As Windows devices cram ever more performance into portable
packages, the plus-sized likes of the Toshiba Satellite S70-B are
becoming an increasingly rare breed. If you're looking for a
no-compromise desktop replacement, though, you should be paying
attention. With 17.3in of Full HD display powered by one of the latest
AMD Radeon R9 graphics chips, this £1,199 laptop delivers a serious
amount of power.
The Toshiba Satellite S70-B makes few concessions to design or portability. Indeed, it looks just like the desktop replacements of yore, and although Toshiba has attempted to inject a dash of razzmatazz with a metal lid and wristrest, the thick, predominantly plastic chassis and frumpy curves are unlikely to fire anyone's desires. Nor is this a laptop anyone will relish carrying about on a regular basis: it weighs a portly 2.8kg on its own, and a considerable 3.3kg once you factor in the power supply.
In our Real World Benchmarks, the Toshiba sped to an Overall result of 0.87. That's a little behind other laptops we've seen with the same CPU, but we suspect this is down to the Satellite's lack of an SSD. Despite having a mere hybrid hard disk, however, the Satellite S70-B feels surprisingly responsive in all but the most strenuous of multitasking situations. Toshiba's SSHD definitely plays its part here, and in our tests the drive's 8GB of NAND flash was clearly being put to good use. Even demanding applications such as Adobe Photoshop and Sony Vegas Pro sprang into action with SSD-like haste.
Gaming performance is decent, thanks to the presence of AMD's new mid-range GPU, the Radeon R9 M265X. In our Crysis tests, the Toshiba's average frame rates only dropped below the 40fps mark once we cranked the resolution up to 1,920 x 1,080. At Full HD resolution and High quality settings, the Toshiba recorded an average of 36fps; with the detail levels cranked right up to the maximum Very High quality settings, the frame rate sank to 21fps. Disappointingly, AMD's GPU is off the pace of Nvidia's 8 Series mobile family. The MSI GE70 2PE Apache Pro, equipped with an Intel Core i7-4700HQ and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 860M, was twice as fast in the Full HD Very High quality tests.
Battery life isn't great, but this is par for the course with a laptop of this type. In our light-use test, the Satellite S70-B clung on for 5hrs 14mins. With the screen brightness cranked to maximum and the CPU working flat out, the Toshiba lasted only 1hr 14mins.
The panel's high 362cd/m2 brightness is the only plus point. Contrast is low, at 492:1, and the panel covers only 86% of the sRGB colour gamut, so colours aren't as rich and saturated as they should be. Colour accuracy is woeful – everything from games to photographs is dogged with an unnatural tint – and vertical viewing angles are infuriatingly narrow.
The Toshiba Satellite S70-B makes few concessions to design or portability. Indeed, it looks just like the desktop replacements of yore, and although Toshiba has attempted to inject a dash of razzmatazz with a metal lid and wristrest, the thick, predominantly plastic chassis and frumpy curves are unlikely to fire anyone's desires. Nor is this a laptop anyone will relish carrying about on a regular basis: it weighs a portly 2.8kg on its own, and a considerable 3.3kg once you factor in the power supply.
Toshiba Satellite S70-B review: specification and performance
Fire up a demanding application or one of the latest gaming titles, however, and the Satellite S70-B is in its element. Its quad-core Core i7-4700HQ is the CPU of choice for most high-end laptops, and Toshiba has partnered it with one of its own 1TB hybrid hard disks and 16GB of DDR3 RAM.In our Real World Benchmarks, the Toshiba sped to an Overall result of 0.87. That's a little behind other laptops we've seen with the same CPU, but we suspect this is down to the Satellite's lack of an SSD. Despite having a mere hybrid hard disk, however, the Satellite S70-B feels surprisingly responsive in all but the most strenuous of multitasking situations. Toshiba's SSHD definitely plays its part here, and in our tests the drive's 8GB of NAND flash was clearly being put to good use. Even demanding applications such as Adobe Photoshop and Sony Vegas Pro sprang into action with SSD-like haste.
Gaming performance is decent, thanks to the presence of AMD's new mid-range GPU, the Radeon R9 M265X. In our Crysis tests, the Toshiba's average frame rates only dropped below the 40fps mark once we cranked the resolution up to 1,920 x 1,080. At Full HD resolution and High quality settings, the Toshiba recorded an average of 36fps; with the detail levels cranked right up to the maximum Very High quality settings, the frame rate sank to 21fps. Disappointingly, AMD's GPU is off the pace of Nvidia's 8 Series mobile family. The MSI GE70 2PE Apache Pro, equipped with an Intel Core i7-4700HQ and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 860M, was twice as fast in the Full HD Very High quality tests.
Battery life isn't great, but this is par for the course with a laptop of this type. In our light-use test, the Satellite S70-B clung on for 5hrs 14mins. With the screen brightness cranked to maximum and the CPU working flat out, the Toshiba lasted only 1hr 14mins.
Toshiba Satellite S70-B review: screen
The huge 17.3in, Full HD display ought to be a highlight, but this is where the Satellite S70-B begins to lose its lustre. Rather than the IPS panel technology found on most high-end laptops, Toshiba has saved money by opting for a low-quality TN panel. Colours look cold and unnatural even to the naked eye, and our X-Rite i1Display Pro colorimeter gave the display a damning report.The panel's high 362cd/m2 brightness is the only plus point. Contrast is low, at 492:1, and the panel covers only 86% of the sRGB colour gamut, so colours aren't as rich and saturated as they should be. Colour accuracy is woeful – everything from games to photographs is dogged with an unnatural tint – and vertical viewing angles are infuriatingly narrow.
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