Walmart Tatung 12.1 / 4.1lb notebook

Does anyone have any information on this laptop? Walmart sells them online for $798- Tatung is a generic Taiwan manufacturer that makes Hitachi products etc.... They have similar specs as a Dell 700m...wouldn't be surprised if they were made for Dell too. Any informationwould be helpful

Thanks,
handy

 

I'm about to buy one, and I can't find a single review, which is scary. But I heard this is just a test run, so its in limited markets. Also, because they make all E-machine and Samsung laptops I imagine those reviews should give you an idea as to the Tatung build quality.

I will try to write a review as soon as I get the laptop in.

 

Where did you hear that Tatung makes notebooks for Samsung? As far I know, Samsung DESIGNS and BUILDS its own notebooks. That's why many of their notebooks have won design awards. And besides, if Tatung really did make notebooks for Samsung, their notebooks would be of similar quality to Emachines' (which they aren't).

 

What I meant to say is that Tatung outsources their notebooks to Uniwill Computer Co. If you are not familiar with Uniwill: Uniwill Computer is one of the top notebook computer contract manufacturers in Taiwan. It makes notebook computers for international companies such as emachines and Samsung and tablet PCs for ViewSonic.

http://itresearch.forbes.com/detail/RES/1041757127_904.html

So, of course the design may different, but they are being slapped together in the same factory.

 

Hmm, if I were you I'd check out the AVERATEC 3270, it's on sale for about $700 at Circuit City every couple of weeks (not right now, unfortunately). It has the same screen size and weight, but looks a little thinner, has a faster processor (Mobile Semrpon 2800+), more RAM (512MB), and a larger hard drive (80GB).

Also, the (somewhat slow) P-M in this Tatung looks to be a Banias core. If that's the case, you can't expect the same performance you'd get from a newer Dothan or Sonoma.

Here's a pretty good review of the AVERATEC 3270: http://www.notebookreview.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=15813 [ ]

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The tatung has 2mb of L2 cache, I think it's a dothan, as banias's only have 1mb, right? It's also 90nm.

I don't think I would like the averatec, I need good wireless connectivity as I roam my university campus and need access all the time. Also, the cpu speed doesn't excite me considering the gpu is so atrocious and I wouldn't be able to game anyway. The avertac is also a bit heavier, and is doesn't have a wide display, which I want for watching movies. Finally, I don't need to deal with the hassle of rebates with the tatung.

I do love the dvd burning ability though, if you of any other cheap lightweights that come with dvd-rw let me know.

 

Also, the tatung has an ie1394 port and s-video out, which I don't think that averatec has.

 

But with the tatung you'll be left out in the cold for service & support. Atleast with the Averatec there is a support system present to help you out.

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Yeah, that's true. I called the Tatung USA Offices in Fremont, CA and it was like talking to some shop ran out of the back of a garage. They still have yet to get back to me on my question of whether or not the laptop fits standard optical notebook drives. [ !]

That being said, I've never used a tech-support service in my entire life, that's probably because I build my own pc's, but still, I doubt I will run into any problems that I can't fix myself, and also it would be Uniwill honoring the manufacturer's warranty, not Tatung...and Uniwill is definately not going anywhere.

 

Have you tried it yet? How is it compared to Dell 700m? The reviews I read about 700m do not impress me. But I am not sure Tatung is better.

However, I got mine yesterday. Specs appears to be almost identical except Tatung is a bit slower at 1.4ghz. I looked up Tatung USA site - product not listed, and called Tatung USA - no response. Obviously Walmart got them directly from Tatung HQ. The box does show uniwill, assembled in Mexico. I looked up Uniwill.com, but nothing on it looks alike. It runs smoothly. The sound is good enough for me - for using it on the train. Earbog makes it sounds musgh better of course. No hardcopy user's manual.

The fan IS NOISY. :noisyfan:

I called Walmart.com and asked them where I can get technical information. They have no idea but was very frank about it.

I am wondering if I should give this one back and get a Dell 700m. Appreciated if I can get your advice.

 

As far as I can judge from the picture here http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=3380763
this is Uniwill 223ii0 (which I have):
http://uniwill.com/products/mobility/223ii0/223ii0.php?HL=2&M=1

These laptops are known under many different names (from south africa to russia),
e.g winbook x series, alienware sentia. I have a collection of up to 20 names but most of them are european. There has been an extensive discussion of these models on notebookforums.com (easily searchable threads). The reviews are also easily searchable using the names I have given above, though the reviewed confugurations are most likely different.

This laptop is not bad at all. Probably you will want to upgrade it (later)
with a faster PM processor, more RAM (immediately), and HDD.
The price looks VERY good (as far as I can judge the american prices from Europe).
Check the quality of the keyboard on the unit you purchase in the shop, it varies!
Also check the presence of dead pixels on the display.
In principle, with 1.4GHz processor the fan should not be loud (at least in office applications) but the fan itself is rather loud when runs at full speed.

Good luck and make sure to tell your friends about this great offer (if you don't mind to purchase a model which has appeared on the market one year ago).

PS: afaik, 700m was also produced by uniwill, it is very similar but not identical with 223ii0
(e.g. the slots are in different places).

 

Thank you, Ivar. Timely advice.

