Who Controls the User Experience? AMD’s Carrizo Thoroughly Tested
by Ian Cutress on February 4, 2016 8:00 AM EST#3 The Toshiba Satellite E45DW-C4210 (Carrizo, FX-8800P)
If E45DW-C4210 comes in as a mouthful relevant to very few people, you are probably right, so we’ll just refer to it as the Toshiba Satellite from here on in. Having a Satellite for testing this piece was somewhat amusing, given I had recently bought one for my grandparents and upgraded it (there’s a separate mini-review of that coming later), and wasn’t sure if what I had found on my grandparents' model would also be found here.
| Toshiba Satellite E45DW-C4210 (Carrizo) Specifications | |
| Size and Resolution | 14-inch, 1366x768 TN with Touch |
| Processor | AMD FX-8800P Dual module, 4 threads 2.1 GHz Base Frequency 3.4 GHz Turbo Frequency |
| Graphics | Integrated R7 512 Shader Cores 800 MHz maximum frequency GCN 1.2 |
| TDP | 15W |
| Memory | 8 GB in Single Channel Operation 1 x 8GB at DDR3L-1600 C11 1 SO-DIMM Slot Only |
| Storage | 750GB Toshiba HDD |
| Battery Size | 45.298 Wh 3 cell Li-Ion design |
| WiFi | Realtek 8821AE 802.11ac 1x1 |
| Optical Drive | No |
| Dimensions | 13.3 x 9.3 x 0.83-inch 337.4 x 235.0 x 21.05 mm |
| Weight | From 4.5 lbs (2.05 kg) |
| Webcam | 1280x720 |
| Other Features | Memory Card Reader HDMI 2 x USB 3.0 + 1 x USB 2.0 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
This model of Satellite gets the top-end FX Carrizo processor, the FX-8800P, which is a dual module/quad core design with a 2.1 GHz base frequency but a 3.4 GHz turbo frequency. Because the FX line still exists in AMD’s mobile processors, it means it gets top tier graphics as well, which for integrated graphics means 512 streaming processors running at 800 MHz. This is pretty much the top end AMD integrated graphics configuration that anyone can buy, save a pre-overclocked system. To continue with the plus points in the hardware, the Toshiba was also fitted with a Realtek 8821AE Wi-Fi card which also follows the 802.11ac M.2 standard as described in the 745 G3 but this is a single stream version, which limits 802.11ac benefits such as beam forming.
Then, the downsides begin, or where Toshiba saved some money. The display is a pretty bad 1366x768 TN panel that didn’t want to play ball with our display testing equipment, but was surprisingly touch enabled which made things better when you used the ‘Devil’s Trackpad’. With no offence intended towards Toshiba, I seriously wrote that in my notes while I was testing, and that isn’t a good thing. The nearest thing to this trackpad would be the ‘off’ position. I’m not sure if it was a bad sensor, a poor sensor, something with the coating or what, but one of the worst things a laptop can do when being tested is when the tester wants to throw it across the room. The solution would be to insert a mouse, forget about it, and then 'remember how much you saved'. Unfortunately that race to the bottom on trackpads ends up a negative feedback loop for all concerned.
On the storage side, a combination 8GB of memory (single channel DDR3L-1600, naturally) and a 750 GB mechanical hard disk left the model with few plus points aside from the top end processor.
The Design
So firstly, the design of this Satellite one is more towards brushed metal for a sleeker look.
Functionally, there are a number of good and bad points to list. Despite the brushed metal finish on the top, the design is actually mostly plastic, with two vents at the rear for airflow. The hinge is also a 360º hinge as part of the Radius range.
One of these is an intake and the other is the exhaust, which at least keeps all the warm air out of the back of the laptop, although anyone using the laptop on their lap might be able to feel it depending on the workload. If the warning sticker is anything to go by:
CAUTION!
PC BASE CAN BECOME HOT!
AVOID PROLONGED CONTACT
TO PREVENT HEAT INJURY TO SKIN
You have to wonder – is that an AMD problem due to heat generation, or a Toshiba problem due to bad heat soak of plastic design? Either way, there are other 15W devices that don’t have these warnings.
