Rating: 
Summary: Almost great
Review: I purchased this laptop to replace my Compaq Presario 1600s. The Toshiba's low battery life is of little concern to me because I seldom need to use the laptop in a place without an ac outlet. While some reviewers do not like the heat generated by the Toshiba laptop, I find it comparable to the heat generated by the Compaq laptop.At its native resolution, the 5105-s501's screen is sharp, bright, and beautiful with excellent viewing angles. One day I was in a computer store and the 5105-s501 happened to be next to its sucessor, the 5205-s503. Ironically, the colors of the s501 screen were much richer than the s503 counterpart; the s503 seemed to have inferior viewing angles with slightly washed out colors. The s501's speakers are extremeley loud and clear, but are not as rich and distortion-free as the JBL Pro speakers found in older Compaq laptops. When the volume is at maximum, the subwoofer literally causes the keyboard to vibrate and distort the sound. Fortunately at such settings, one's ears can really hurt and one would be forced to lower the volume anyway, thus (mostly) avoiding the subwoofer vibration problem. Still, low frequency distortions can be heard on certain DVD movies like Star Wars Episode I even at mid-range volumes. These distortions do not exist at any volume range when watching DVDs on my old Compaq laptop. Except for the clicks that remind me of instant messaging event sounds and cricket chirps (yes, I thought that there were crickets outside!), the s501's hard drive is extremeley silent. The fan is loud the first moments when it is turned on, but after these first moments, it is relatively quiet.
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't be more happy to spend [the price]
Review: I recently purchased this incredible machine. I bought it kind of on a whim not, I was trying to make my old compaq 1200 last a bit longer but I gave in. I was fortunate to find the 5105-S501 on sale @ ciruit city ... I could not believe my eyes since I had always seen it priced ... The sound is amazing, it is quick with moving from one application to another, and the graphics are insane. I would highly reccomend this product to anyone looking to join the mobile revolution. I would also suggest buying an extra battery if you are truly mobile. I would say that the battery life and the fact that it tends to heat up are the only downfalls, well next to everyone wanting to get their hands on my machine. Toshiba seems to have created the "total package" with this model. Do yourself a favor, if you are looking and wanting to spend a bit less, spring for the 5105 it is completely worth it. I guarantee you will regret passing this machine up.
Rating:
Summary: Great Computer, bad hardrive (for me that is)
Review: I've had this laptop for about three years now and I've only had problems with the hard drive. The first time it crashed and I sent it in for repairs and came back with it pretty good...or so I thought. About a year after, the hard drive crashed again and this time i just went and bought my own hard drive and now it's working fine. Dispite the mishap with the hard drive, everything else works perfectly. Now with the new harddrive the computer works like brand new, although i no longer am able to use the mini remote that comes along with it because this harddrive doesn't have all the toshiba featurs built in.
Rating:
Summary: Great Laptop - Great Features
Review: It was not a long time ago that a laptop was considered more of a luxury than of an essence and having a laptop was considered a sign of prestige. Yet for an average user, the desktop was a better choice, since it was cheaper, faster with larger screen, more flexible and of course came with more standard functions comparing to a laptop. However, in a recent few years the price of laptops has became more and more affordable with better selection, speed and options available to a consumer looking to purchase a laptop. In consideration of the above said, the following review examines one of such models, Toshiba Satellite 5105-S501. Toshiba has always been known to produce a high quality equipment and their laptops, of course are of no exception either. The Satellite 5105-S501 is one of their entry line laptops, however there is nothing on this unit that can be considered an entry line. The Satellite 5105-S501 is powered by a P4 1700 MHz mobile class CPU, 512 MB PC400 RIMM memory (expandable to a 1 GB of memory), 40Gb 5400 Hard drive, 15.1"Active Matrix LCD (TFT) and up to 32MB of external (not shared video memory) DDR 220 MHz video memory through the Nvidia GeForce4 440 Go video card. The barebone specifications of this caliber are capable of performing a most challenging job and the 15.1' screen is comfortable to look at and work with. Yet, the added value of this system goes even further. The unit comes equipped as a standard option with DVD/CDRW combo, 16 bit (Yamaha YMF753 codec chip) digital audio card with Toshiba's personal theatre UXGA active matrix display capable of resolutions of up to 1280x1024 resolution with the standard RCA TV out port if you want or need to hook up your laptop to a TV or projector. This of course might not be needed when you are working, but the addition of DVD/CDRW paired with decent sound and reasonable video card is surely welcomed when you are finished with work and want to wind down next to a DVD movie or you want to kill some time while on the road by playing your favorite game or listening to your favorite music. Furthermore to the above, the unit is quite loaded with extra options. Both 56K dial up modem as well as 10/100 RJ45 Ethernet card are included as standard options, thus enabling you to quickly network your laptop with the rest of your network or to dial in if you are out on the road where the high speed is not an option as well as with the standard 3 USB ports to connect most