One problem I noticed after playing with it a little more is with the responsiveness of the touchpad. It is not as responsive as ALL others I have used before, including the old eraser head. It is not "smooth". Sometimes it moves fast, othertimes slow, yet other times jumpy". I tried adjusting the sensitivity level it did not improve. I tried with an external mouse but still act the same. I assume it may have something to do with the driver so I reinstalled it but did not improve.

The screen is PERFECT compared to others I have. The aspect ratio is good compared to the old style. A 14 wide screen would have been better but I would be paying much more and it would be taking up more space and with shorter battery life. I really like this model except the problems reported here. I grew up with Tatung Rice Cookers and I am still using the one I had from at least 25 years ago.

I am returning this one to Walmart, after discussing with their support. I will either order an identical one from Walmart and upgrade as you suggested, or try to hit one of those good Dell deals configured to 60GB HDD, 512 Ram.

Thanks again for your advice.

 

in principle, the touchpad of uniwill 223ii0 is responsive enough. It is so with mine, and
it is mentioned in the reviews. Please check usingthe hardware identification software if it is Synaptic. Otherwise, try to change the unit.

 

There's a review of an OEM badged one here at:
http://www.trustedreviews.co.uk/article.aspx?art=1528

Says the same thing about the trackpad, interestingly enough.

UK Spec though.

 

Coboc.com was selling this as a barebone, and yes it is Uniwill. I have great luck so far, own second uniwill laptop now (Averatec). Tomshardware put one of these together and reviewed it. Their only complaint was the flimsy back or cover for the LCD. Is this true? For the price and size, it is powerful enough no? Ive been watching this and the Dell 700 for a few months. Love this price better even at Dell coupon 40% off. I configured one yesterday came out to 1300 after the 40% off. As far as I am concerned laptops as all computers are disposable now; might as well get the best price.

 

I recently put together a custom-built setup based on a Uniwill 223II0 barebones that I purchased from COBOC. In addition to the barebones unit, the system includes the following:
1) Pentium M 2.0 gHz CPU,
2) 1 gb Transcend DDR 333 Memory
3) Seagate Momentus 100 gb 5400 rpm HD
4) Intel ABG Mini-PCI wireless card
5) Slimline CD/DVD burner.

This was my first attempt at building a laptop, but putting everything together was a snap. I have installed Windows XP Pro and TONS of software on the system, and thus far everything has worked almost perfectly. I have had no problem with heat, the battery life is great, and several of my friends have remarked about how fast the unit is. The display is perfect, as far as I can tell.

I had a bit of a problem updating the BIOS, but Uniwill was more than helpful in getting it resolved. The other drivers all installed very smoothly, and are easily available from Uniwill's site.

I have only used the touchpad a few times (after installing the latest driver), but it seemed to be about on a par with those on other laptops I have used. I really dislike all touchpads (including this one), so I use a little USB mini-mouse that I carry with me. So far it has worked perfectly.

Based on my experience thus far (about one month), I think it's a great unit for those of us who want something small, light, and fairly inexpensive.

 

@DougRees,
Do you have problems with the fan noise? Does the fan switch on often and every time you launch a new application?

 

I do notice that the fan kicks in often (not always) when I start a program, but I can't really say that fan noise has been a problem. (I'll admit that I'm a bit hard of hearing, which probably makes my threshhold of irritability a little higher than normal. Still, no one else I have shown the laptop to has complained about the noise.)

The laptop isn't perfect, and the keyboard has taken some getting used to, but after a bit of practice I find that I can touchtype at a reasonable speed. Every computer is a compromise, and this is especially true of laptops. But I'm quite satisfied with my experience thus far. One fairly minor complaint (for me) is that the top of the case scratches very easily.

 

Few hints to you:
1. I was able to improve the keyboard feel by inserting a peace of cardboard under the keyboard. It is not difficult to open the space under the keyboard without disassembling the whole laptop and voiding the warranty.
2. You have to purchase a neoprene or polyurethane sleeve to avoid sctratching (or to color the back side of the display with something more stable). Those designed for Apple 12" iBook fit just perfectly, and there is a big market of them.

 

Thank you very much. I intend to take your advice. One thing I've noticed is that (since I use a mouse anyway) it is much easier for me to type if the touchpad is disabled. This is fairly easy to do by clicking on the Synaptics icon in the toolbar, going to the tab marked "Device Settings", and then clicking "Disable". (Of course the touchpad can be re-enabled later if necessary.)

 

Hey hhuangpe, how is your tatung 12.1 notebook running? Have you had any problems with it? How long does the battery last? I was thinking of buying one so please give me all the infos you can on it, thank you.

 

there is no info on memory, hard drive etc?? what gives??

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/prod...ype=19&dept=3944&path=0:3944:3951:4070:132960

 

Well, from the photos it seems this tatung has a thinner profile. If it is 1.4" or less in thickness, it does. The 700m doesn't have a noisy fan by any means. It barely kicks in, and when it does, every once in a while, it is whisper quiet.

It will probably cost you a couple or few hundred more than this Wal-Mart machine DEPENDING on the components you want. Check out the Dell forum for several threads on this particular notebook, a couple of which, were started by me.

 

i am just interested in this computer because it has centrino mobile technology. right now it is $799.47

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4541608