Labs

Even for a 17-inch notebook, the Satellite P200-17C feels big, owing to its unusual 52mm depth. It's heavy, too, so this isn't a laptop for lugging around on a regular basis. And, to get all the bad stuff out of the way at the start, we may as well admit we didn't much like using it either. The case feels flimsy, with the screen tending to flop about, and the large, limp keys aren't conducive to accurate typing. You'll get used to it, but it doesn't inspire confidence. The trackpad works fine, but it's inset quite deeply into the case, so hitting its edges is

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uncomfortable.

What's good, though, is that the whole package is cheaper than many 15.4-inch notebooks, and it boasts HDMI outputs as well as built-in Harman/Kardon branded speakers which can play music very loudly indeed (though not at hi-fi quality). The six USB ports could be handy, too: all the other systems only offer three or four.

Battery life was decent, charging from flat in just under an hour and a half, then delivering two hours and 23 minutes of light use. Playing back a DVD ran it down in an hour and a half, though.

Our benchmarks revealed where Toshiba's budget has been squeezed: its score of 123% was this month's lowest, and with a 3D score of 16% you'll struggle to get games working even on low settings. It's still a decent system for general office and Internet use, though, as well as music and (mains-powered) movies, with a useful 200GB of hard disk space and 2GB of RAM.

At the end of the day, the Satellite is a serviceable 17-inch laptop at an eye-catching price. Put it next to the similarly priced Acer, though, and you wouldn't guess it's the Toshiba that's supposed to be the glossy big-name model.