Experiences with the Toshiba M30

The M30-710 just went on sale at Future Shop and I am thinking about picking one up. I am also considering the Acer 2012-WLMi. What is the general concensus with the Toshiba M30 notebook, and what are your experiences with it? Specifically, what is the battery life like on the Toshiba when compared to the Acer? Any input would help alot.

Thanks,
notebookguy2000

 

Here's a good thread:

http://notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=30113

.....Peter

 

Also, does anybody know if the Toshiba online store will price-match?

 

Hey Notebookguy,

If you really want a price match, why don't you buy the M30-YSJ from Bust Buy and price match from Staples?

Best Buy price for M30-YSJ = $2299.99 ($1999.99 while supplies last, wrong price posted)

Staples Price = $2599.95
Staples 150% Price Match Policy = -$449.94

Your price after price match = $2150.01 before taxes

If you can get it at $1999.99, that'll come to $1700.01 before taxes. I don't think you can beat that!

I'd recommend going to the store to do the purchase rather than online, because Staples.ca will not price match Best Buy because they don't provide free shipping. If you go to the store to pickup, they will price match (as long as Best Buy has stock).

Here's Best Buy Canada's ad, the price correction is on page 5.
http://www.bestbuycanada.ca/marketing/weeklyad/en/default.asp?lang=EN

Here's the link to Staples.ca for this unit:
http://www.staples.ca/ENG/Catalog/cat_sku.asp?CatIds=89%2C90%2C91,454&webid=575599&affixedcode=WW

Good Luck!

-Vb-

 

hey notebook guy,


ive been researching both the 2012 and the m30 for a while now, and i decided to purchase the m30-710 a bit over a week ago and futureshop, just got it reduced to 1999 with my 30 day price guarantee...anyway, i have to report that it is a fantastic laptop, i was leaning a bit towards the 2012 but oncei saw the m30 i can report that there have been no problems with it so far, ive set up a home wireless network, filled up about 45 gigs out of the 60 gig harddrive and burned a few cd's, its also a very aesthetically pleasing notebook, very nice to look aat, dvd playback is stunning, i dont own any other products with an lcd monitor, so this one blows my mind!!!! the speakers on a notebook are generally crap, but i have to say that this is the best out of all the crap and it really does sound quite good. (played dvd's on it, not recommended for music with a lot of bass) the battery life in my experience is pretty much the same as reported on a 2012, the battery and the ac adapter are pretty light compared to other laptops as is the notebook itself, its only .2 kg lighter than the 2012, but trust me, after carrying this from richmond hill to u of t downtown for a couple of days and im grateful for that extra .2 kgs...., in the end its up to you, i was questioning the price when i bought it compared to the price for the 2012 but now that the price has dropped, it surely offers great bang for the buck!!!

 

Thanks for the info. I went to a Staples in Cornwall, however they said that they would not match the $1999.99 price of the M30-YSJ becuase they (Staples) were selling the special edition version. Is there really a special edition model, or are all the M30-YSJ's special edition? The sale ends soon, so any quick info about this would help.

Thanks,
Notebookguy2000

 

The M30-YSJ is the Special Edition model. Here's the press release from Toshiba Canada, it states that the M30-YSJ Special Edition was released in June. So, they just didn't want to do the price match, WAY too much of a loss for them. But you know what, DEMAND that they price match, since that's their policy and they say it's a GUARANTEE.

http://www.toshiba.ca/web/pressrelease.grp?pressid=1205&from=25

But the one thing I also found out, Staples' 150% price match policy states:

"Show us a lower advertised price on a new identical item from an authorized dealer now or within 14 days of your purchase. We’ll match it PLUS give you 50% of the difference as a credit toward your purchase. (Maximum credit: $50). So, if you were to find an item priced at our store for $100 but $50 somewhere else, we would match the $50 price. PLUS, you would receive $25 towards your purchase."

So, when I said that you'll get $449.94 for 150% price match, I was wrong, you'll only get the price matched to what Best Buy is selling for and then an additional $50 deducted. But I guess that's still good.

If you want, you can even buy the exact same unit from Futureshop and have them do their 110% price match. I don't think they have a $50 limit. And since it's an advertised price, they also have to macth the price and then give you 10% of the difference. Again, just make sure Best Buy has it in stock in case they check with Best Buy.

Good Luck!

