Review Toshiba Satellite Pro C870 Notebook

The Toshiba Satellite Pro C870 series is comprised of 17.3-inch notebooks for the business environment in the low-to-mid price range. About two years ago, we reviewed a precursor to the series, the Toshiba Satellite Pro L670-170. The Satellite Pro C870-11R notebook we have been provided to review, at about 500 Euros (~$637), is currently the cheapest model in this series. The device is powered by an Intel Core i3-2350M dual-core processor, and has four gigabytes of memory to work with. The Intel HD Graphics 3000 is responsible for the graphic display; a 500 GB hard drive serves as the data storage unit; and a DVD-burner is also at your disposal. Lenovo Thinkpad T400 Battery ThinkPad X230i Battery

To judge the comparative quality of the notebook, we will put the competing Acer Aspire 7739Z-P624650MNKK (Intel Pentium P6200, Intel GMA HD) and Samsung Series 3 305E7A-S03DE (AMD A6-3420M, AMD Radeon HD 6540G2) onto the field.

Case

The Toshiba Satellite Pro C870 can't deny its familial ties to the Toshiba Satellite Pro L670-170. The case is completely made of matte-black plastic. A shiny plastic ring surrounding the touchpad is the only exception. The backside of the lid, the palm rest and the touchpad all have ribbed surfaces. Thanks to this surface design, the case hardly shows any fingerprints and is also very easy to grip. Visually the case is clearly tending towards the austere, which again underlines its claim to be a work computer. The Samsung Series 3 and the Acer Aspire are similarly outfitted with purely plastic cases. Lenovo ThinkPad X200 Battery Lenovo IdeaPad S10 Battery Lenovo IdeaPad Y550 Battery Lenovo ThinkPad X201 Battery

The base unit gives an impression of general stability and hardly yields when pressure is applied. It does have one weakness, however: the edge over the disk drive is quite unstable and gives fairly easily. The lid of the notebook can be bent using little force, and the backside of the lid also gives easily. The hinges hold the lid tightly in place and rock back-and-forth a little. It is not possible to open the notebook using just one hand; the hinges are too tightly adjusted for that.

Performance

With the Satellite Pro C870 series, Toshiba offers a line of simple and inexpensive 17.3-inch notebooks for the business arena. It is also suitable, however, for private users who are looking for a cheap DTR notebook. The device offers sufficient performance for daily computer activities. The Toshiba website currently lists four models for the C870 line. The models differentiate themselves in processors and hard drives. Our test device represents the most inexpensive model in the series and is currently available for around 500 Euros (~$637). Lenovo S200 Battery ThinkPad Edge 14 inch Battery Lenovo V370 Battery

Performance

With the Satellite Pro C870 series, Toshiba offers a line of simple and inexpensive 17.3-inch notebooks for the business arena. It is also suitable, however, for private users who are looking for a cheap DTR notebook. The device offers sufficient performance for daily computer activities. The Toshiba website currently lists four models for the C870 line. The models differentiate themselves in processors and hard drives. Our test device represents the most inexpensive model in the series and is currently available for around 500 Euros (~$637).

Gaming Performance
The Satellite Pro C870 presents itself first and foremost as a work device. Anyone who wants to play elaborate 3D games is looking in the wrong place. The C870 produces fluid frame rates only at low resolutions and even then at low quality. However, things don't look so bad if you want to play games that demand less of the hardware, for example the FIFA series. LENOVO ThinkPad X220 Battery Lenovo ThinkPad T420 Battery LENOVO IdeaPad U300s Battery

Toshiba has a handle on the heat generation of the Satellite Pro C780. In idle mode the 17-incher reaches between 23.3 and 34.7 degrees Celsius (~74 and 94.5 °F) both on the top and bottom of the device. Running at full capacity (Prime 95 and FurMark working simultaneously) the temperatures rise to between 24 and 37.6 degrees Celsius (~75 and ~100 °F). In both instances you could lay the notebook on your lap without a problem. The palm rest is also a comfortable work surface, since its temperature never exceeds the 30 degrees Celsius (86 °F) mark.

Both the CPU and the GPU constantly work at full speed both in the battery and AC modes during the stress tests (Prime95 and FurMark working simultaneously for at least an hour). We did not detect any throttling. The CPU temperature levels off at around 67 degrees Celsius (152.6 °F) during the tests. Lenovo Thinkpad T420S Battery LENOVO IdeaPad Y570 Battery

Power Consumption
In idle mode we read a power draw of between 8.2 and 14.8 Watts. With that result the C870 lies on average at the same level as the Samsung Series 3 305E7A-S03DE. The Acer Aspire 7739Z reveals itself to be a good bit hungrier and indulges itself in a power consumption rate of 11.3 to 20.4 Watts. At full capacity (Prime95 and FurMark running simultaneously) the power consumption rates of both the C870 and the Acer device rise to 53.3 Watts. The Samsung model reaches a value here of 56.1 Watts. At half capacity (3D Mark 06 running), the C870 needs 41.4 Watts: exactly 2.1 Watts more than the Samsung notebook and 6.5 Watts more than the Acer notebook.

Battery Life
With the notebook in idle mode, the C870's battery holds out 6:15 hrs (Samsung 5:26 hrs, Acer 4:30 hrs). The idle mode is checked with the help of the Battery Eater Reader's test - with the screen running at minimum brightness, the energy-saving profile activated, and the wireless module turned off. In load mode the Satellite Pro reaches a runtime of 1:16 hrs. The Samsung battery dies out five minutes earlier. For the load analysis the Battery Eater Classic test runs on the notebook - here the screen glows at full brightness, and both the high performance profile and the wireless module are activated. Lenovo ThinkPad X120e Battery LENOVO IdeaPad U310 Battery Toshiba PA5023U-1BRS Battery Toshiba PA5024U-1BRS Battery Toshiba PA5025U-1BRS Battery Toshiba PA5027U-1BRS Battery Toshiba PA3591U-1BAS Battery Toshiba PA3382U-1BRS Battery

On the C870 the WLAN test reaches a runtime of 3:53 hrs (Samsung: 3:27, Acer: 1:32 hrs). During this test websites are automatically loaded at 40-second intervals. The energy-saving profile is active and the display brightness is set to about 150 cd/m². In the DVD test, the Satellite Pro C870 makes it to a runtime of 2:58 hrs (Samsung: 2:24 hrs). In this test the wireless module is turned off, the display works at full brightness and either the energy-saving profile or a higher profile (if the DVD doesn't play fluidly) is used.

The runtimes of the three competitors are relatively easy to compare, since they all have one battery with a storage capacity of 48 Wh at their disposal. Without a doubt, the Toshiba device reaches the best battery run times. Toshiba PA3783U-1BRS Battery Toshiba PA3757U-1BRS Battery Toshiba PA3634U-1BRS Battery Toshiba PABAS259 PABAS260 Battery

The Toshiba Satellite Pro can be recommended solely for the office. It offers more than enough performance capability for all common usage scenarios and provides a large, satisfying display. This recommendation is restricted to office use due to dissatisfaction with the keyboard. Prolific writers would be rather unhappy with the C870's keyboard and should look to the Samsung Series 3 305E7A-S03DE instead. Anyone who seldom or never writes long texts would be able to live with the keyboard. The Acer Aspire 7739Z-P624650MNKK is recommendable only if price is the main criterion in choosing a notebook. The Acer notebook is currently available in the Acer Aspire 7739 (without a "Z" at the end) variant for about 400 Euros (~$509).