Toshiba Tecra A11-S3540 Review

Our overall experience with the Toshiba Tecra A11-S3540 was good. We felt that the machine was pretty responsive and seemed to handle multitasking just fine. At the same time, if you look at the Windows Experience rating, some of the scores are a bit lower than we would have hoped for, particularly when it comes to graphics. We were also somewhat disappointed in the notebook's battery life, but we'll discuss this more later.

The Tecra A11's keyboard was very comfortable to use; it felt sturdy and spacious. Even the 10-key numeric pad felt pretty roomy. Because of the way Toshiba laid out the TouchPad, you'll definitely notice if you mouse off of the surface. In addition, the mouse buttons below were easy to press and provide shallow feedback. They produce a clicking noise when pressed. Since we pointed out the Tecra A11's finish doesn't attract fingerprints, we must also mention the mouse buttons are the exception. These chrome buttons will show fingerprints. Overall, we were very satisfied with both the keyboard and TouchPad on the A11.

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The Tecra A11 is not a thin-and-light model by any means, but it's not the biggest beast we've seen either. The machine measures approximately 1.48 inches at its thickest point and weighs about 6 pounds.

As far as ports and connectivity are concerned, Toshiba offers a good number of connectivity options for the A11 including a Serial port, LAN and modem ports, USB ports, a combination eSATA/USB port, Mini DisplayPort, Bluetooth 2.1, and more.

In terms of multimedia playback, the A11 performed remarkably. Both 720p and 1080p videos were smooth and sharp. It's even possible to play some games on the A11, though performance won't begin to compare with a more serious gaming machine. The A11's display was crisp and sharp, and we appreciated the matte display that helps to eliminate glare.

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