Toshiba Satellite L455-S5975
Manufacturer: Toshiba Part number: PSLY0U-00V001
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- While it's hard to argue with a $330 laptop, the old-fashioned-looking L455-S5975 cuts some serious corners to get you a package that will suit only basic users.
Read more
Where to buy
| store | customer rating | inventory | tax & shipping | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best Buy |  | See Site | Enter zip code to get total price: Price +Tax +Shipping =Total price | as of 12/08/2009 |
CNET editors' review
Toshiba Satellite L455-S5975 price range: $299.99
- Reviewed by: Scott Stein
- Edited by: Dan Ackerman
- Reviewed on: 11/02/2009
The good: Ridiculously affordable; large screen.
The bad: Slow, older CPU; no Webcam; terrible battery life.
The bottom line: While it's hard to argue with a $330 laptop, the old-fashioned-looking L455-S5975 cuts some serious corners to get you a package that will suit only basic users.
Editors' note: This review is part of our 2009 Retail Laptop and Desktop Holiday Roundup, which covers specific fixed configurations of popular systems found in retail stores.
We've said it before, and we'll say it again: especially in this economy, it's hard to hate a laptop that only costs $330. It's even harder to hate a Windows 7 laptop that costs that much. The Toshiba L455-S5975 is, by at least 50 dollars, the least expensive notebook computer in our 2009 holiday retail laptop roundup. Less expensive than many Netbooks, the L455 sounds too good to be true for a computer with a 15.6-inch screen and Microsoft's newest OS. And, to some extent, it is. Starting with a shape that comes from a time machine dialed to 10 years ago to an underpowered Celeron processor inside--the very same Celeron that we've already seen before in the last retail roundup--the L455 won't ever be confused for anything other than a bargain.
We thought the L455-S5975 looked familiar, and it turns out we weren't crazy. The Toshiba Satellite L305-S5955 (you have to love Toshiba's naming conventions) had nearly the same specs. The L455 does have a larger hard drive, at 250GB, as well as the aforementioned Windows 7 Premium, and a massive 15.6-inch, 16x9 screen.
While this laptop is fine for basic e-mail, media-viewing, music-playing, and other simple tasks, we wouldn't recommend it for any sort of multitasking or serious multimedia. It was a dinosaur before, and it's even more of a dinosaur now processor-wise, but Windows 7 does run fine on it, and, all things considered, this could be the sort of bargain a low-expectations consumer is looking for.
| Price as reviewed / Starting price | $330 |
| Processor | 2.2GHz Intel Celeron 900 |
| Memory | 2GB, DDR2 800 MHz |
| Hard drive | 250GB 5,400rpm |
| Chipset | Mobile Intel GM45 |
| Graphics | Intel GMA 4500MHD |
| Operating System | Windows 7 Home Premium |
| Dimensions (WD) | 15.1 inches wide by 10.5 inches deep |
| Height | 1.5 inches |
| Screen size (diagonal) | 15.6 inches |
| System weight / Weight with AC adapter | 5.8 / 6.5 pounds |
| Category | Mainstream |
The next question you may have is, "Why wouldn't I just buy a Netbook?" To that, we answer: it depends on whether a larger screen and keyboard matter to you. Netbooks are considerably more portable, and many newer Netbooks have enhanced GPUs like the Nvidia Ion that can handle HD graphics quite well. On the other hand, although many Netbooks are getting larger screens and keyboards, they still have compromised keyboard sizes and small screens that might be too limiting. One previous "advantage" in laptops' favor--that full-fledged laptops ran Windows Vista while Netbooks came with Windows XP--has been equalized, as even new Netbooks now have Windows 7.
Before buying, ask yourself what you're using this laptop for. Large laptops carry a different set of expectations than Netbooks do. Many users expect larger laptops--no matter how low-powered or inexpensive--to behave more-or-less like standard mainstream systems.
The L455-S5975 will never be confused for a Netbook from the outside--at 1.5 inches thick, it's larger than many multimedia laptops--and the matte, gray-silver, plastic chassis feels like a throwback to laptops from years past. On the other hand, at least it's not fingerprint-prone. There's a full-size keyboard with tapered keys, a power button, and that's it--all other media controls are accomplished with function key combinations. Volume control, like with the similar Toshiba L505D-S5965, is operated via a wheel at the front of the laptop, under the touch pad. As far as the touch pad goes, it's flat, gray, and perfectly standard. Two large and slightly clunky buttons lie below it.
