The Toshiba Satellite carries some of the more affordable gaming notebooks like the Satellite L875D-7343 which offers quad core performance and decent graphic card to play some of the most demanding games even in high resolution.

Higher display resolutions and larger screen sizes are generally not recommended for a cheap gaming computer.  Those affordable midrange graphics cards used in these laptops will have some difficulty rendering the textures and polygons at a decent 35fps-30fps as you go up in resolution.  But they make for a great multimedia experience watching high definition movies while on the road. Gamers will often be presented with a choice to compromise graphics resolution to play the game they want.  But this is simply the reality when getting a cheap gaming computer that can satisfy tight budgets.  The Toshiba Satellite L875D-S7343 is one such gaming solution that allows the gamer to go as high as HD for their movies and some games, while giving the flexibility to go for a lower resolution for the more demanding games. You can get it now at a very cheap price.

Hardware features

At $624 the Toshiba Satellite L875D-S7343 offers a high value gaming solution in its price point with a high definition 17.3-inch LED-backlit with 1600 x 900 screen for a native 720p movie viewing. Under the hood is as a powerful quad core engine from AMD’s second generation A10-4600M clocked at 2.3 GHz and boosted up to 3.2 GHz with the AMD Turbo Core. It is paired with the AMD Radeon HD7660G with DirectX 11 on a single chip to share its 6GB DDR3 system RAM.  This integration allows for accelerated processing and lower power consumption.

At a typical 6.2-lb weight with only a 1.3-inch slim body profile when closed, this Satellite model stand out with a stylish mercury silver finish and houses 640 GB SATA drive running at 5,400 rpm, and a SuperMulti DVD writer.  It comes with a plethora of connectivity options such as a couple of USB 3.0 ports, one USB 2,0 port, a multi-format card reader, mic and headphone jacks as well as an HDMI port.  It also supports WiFi 802.11 b/g/n/ for surfing through hotspots while away from home or office.

The gaming landscape

The integrated AMD Radeon HD 7660 in the Toshiba Satellite L875D-S7343 is the fast graphics card in Radeon’s 7000 series with a clock speed of 688 MHz. It has no dedicated video RAM and is used only in the A10 series as an integrated GPU.  The recently released Dead Space 3 will have no problem playing fluidly in high game setting, so will Dishonored, Fifa 13, F1 2012, Diablo 3, Counter Strike: GO, and Torchlight 2, to mention some. But most other 2012 games like Dirt Slowdown, Risen 2: Dark Waters, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, World of Tanks v8, Darksiders II, and Medal of Honor: Warfighter will play but only in their  lowest settings, Games released earlier can be played without a problem but the likes of Anno 2070, Skyrim: Elder Scrolls V, Battlefield 3, Crysis 2, StarCarft 2, Metro 2033 will call for medium to low setting.

A few letdowns

Apart from a few demanding games that won’t play or have difficulty playing even at the lowest settings like Alan Wake, Max Payne 3, Hitman: Absolution, Secret World, and Witcher 2:Assasin of Kings, the Satellite L875D-S7343 suffers from the same endemic problems when gaming with notebooks, such as a quirky touchpad and tiny sounds.  But these can easily be addressed with an external mouse and a good set of headphones, respectively.

Conclusion

Even a cheap gaming computer is worth your while with the savings you would earn from getting those high enders.  It is really a matter of knowing what games you prefer to play.  The Toshiba Satellite L875D-S7343 offers great value for the money if none of the games it can’t play well are outside your alley. Check out the cheapest deal on the market.