-Vb-

 

In the end i went with my son to Ottawa and got one at the Best Buy store in the west end. They had 2 left and we made it just in time and at the advertised price of $1999.99 They tried very hard to convince us to take the extended plan for $400 but we said no to that.

 

I purchased the M30-710 YSJ SE from Staples on Saturday morning and they PM @ $1999.99 - $50 = $1949.99

 

I drive down to the Ottawa west Best Buy from where I live in Montreal and picked up the M30-YSJ. It was the last un-opened one that they had. I wassick of dealing with Staples, and just wanted to get one while they lasted. It was still a great deal. Anyway, I am very happy with it. I noticed that nobody has done a review of this notebook yet on notebookreview. I may do one.

notebookguy2000

 

Congratulations to everyone who got in on the deal! Deals like this don't come too often, especially at a $600 saving from the regular price. I was really considering getting this notebook as well when I first saw the ad on Friday, but decided that I didn't really need it, my current Toshiba is doing the job. But I was REALLY tempted.

Notebookguy2000, I'm sure everyone will be anxious to read your review on your unit.

-Vb-

 

Well all the M30-YSJ are sold out! But I heard from some insiders that by the end of August and the begining of september the prices for most laptops at best buy and future shop should go down. So you might want to hold off till then. I just want to know if it's any good since i'm also looking on getting this unit. But i've heard the Satellite M30 series runs hot and that the battery sucks. Any one know if this is true?




<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Venombite

 

Hey Sugar_150,

Someone mentioned that to me on this site. Says that it gets hot around the glidepad area, but I haven't heard or read this anywhere else. Battery life, well, should get approx 3-3.5hrs of runtime, but I think this notebook has a 12-cell option, so that should push it upto 4-5hrs max.

The price drop from Best Buy was a pretty major drop, especially since it was an error. $600 off the regular price. If you're lucky enough, you may still be able to get it at $1999.99, but I think you have to be in-store to findout if there's stock and to get that price. If you try calling, they may just tell you there's no more.

Looks like there's about 3-4 people in Canada that just got one of these units. I'm sure they're gonna be happy with it. Have you seen any of the older M30 units? Everything's generally the same, except that it is a TruBrite LCD (twice as bright, but produces a lot of glare when you have a dark background). Has a Dothan 1.6Ghz CPU, DVD+/- R/RW drive, & 80GB HDD. Otherwise, it's the exactly the same as every other M30 (look & build wise).

-Vb-

 

I went to the best buy in Heartland town center in Mississauga on Sunday and they had sold out all over Canada. So i'm hopeing by the end of August the prices will go down. I've read a lot of reviews that say the M30-YSJ runs hot and that it comes with a 6 cell battery. Oh yeah and for those wanting to price match at staples, they have actually reduced their price at 2299.85, as of the 14th. So you can save some cents, and Toshiba has a 10% off all custmized units. So if any can write a review on the M30-710 or the M30 YSJ that would really be helpful.






<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Venombite

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by sugar_150

 

I was just wondering if I just post my review on the forum or if there is another place on this website to do this. Thanks.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by notebookguy2000

 

I wrote a rather large review a few days ago, but my router likes to wait until I hit send before it wants to be reset.

I managed to get two M30 YSJ Toshibas (actually 3 but I returned one)from staples thanks to Venombites original heads up. So THANKYOU Venom!

I have never owned a labtop before so I don't have many comparative views but I can tell you what I am discovering. The screen is amazing! fantastic to watch DVDS on. I have not found the "glare" an issue. There are so many lighting settings that it is easy to find one that works for whatever application you are using. It is only noticeable when you have a black screen, and really how often is that going to affect what you are doing.

It does heat up on the bottom left side but not to any severe extremes. I had it on my lap for an hour or so without any issues.

The DVD tray feels VERY flimsy, but as I have not had one before maybe this is normal? All I know is I am extremely gentle with it.

I hooked it up to my xbox and game cube and it is a great picture. There is a 1 button screen switch between the input and your desktop so it is very convenient. I am moving into residence so I know this will be a handy feature.

Im not sure if this is something I can fix, or if it has something to do with those different screen types (wxfa, tft, wtxlmnop, etc...)but when I change the resolution the text becomes obviously grainy and the screen shape doesnt match the widescreen. I cant speak pro so I will speak laymanese... half of the desktop picture and the lower icons disappear off the screen.

The size although very slim does feel a bit akward to carry, and I am having trouble finding a suitable case thats over 15 inches. You can tell Im reaching for problems here.