The 15.6-inch LCD glossy screen has a resolution of 1,366x768, which is standard for an inexpensive mainstream laptop. Unlike its predecessor, the L305, the L455 has a 16x9 screen. When displaying streaming videos and playing games, it looked sharp but a little more washed-out at extreme angles than an LED-backlit display.
| Toshiba Satellite L455-S5975 | Average for category [mainstream] | |
| Video | VGA-out | VGA-out, HDMI |
| Audio | Stereo speakers, headphone/microphone jacks | Stereo speakers, headphone/microphone jacks |
| Data | 3 USB 2.0, SD card reader | 4 USB 2.0, SD card reader |
| Expansion | None | ExpressCard/54 |
| Networking | Ethernet, 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi | Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, optional WWAN |
| Optical drive | DVD burner | DVD burner |
You can count the port features on one hand: thee USB 2.0 jacks, a basic VGA output, and an SD card slot. It seems like someone was listening to us over at Toshiba, since we wished for that SD card slot over an ExpressCard in its last retail cheapie, the L305-S5955. There is no Webcam--an omission that's hardly surprising in such a low-cost model.
The Celeron 900 is an older, bottom-line Intel processor, and we'd have a hard time recommending it to anyone for mainstream computing needs. Its multitasking performance is terrible, since it's a single-core processor; basic office work and Web browsing plus e-mail and occasional media browsing are about all that can be expected. Even worse, the L455 performed slightly worse in our benchmark tests than the previously middling L305-S5955. It's better than a basic Netbook, but not by much. Still, our anecdotal use of the L455-S5975 yielded acceptable results for basic tasks. Streaming video worked well, as long as the video was lower-resolution and not full-screen--480p Hulu streams in full-screen were stutter-filled. Non-streaming video played better than on Netbooks lacking Nvidia Ion GPUs. The L455 is poor at multitasking, and not much better at single-tasking.
 Juice box |
|
| Mainstream (Avg watts/hour) | |
| Off (60%) | 0.35 |
| Sleep (10%) | 0.84 |
| Idle (25%) | 12.6 |
| Load (05%) | 28.3 |
| Raw kWh Number | 42.56 |
| Annual Energy Cost | $4.83 |
The L505D-S5965's battery life was the biggest clunker, though: it lasted only through 1 hour and 47 minutes of video playback using our CNET battery drain test. This fall's L305 did better using the same low-power Celeron processor, which is surprising and disappointing. In this day and age, less than two hours of battery life is just plain poor, especially for a mainstream laptop. Having the worst battery life and processor performance combo in our retail roundup certainly doesn't help its appeal any.
The Toshiba Satellite L455-S5965 is backed by an industry-standard, one-year warranty. Support is accessible 24-7 via a toll-free phone line, an online knowledge base, and a Web site with driver downloads. While retail shops are happy to sell you an in-store extended warranty, they are often expensive and hard to use, so we don't recommend them.
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
Asus K60IJ-RBLX05
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 2.1GHz Intel Pentium Dual-Core T4300;
4096MB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 32MB (Dedicated Video) Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD;
320GB Seagate5400rpm
Toshiba Satellite T135-S1309
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 1.3GHz Intel Pentium SU4100;
3072MB DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz; 128MB (Shared Video) Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD;
320GB Toshiba 5400rpm
Toshiba Satellite A505-S6980
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T6600;
4096MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; 128MB (Shared Video) Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD;
500GB Toshiba 5400rpm
HP Pavilion dv4-2045dx
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 2.2GHz AMD Turion II Dual-Core M500;
4096MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; 320MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3200;
320GB Western Digital 5400rpm
Dell Inspiron 1545-4374
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 2.1GHz Intel Pentium Dual-Core T4300;
4096MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; 32MB (Dedicated Video) Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD;
320GB Hitachi 5400rpm
Gateway NV7802u
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T6600;
4096MB DDR3 SDRAM 800MHz; 64MB (Dedicated Video) Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD;
500GB Western Digital 5400rpm
Sony Vaio VGN-NW240F/T
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T6600;
4096MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz; 128MB (Shared Video) Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD;
320GB Fujitsu 5400rpm
Gateway NV5207u
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit); 2.1GHz AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core QL-65;
4096MB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 256MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3200; 320GB Hitachi 5400rpm
Toshiba Satellite L455-S5975
Windows 7 Home Premium; 2.2GHz Intel Celeron 900; 2048MB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz;
128MB (Shared Video) Mobile Intel GMA 4500MHD; 250GB Toshiba 5400rpm
User reviews
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great value, good performance
by PaulyWalnutter on November 8, 2009
Pros: amazing deal, large hd, good display, great wi-fi connection (though only b&g), 2.2 ghz processor, windows 7 (netbooks usually have basic xp)
Cons: short battery life, no number pad
Summary: hulu works fine (even in "hi-res" mode), I did not have the same result as this reviewer on this model. VLC media player plays videos and movies great on this ...
