New Portege Z830

Can't see that on mine Series 9 Guy, did you clean install?

 

Drivers page? I kinda want to be the guinnie pig for a clean install. Well, not really. I just hate all these bloatwares.

 

I don't think he did... it might be the difference between the Z835 from Best Buy and the Z830 from Tosh Direct.

@pinoyboy

I'm currently defaulting the keyboard light to off... but it's nice to have it just in case. I haven't found an option for it to change when it's on/off by battery/plugged in (I have that option on my Sony SE, so I can keep it on when plugged in and have it off while on battery).

They feel of the keyboard clicks is actually better than my MBA (and from what I can remember from the Asus UX31), I don't know how to explain it.

 

There's none on the UK site yet, here's the download page on the US site for one of the Portege models. Probably most are similar...?

Model Content Page

 

He bought a new hard drive, so he had to clean install..unless he did a partition copy...

 

Finished playing with my laptops insides! (For now!)

First of all, the fan: Yes, that white connector controls the fan, and yes, the computer was silent when it was unplugged, and yes, the temperature didn't go above maybe 50 degrees fahrenheit for the 10 minutes I was continuing to work. The only problem is that there is an annoying popup that comes up every 30 seconds warning me the fan isn't working. I'd rather live with a mild buzz at that rate. If someone really wanted to pursue this further, I have a feeling that one of Toshiba's bloatware is to blame- like the EcoUtility or Health Monitor. If we can get our power management looking like Series 9 Guy's, then maybe we we will be able to actually get the fan to turn off sometimes. Or perhaps someone should contact Toshiba to see if they have anything thats a bit more smart... the fan really doesn't need to be running so fast when the temperature is below 40!

Secondly: Installing the Intel Centrino Advanced 6230 Wireless card. This went generally smoothly. first off, you have to flip up the black plastic piece that is holding the orange ribbon cable in place. Then, you pull the orange ribbon out. Do this on both sides to expose the wireless card. Unscrew the one screw holding in the old card, pull it out, pull off the black and grey wires that are acting as the antennae. Then attach those wires to the new card, plug it back in, screw it back in, slide the orange cable back in place, and re-seat the black plastic on both ends. The whole thing would have been very easy had it not been for the fact that the AC light starting blinking orange. And I couldn't turn on the computer. Uh oh. After a quick internet search, I tried unplugging the battery for a moment, and plugging it back in. Then I turned on the computer, and it worked fine. Installed the toshiba bluetooth stack from the Z830 drivers list, and now its all working!

Now I have access to my bluetooth devices, and my precious 5GHz wireless network. I live in an apartment building, so the 2.4 GHz spectrum is congested with about 40 other networks at the moment. Now its just my single wireless connection in the 5 GHz range .

Not a bad upgrade for $25! Saved me from spending hundreds more on the non-best buy models!

 

I ALWAYS do a clean install and would recommend to anyone with a SSD. I can state first hand that the SSD contained is slowed because of the bloatware and fact that it is set up for a few different configurations...not just your system. It is a blanket OS.

I can definitely state that my fan is on very little and NOT always. This is most likely because I switched off the OS and SSD before I even turned it on the first time. ALL of the drivers and software except for Windows itself is available on Toshiba, however, I believe that most users would have to create their Win disk from within the software in first use to have a disk. I have Technet so access to all software legally.

 

So there is a difference in the power options utility from Best Buy and direct from Tosh's site.

Mine is like makryger's where I have a separate "Toshiba Power Saver Settings" and changing through the options doesn't seem to affect the fan speed.

 

Not necessarily best buy vs toshiba... but definitely toshiba windows vs. clean install windows.

 

Just wondering, when I go to "Change Adapter Settings" from network connections, how come I have what looks like 3 wireless connections?

- Intel WiFi Link 1000 BGn
- Microsoft Virtual WiFi Miniport Adapter
- Microsoft Virtual WiFi Miniport Adapter #2

 

Sorry... I meant "drivers" from Toshiba's site.

 

To Access Toshiba Application and Drivers Installer, go to this folder:
C:\Program Files\Toshiba\TOSAPINS\COMPS1

This has the .exe needed for the bloatwares and drivers that came preinstalled with your laptop on factory condition. The pretty interface of the Toshiba Application Installer isn't there, but this is what's needed.

WARNING:
Take this with a grain of salt, but do take it into consideration before you do a clean install. This might not include ALL the drivers and softwares and applications needed, but from the looks of it, this has most of it.