Really I dont know what else to say but if there are any direct questions about the machine I will be more than happy to tell you what I find.

So thanks again Venom... I had already ordered an A70 for the same price.

Tate

 

How's the over all unit, like speed, sound of the speakers, does the DVD drive work well is it slow? How are the PC card slots (tray) are they durable or seem like they'll break. Hows the key board are you having any problems with it? Have you played any games on it and how is the video card? Do you like that battery life. Is the laptop hevy? How hot are we talking about? On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rank the machine?





<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by tate

 

Hey Tate,

You're welcome! [ ] Glad that you actually cashed in on the deal.

Regarding the issue with the resolution, are you upping the resolution? If you increase the resolution above the native resolution (1280x800 I believe), then it will put you into a vitrual desktop mode. Generally, if your LCD can't handle the higher res's, it "zooms in" and the rest of the pixels are off the screen so you just move your mouse around to "scroll" through the desktop. Hopefully I didn't go into my "stupid" mode where no one can understand what I just typed. [ ]

If you're looking for a case, the Targus Notepac Plus cases should fit this unit pretty good. You can get the Targus XL that fits the 17" models, but I think it may be too big for you. They're both available at Staples. I'd recommend getting the nylon cases rather than the leather/koskin. The leather bags will add an extra couple pounds to your travelling weight. I fit my previous NX7000 in the Notepac Plus with AC adapter & power cord without any problems. It was a good fit, a bit more cramped than I would have liked, but still a good fit.

----------------------------------------

Sugar_150,

The PC Card slots don't have a tray, are you talking about the CD/DVD drive tray? They're usually made of plastic, so they may seem flimsy on most systems.

I had an HP NX7000 with a Pentium M 1.6Ghz and I found it pretty fast. This unit, I believe comes with a 1.6Ghz Dothan, so you're probably looking at an additional 10% (approx) performance increase. I'm sure it's more than fast enough for most peoples needs.

The speakers, well, it's a notebook, so it's not gonna be the best. The larger the notebook, usually the more space to put larger speakers (eg. HP ZX5000). They have very good sound for a notebook, but that unit weights close to 9lbs with AC adapter. The units weighs approx 7lbs with AC.

-Vb-

 

How's the over all unit, like speed, sound of the speakers, does the DVD drive work well is it slow? How are the PC card slots (tray) are they durable or seem like they'll break. Hows the key board are you having any problems with it? Have you played any games on it and how is the video card? Do you like that battery life. Is the laptop hevy? How hot are we talking about? On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rank the machine?


The CPU is fast,nowadays if you don't mess up your computer with Virus/Spyware etc then everything should be fast.

The Speaker is very loud but there's a limit to small speakers like the bass can't be turn on very big

I played Doom3 on it and although it detect it should be run at the lowest setting, it's very smooth. I can't believe it too

Battery life: With a 15.4" WXGA screen battery will drain fast. If you are comparing with other 15.4" then the batter life is good. I am sure you can use for 3hr+ with just internet and processing. I purchases a 12-cell on eBay for just $35 CAD and though it's heavier, I can use for 7 hrs, that's very good considering the screen size.

It's very hot, if you are burning DVD and using the harddisk frequently, the touch pad get hot and the bottom get hot. They don't recommend you to put it on your lap touching bare skin. It's like the frog/hot water example. You might not feel it but you might get mild burn from it.

I give it 9/10. The DVD-R write only recogize certain brand name ( that i haven't find that) that will let me burn at 4x DVD-R.

There are some 52x CD-Rs that can be burn at 16x (max for the drive) and some can only be burn at 8x on the drive.

I guess it's a safety for the lifetime of the drive so I don't mind. It's better to burn slower than to break the drive in 2years time.


PS. I had a Sony laptop before. It's 366 MHZ with DVD-Rom drive. Within one year the hard disk broke, 2 years the DVD-Rom broke, 3 year, one side of the hinge breaks and 3.5 year, the other hinge breaks. Right now, it's just stationary and it's hold in place with a bookend for my mom to email.

All my friends uses Toshiba now. We have a P20/P10/ Two M30 including my YSJ and an older model. Nothing bad happens to them and I hope Toshiba will live up to their reputation... unlike Sony.

 

Hmmm, looks like a design issue for the M30's. Looks like it sits too low to the surface to pull in enough cool air.