of the external devices out there as well as the I-Link IEEE 1394 firewire port. Also for situations where this technology is available to utilize, the unit comes with S400, Infrared as well with IrDA Wireless Fast Infrared (IrDA-FIR) as a standard option. As far as quality of workmanship is concerned, as always was the case, the Toshiba products are built tough with great care and attention to detail. The Satellite 5105-S501 of course if of no exception to this rule. The unit looks great and performs even greater. Powered by Microsoft's Windows XP home (comes pre-installed) and a full sized 85 key, 12 functions, 2.7 keystroke, 6 mm height keyboard with the standard touch pad pointing device, this unit is pleasure to work with. The unit's weight and dimensions are up to par with the rest of the competition as well. The Satellite 5105-S501 weighs 7.13 lbs. without the battery pack and is 1.8" high, 11.6" wide and 12.9" deep. The average battery life at normal load and operation is about 1.5 hours which is once again up to par with the competition. However, if you are going to spend the extended time on the road and you will be using your computer frequently, to invest extra money in a spare battery pack that should extend the time you can use your laptop without recharging or hooking it up to a permanent power source. However, if there is ever any questions that need to be answered, Toshiba's trained technical support line is always there to answer your questions. I have found this unit to be performing great and working even greater, and if you ever decide to purchase one of them, you too will be amazed by great performance and great looks. ... And once again, thank you for reading another one of my reviews. I hope you have enjoyed reading it just as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Rating: 
Summary: Defective laptop - LOUSY customer service
Review: Last September 3rd I bought a Toshiba Satellite 5105-S501 laptop from Amazon.com, received it September 9th and was pretty happy with it. Still, by October 25th, the hard drive was failing. So, last Tuesday, November 5th, I took my laptop to ... New York City. I am still waiting for my laptop. Anyway, I do believe I'll get my computer back. But, I thought to myself, I haven't bought a brand new Toshiba laptop to have it be turned into a refurbished Toshiba laptop in less than 2 months of light use. So, I called Toshiba's customer service and I asked them to send me a new laptop, same model, same configuration. The customer service supervisor on duty, ... told me that Toshiba would not replace my computer with a new one, nor would they give me a refund. When I told him that ... offers refunds, he told me: "I am sorry sir, that's a different company". It sure is. I did a bit of research on the Better Business Bureau's website and saw that Toshiba's level of customer service, unlike ... is deemed unsatisfactory. So, think really hard before buying a Toshiba. I sure won't make the same mistake again.
Rating: 
Summary: After you buy it, you're on your own...
Review: My Toshiba Satellite lasted a little over a year before hardware began to fail ("blue screen of death", CDR/W would no longer write, etc). Fortunately, the system came with system recovery disks (Symantic Ghost), but having to ghost the hard drive three times in the last two months seemed impractical. Device drivers are non-existant and Toshiba online support is pathetic - a constant, mindnumbing circle of useless websites.
Definitely my last Toshiba... and this one is soon to be scrapped.
Rating:
Summary: After you buy it, you're on your own...
Review: My Toshiba Satellite lasted a little over a year before hardware began to fail ("blue screen of death", CDR/W would no longer write, etc). Fortunately, the system came with system recovery disks (Symantic Ghost), but having to ghost the hard drive three times in the last two months seemed impractical. Device drivers are non-existant and Toshiba online support is pathetic - a constant, mindnumbing circle of useless websites.
Definitely my last Toshiba... and this one is soon to be scrapped.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the money
Review: Originally, I bought a notebook from a different manufacturer. When it broke after a week of use, I exchanged it for this Toshiba. The Toshiba was ... more expensive... money well spent, as the Toshiba is much better. The screen is extremely bright and clear, with wide viewing angles. Its high resolution is a definite plus if you're into graphics or spreadsheets. DVDs look very good (better than on my desktop computer), with no pixelization in most movies. The HK speakers provide the best sound I've heard from a notebook. The keyboard has a good typing feel to it. You can use the handy remote control for DVD functions, the Toshiba Media Player, and basic power-on and locking. That 3rd USB port means you won't have to switch cables as often. Cosmetically, the muted metallic blue casing looks better than standard black. Downsides? The notebook is huge. Its depth prevents it from fitting in many computer bags. It doesn't have a parallel port, the audio/video in/out uses minijack-to-RCA cables, and the USB is only 1.1. Nothing too major. Everyone I've shown the Toshiba to has been impressed, mainly by the screen and the remote. Although its asking price is [more], it's fast, has a big screen, lots of RAM, and a big harddrive. This notebook has exceeded my expectations.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: The best laptop I have ever had. Never ever had a problem. I would buy it again, and again, and again...
Rating:
Summary: An excellent notebook
Review: This is simply an awesome machine! Battery life is not so good but it's a small concern if you looking for a portable desktop replacement PC. It even has a remote control! Highly recommended!
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