Dynabook Tecra A50-J-11X review: A robust 15-inch business laptop with excellent connections Review
Dynabook’s Tecra variety of business laptops spans three versions: the 13.3-inch A30, fourteen-inch A40 and fifteen.six-inch A50. These are no-nonsense typical laptops — there are no touch screens or 360-degree rotating hinges here. But they are major on connections — and in the scenario of the Tecra A50-J-11X reviewed here, major on measurement. This entry-amount A50-J product is mild on the wallet much too: in the British isles you can pay out £789 (ex. VAT £946.80 inc. VAT), even though in the US the A50-J variety begins at $939.99.
A fifteen.six-inch laptop computer is not likely to be ultraportable, and you can undoubtedly see the Tecra A50-J’s 1.65kg pounds in a bag or backpack. And however you have it, this laptop computer will need a lot of area as it measures 358.2mm vast by 236.9mm deep by 19.9mm thick.
Despite the fact that there is some flex in the lid, the chassis feels reliable. Dynabook says the Tecra A50-J meets MIL-STD-810H, so it should really manage drops, higher and reduced temperature, humidity, vibration and shock. The chassis is Mystic Blue, a color that lies someplace among deep blue and black.
Dynabook’s fifteen.six-inch Tecra A50-J series runs on eleventh-generation Intel Core processors with up to 32GB of RAM and up to 512GB of SSD storage. It weighs 1.65kg.
Image: Dynabook
As observed, the Tecra A50-J-11X has a sizable footprint, and the capability to rotate the monitor a hundred and eighty levels to lie flat on the desk, even though probably valuable, could obstacle end users with cluttered desks.
The monitor sits in quite narrow small-edge bezels, but the base bezel is sizeable. The upper bezel is just deep adequate to residence the webcam, which has a sliding privateness include, and IR guidance for Windows Howdy encounter authentication. If you do not want encounter login, there is certainly a fingerprint sensor in the touchpad. Added protection features contain an optional smartcard slot, which was current on my review device on the front proper facet.
The fifteen.six-inch IPS monitor is not touch-responsive (none of the three Tecra A50-J versions available in the British isles are) and has a matte end, which will please these who do not like viewing their personal reflection even though they work. Its FHD resolution (1920 x 1080 pixels, 141.2ppi) is fine for normal crafting, electronic mail and web searching tasks, whilst viewing angles are not good in possibly horizontal or vertical planes. The 16:nine part ratio can make it achievable to have two functioning files facet by facet. Video is rendered fairly well, but if you might be seeking higher-high quality comprehensive-monitor online video playback, search elsewhere.
The stereo speakers sit on the front of the chassis, with grilles on the underside where the chassis curves upwards marginally. Seem percolates up by way of the keyboard fairly well, and audio high quality is suitable at finest. Volume goes up fairly higher and isn’t going to distort, but it’s mild on bass and hefty on treble.
The backlit keyboard has a bouncy action, and could be noisy if you might be a hefty-handed typist. The fifteen.six-inch chassis supplies space for a separate amount pad on the proper facet.
Image: Sandra Vogel / ZDNet
The keyboard region is vast adequate to incorporate a separate amount pad, but not vast adequate for the amount pad keys to be comprehensive measurement, or for there to be a obvious separation among it and the principal QWERTY segment. It took me fairly a even though to strike the Enter essential properly every time rather than jabbing the seven or four essential in its place.
The essential action is bouncy, but you need to use important force to depress each individual essential. Typing generates a uninteresting ‘thunk’ that will get louder the heavier the typing action. This could develop into annoying for other persons in silent areas. As opposed to in Dynabook’s Portégé variety, there is certainly no AccuPoint stick as an option to the (responsive and productive) touchpad.
The Fn keys are relatively tiny. There are no assigned next capabilities for F10, F11 and F12, yet Dynabook places volume control as third Fn-essential-controlled steps on the 3 and four keys, and a zoom function as a Fn essential action on the 1 and 2 keys (this will, for example, zoom in and out of web webpages, or increase/decrease textual content measurements in a term processing app). This arguably generates some needless overcrowding.
