The Toshiba Satellite U840W ultrabook

Toshiba Satellite U840W: Making movies first

Its super wide screen may look odd at first, but it will make watching movies more enjoyable

by Peter Yeo

04:45 AM Oct 05, 2012

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SINGAPORE - There is no mistaking the Toshiba Satellite U840W ultrabook to be anything but an entertainment machine.

The Toshiba Satellite U840W ultrabook comes with an impressive ultra-wide screen and immersive audio features. PHOTO COURTESY TOSHIBA

The first thing I noticed - and you will, too - is its unusual display. At 14.4 inches, with a 21:9 aspect ratio and 1792 x 768 pixel resolution, it is one of the widest - if not the widest - screen on any laptop I have seen. And it is impressive.

Movies I tried on the set were, well, as seen on the cinemas with minimal to no black bars on the top. Backed by a powerful Intel Core i5 processor supported by the Intel HD graphics 4000 card, movies were bright with lovely colour reproduction.

That it comes bundled with Toshiba's proprietary SmartView utility - which lets you split the screen real estate so that you can view documents, photos, and videos comfortably - is a godsend, especially if you are constantly cross-referencing multiple apps. Immersive audio is delivered through its two Harmon Kardon stereo speakers with SRS Premium Sound 3D.

However, for all its mind-blowing entertainment features, it does not come with any optical drives, much less a Blu-ray one. But movies these days can be streamed or transferred via flash drives, so that did not even slow me down.

The Toshiba Satellite U840W ultrabook boasts two USB 3.0 ports and one USB 3.0 sleep and charge port, SD card reader, with a HDMI port and an ethernet jack. Which presents more than enough options to transfer media back and forth its 500GB SATA/32GB SSD hard disk drive.

Starting up is almost instantaneous with Toshiba High Speed Start and Intel Rapid Start technology. And because I do not have to wait for the system to start up, I tend to close the lid every time I am not using it, saving more battery juice.

More than just performance, the Toshiba Satellite U840W ultrabook is a looker.

Its Midnight Silver dual-tone brushed aluminium with a soft-touch rubberised trim is one of the most stylish I have seen on any ultrabooks thus far, and its raised-tile LED-backlit keyboard feels great to the touch and suitable for use in low light conditions.

Battery life was a decent four-and-a-half hours when I used it, but I had a video on loop and brightness was set to full. So normal use could yield about five hours, I would imagine.

At just 1.57kg light and 22mm thick, the U840W ultrabook will not weigh you down and will fit in most 15-inch laptop bags. However, I am still hoping Toshiba will build an AC adaptor that actually fits with the svelte form factor of its ultrabooks instead of the clunker it packs with the set.

The Satellite U840W ultrabook is available at all authorised Toshiba dealers for S$1,699. PETER YEO

Source:  www.todayonline.com