EDIT:
@Series9Guy's post bellow mine... I didn't want to look for each driver on toshiba's website. I guess some of us, me, are lazy

Model Content Page
Toshiba website has them all. Always check the company's website for an uptodate drivers.

 

All of the drivers are available on the Toshiba website...

 

Well..

I made my decision and one is on the way. I did look at the Samsung Series 9 but with the wi-fi problems and the Samsung 7 Slate screen issues I decided to skip Samsung for now and probably forever. Shame really.

Once it arrives I'll detail the out of box configuration, services running, memory used etc and how to reduce the bloat/footprint. After that I'll detail a clean install, driver order, what to turn off and then finally a battery test.

I've ordered the i3 version as, frankly, I'm going for the maximum battery life and the lowest fan noise possible. (I hate fan noise but what I hate more is a fan that simply won't turn off... I'm looking at you Elitebook/Probook range!) All in all I'd like a silent, well running, with maximum resources available machine for light VM work and typing. (I could have gone with the i5 but didn't see the need)

The last few machines I've tried:
Dell Vostro 131: Lovely machine, nice backlight keys, nice battery, terrible flex (Celeron, fan stayed off most of the time)
HP 5330m: Really, really nice machine, rock solid build, let down by battery life and the keys are a little harder than standard (i3, fan off most of the time)
HP Probook 6460b: Stupidly huge laptop, very nice typing experience, amazing battery options but the fan does stay on. (i5, fan pretty much always on)
HP Elitebook 8460p: Pretty much identical to the 6460b but a different colour case and keyboard light. (i5, fan pretty much always on)
HP Envy 14: The fan cycling every 10 seconds basically destroyed what could have been a fantastic machine. (i5, annoying fan)
HP Envy 13: The single most attractive machine I've ever owned. Fantastic battery life, near perfect screen, amazing keyboard and a nice trackpad (If I can complete Plants Vs Zombies with it)... (Core 2, virtually silent) Shame on HP for not updating such a fantastic machine

I darn well hope that the Toshiba beats the Envy 13 on at least a few levels.

 

i have done a clean install on my R700 and once the toshiba eco powermode is installed, it wipes this option from the advanced power settings for ALL power policies.

 

I tried doing a few things to modify fan usage... uninstalling eco mode, trying updated drivers for the power saver settings (which then told me toshiba common modules weren't installed, which i then tried to install, but I couldn't because I was not in ACPI mode...). I think someone just needs to speak with Toshiba to try to understand why the fan stays at 40% all the time. Unfortunately, I can't be that volunteer, as I'll be travelling and can't have my laptop in experiment mode anymore!

 

Why would you skip Samsung forever? The series 9 is actually a very nice machine. But yeah there are a few issues with it. That said every generation is its own battle, for me personally I decided to return the series 9 due to a few issues like the trackpad having issues, borders were needlessly sharp and power connector had problems and would end up ripping in the 1st month. (And yes people had wifi issues due to the durilium casing though that didnt bother me too much)

But every generation is its own battle, so while it may have its faults now in a year or 2 I am sure they will iron out most of the problems.


As for i3 vs i5..there are a few other factors like on the z830 you can choose a matte screen and etc.

 

I wish I knew more about ultrabook tech. But unfortunately, I'm more of a practitioner than I am a tech. I'll *use* tech to get the job done, but at the end of the day, I just want to get the job done. Would someone help me by telling me which Toshiba utilities I can uninstall safely? I'm especially interested in the ones that are more like... [spam] I mean... helpful [but useless] advertising and features I'm unlikely to use?

For example, so far, I've used Control Panel / Remove programs to uninstall:
bookplace
bulletin board and
online backup

And it doesn't seem that I've wrecked anything at all. Are there others I can nuke?

Thanks for your help.

 

LOOK AT ALL THAT BLOATWARE!!
Information for almost all of these crapware can be found in the user guide pdf. I don't want to read it since fall quarter just ended, I think I've read enough materials in the past 3 months.

Useless Crap I'm sure I won't need that I have uninstalled:
- Best Buy PC [ cra]APP
- Google chrome (Firefox FTW!)
- Google toolbar (I hate toolbars)
- Java 6u25 (brand new model, brand new laptop, why install a ****'ing old version?
- Office 2010 (the main reason why I hate office 2010 is because of the print screen. 2007 FTW)
- Office 2010 click to run
- Office Starter - English
- Norton (too expensive, and I'm against pirating... MSE FTW)
- Toshiba Book Place
- Toshiba Bulletin Board
- Toshiba Face Recog (This thing wont recognize me with my glasses )
- Toshiba Resolution + Plugin for WMP (no idea what it does, but I hate WMP)
- Toshiba Web Cam App (ManyCam FTW!)

