Packard Bell EasyNote TS45-HR-965UK review

The Packard Bell EasyNote TS45-HR-965UK is a Tesco exclusive that looks like a direct upgrade of the TS44-HR-035UK we saw last year. The TS44 was the first we’d seen of the new Core i3 processors, and the TS45 continues this. It gave the TS45 a slight edge in our benchmarks over most comparably priced laptops, with an Overall score of 46.

This is more than enough performance for most people’s everyday computing, and only heavy multimedia editing work should slow the TS45 down. Like its predecessor, however, it uses the Core i3’s integrated graphics chip for 3D work, so gaming is limited to casual titles. A 17fps result in our Dirt3 benchmark shows that you’re unlikely to get playable frame rates in 3D action games, even with graphical settings turned down.

In stark contrast to the TS45’s beefy processor, its design consists of a white case with a patterned pink lid and a wrist rest. Its build quality is good, although we found the keyboard’s keys to be a bit wobbly. They do have a light action, however, as well as a distinct bite at the top of the stroke that provides excellent feedback for touch-typists.

We were disappointed to see that Packard Bell has chosen to swap the function of the Function key, which means that it now modifies the top row of keys to activate the F1-12 keys, rather than the shortcuts they represent. We would also question why two pairs of keys (the left Shift key and the Backslash key, and the Enter and Hash keys) are placed so close to each other. The first pair in particular is bound to cause some frustration.

Surprisingly, the TS45 comes equipped with a 1TB hard disk, the largest this month, which might explain why the price at the time of writing is £529 rather than the £499 that Packard Bell’s representative promised us. With the hard disk industry still recovering after the floods in Thailand, the price may still fluctuate.