Toshiba Satellite 1905-S277 Notebook

Notebooks come in a variety of sizes. Long gone are the days where notebooks came in one size: large and luggable Advancements in technology have produced a full range of notebook sizes. For those out there looking for maximum portability, the are the so called "sub-notebook" class computer sacrifice high power and high speed components for size. The continued miniaturization of computer components has made is possible to find full fledged computers that rival the size of yesterdays PDAs.

A second class of notebooks is the "thin and light" class; notebooks that typically strike a balance between size and speed. Think of these notebooks as desktops on a diet, often incorporating somewhat speedy processors but leaving out larger notebook extras such as internal drives and large displays.

The final broad category that notebooks can be placed in is the "desktop replacement" category. Desktop replacement notebooks generally sacrifice very little when it comes to speed. Instead of focusing on a slim design or light weight, desktop replacements strive to do exactly what their name implies: replace that large computer at your desk for something a bit more manageable. Desktop replacement notebooks are bigger and bulkier than the other notebook classes, but they are typically more feature rich and powerful.

Deciding which type notebook for you is a personal decision. For example, users who travel a good amount may be most comfortable with a sub-notebook: they may not be the fastest of the bunch, but they are sure easy on the back. On the other side of the spectrum are power users who do not anticipate moving their notebook a good amount. For these users, the desktop replacement class notebooks seem like the best fit.

You may recall that in our last notebook review we took a look at ASUS' T9, a notebook that can be classified as a fairly bulky thin and light notebook. In today's review we take a look at our first true desktop replacement notebook: Toshiba's Satellite 1905-S277. Featuring a desktop Pentium 4 processor, 256MB of memory, and a Mobility Radeon graphics chip we set out to determine if the Satellite 1905-S277 can really replace your desktop.