The Toshiba Tecra Z50-A1503 ($1,599, as tested) is a 15.6-inch business laptop that successfully finds middle ground between an ultrabook and a desktop-replacement notebook. The ultrabook-class Intel Core i7 CPU makes short work of both Office and multimedia tasks, and it has some flair, with a thin and attractive metal exterior. If you can afford the premium price, this powerful laptop will serve you well, but it's not the best you can get.
Design and Features
The Tecra Z50-A15033 is wide, because its chassis has to accommodate a 15.6-inch screen. From the side, however, the system looks svelte. It measures 0.8 by 15 by 10 inches (HWD), and weighs a relatively light 3.71 pounds. In comparison, the aluminum-clad Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (2013)( at Amazon) is just a bit smaller, but 12 ounces heavier. Like the MacBook, the Tecra Z50-A1503's shell and palm rest are primarily silver metal (though a much darker silver).
The keyboard has a comfortable feel, and backlighting makes the keys easy to see in a darkened room. Grooved mouse buttons are molded into the one-piece trackpad, and a pair of separate mouse buttons complement the pointing stick. Though they're becoming less common, pointing sticks are in demand. A NFC reader and fingerprint reader are integrated into the trackpad, along with a row of status lights for power, charging, and drive activity. The Tecra Z50-A1503's numeric keypad has slightly narrower keys than the rest of the keyboard, but they're still usable for serious number crunching.
The 15.6-inch LCD screen, which has a 1,920-by-1,080 resolution, is bright and clear. Sound from the built-in speakers is enhanced by DTS Studio Sound software. They render clear audio that's adequate for presentations in an office or conference room. The screen has an anti-glare coating, which helps tame reflections in a brightly lit room, but there's no touch screen. Since the system is set to use Windows 7 Professional out of the box, this isn't as much of an issue. Should you wish to install the free upgrade to Windows 8.1 Pro that's bundled, there may be some problems. The multitouch trackpad will support touch gestures, but Windows 8.1-optimized apps are really designed for touch screens. Systems like the Lenovo X1 Carbon Touch (2014)($1,281.75 at Lenovo) and Dell Latitude e7440 Touch($245.00 at Amazon) both come with Windows 8/8.1 and touch screens.
Similar Products
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (2013)
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Touch (2015)
Dell Latitude E7440 Touch
Connectivity is plentiful on the Tecra Z50-A1503: an SD card reader, two USB 3.0 ports, a Gigabit Ethernet port, and a Kensington lock port line the right edge of the laptop. The power jack, a VGA port, an HDMI port, a USB 2.0 port, a USB 3.0 port, and a headset jack are along the left side. There's a docking port on the bottom, compatible with Toshiba's Hi-Speed Port Replicator III ($199.99) if you need a semi-permanent home for the laptop on your desk and access to DisplayPort, DVI, and more USB ports.
The 256GB SSD helps the system boot quickly, and is spacious enough to hold an abundance of office documents. Our review unit came with very little pre loaded bloatware; about the only extraneous programs are the 30-day trial subscription to Norton Internet Security and Norton Anti-Theft, and the usual trial copy of Microsoft Office. The system comes with a three-year warranty.
Performance
Components on the Tecra Z50-A1503 include an Intel Core i7-4600U processor, 8GB of DDR3 system memory, Intel HD 4400 Graphics, and the 256GB SSD. Together, they make the system quick to open apps and react to changing tasks, like working on spreadsheets, databases, or large Word documents. The laptop did well (4,595 points) on on PCMark7, a test of day-to-day usage and performance. It was within striking distance of the Dell e7440 Touch (4,702) and the HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G1($0.00 at Amazon) (4,708).
Multimedia scores were very good as well, thanks to the Intel Core i7 processor. The score of 4 minutes 43 seconds on the Adobe Photoshop CS6 test splits the difference between the HP Elitebook (4:06) and the Dell Latitiude (5:24). That said, the true powerhouse on Photoshop is the Apple 15-inch MacBook Pro (3:14).
The Tecra Z50-A1503's battery lasted seven hours on our battery rundown test. That's good, though the Dell e7440 Touch lasted longer (7:44), and the MacBook Pro is the champ at 8:52. With judicious use of sleep mode, the Tecra Z50-A1503 should last a good deal of a business day on a single charge.
The Toshiba Tecra Z50-A1503 just meets ultrabook standards, even though the system isn't marketed as one. Compared with the business ultrabook Editors' Choice, the Dell Latitude e7440 Touch, it puts in a good showing, but the Dell system ultimately comes out ahead, due to its MIL-SPEC ruggedization, brighter and clearer In-Plane Switching (IPS) display, and touch screen. Among business-oriented desktop-replacement notebooks, the Tecra Z50-A1503 again puts in a good fight, but the reigning Editors' Choice Apple MacBook Pro ultimately holds on due to its higher-than-1080p HD resolution screen, better performance results on our multimedia benchmark tests, and its two additional hours of battery life. This makes the Tecra Z50-A1503 an attractive and powerful large-screen laptop, well in the pack, nipping at the heels of the Dell Latitude and Apple MacBook Pro.
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