Summary: hulu works fine (even in "hi-res" mode), I did not have the same result as this reviewer on this model. VLC media player plays videos and movies great on this computer. As for the processor, 2.2 ghz at this price is an amazing deal, even if it is just single core. no webcam? you get one for $15 like me, which you can move around to show your screen (unlike a built in) . skype, avgfree, and even some older programs i liked that didn't work on vista work on this computer. I don't agree a netbook is a better move than this, most processors on netbooks are just 1.8 ghz (atom) max, that's much slower than the one on this laptop. also on netbooks you get winxp basic version, and despite the hype you still need an optical drive, no question. unless you want to deal with virtual drives all day which I know how to do but is a pain. i returned my asus 1000he and got this laptop and am very happy, and this is a real computer that is less $$. agree the battery life is weak, so that will be an upgrade. more memory too.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Great laptop for the price, and very simple.
by 809areacode on December 5, 2009
Pros: *The laptop includes VGA, 3 USB, audio, phone, ethernet, CD/DVD RW, and power jack.
*Nice size, not too big, not to small
*Battery life is fair
*Runs Ubuntu really well
*Looks very simple and old fashionedCons: *Heavier than most new laptops
*Large mouse buttons can show wear within a day (they become loose quickly)
*No DVI or S-Video
*Speakers don't work very wellSummary: This laptop is pretty good. The deal was phenomenal, I got it from office depot for $350.00. I was actually planning on getting a Lenovo Thinkpad SL400 for $499....
Summary: This laptop is pretty good. The deal was phenomenal, I got it from office depot for $350.00. I was actually planning on getting a Lenovo Thinkpad SL400 for $499.99, however, I saw this laptop in an ad and their specs at minimum are pretty much the same. So this laptop won. I'm not letting screen size choose my laptop for me, it's the deal (my preference for screen size is 14.1"). Well, this laptop works well, it boots up and shuts down fairly quickly. It has a nice WXGA display. Like I said, it's pretty heavy, though it's much lighter than it's predecessor, Dell Latitude C610. It runs office applications pretty well, and runs Ubuntu Linux really well. It games pretty well, too. I don't usually have very many large files (I try to keep a clean system), so 250gb hard disk is plenty for me. It plays music and movies well, however, I'd recommend using external speakers or headphones,as the laptop speakers are bad (though to me, good laptop speakers or battery life is a myth). There's no DVI or S-Video, but that is fine, as using a VGA cable to a flatscreen TV worked pretty well. The mouse buttons are rather large, and clicking them near the middle can cause them to become loose (but not fall off) pretty quickly. In fact, I noticed a difference the first day that I used this laptop. Nowdays I just tap the touchpad for clicking, so it doesn't really matter that much, but I'm self-conscience about the condition of my laptop, and don't want it to have any little problems like that. Multimedia users will not like this laptop very much, as it is lacking in the ports, however, for a user like me, who works with older computers and parts, the computer is fine (though it lacks serial ports). It's pretty old fashioned and simple looking, so depending on who you are, this is either a good thing or a bad thing.
Who would I recommend this laptop to? Well, if you're just a user who needs a laptop for the basics, web browsing, e-mail, office applications, or most computer games, I'd recommend this laptop to you. However, if you're a frequent traveler who takes long flights or moves around a lot, a multimedia junkie, a hardcore gamer, or otherwise needing certain conveniences not listed, I'd say that you need to set your sights a little higher. However, it is pretty hard to say no to a $350 laptop, so I'd say that for the price, this laptop is phenomenal. -
Great computer for my 65 yr old mom or light computing.
by cclaxton3 on November 29, 2009
Pros: Great value at $350. Plenty of cpu to handle MS Office apps, photo management, and playing a DVD and browsing internet and doing email. Good keyboard, large screen, good touchpad, good Toshiba-key manager for laptop. Wireless worked great.
Cons: Windows 7 with no option to downgrade to Vista or XP. This forced us to throw away the webcam from the previous computer and the scanner. No built-in webcam is a downer, but $10 one works fine, but occupies one of three USB ports.
Summary: Great notebook for general purpose home or light business use. Not sure about battery life....untested. Extended warranty was cheaper at the store....twice the price at Toshiba Online...and ...
Summary: Great notebook for general purpose home or light business use. Not sure about battery life....untested. Extended warranty was cheaper at the store....twice the price at Toshiba Online...and at $90 clearly not worth adding one year. Took a lot of time to clean it up from the packaged demo applications and turn on widgets, and uninstall unnecessary stuff. Not a notebook for a power user or gaming (other than internet facebook games) or for heavy multimedia use.
