SINGAPORE — The laptop user today demands a fair bit from the machine. Churning out documents by day plus rendering game graphics and video by night — these are all in a day’s work for a laptop, in order to be considered a true multitasker.

Toshiba is well aware of this and the Satellite L50-B is a true workhorse in many ways. While the 2.4kg laptop may not boast the bling-bling looks of its flashier counterparts, it has capable all-round performance at a fair price.

A generous 15.6-inch TruBrite touchscreen display with LED backlighting is easy on the eye, while the keyboard is comfortably spaced, with decent vertical travel on the keys.

The spacious mouse touchpad is also a boon in case you don’t use a mouse or simply forgot to pack one. Of course, you could just use the touchscreen, an increasingly common feature for laptops that come with Windows 8.1 installed. Battery life, while not stellar, is par for the course for similar devices — about five hours of regular usage. Most people travel prepared to plug in anyway, so this is not a serious problem.

Lastly, the USB Sleep-and-Charge feature, which allows users to charge USB-powered electronics such as smartphones while the laptop is powered down, is a nice little feature that shows Toshiba knows its target market.

Enough about work, what about play? Packing a fourth generation Intel Core i7 processor, the L50-B loads most games quickly and smoothly. While the AMD Radeon R7 m260 graphics card certainly won’t go the distance on triple-A games with high settings, it is a capable mid-level piece with decent performance.

When it comes to sound, the Satellite L50-B delivers boosted volume with good bass and definition, which is good news for gamers and those who watch a lot of movies on their laptops. Audio settings are also optimised for Skullcandy headphones and earbuds, a nice little bonus for audiophiles.

If you are in the market for a laptop that needs to do double duty for work and play, the L50-B is worth considering. The Toshiba Satellite L50-B is available at Challenger, Courts, Harvey Norman and other authorised retailers at S$1,349. KENNETH TAN