Toshiba Satellite A355D-S6930

extra software on the notebook are Toshiba's acoustic silencer for the CD/DVD drive and Cyberlink's Powercinema media center application. While it won't revolutionize your media experience, the latter app is fast and pretty slick, and might manage to pull duty as your video player of choice.

The A355D makes a better impression on paper than it does in actual use. The bulleted list of hardware and features makes it seem like a steal, but the performance numbers and overall functionality are enough to raise some caution flags. If you don't have a lot of cash, and if a nice, big screen and good speakers are enough for you, then check out the A355D. But better options exist, such as Lenovo's IdeaPad Y530, which goes after the exact same demographic as this Toshiba and does a better overall job.