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I use mine daily about 4 to 6 hours since I'm disabled
by Fcunningham21 on November 27, 2009
Pros: I love the display and the keyboard
Cons: I only wish it had a 10 key keyboard for me for entering numbers. As a former bookkeeper, I'm used to entering numbers that way.
Summary: I absolutely love this product for a laptop. If I had thousands of dollars to spend on a laptop I'm sure there are others I'd like better, but ...
Summary: I absolutely love this product for a laptop. If I had thousands of dollars to spend on a laptop I'm sure there are others I'd like better, but for the money that I had to spend this computer is the tops and I'm thrilled with it!
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Great computer for the money...does everything I need
by dartman64 on November 25, 2009
Pros: built in wireless...CD/DVD player and burner...large keyboard...large screen...250 gig hard drive
Cons: 2 gig of RAM...I need to upgrade to 4 gig and short battery life
Summary: I bought this computer for $329.95 and for the money it is great. I use it every day and works great..I watch TV show with it and it ...
Summary: I bought this computer for $329.95 and for the money it is great. I use it every day and works great..I watch TV show with it and it never skips so the processor is able to keep up. I still plan on upgrading RAM to 4 GIG myself.
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A super deal. Only one CPU but that's all I need!
by BaBaO-1 on November 21, 2009
Pros: Price-can't be beat for 16 inch screen, Windows 7, 2.2 GHz processor, 2 GB of RAM, and adequate disk space. And no 10 digit keypad taking up space on the keyboard(I hate that!).
Cons: No modem (for those of us still on dial-up). Weak battery-but you get what you pay for.
Summary: The Cnet reviewer kept harping on how restricted it is due to having only one processor. To me, another processor is about $120. And guess what, most people wouldn't ...
Summary: The Cnet reviewer kept harping on how restricted it is due to having only one processor. To me, another processor is about $120. And guess what, most people wouldn't be able to use another processor anyway. In fact, I feel taken advantage of the last Laptop I bought which has two processors, cost >$600, and my scientific applications can only use one CPU at a time anyway. Gamers may have an issue with this but for most others, price is more important. If you're only running one application at a time, you can only use one processor anyway.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Toshiba
- Part number: PSLY0U-00V001
- Bottom Line: While it's hard to argue with a $330 laptop, the old-fashioned-looking L455-S5975 cuts some serious corners to get you a package that will suit only basic users.
General
- Width 15.1 in
- Depth 10.5 in
- Height 1.5 in
- Color Matte silver
- Notebook type Budget
Processor
- Processor Intel Celeron 900 / 2.2 GHz
- Data bus speed 800 MHz
- Chipset type Intel 40GL Express
Cache Memory
- Type L2 cache
- Cache size 1 MB
RAM
- Installed Size 2 GB / 8 GB (max)
- Technology DDR II SDRAM
Environmental Parameters
- Humidity Range Operating 10 - 90%
- Max Altitude Operating 32808 ft
Storage Controller
- Storage controller type Serial ATA
Storage
- Floppy Drive None
- Hard Drive 250 GB
- Storage Removable None
- Hard drive type Standard
Optical Storage
- Type DVD+/-RW
- CD / DVD read speed 24x (CD) / 8x (DVD)
- CD / DVD write speed 24x (CD) / 8x (DVD) / 5x (DVD-RAM) / 6x (DVD Double layer)
Display
- Display Type 15.6 in TFT active matrix
- Max Resolution 1366 x 768
- Features TruBrite technology
Video
- Graphics Processor / Vendor Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500M
- Video Memory 128 MB
Audio
- Audio output type Sound card
- Audio Input Microphone
Input Device(s)
- Input device type Keyboard, Touchpad
Networking
- Data link protocol Ethernet, Fast Ethernet
Expansion / Connectivity
- Expansion Slots Total (Free) Memory, Memory card reader
- Interfaces 3 x USB 2.0 - USB 2.0, 1 x Ethernet - RJ-45, 1 x Display / video - RGB, 1 x Microphone, 1 x Headphones
Miscellaneous
- Features 802.11b/g Wireless LAN, Camera
Power
- Power provided 65 Watt
Battery
- Technology Lithium ion
- Installed Qty 1
- Mfr estimated battery life 2.7 hour(s)
Operating System / Software
- OS Provided Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
- Software Drivers & Utilities, Toshiba Disc Creator, Toshiba Recovery Media Creator, Toshiba ConfigFree, Toshiba DVD Player, Hard Disc Recovery, Norton Internet Security 2009, WildTangent, Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007, Microsoft Works 9.0
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support 1 year warranty
Sustainability
- Greenpeace policy rating (Sept 2009) 5.7
Manufacturer info
- Toshiba
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Toshiba products on Shopper.com
-
- Website: http://www.toshiba.com
- Address:
1251 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020 - Phone: 1-800-316-0920
