Toshiba A505D-S6987: A Look at Turion II Ultra M600 Performance

Toshiba A505D-S6987 Conclusion

When dealing with a notebook like Toshiba's A505D-S6987, what we're really looking at is the value proposition. No one builds the perfect notebook and it's always going to be an exercise in compromises. Toshiba lists (or listed) an MSRP of $799 on their site, and that price is very steep when other AMD-based notebooks can be found for less. Even Core i3-based notebooks are available at lower prices; you lose the antiquated-but-still-fairly-reliable Mobility Radeon HD 4200 integrated graphics, but you're liable to gain substantially in processor performance and battery life. At MSRP, you can do much better, but thankfully no one sells at MSRP.

This exact model sold for $633 on Amazon the last time we checked, and a comparable Toshiba that's identical to our unit except for a slightly slower M500 processor can be had for less than $475 at Best Buy. When you get down to these prices, the value of the A505D begins to come through. The performance and expandability are there, and if you're looking for a basic desktop replacement notebook that you can do some extremely light gaming on, it becomes pretty easy to recommend. Like the Acer 5542, then, it's a matter of pricing, and we'd recommend looking for $400-$450 with an M300 series processor, or around $500 for the M500/M600 parts. The A505D falls into the latter category, and depending on how much weight you place on extras like eSATA and ExpressCard, it surpasses some of the competition.

The main caveats are going to be the mediocre battery life and the must-have-gloss-everywhere styling, and these are both going to be a matter of measuring what you'll be using the notebook for and what you're willing to put up with. Glossy plastic is a fingerprint magnet, and the appearance of the A505D is definitely going to be a matter of taste. More than that, you'll want to see if you can actually type comfortably on the keyboard. We're reviewers and hardware junkies who go through a lot of different hardware, and at least this reviewer in particular can get picky about what he types on. [Ed: I tried it as well and disliked the glossy keys, but the layout was good and at least there wasn't a ton of flex.]

Thankfully, Toshiba has a massive retail presence, and taking one of their notebooks for a spin at a local shop should be extremely easy. We can tell you the performance is there and the battery life isn't, but this one's going to come down to taste, aesthetics, and whether or not there's a sale. Check it out for yourself and if you like how it looks and feels (or at least wouldn't mind it), and the battery life doesn't bother you, we can comfortably recommend it. For an updated look and improved performance at a moderate increase in price, the Toshiba A665 is now available as well. We expect to have our review of that notebook ready in the next two weeks, and it will provide a better idea of what AMD's new Danube platform has to offer.