Toshiba Offers a Business Laptop With Windows 8...or 7

While IT managers aren't exactly jumping at Windows 8, manufacturers are rising to the occasion to create new kinds of PCs that cater to the needs of enterprise. The Portégé Z10t is Toshiba's first take on a Windows 8 hybrid PC for business users.

Except it doesn't have to be a Windows 8 machine. Although the Z10t ships with Windows 8 Pro by default, customers can configure it to run 32- and 64-bit versions of Windows 7. This might help convince a few businesses to consider the Portégé, since recent research from Forrester Research points to enterprise customers basically skipping Windows 8.

Still, it's designed for touch: The Z10t is a hybrid, meaning it's a laptop until you detach the 11.6-inch screen from the keyboard dock and then it becomes a tablet. Similar to the Surface Pro, it ships with a pair of digitizing pens, and the screen has a fingerprint-resistant coating that makes it feel more like writing on paper. One pen is in the box; another slips into a hole on the device.


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That coating also reduces glare, and the IPS (in-plane switching) LCD tech prevents brightness and color from dropping off too much if you view the screen from the side. From a brief hands-on with the new Portégé, I noticed that swiping was easier than on many gloss Windows 8 screens that are a little too "sticky."

The screen pops into the keyboard dock just by sliding down, but it won't come out again unless you slide the release button and lift. That way, users can still grab and carry the laptop by the screen when necessary. It weighs 3.1 pounds.

Customers can configure the Portégé Z10t with either an Intel Core i5 or i7 processor and 128 or 256GB of storage. RAM is 4GB, but when Intel's Haswell chips arrive, Toshiba will offer an 8GB option. A fingerprint reader, which will be integrated on the top edge of the tablet, is optional.

In the few minutes I had to explore the Z10t, I found it to be an unremarkable hybrid PC, designed purely around function — exactly what you want in a workhorse machine. The matte screen makes the experience a little less "poppy" than you'd find on, say, a Surface Pro, but as an anti-glare feature, it works great.

The Portégé Z10t starts shipping today, starting at $1,499 (Core i5/128GB/4GB RAM), which includes a three-year warranty.

How do you like Toshiba's business hybrid? Share your thoughts in the comments.