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Toshiba Bundles Intel Core Duo

Posted on: Thursday, 9 March 2006, 00:00 CST

By Siti Syameen Md Khalili

A slew of Toshiba's newest notebooks have arrived on our shores, each equipped with the latest Intel Core Duo Processor that reduces power consumption and component size while boosting overall performance and enhancing security. The four new models are the Satellite A100, Satellite M100, Tecra A6 and Tecra M5.

According to Wong Wai Meng, product marketing manager, computer systems division, Toshiba Singapore Pte Ltd, this time around the notebooks comply with the Restrictions on Certain Hazardous Substances Directive, thus they are free from harmful substances such as lead, cadmium and mercury.

The Satellite A100 and Satellite M100 share several similar specifications. Among them are Clear SuperView (CSV) display technology for the wide-screen panel, high-capacity 5,400- revolution-per-minute Serial ATA hard drive, DDR2 677-megahertz (MHz) memory, a spill-resistant keyboard, and Express Media Player for one-button access to DVDs and CDs without needing to boot the Microsoft Windows operating system.

Another pre-installed tool is the Toshiba CofigFree graphics management utility, which simplifies connectivity using wired and wireless Ethernet access.

Users will also get the OneNote software, which is useful for managing information from various sources, including e-mail, meetings, presentations, classes and the Web.

The Satellite A100 weighs 2.7 kilograms and inherits the graceful curves of its predecessor, the Satellite M70. It features four universal serial bus ports, an iLink port, five-in-one card reader and ExpressCard slot.

There are three sub-models within the Satellite A100 category, namely the A100-P530, A100-P540 and A100-P545. The models carry 60 gigabytes, 80GB and 100GB of hard disk capacity respectively. The A100-P545 also has a fingerprint reader with the single sign-on module.

The 2.3kg Tecra A6 is targeted at small and medium-sized business and public sector users. Equipped with a 14.1-inch diagonal CSV wide- screen display and DVD Double Layer SuperMulti Drive, this machine can also handle recordable DVD featuring two separate recording layers for storing up to 8.5GB data.

It supports Advanced Port Replicator III Plus and Toshiba's EasyGuard technology to address mobile security, system integrity, network connectivity and overall ease of use. Its hard drive even has vibration dampening materials to cushion it against a fall or turbulence.

Other hardware that the Tecra A6 employs are dual-band Wi-Fi antennas, Gigabit Ethernet support, a 56-kilobit-per-second modem, Bluetooth V2.0+EDR technology and Intel Pro/Wireless 3945ABG network connection. There are also Toshiba ConfigFree and Toshiba PowerSaver, a tool for battery life management, to enhance the hardware combination.

The thin and light Tecra M5 series comes with EasyGuard technology along with the same connectivity suite as the Tecra A6. On top of internal shock protection for the hard disk and display, its four corners are fitted with bumpers.

It also adds in the NVidia Quadro NVS 110M with 128 megabytes of double data rate discrete graphics memory, a swappable optical disk drive and up to 4GB DDR 677MHz Dual Channel memory.

The Tecra M5 also comes with a fingerprint reader with single sign-on functionality as well as Toshiba PowerSaver.

Pricing for the Satellite notebooks starts from RM4,999 while the Tecra A6 retails at RM6,999. Pricing for the Tecra M5 is not available at Press time.

All Toshiba notebooks come with a three-year carry-in international limited warranty inclusive of parts and labour. Users may also get in touch via the Toshiba Global Support Center for round-the-globe services, or access via Ask Iris Online, an instant response information service for updates on security software patches.

Source: New Straits Times

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