Toshiba Satellite P755-3DV20 Pro Reviews

After spending some time with the Satellite P755-3DV20 I was left with mixed feelings about this notebook. On one hand, Toshiba delivers a complete 3D entertainment experience for a modest price ($890 "street price" as of this writing). On the other hand, Toshiba was able to make this 3D notebook affordable by using the same chassis used in cheaper budget laptops and that's not ideal for a more expensive multimedia PC. The 3D performance is also something of a mixed bag. The Nvidia GeForce GT 540M graphics provide barely enough performance for older 3D games which means this notebook is really only intended for watching 3D movies on the road or when connected to your 3D HDTV. When you factor in the poor battery life, lackluster build quality and difficulty (or complete inability) playing modern 3D games like Batman Arkham City, you're left with a laptop that's fun for watching 3D movies at home but isn't as convenient while traveling and isn't as impressive if you're into serious gaming. Bottom line, if you're looking for an affordable 3D laptop then this is it. Just don't expect amazing durability, performance or battery life.

Toshiba packs the 750GB hard drive with software, most of which is useful. In addition to Windows 7 Home Premium, you get a boatload of Toshiba utilities, including the Toshiba Video Player 3D, and Laptop Checkup. You also get face-recognition software for security and convenience when logging in, as well as a hard drive protection app that lets you adjust the accelerometer’s sensitivity levels. (An accelerometer senses when the notebook is falling and parks the hard drive heads to protect your data upon impact.) You also get Corel’s WinDVD BD software, which plays Blu-ray movies, Microsoft Office Starter 2010 (which includes advertising), and a 30-day trial version of Norton Internet Security. As with most consumer laptops, a fair amount of clutter (icons advertising NetZero, eBay, Amazon.com) is preloaded, as well as Wild Tangent games. Toshiba backs the P755-3DV20 with a standard one-year warranty covering parts, labor, and the battery. The Toshiba Satellite P755-3DV20 is a capable performer, but that’s not what this notebook is really about. Armed with a 120Hz display and Nvidia’s 3D Vision technology, it delivers great 3D image quality right out of the box, and it’s reasonably priced. A secondary high-speed USB port and/or an eSATA connection would have been nice, as would another hour of battery life. We’d also like to see Nvidia come up with a lighter, more comfortable pair of glasses. Still, despite our gripes, the Satellite P755-3DV20 is well worth considering if you’re looking for a 3D-ready mainstream notebook. They're getting better all the time.

The Toshiba Satellite P755-3DV20 is an impressive all-purpose laptop, if you can get past the less-than-impressive design. The plastic exterior is nice for a cheaper, less specced-out machine, but it doesn't really convey "3D multimedia powerhouse." Still, if you're looking for a nice multimedia and casual-gaming laptop, the P755-3DV20 performs solidly.

The 3D-enabled Toshiba Satellite P755-3DV20 is one of the more affordable 3D-enabled laptops, but it lacks the horsepower we've seen in more robust 3D gaming laptops.