Toshiba Satellite A500 review: Toshiba Satellite A500

The Toshiba Satellite A500 is a budget laptop aimed at those who don’t earn a banker’s salary but still want a machine that will let them watch movies, listen to music and play the odd game. There are two versions available: the A500-17X and the A500-19X. Here we review the slightly inferior A500-19X, which is available for around £600.

Purdy

The A500 isn’t particularly adventurous in terms of its design. Its chunky chassis, large, upwards-facing speakers and prominent Toshiba logo are all to be expected from the Satellite range. It all comes together rather well, though. We especially like the fact that the entire laptop — even the keyboard — is coated in a glossy black finish with a subtle isobar-style wave pattern, and the oversize chrome mouse selector buttons are also appealing.

That glossy finish has its drawbacks, though. It looks gorgeous when clean, but, if you lay a finger or palm or even breathe on it, it’ll attract grime and smudges quicker than Usain Bolt can smash a world record. Even the screen has a glossy finish. While that’s useful for enhancing the appearance of colours and contrast, it has the same annoying habit of becoming easily soiled on contact with human skin.

Sturdy

One of our favourite things about the A500 is its solid build quality. It feels almost bomb-proof, and will inspire confidence in its users. Its keyboard is worthy of particular praise. Its springy, positive action feels absolutely phenomenal and is so satisfying to type on that it’s almost reminiscent of popping bubble wrap or walking on crisp autumn leaves. The aforementioned ludicrously oversized mouse selector buttons feel great too, with a positive action that’ll leave you in no doubt as to whether you’ve clicked them.