Toughbook CF-T8: noise or heat issues?

Hi forum users,

I have been a very satisfied owner of a Toughbook CF-T5 for a few years now. One of the things I really appreciate is its fanless design (no fan=noiseless, disk noise aside..). It does keep the CPU very hot, usually around 67 Celsius, but it does not pass through the case so I never felt that as a problem.

Lately I start experiencing lags in performance: even though I use Linux, the browser takes ages to load some websites. Plus, the disk is starting to have bad sectors, the wifi switch seems to have issues, and the whole laptop is generally falling apart, so I started thinking of a replacement.

I hate that the newer models jumped on the widescreen bandwagon, I find 4:3 so much better for working, especially with code, so I was thinking of the T8, which should be more than enough CPU power for what I need, and seems very similar to the T5.

Except for one thing, which worries me: the T8 has a fan. And if the T5 with its 5.5W CPU can get so warm,
I can only imagine the fan of the T8 (with a 10W CPU) being constantly on at full speed.

So my question to all CF-T8 owners out there: is it noisy? does the fan go full throttle a lot? DOes it ever swithc off? Is the noise bearable during normal use? Is heat a problem? I have read some horror stories on the CF-T7 on this forum, but nothing specific to the T8.

More generally, can you recommend other alternatives, if I want a small, light, durable laptop with a 4:3 touch screen and good battery life?

Thanks a lot for your feedback!

 

Welcome to the Panasonic Toughbook forum

That is about the only one I have not owned. My guess later on someone will be able to help you out...

 

It will have a fan control program so you can set the speed.No real heat problems on the T8 but make sure the screen doesn't have white dots on it,that means the back of the LCD is damaged from too much weight on the cover,the cover flexes and cuts the LCD.

 

You might also consider a CF-W8. It's similar to a T8 except has a DVD drive and no touchscreen.

 

bought a few of these, t5/t7/t8 as at 50 USD you can accumulate quite a few before even hitting the cost of a Chromebook. my favorite is the T5 beacuse of the low TDP chip. unless the fan's just dead in mine, it doesnt even have one.

unfortunately the T5 is IDE which makes putting in a scrap-pile SATA SSD out of the question. there's some IDE SSD's available but i'm not paying 2x laptop-cost for one. the T7/T8 are definitely on the warm side and have fairly aggressive fans.

FWIW i just use cheap chinese Atom tablets now. completely silent, faster than the T8, do full HD video no problem, 4 cores, and at half the price of a chromebook for a 9.7-11.6" model, even if they completely shatter in the pelican-case in your backpack somehow, youd have to break quite a few to hit the cost of a new toughbook. Panasonic needs to step up their game and make their products easier to buy, and do something like a larger RZ Without the crazy legacy stuff like VGA