Toshiba Satellite A665 Review

The Toshiba Satellite A660 and A665 are 16-inch laptops with a reasonably attractive design and solid performance. If you're shopping for a desktop-replacement notebook the Satellite A665 might be a worthy choice. Keep reading to see what we think of this Core i5-equipped model with Nvidia discrete graphics.

Toshiba Satellite A665 (A665-S6089) Specifications:

16-inch 720p (1366x768) display with LED backlighting
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
Intel Core i5 460M (2.53GHz)
Nvidia GeForce 310M graphics card w/ 512MB GDDR3 dedicated memory (Optimus switchable graphics)
4GB DDR3 RAM
500GB 5400RPM hard drive (Toshiba MK5065GSX)
802.11b/g/n wireless
DVD SuperMulti (+/- Double Layer)
Warranty: 1-Yr Parts and Labor, 1-Year Battery
6-cell Li-ion battery (48Wh) and 90W power adapter
Weight: 6.52 lbs
Dimensions: 15 x 10 x 1.2-1.5 inches
Price as configured: $879.99

Build and Design
The Satellite A660/A665 is the latest generation of 16-inch multimedia notebooks from Toshiba and is the "big brother" to the Satellite M640/M645. At first glance, the design of the A665 is pretty traditional with sculpted edges, a mixture of smooth and textured glossy plastics, and some attractive LED accent lighting. If you're familiar with the 14-inch Toshiba Satellite M645 and 15-inch Satellite C655 then this laptop just looks like a larger version of those notebooks. The exterior is covered in what Toshiba calls the "Fusion X2 Finish in Charcoal." Personally, I call it black glossy plastic with a textured "chain" pattern imprinted in the surface to help hide fingerprints and dirt. Despite the silly marketing name for the finish, I have to give Toshiba credit here. The textured chain pattern gives you the modern look of the glossy plastics but doesn't look like a horrible magnet for smudges, dirt, or whatever else a student spills on a laptop.

The build quality of the A665 is very good with a durable main chassis that doesn't squeak, creak, or flex even under significant pressure. The screen hinges are a little loose, making it easy to open the laptop with one hand but also making it easy to accidentally move the screen if you bump the laptop. While we're on the topic of the screen, the screen lid doesn't provide as much protection as we'd like. If you press on the back of the screen while the laptop is running you'll see obvious distortions on the screen itself. In addition, placing more than one heavy textbook on the screen lid causes the lid to bend inward sharply toward the screen ... suggesting that the screen lid doesn't offer much protection during travel.

The bottom of the notebook includes two access plates for the RAM and the hard drive. Despite the fact that most consumers buying this type of general purpose or light multimedia notebook don't perform upgrades, Toshiba engineers made is very easy to get inside this laptop. You only have to remove one screw to access the hard drive and one screw to get to the RAM.
Ports and Features
The Satellite A665 features a great range of ports--making this laptop one of the more "future proof" 16-inch notebooks available in this price range. You get two USB 2.0 ports and a combo eSATA/USB 2.0 port in case you want to use fast external storage drives. The A665 also features dual video out ports: a VGA connection for old-school projectors and HDMI for new monitors and HDTVs. More importantly, the A665 includes an ExpressCard slot so you can upgrade this laptop with USB 3.0 ports if you need them. All picture descriptions are left to right.

Front view: Memory card slot	Rear view: No ports
Left side: VGA, Ethernet, HDMI, combo eSATA/USB 2.0, USB 2.0, ExpressCard	Right side: Audio jacks, two USB 2.0, optical drive, power jack and lock slot