The Toshiba Satellite (dynabook Satellite in Japan) was a line of consumer-grade notebook computers marketed by Toshiba, and were some of the earliest laptops, introduced in the early-1990s, to compete with the IBM Thinkpad line. Models in the Satellite family varied greatly - from entry-level models sold at major retailers to full-fledged media center-class notebooks. The latter are labeled as "Qosmio" and sold alongside the Satellite name. The Qosmio models tended to have added features like two hard drive bays, multiple graphics cards, a large number of input/output ports of varying design, unique case styling, backlit keyboards, significantly more powerful sound systems (built in subwoofer and amplifier), etc. The Satellite mainly competes against computers such as Acer's Aspire, Dell's Inspiron and XPS, HP's Pavilion and Envy and Lenovo's IdeaPad.
The early models did not come with an internal CD-ROM drive, but these soon appeared as mobile technology progressed. Such models can link up with an external CD-ROM drive through the parallel port on the rear (since USB ports came later as well). Some Satellites also lacked an internal floppy disk drive, but a port on the side allowed the use of a proprietary external module for such. These machines tended to be smaller in physical size than their contemporaries.
In Spring 2000, some models came with a 15-inch screen and a built-in DVD drive, a 6Â GB HDD and ran at 500Â MHz. They were sold for $2400 by Toshiba. They also had a model called the Satellite Pro.
Notable models included the Satellite 5005-S507 which was the first to ship with NVIDIA GeForce 4 440 Go GPU and cost $1,999. The Satellite 5105-S607 was the first laptop with cPad technology and cost $2,499. The Satellite 5205-S703 was the first laptop with built-in DVD-R/RW drive and cost $2,699.
The Toshiba Satellite series was discontinued in 2016 because Toshiba has exited the consumer laptop market entirely. However, Toshiba is still selling business-oriented Portégé and Tecra.
Series
Source
- c - All the Basics
- l - Style & Value
- E - Ultramobile Performance
- S - Power & Speed
- P - Premium Performance & Design
- NB15 - Touchscreen Essentials
- Click - Part Laptop. Part Tablet
Model gallery
References
External links
- Official website (Archive) of Toshiba Satellite
- Official website (Archive) of Toshiba Satellite Pro