Useless Crap which I think are useless but have yet to uninstall due to lack of knowledge/fear of a $900 paper weight:
- Toshiba Audio Enhancement (I have a feeling this is just a sound volume controller with a pretty interface)
- Toshiba Assist (I'm scared)
- Toshiba Disc Creator (I have no disk drive!!)
- Toshiba Media Controller (Umm... another useless one IMO)
- Toshiba Media Controller Plug In
- Toshiba PC Health Monitor (actually looks usefull... but will I use it?)
- Toshiba Quality App (" Repairs" your files and such)
- Toshiba ReelTime (Looks like a difficult app to use. Drag and drop, or, copy and paste is FTW)
- Toshiba Service Station (Looks to be useless and cannot be removed)
- Toshiba Sleep Utility (I think this is for sleep and charge)
- Toshiba Value Added Package ( Based on this link, you need it for your FN keys. Can someone confirm?)
- Toshiba Wireless Display Monitor (Connect your laptop to your HDTV via WiFi)
- Toshiba Wireless LAN indicator (Stupid pop up that shows access points...)
- Toshiba Registration

THESE ARE MY OPINIONS. Uninstall at your own risk.

More on the Facial Recognition, I tried it with my friend's toshiba laptop... and his laptop thought 4 of us are the same people.
Having a shaved head doesn't help out.

 

i ripped everything out on a clean install and only returned the eco mode and the value added

yes you need the value added for the Fn keys to work as they use the flashcards utility which is part of the value added. it also contains the drivers/config for the quick start buttons on the laptop (eco mode button and video output/presentation button)

 

I just got the bestbuy model, haven't had a chance to play around, only installed office so far.

Question about clean install. If I install a new copy of windows 7 pro from microsoft ultimate steal deal, if I decide to return this laptop to bestbuy and go for the z830 i5, how do I restore the bestbuy z835 laptop to factory windows install? The box didn't come with a restore cd.

Also, would i still be able to use this windows 7 pro on another computer later if I uninstalled it from toshiba?

 

Two things to note..

1) Norton is not expensive, you only need to buy it once in a lifetime for like 20-30$...after that its free after rebate every year. MSE just isn't as good and your putting your pc at risk.

2) Pirating Norton is very counter productive, Norton is your protection, if your pirated copy contains a virus your pretty much out of luck. Its the 1 thing you never ever want to pirate regardless the circumstances.

You can create a boot cd, or you can just wipe the entire drive.

assuming you didn't give the laptop back and you remove it from the toshibe laptop then yes.

 

[Sorry I misspoke, I thought "disc creator" was "Recovery Disc Creator"; they are 2 separate programs]. Though the z830 doesn't have a DVD drive, I would still keep the "Recovery Disc Creator" until you have access to an external DVD drive. That partition is used to create your backup discs; which you may use in the event of a system restore. [I'm assuming it will write via external DVD drive].

Sleep-n-charge is useful if you need it, if not you can uninstall.

Service Station is Toshiba's version of Windows Update. Warns of any software/hardware updates Toshiba releases for your specific model.

Looks like "Value added package" is related to Fn keys Toshiba Value Added Package - Toshiba Forums

I would keep the WiDi software.


Good luck

 

OK... so this is a helpful discussion. So far, I'm not seeing a *ton* of extra things I can uninstall, based on your input so far. Thanks.

 

Would this boot cd restore everything to the factory default install? If so, how do I make this boot cd?

 

Yes it would. One way is to obtain an external DVD drive and use the "Toshiba Recovery Media creator" software/application.

Which ever route you choose, you'll most likely need an external DVD drive [or USB drive].

 

It says on the "Recovery Media Creator" you need >7.5gb Hopefully an 8gb usb drive is enough. I still haven't made a recovery media.

I'll drop by goodwill and see if I can find a nice cd drive. If not, the cheapest external cd drive that I know of is about $50. Then I still have to buy a case for it, about $15-30 for a good one, since my old one is too large... Wow this thing is a money pit.

Thank you for the True Value Package report.

================

Some questions about the SSD since this is my first time using one.

- Does the stock SSD have TRIM?
- I tried doing the command "fsutil behavior set disabledeletenotify 0" but it says I need to be an administrator to see the result. I'm the only user of this laptop.
- If I ever fix the above problem, how often should I run TRIM?
- How do I securely delete things, Just do it as if it was a HDD?
- I'm scared to do a clean install since if I format the drive, I might decrease the lifespan of this SSD.

