I purchased this laptop recently for school purposes. So far it's running beautifully, and I haven't had any problems with it. Windows 7 is good, much better than Vista at launch. The only big issue I have with it is the sound: it's not that good, but I've heard that other L505 laptops have the same issue, and the problem is usually fixed with drivers. The problem here is that I think BestBuy started selling this piece early, so it's not supported yet on Toshiba's website.I found it at BestBuy for $550 before tax, which is considerably lower than other places. Try to find it for that price if you can. If you cannot, then wait until it's supported on the Toshiba website.
After setting it up for her I spent a day experimenting. Here is my assessment of the Satellite L505D-GS6000:
Pros:
it runs smoothly on Win-7 with a minimum of the balky behavior experienced with XP
video and video card are excellent
the webcam is much better than expected
battery life is well-inline with specs
comes with Microsoft works, which is perfect for those not wishing to spend a lot of money
on software they won't use, such as the Office Suite
Cons:
speaker, though turned up to maximum did not allow hearing of media player
64-bit software limitations are still severely limiting
cooler will be needed, unless you like replacing the hard drive every 12-24 months
The sound quality can easily be improved with cheap speakers provided by Microsoft and Logitech, two reliable providers. The cost would be in the $30-40 range.
When I used Vista 64-bit in July 2009, I found it impossible to find replacements for expensive upgrades provided by Norton (antivirus), Webroot (Spysweeper) and others. Many technical software providers, such as AutoDesk require complete upgrades such as over $800 for AutoCAD Lt 2010. To my surprise, Win-7, which was a vast improvement over clunky Vista, would not allow me to run AutoCAD Lt 2007. I purchased AutoCAD Lt 2007 for about $1000.
Here's how I met the challenge. First, I went back to Win-7 32-bit, although this will cost me RAM; you need 4G minimum for Win-7 anyway (not 2G they said in 2006 this happened before with MS XP!). I run a gamer machine with 8G, so I can tolerate using it all to run 32-bit Win-7.
With 64-bit Win-7, it's different. You will find that the new and improved Internet Explorer has a pretty good firewall according to PC magazine. However, I recommend using the Norton Internet Security package that comes with the Toshiba L505D-GS6000. It runs much smoother than the original Norton software of 2009. Next, you should add CCleaner, which is an excellent tool for removing cookies and such for free; go to CNET or another reliable free software site with less chance of picking up spyware.
Unfortunately, you will find than many 32-bit softwares won't run such as Avast! Free Antivirus. You will get warning that the software did not load or than no warning at all. Look for the software on your computer faceplate. If it isn't there, it probably didn't load. You can check using Control Panel too.
I'm advising everyone owning a laptop to buy a cooler. I've owned laptops for years and the new duo-cores run very hot; hot enough to eventually destroy the hard drive, CD player and even the CPU. You will want a fan-driven cooler because the so-called passive coolers don't do the job. I've tried both and you can expect to see a 20 F improvement with a fan unit compared to half of that with a passive unit. Believe me, it's cheap insurance. A cooler will cost about $30-50 and a new hard drive will cost about $200, so you do the math. I prefer a Targus twin-fan unit.
My only complaint is that the laptop makers haven't caught up. The fan for most laptops draw air in the bottom through a tiny 1-2 inch grated spot in the lower upper left corner of the laptop and expell at the side. Wouldn't it be nice if the cooler fan were located near the inlet? A push-pull system would improve cooling. When it gets really hot, i.e., in the 90's, I use a wash cloth and ice pack to cool my computer for web-brousing. The wash cloth goes under the ice pack to catch humidity collecting on the ice pack. This works well.
If this review was helpful, please add your vote.I purchased the gs6000 last weekend. The salesperson recommended the Toshiba gs6000 with the AMD processor over the computer I was going to purchase with the Intel processor. That left me confused since I had not heard of the AMD processor. I went home and did some research on AMD processors. The AMD won hands down in almost all reviews I read, excelling in graphics. So far, I love the Toshiba. It's very quiet. The touch pad was scrolling at times, which I thought was not working correctly until my step daughter got on it and informed me the right side of the touch pad was made to scroll! I have always owned a Dell. One thing I really like about the Toshiba is that the fan vent is on the side, keeping the bottom much cooler than my old Dell where the fan was on the bottom. The only complaint I would have is the keys are not concave, which I am used to. Just a preference. I mainly use it for photography. So far, it's great!I bought this at bestbuy and it was a great price..you have 14 days to try a laptop there and I tried couple of dells then for the first time said heck with it and went with toshiba with amd..I have always had Pentium..but, I have this amd one and its great..the speakers arent bad in this at all..matter of fact its louder than some and even louder than the asus brand i tried. I even had to turn it down! go figure..this machine is awesome..and the design is sexy! the key board is great and I even like the numbers on the right side..I never had a laptop with that on the side..I actually use it more than I thought..I am happy with my final choice..I think that toshiba has won me over for a couple of years..anyway..I will more than likely got another one from toshiba..!!This laptop works like a dream! This is my 2nd Toshiba laptop and though I had my heart set on a Satellite Pro (just because, LOL), this, to me, was a much better value for money ($530.00 before tax, from BestBuy). It has worked beautifully from day one and has never given me cause for regret.
My first laptop (Toshiba Satellite also) came with Vista and gave me no end of headaches, to the point where I had to change to WinXP and upgrade the memory. (After this, it worked great.) Because of this, I was a little wary of Win7 but I shouldn't have been no problems there at all. It recognizes everything I stick in it (except for my HP printer, but it was easy to get the drivers online) and I've had no thought of upgrading the memory it came with, something I've had to do with every other computer I've owned.
I must also mention how much I like the keyboard beautiful, wide keys and a number keypad (!!!), which my previous laptop did not have and which was a constant source of grumbling to me.
My one and only complaint about this product would be the speakers quite frankly, they're terrible! But no biggie for me, I simply use external speakers.
Overall, great product at a great price!
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