Opinions on the new Tecra A7

Hi! Toshiba just a few days ago launched the new Tecra A7 series with Centrino Duo processors and ATI X1400 graphics - I would love to get one of these, the only question for me is the quality of the case: did anyone maybe see the A7 at the CEBIT and tell me what materials have been user for the A7's case? Is it made just of plastic again or does it feature also magnesium/aluminium covering like other Tecra models? Would be great to get some opinions...

 

I wonder why so many of the core duo's are released with low end cards like the x1400 and 7400?

 

Because most people dont game on their laptops. and alot of notebook models like the tecra are more bussiness class so no need for a higher card. plus it will run cooler with that card and be cheaper to make.

 

I wouldn't say the X1400/7400 are low-end cards - they're fairly decent and slot between the older X600 and X700 GPUs. Plus, as SRD has stated, the Tecra line is a business line, which doesn't need a ton of graphics power. Anyways, getting back to the Tecra: I believe it's mostly made out of plastic, with a magnesium alloy lid - I'd check it out in person if possible at a Best Buy/Circuit City.

 

About the graphics device: of course the X1400 ist not high end, and to be honest I can not really understand why ATI and Nvidia give their old graphic devices new names but no more power and then try to sell them again. The X1400 seems to be slightly less powerfull than the X700 but still better than the Nvidia 7400 featured in the Sony Vaio FE Series which i am also considering...

Unfortunately i do not have a possibility to see the laptop "in natura", so i have to wait for a review or someone's opinion...

 

The Tecra A7 is only good if you use it as a light desktop

It has the worse battery life ever.
Typical usage with the standard battery is around 1h30 minutes max.
I contacted Toshiba who said that it wasn't normal and they exchanged the laptop (great service)
New laptop did the same.

Called toshiba again, they told me that they had a fix for it and that was to buy the extended battery for it(8500mA)..

How can anybody release a laptop with such a short battery life.
Asus A6 (same spec) last 2h45 minutes in comparison and I get easily around 4 hours with my sony SZ160

JY

 

how come the A7 Tecra when i view it i cant upgrade the video card no option for that

 

I think I've narrowed down my search to the Tecra A7. I've never owned a note/lap/top/pad/thing before, and it's replacing my desktop which is dying a slow, painful death. I don't plan on doing any fancy gaming other than possibly a few older things, but nothing my current, far inferior computer can't handle. I also don't plan on using it on the go much at all, I just want something easy to handle since I tend to move around a lot and I'm tired of carrying a beast of a Desktop+monitor around. So anyway, before I go off and buy a computer I don't know a whole lot about, I some questions. I'm currently looking at the customizable version on Toshiba's website.

1) What is the TruBrite™ display? Is that something I should be interested in?
2) Should I consider getting the 12-cell battery instead of the 6-cell, just in case I do decide to start using it on the go?
3) Pretty much every notepad I've been reading about seems to come loaded with all kinds of useless software *cough*AOL, something I hate to have on my computer. Will I be able to sort through and get rid of the junk I don't need without destroying the computer?
4) I'm going back to school soon to study audio production, so I'm sure I'll be using it for various sound-related things. Even if I don't use high-end audio software, I still need at least the ability to record from external sources. It looks like I'll need a PCMCIA soundcard for that kind of stuff.. any suggestions?