 

Ya, Recovery Media usually takes 3-4 DVDs to make. I bought an External Drive on sale at Best Buy for $40 [no case needed; bought it to restore my netbook]. Maybe they'll have some sales soon.

Here's a list of external drives available at Best Buy: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/CD-DVD-Drives-Burners/External-DVD-Drives/pcmcat189600050009.c?id=pcmcat189600050009

 

I'm really liking the Z835 so far. So much lighter than the UX31/MBA (you can definitely feel the difference, it's drastic) and looks a lot less mac book air-ish. The LCD panel does seem to vibrate/shake a bit tho if the desk isn't steady. The only other thing I would have liked is a 1440x900 resolution option for customized models, for ~ $100.

Will use this for a couple of weeks and if no problems pop up then I'm going to return this to bestbuy and buy the i5 Z830 on toshiba website. Wish bestbuy would sell i5 for $1000.

Also, I read in a lenovo thread it's best to stop battery from charging once it reaches 90%. Is there anyway to do this on toshiba?

 

If it doesn't let you make one on a flash drive, You can always burn a virtual DVD...then copy over the content to a flash drive.

As for an external dvd drive, best place to get that is newegg...bought one a week ago for 15$


Looked at newegg and this is the cheapest they have now:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151238

promo code: EMCJHKD74

for 5$ off

 

I made the recovery on USB drive, it didn't take too long. Now another question: if I restore using this, would it wipe all my personal files/passwords etc from the laptop?

 

um..maybe... it will obviously wipe the files and everything. but by maybe I mean when data is erased, it is not really erased...it depends on the procedure on the utility.

When I gave my Series 9 back, i manually deleted all my files, did a wipe on all empty space. Then did a factory reset. Then another wipe on empty space. Then took a text file and expanded it to fill up the entire hard drive. then another factory reset. lol...

 

I stopped by Best Buy after work and after a few minutes of playing I just had to buy one. This thing is SWEET!

Random musings in no particular order:

It reminds me of the Sony Vaio X series I used to own, but with balls.

The i3 and SSD combination is quite snappy. I think that some people get hung up on numerical benchmarks, looking at the sustained read/write numbers, forgetting that the biggest advantage of an SSD in a lappy is the access time.

It's not as nimble as my Vaio Z, but I wouldn't it expect to be (i5, three 64GB SSDs in RAID 0, discrete graphics), and I've been looking for something lighter to take on the road since I'm using the Z as a second desktop with an external 28" monitor.

I don't understand the complaints about the Toshiba's appearance. It doesn't have racing stripes or Hello Kitty skins, but the brushed silver is quite attractive. I like it.

Considerably lighter in feel than both the Samsung 9 and Asus UX31 that Best Buy also had... and for quite a bit less money.

The screen is no worse than other glossy screens I've used... I do wish it was matte though.

Facial recognition software is craptacular. I gave up after 10 minutes when it couldn't find my ugly mug. I used the facial recognition on my Alienware M11x, and it worked MUCH better on that platform.

I like the dedicated eco-mode button. I also like the on/off button right above the touchpad. I've never seen that before on a laptop. I can't count the number of times I've effed up a document because of an errant touchpad brush. Other laptops should have this feature.

Speakers aren't too shabby for such a tiny laptop.

Fan noise/whine/whatever is so low as to be unnoticeable. I don't work in complete silence; perhaps if I did, it might be an issue.

This thing fits inside my leather portfolio... just barely, but it fits. Way cool.

The only thing about buying from Best Buy is the 9% sales tax here in The Peoples Republic of Illinois. Ugh. Still, the 18-month 0% financing they're offering on the BB card is handy. Also, since the return period has been extended until January 4 with no restocking fee, this gives plenty of time to experiment, break it in, and see if it's worth keeping, while still having an out.

For 8 bills, this is one sweetheart of a lappy.... a featherweight with a bit of a punch.

 

I thought extended return policy at BB did not include computers?

That said if your up for an i5 and a matte screen the z830 is there on toshibas website, not sure if they charge tax in Illinois or not.

 

Not what they told me... but I guess I should verify again knowing BB.

Does anyone know what states Tosh charges tax in?

