Toshiba Satellite U845W-S410 review: Toshiba Satellite U845W-S410

Now that ultrabooks have hit the mainstream, the evolution of slimmer laptops has started to undergo Darwinian mutation. Consider the oddity that is the Toshiba Satellite U845W: a compact Core i5 ultrabook that has a ridiculously wide 21:9-ratio 14.4-inch display. Neither a standard laptop screen nor an ultra-high-resolution Retina Display-type experience, the 1,792x768-pixel maximum resolution amounts to a freakshow in the computer world. Is Toshiba putting us on?

7.5

Toshiba Satellite U845W-S410

The Good

A clean design, impressive-sounding speakers, an extra-large 14.4-inch wide-screen display, and good battery life make the <b>Toshiba Satellite U845W</b> a solid ultrabook with some notable extras.

The Bad

That extra-wide screen, when it works with movie files, can be fun; but many streaming video services don't play nicely, and the U845W lacks a DVD player. The screen height is smaller than the average 13-inch laptop, and the keyboard is not that comfortable.

The Bottom Line

The media-geared Toshiba Satellite U845W has an extra-wide 21:9 screen and Harman Kardon speakers, but no DVD or Blu-ray player. The screen is a novelty act that offers some benefits, but it's really no better than your standard laptop for most uses.

The novelty is not as absurd in practice as you'd think. The 21:9 aspect ratio amounts to a CinemaScope-wide screen, enough to view a movie with no letterboxing. In addition to movie-watching, the screen is also ideal for side-by-side Web browsing or document editing.

I'm not going to deny that the U845W is a bit of a concept car among laptops. However, its price isn't absurd: the U845W-S410 entry-level model I reviewed costs $999, squarely in the normal spectrum of ultrabook prices, although with the 500GB hard drive our configuration includes (it also has a solid-state drive), you can find similar ultrabooks lacking tricked-out screens for as low as $700.

You're buying a laptop with an extra-wide screen, better-than-average speakers, and the same internal specs you'd find in any current ultrabook. You don't get dedicated graphics for gaming, nor do you get an optical drive for DVD or Blu-ray content -- perhaps the biggest omission in a laptop geared toward HD movie watching. If you want to watch movies, get ready to stream or download them.

The other thing I can't shake after using the U845W here in my office: it feels like a 15-inch laptop with its barrel sawed off. The width of the U845W matches the average 15-incher, but the depth of the footprint is shallower than a 13-inch laptop. Shallow airline trays will love the U845W, but small backpacks, bags, and maybe even your lap won't like the surfboard shape quite as much.

The Satellite U845W earns props for being a clever, even cleverly useful laptop depending on who you are, at a price that's not egregious. It's just not -- big surprise -- for everyone, simply because that big, wide screen isn't necessary. And, in the end, that screen will cost you money: consider that the Satellite U845-S406, a similar laptop in terms of CPU, RAM, and hard drive without the wide screen and improved speakers, costs $879.