14 DAY TRIAL // It seems like ages since we wrote about the last Tecra laptops from Toshiba, but the product line is by no means extinct. In fact, it received new members just a short time ago.
Truth be told, saying that ages have passed since the last Tecra made the news might not be too far off the mark. The last one we covered was the Tecra R840, and that happened way back in May, 2011.
The new ones we will cover today are the obvious successors, and their names prove it: Tecra R940 and Tecra R950.
They measure 14.0 and 15.6 inches in screen diagonal, respectively, but are otherwise quite similar.
The third-generation Intel Core central processing units (Ivy Bridge) are a given at this point, so we won't dwell on them overmuch.
What we do find curious is the choice of storage. Tecra are supposed to be cheap machines, implying that common HDDs are used, but that is not precisely the case. The company's press release says that it is possible to have SSDs of up to 512 GB too.
The same goes for the memory. The base capacity probably hovers at 4 GB, but the top is 16 GB.
All in all, Tecra R940 and R950 are cheap, by default, but they can still pack more of a punch if buyers are willing to pay extra (the AMD dedicated graphics are a nice touch).
As for the case, it includes a spill resistant keyboard, an HDD impact sensor, a measure of shock absorption and a thickness of 1 inch (25.4 mm).
“Toshiba has a long history of designing products for highly targeted audiences. With this new line of Tecra laptops, Toshiba has tailored its products to meet the needs of the growing small and medium sized businesses segment,” said Carl Pinto, vice president of marketing, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., Digital Products Division. “Small- and medium-sized business owners have asked for laptops built with specific functionality and a direct method to purchase and we’ve responded.”
Toshiba sells the Tecra R940 and R950 for $599 / €490 each (or more, depending on hardware decisions).