Toshiba Satellite U945-S4390 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Ice Blue with Fusion Lattice)

I've had this PC for a couple of week already. Reading the last two reviews I can add:

Good:

It's fast. Delivers several programa with no problem

It's very light & thin. Make sure you take a neoprene sleeve with it and you should have no problems

Battery lasts. I don't think it meets the 7 hours but could do 6 no problem.

Has a backlight keyboard which really comes in handy.

Bad:

Speakers: Definitely not great speakers (but still ok)

Gesture tracking: Being and iPod user I can tell you Windows 8 and/or Toshiba are stil far away from reaching genuine gesture interface. Try to zoom in or zoom out without going to the previus app...

Windows 8: I think this OS is in the middle land of a tablet and a PC. You'll definitely have the feeling this is a prototype...it's a weird interface.

But considering the price and other brands performances I could definitely rate this one as a 4 star, it's a good PC and I feel confortable with it.

Bought this laptop about a week ago to replace a rapidly aging 1st generation Macbook Pro. I would have preferred to replace it with a Macbook Air, but the superior performance of excel on windows & my rather small checkbook balance forced me to seek alternatives.

Pros

i5 processor

Backlit Keyboard

Ports (HDMI & 2 USB 3.0)

Cons

Weight feels heavier than I was expecting

Thickness just as thick as my macbookpro which had an optical drive

Battery last me around 4-5 hours not the 5-6 I was expecting

Ventilation vents heat out the bottom as opposed to mac laptops which vent heat out of the hinge area between the screen and rest of the computer keeping the bottom cooler

Speakers (they are as terrible as the other reviews would lead you to believe)

Overall I'm happy with the laptop. It clearly isn't a high-end $1000+ ultrabook or macbook, but I felt it's clearly worth more than the $560 including tax I paid for it. I would have preferred something thinner and lighter with a higher resolution screen, but the screen is more than satisfactory.

The machine doesn't get nearly as hot as my old MBP, however compared to my fiance's MB air, the bottom gets hot, and the fan runs much more often.

Like others have said, Windows 8 is awkward at first, and takes some getting used to. But after a few days I was comfortable with it. It really feels like an OS in transition from traditional windows XP/7 to something else, but it hasn't quite found it yet. That being said, I find the os very responsive on this machine

Overall this machine claims to be an ultrabook, but it is very much not in the spirit of one. It's too thick, too heavy, the battery (which is removable) doesn't last quite long enough, but because it meets the generous specs set forth by intel it has the ultrabook label. Really I see this machine as a budget ultrabook, which is fine because that it what I was looking for. Would I recommend this machine? Depends if you're on a budget,and want something thin and light without compromising power, this machine is for you. If size and weight is your priority and you can afford it, I'd suggest stepping up to something like a zen book or better yet a macbook air. This computer for me was bought with the intention of getting me through Business school, and after that I'm going right back to Macs, and this will get relegated to media server/watching hulu and netflix on my TV thanks to the HDMI port.

Update...

Battery life it's 4 hours on normal usage (browsing web, screen not at full brightness. The battery utility software toshiba included is stupid. Very stupid... my estimated remaining run time is 36 hours and I have it at a 50% charge.

Backlit keyboard other people have complained about ebing able to turn it on. I can attest that it doesn't like turning on, and is unpredictable whether or not I can get it on, restarting the machine is a pain but works

Trackpad was having serious issues with tap to click on and typing, accidental touches by my hand would mess me up. Couldn't fix it in Toshiba's settings, but found free software that automatically disables clicking on trackpad while I type, which is a life saver, and has allowed me to really enjoy the trackpad.

Overall would rate it higher but battery life is a disappointment. An ultrabook that gets as much batter life a 15inch laptop did 7 years ago I find to be somewhat unforgivable.

Buy Toshiba Satellite U945-S4390 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Ice Blue with Fusion Lattice) Now

As an Ultrabook and for the price I think this is a good laptop. The size, weight and general aesthetic are great and comparable to other ultrabooks. This was used to replace a netbook since the small screen was finally getting a bit annoying. Also Windows 8 is turning out to be quite easy to use after a bot of a learning curve. My wife was looking for a macbook air and has found this to be a great substitution.

Note that I did replace the memory with a much larger block of memory (16GB) for just ~$120 and that made the performance stellar. The only small complaint I might have is that the backlit keyboard is a bit silly as you have to type once before it will come on which is annoying when you really need the backlight. Not sure if there is a great way they could fix this outside of a light sensor.

Read Best Reviews of Toshiba Satellite U945-S4390 14.0-Inch Ultrabook (Ice Blue with Fusion Lattice) Here

There is a bigger difference between 14.0 inches and the smaller sized screens that other "Ultrabooks" have than you might expect. In my opinion, the larger screen on this laptop is worth the slight increase in size and weight. The price is about where it should be also.

This machine is fast, attractive, and seemingly well-made. I am happy with this laptop and think that you will be also.

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Extremely light weight, solid construction, looks so nice and professional. I used for many hours and don't get hot which surprise me a lot. I'm still on the learning curve for the Windows 8 but is something that sooner or later you need to do. I love to have the solid state disk cache, you can turn ON/OFF your ultrabook in seconds. the LED backlight keyboard is awesome, no problems with the WiFi connections, I can work or surf on the web without disturb my wife in the bedroom. You can't find a better deal for this price.

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