 

I specifically asked, and was told that it inlcluded computers.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/10/idUS149069+10-Nov-2011+HUG20111110

 

I could be mistaken as that was the policy last year:

Extended Holiday Returns

I guess thsi year they are more desperate lol

um..well I know they charge in NY, but due to the new law almost everyone does *sigh*

 

I threw one in my cart to check... and they do charge in Cali... they also charge in IL (sorry heavy).

The BB receipts still mention the restocking fee but a manager there told me that it was actually taken away since Jan 1 of 2011... I guess they just haven't burned through all their receipt paper yet.

 

i thought BB return was until Jan 24th?

 

Seems like it is:

Holiday Return Policy

my guess is the article forgot the "2" in front of the "4"

 

Yes, till 24 jan 2012. I called bestbuy and asked in person; they all said 24th.

Some questions about the SSD since this is my first time using one.

- Does the stock SSD have TRIM?
- I tried doing the command "fsutil behavior set disabledeletenotify 0" but it says I need to be an administrator to see the result. I'm the only user of this laptop.
- If I ever fix the above problem, how often should I run TRIM?
- How do I securely delete things, Just do it as if it was a HDD?
- I'm scared to do a clean install since if I format the drive, I might decrease the lifespan of this SSD.

 

Not sure since I don't have it yet but you can run things as administrator by going to command prompt and running that as administrator(right click->run as administrator) then all commands in that command prompt window will run as an administrator

 

Just picked up a Z830 up here in Canada. Great Laptop so far. Can't believe the weight on it. Did a full wipe and everything went fine.

My only issue with it so far is that because I am in Canada I got a keyboard with some french on the keys. Those keys are not like the standard ones with the backlight shining through. So while the edging of the key lights up you can't actually see what the key is. All of the function keys on the right are light this - del for example. As well as most of the punctuation keys. Seems kind of half asses on Toshibas part. I am going to call Toshiba and see if I can get a standard keyboard as I don't need the french anyways.

I also did the BIOS update to version 1.4 and I downloaded the eco mode software off the website. When I go to install it says the BIOS version isn't supported. Anyone have this issue?

 

questions answered above

 

You are correct on both counts and Toshiba won't assist with the keyboard; I am in contact with them daily and they have no access to US keyboards and a question of warranty arises if you switch off the keyboard because of the necessity to take the entire system apart.

As for eco mode, recognized as well although I am not a fan simply because it restricts CPU power significantly.

As for the thought of SSD lifespan and secure erasing the SSD. a secure erase creates a certain amount of risk but more importantly, why would you EVER concern yourself with the life of the drive? Did you do that for a hard drive ever? Its a panic mode the industry went into long ago which is brought up in threads such as this occasionally and nothing more. The SSD will last a great deal longer than a HDD and does not crash at end life. Your data is still readable.

SSDs last so long, in fact, that even the best studies have not been able to provide an accurate assessment of how long they may really last.

 

Thanks for the info. I don't care about the french on the keys I just don't get how they could change out the keys for ones that wouldn't shine through. Even asthetically it doesn't look very nice since the a bunch of the keys aren't lit up. This isn't a huge deal for me but when I was trying to do the setup last night in the dark on an keyboard i had never used before it would have been nice to be able to see them.

If you hear any news let us know here. I might give them a call just to let them know that I am displeased that I bought a backlit keyboard and a bunch of keys aren't actually backlit.

 

Yes....I feel the same..

 

does anyone else find that their spacebar is not that sensitive? I find i really have to hit it in order to get it to space especially if it is near the right end.

 

Well... Mine arrived today and... it's probably going back after I try a clean install.

Out of the box
81 running processes
1.05Gb memory used (Superfetch is set to manual on this machine)
23 seconds from off to desktop
48c sat idle (Room temp 25.5c)

After tweaking the machine for a few minutes (removing ticks from ALL of the startup MSConfig items, turning off a whole load of services, setting everything to max battery and cpu max 10%, max battery cooling) I simply cannot get the fan to turn off.

After tweaking:
31 running processes
672Mb memory used (Superfetch is set to manual on this machine)
21 seconds from off to desktop
42c sat idle (Room temp 23.9c)

It's damn quick after tweaking but I refuse to accept that in this day and age a fan has to stay on especially seeing as this is 'only' a 1.4Ghz cpu. The HP 5330m and Dell 131 are basically SILENT at idle. (I, however, do appreciate that this is a new (but not at all) form factor)

P.s. 0% cpu usage... flatline, nothing running. Fan still on

Clean install underway

 

There's gotta be some extreme variance in the loudness of these fans. I'm doing a software install right now, and have to put my ear down to the laptop to hear anything at all.