Welcome to a laptop battery specialist of the Toshiba Laptop Battery
Toshiba's Satellite Pro family of business notebooks includes 13.3in., 15.6in. and 17.3in. systems. On test here is the 13.3in. L830, a six-strong range that starts at £389 (ex. VAT), rising to £479 (ex. VAT). Our review sample, the Satellite Pro L830 10J, is at the upper end, costing £469 (ex. VAT).
Design
There's a key visual difference between Satellite Pro and more consumer-focused Satellite (non-Pro) notebooks. The latter sport a white shell, which we've only seen in pictures but looks rather attractive; the former, including our review model, have a more businesslike grey and black finish. The lid has a hatched pattern on its slate-grey plastic, which is repeated inside on the wrist rest. It's a nice design, although the smooth and shiny finish could with battery like Toshiba PA3689U-1BRS Battery
, Toshiba PA3672U-1BRS Battery
, Toshiba Satellite E100 Battery
, Toshiba Satellite E105 Battery
, Toshiba PA3820U-1BRS Battery
, Toshiba PA3821U-1BRS Battery
, Toshiba Mini NB500 Battery
, Toshiba Satellite T210D Battery
, Toshiba PA3732U-1BAS Battery
, Toshiba PA3734U-1BRS Battery
, Toshiba NB200 Battery
, Toshiba PA3733U-1BRS Battery
attract scratches and dings over time.
The (Sandy Bridge) Core i3-based Toshiba Satellite Pro L830 10J is quite thick (2.68-3.06cm) and heavy (1.86kg) for a 13.3in. notebook.
We're not too excited by the shiny black screen bezel and keyboard surround, both of which are prone to attracting greasy fingerprints. That's a pity given that the wrist rest and lid are quite fingerprint-resistant.
The L830's build quality is reasonably solid, although we've seen better. There's a degree of flex in the lid that suggests you might need a padded case when travelling. When the notebook is closed, the application of even a fairly small amount of pressure to the lid causes it to flex — you won't want to pile books on top of this system. With the clamshell open we found it quite easy to twist the lid section between two hands. The base feels more solid, but there's still some flex in the wrist rest.
The L830's footprint — 32cm wide by 22.1cm deep — is not huge, but it's quite thick at 2.68cm–3.06cm, and heavy for a 13.3in. notebook at 1.86kg. The weight will matter to mobile professionals.
The 13.3in. Toshiba TruBrite High Brightness LED-backlit display has a standard 1,366-by-768-pixel resolution. It's very reflective, and if you need to work anywhere with a light source beside or behind you it might be better avoided. Also, text looks strangely pixelated and fuzzy — something we noticed across a range of applications including WordPad and Firefox, and even in the Control Panel. There's something not quite right here, and we never felt fully comfortable with the L830's display.