Remaining facet (major): power, 2x USB-C Thunderbolt four, HDMI 2., USB 3.2, 3.5mm audio in/out. Proper facet (previously mentioned): smartcard reader, MicroSD card slot, USB 3.2, RJ-45 Ethernet (flip-open up).
Visuals: Sandra Vogel / ZDNet
There is certainly an expansive variety of connections. On the left edge the 3.5mm audio in/out jack is joined by a pair of USB-C Thunderbolt four ports, a comprehensive-measurement HDMI port, a USB-A port and a round-pin power input. The benefit of a devoted power jack is that both USB-C ports are often obtainable. There are two lights on this edge: a single allows you know the power jack is plugged in, even though the other tells you the device is run on (handy if you just shut the lid without having switching off, but only noticeable if you occur to be wanting at the laptop’s left edge).
The smartcard slot is in the direction of the front of the proper edge, even though in the direction of the back again there is certainly a MicroSD card reader, yet another USB-A port and an RJ-45 Ethernet port. The chassis isn’t really fairly deep adequate to accommodate the latter without having delivering a hinged flap at the foundation, but that flap pushes down without having affecting the laptop’s equilibrium on a desk. If you opt for LTE cellular broadband, the SIM slot is also on this edge.
This array of connections is extraordinary contemplating that many laptops give no a lot more than a pair of USB-C / Thunderbolt ports and a USB-A port, and that a single of the USB-Cs is typically out of action when the unit is remaining billed. Bravo, Dynabook.
There are three configurations of the Tecra A50-J available off the shelf in the British isles. My Core i5-based mostly review device was the entry-amount product:
Tecra A50-J-11X (as reviewed)
Intel Core i5-1135G7, Windows ten Pro, fifteen.six-inch 1,920 x 1,080 pixel IPS non-touch monitor, Intel Iris Xe graphics, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD
£789 (ex. VAT)
Tecra A50-J-151
Intel Core i7-1165G7, Windows ten Pro, fifteen.six-inch 1,920 x 1,080 pixel IPS non-touch monitor, Intel Iris Xe graphics, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD
£839 (ex. VAT)
Tecra A50-J-13W
Intel Core i7-1165G7, Windows ten Pro, fifteen.six-inch 1,920 x 1,080 pixel IPS non-touch monitor, Intel Iris Xe graphics, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD
£949 (ex. VAT)
There are five preconfigured Tecra A50-J versions in the US, setting up at $939.99 and rising to $1,329.99. There is certainly also a configurable build-to-order choice.
Dynabook charges the Tecra A50-J-11X’s four-cell 53Wh battery as excellent for up to nine hrs of existence. My typical take a look at, based mostly on an daily workload of crafting, streaming and searching, involves functioning from a fully billed battery for three hrs. After that period of time the battery had fallen to 65%, suggesting battery existence of about 8.5h on a linear extrapolation. On other instances I achieved 6h and 7h functioning intervals from a fully billed battery. So, dependent on what you might be accomplishing, you could or could not get a comprehensive day’s work from this laptop computer on battery power.
Dynabook says the battery will get to 40% potential in thirty minutes. Screening this on a single event when the battery had fallen to 40%, I set it on demand and after fifteen minutes the battery had risen to 55%. A further fifteen minutes took it to sixty seven%, and after a whole of 45 minutes of charging the battery was at 77%.
Image: Dynabook
Conclusions
The Dynabook Tecra A50-J-11X is a relatively cumbersome and hefty fifteen.six-inch laptop computer. It can be a no-nonsense business unit, whose exhibit and audio subsystems are not up to consumer pursuits this sort of as gaming or online video viewing. But it has realistic battery existence and a plethora of connections, including an Ethernet port. If you value a huge monitor for functioning with text or spreadsheets, value a separate amount pad, and do not need a touch monitor or major-high quality sound, it could be worth contemplating.
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