The sides have two USB 3.0 ports, a HDMI port, the Kensington lock port, a USB 2.0 port, audio ports, a volume rocker, a power connector and a specific button to enter Tile Mode in windows.
The brushed metal finish is also on the cover, and again this was an AMD shelf model featuring a few scrapes but nothing too noticeable at a quick glance.
The audio arrangement is provided by Harman/Kardon, and the keyboard uses equal sized separate buttons for the arrow keys as well as the regular delete/home/end set. There are no quick buttons for mute or airplane mode however.
The trackpad on the specific device we tested was absolutely terrible. The only practical way to use this laptop was to use a mouse.
On the display side of things, as noted above for some reason this unit would not get along with our colorimeter, crashing each time we tried to take a reading. The 45.298 Wh battery gave the following charge profile:
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ImSpartacus - Friday, February 5, 2016 - link
Holy shit, I haven't seen that many pages in a long time. You don't see this much content very often. Gotta love dat chorizo.close - Friday, February 5, 2016 - link
ImSpartanus, they're just writing a comprehensive article. I'm sure they put in good work with all of them.ImSpartacus - Friday, February 5, 2016 - link
I think this article provides a pretty delicate and nuanced treatment of chorizo and its place in the market (both potential & actual). There's no doubt that the circumstances demanded it. This was not business as usual and I'm glad Anandtech recognized the need for that additional effort.We're fooling ourselves if we pretend that any journalistic entity puts the sane amount of effort into every project. We're talking about living, breathing humans, not robots.
fmcjw - Friday, February 5, 2016 - link
I found the language convoluted, verbose, and difficult to read, compared to, say, Anand's straightforward and logical writing:"Nonetheless, Intel’s product line is a sequence of parts that intersect each other, with low end models equipped with dual core Pentiums and Celerons, stretching into some i3 and i5 territory while still south of $1000. In this mix is Core M, Intel’s 4.5W premium dual core parts found in devices north of $600."
"south of/north of"... can't you just put in "below/above"? And all that "intersecting of parts", can't you just say from the Atom to Pentiums, Celerons, i3's, and i5's....
The whole thing reads like they're paying you to score a high word count. Lots of information to extract here, but it can be 3 pages shorter and take half as long to read.
Cellar Door - Friday, February 5, 2016 - link
That is why Anandtech has video adds on their main page - designed for people like you. Who simply lack reading comprehension past 8th grade and find it hard to understand. Just watch watch the video on how to loose weight that auto-plays on the side.Or... try Tom's Hardware - they cater to your demographic.
ImSpartacus - Friday, February 5, 2016 - link
There's no question that Anand had a powerful way of writing that was uniquely simple yet educated you nevertheless. And for a layman that reads this sort of stuff to learn new information, that's very attractive and I kinda miss it (along with Klug).However, I give Ian a pass because he at least attempted to use other brand of conveying his ideas. In certain sections he used special table-like fitting to separate "parallel" sections/stances so that the rader would be more apt to compare them. So there's at least some effort, though he surely could do better.
10basetom - Saturday, February 6, 2016 - link
fmcjw does have a point, but in all fairness it is much harder to explain techical stuff in layman terms than it is to be long-wordy. Carl Sagan was the master of it on TV, and Anand was excellent at it on paper.JMC2000 - Sunday, February 7, 2016 - link
I didn't find anything wrong with the language Ian used, as this is piece is still on a technical level, but can be understood by the layman that knows a bit more than just what the stickers on the outside tell.To me, the phrase "parts that intersect each other" lays out that there is a myriad of options where configurations overlap, where as saying "from the Atom to Pentiums, Celerons, i3s and i5s" indicates that there is a pricing structure that is related to general CPU performance, which there really isn't when it comes to low-end machines.
plonk420 - Monday, February 8, 2016 - link
"south of/north of" sounds better than "greater than/less than," which is more correct than "below/above"Sushisamurai - Thursday, February 11, 2016 - link
yeah, colorful language is nice. Dumbing down adjectives or descriptions can often construe the true message IMO. This way, it paints a more descriptive/colorful picture.Keep up the good work Ian.