 21 fps.
You can see how the Intel HD Graphics 3000 graphics card handles other games in our wide-ranging comparison, 'Computer Games on Laptop Graphics Cards?'. Dell Inspiron 1720 battery
Battery life
Toshiba has obviously tried very hard to limit the energy consumption of this laptop. And it has succeeded - in idle the consumption is between 5.7 and 8.8 Watts. There are other systems with an Intel Core i5-2410M processor and Intel HD Graphics 3000 graphics which use considerably more than 10 Watts. Under heavy use, with the energy-saving options no longer active, the hardware draws 33.1 - 49.4 Watts. So the 65-Watt power block has no problems keeping the subnotebook supplied with energy, even at full system load. ASUS N53JF battery FUJITSU FMV-TC8230 battery Toshiba PA3729U-1BRS ASUS U46E Battery
As you might hope from the low energy consumption, the six-cell battery lasts a long time, as long as you don't ask too much of it. The maximum run time of 12 hours and 19 minutes (Battery Eater Reader's test) looks impressive on paper, but in reality you would barely ever reach this if you were actually using the notebook to do anything. The times of 6 hours 29 minutes of web surfing or 5 hours 49 minutes of DVD viewing are more realistic. On the other hand if you work at full system load, you will run out of juice at 1 hour 37 minutes (Battery Eater Classic test). During testing we noticed the battery's extremely long recharge time; it took up to 4 hours before the battery was fully recharged. Fujitsu FMV-S8225 battery