The latest in Toshiba's Portégé range of portables is the 3480CT. What sets the 3480CT apart from the rest of the pack is the combination of its small and sleek design and powerful hardware performance.
The silver and grey 3480CT weighs in at a mere 1.5kgs, and its dimensions of 26.2 x 23.1 x 20cms (WDH) make it a perfect companion for people on the road. This small size only leaves room for an 11.3 inch display, but the TFT's 1024 x 768 resolution delivers a crisp picture. The 85-key keyboard is comfortable to use, and key travel feels solid and comfortable. The Accupoint pointing device is located in between the fourth and fifth row of keys, and provides accurate cursor movement.
To keep the Portégé lightweight, Toshiba provide an external USB floppy drive. Also provided is a LAN port replicator with serial, parallel, SVGA, PS/2, USB, 10/100 Ethernet, headphone line-out and power ports. A multimedia port replicator and external CD-ROM are available as optional extras. We found that the CD-ROM functioned well, but if the connection came loose, the cursor froze and the machine needed to be restarted.
With a 600Mhz Pentium III CPU, 64MB memory and a 12GB hard drive, the 3480CT is extremely responsive and can handle large tasks effortlessly. The unit started up and opened programs quickly, and responded rapidly to intense graphic tasks in Adobe Photoshop. We also opened multiple video files in Windows Media Player; the Portégé had five windows open, playing full video and audio, before it began to falter. But with 8MB of video memory and an S3 Savage IX graphics controller, it's no wonder the Portégé performed so well. We did find that whilst downloading large files from the Internet, the cursor would freeze for short periods of time. Fortunately, Toshiba report that a Flash BIOS should be available to download from their Web site to correct this problem.
A 10.8 volt Lithium Ion battery is supplied which gives about 3 hours of battery life, as well as an AC Adaptor for an external power source. The Portégé has two PC Card slots which will support one Type III or two Type II cards, and an internal V.90 modem.
If its elegant design, ultra portability and versatility doesn't lure you in, then the superb performance of the Portégé 3480CT should. Suitable for intense use or for those on the go, this notebook is a standout in the portable PC market.
Toshiba Portégé 3480CT
Company: Toshiba
Ph: 1800 680 662
Price: AU$5,533
Rating:
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