You may also want to look into a notebook cooling pad. This pad has fans on it that blows air directly to the underside of the notebook, therefore helping ventilation.

Something like this from Antec:
http://www.antec-inc.com/pro_details_cooling.php?ProdID=75004#

-Vb-

 

Hey all,

VB I tested what you said and you are right, if I move the mouse it moves the screen. That’s handy to know, because I likely would have never stumbled on that. But what I was referring to is actually something else, that you may have touched on. When I go below 1280*800 the next 2 settings 1024*768 and 800*600 become noticeable pixilated and blurry. My home computer switches between 640*480 and 1600*1200 with perfect clarity. Is this a laptop thing, or does it has something to do with what you referred to as native resolution?

I also went looking for a bag, which has become a harder choice than the laptop itself, lol. I really did notice a weight difference between leather and vinyl, and did choose the latter. I found a samsonite that suits my needs, but may be lacking if I end up carrying a lot of text books. I may decide to switch to a backpack if that’s the case but as far as the laptop is concerned it is light enough that it is only a slightly noticeable weight addition in the case. I say this because I'm not sure what people are concerned about in regards to weight, because personally I have found that no matter how much these laptops weigh, they are all very awkward to carry without a case, especially if they have widescreens, and you are worried about pressing buttons and inadvertently snapping your tray off. So in a bag it is very light, but in your hands it still feels awkward and heavy if your carrying it around as I imagine any laptop would.

The tray does feel flimsy Sugar, but I am yet to find one that I wouldn’t say the same thing about. I have just been trying to make sure I am on a level surface and pay attention to what I am doing. I likely am being way too overprotective and cautious though, as is my nature with expensive equipment.

As someone else said it did feel faster before I put my antivirus, firewall and spybot on. But to be fair it is still VERY speedy. I have just finished a multimedia degree so I use a lot of software that takes forever to load, and the first thing I have noticed is that it takes far less time than I am accustomed to. I haven’t done any rendering but I anticipate the same results.

The speakers are disappointing, not because they are inferior but because they are what they are... laptop speakers. I have expensive speakers that I have plugged in from the moment I got it, and unplugged for about 30 seconds during a DVD before I couldn’t stand it. When I am out and about I am only browsing and word processing so I only hear the various dings and whistles it likes to make. In my opinion though as far as brands are concerned you can’t go wrong with Harmon/ Kardon.

On a scale of 1 to 10 the heat still isn’t an issue for me. It seems I am alone in this, but I still don’t really notice it. The primary place I set this is on my lap and I have had no problems... BUT I have not been burning cds or playing games. So as far as browsing goes it is really only a minor thing. However after what I have read I will bow to the boards experience and refrain from doing heavy usage while exposing any skin.

The keyboard is fine and I have adapted to the missing buttons quickly. It is very quiet and is a nice surprise because I was worried about annoying people in class. I’m heading to law school and I had this vision of struggling to catch what the prof is saying over the flurry of keystrokes around the room. I say this as I clunk away on my “smart office keyboard” that sounds like a typewriter.

As for an overall rating I am in the 8.5 /10 range. But as I have said before I have nothing to compare it to. Perhaps if it came with flaps to raise it 1.5 cm as Story suggested, and had a ... I’ve just sat here for 2 minutes trying to be as critical as I can but can’t come up with a damn thing. Who am I kidding, for the price I paid it’s a 10/10

Tate

 

Hey Tate,

I see you're satisfied with your notebook. This is definitely a good thing to hear. The worst thing is to spend a lot of time researching, buy it and not like it.

Regarding the issue with the resolution, the reason it goes grainy if you drop the resolution, is because it must stretch the images to fit the whole screen. There's an option to disable screen stretching under Display Properties. But by doing this, you will get black borders around the edge of the screen. You probably have a CRT monitor at home, CRT's operate differently than an LCD monitor. CRT's don't have a native resolution (where it operates normally), it just has a min and max resolutions. LCD have a native resolution (usually the highest it supports) and anything lower will require the image to be stretched to fit the full screen.

Regarding the notebook being raised, you can add small rubber feet to the bottom so that the unit is raised up slightly. You can get them for Staples or any hardware store. It's used to keep glass table tops off the wood or metal and prevent it from sliding around.

For the speaker issue, you may want to carry a pair of earbud headphones around with you. This way, you can always get good sound wherever you are.

-Vb-

 

For all of you that purchased the m30-ysj se and have been using it for a few weeks now are you happy with it?
thks