TOSHIBA QUALITY

Hello All
I am in the market for a new desk-top replacement notebook(P4 with DVD burner). I was wondering how good Toshiba quality really is and how its warranrty and technical support stands? I also would appreciate any personal input that anybody might have in regard to P30-JC1. If anyone has any other recommendations Toshiba or otherwise I am listening [ ]
thank you
Mariner

 

My friend
I purchased a Toshiba 2450 a about one year ago. And I am 100% dissopinted with it, the whole damn thing is falling apart. The quality is very disappointing. Hardware wise is pretty good, but the plastics and the way its build its terrible. I am very dispointed. Toshiba was suppose to be the best laptop maker. I will never buy from them again. I would lean towards a nice dell laptop (due to their wonderfull warantty service) my friend baught one and if any goes wrong, they will came and fix it. I heard HP and Sony are also good. Also I learned my lesson, a laptop should be small and easy to move around. With a p4 cpu it will take alot of cooling, and make really loud noise when cpu at high load. You should also consider a external dvd+rw burner, get your self a nice burner from the store, and a external usb/firewire exclosure and you are set. No point to pay high price for the one inside the laptop.
Thanks

 

I have an entirely different story. After researching notebooks for over a year, talking to everyone under the sun, I made a split second decision based on one conversation with an I/S guy from our company. He told me how during his internship at a high school five years ago he observed a class of Grade 10 students abuse their Toshiba laptops and these things survived.

On looking through a local flyer I found a Toshiba P30-JC1 with P3.2GHz 512MB RAM 80GB HD with a 128MB discreet RAM video card and a 17" widescreen for only $2200 CAD. Yes, the HD is only 4200RPM and it doesn't have infra-red. But I was planning on buying a bluetooth key anyway to synch with my cellphone, so the IR would have been an added expense I didn't need.

Plus, it's got 802.11b/g on board, and Toshiba licensed the harman/kardon sound system to make it the best I've heard on any laptop, even without a sub woofer.

The only drawbacks:

1)It took a week to find a backpack big enough for it. Targus TXL617. It's a heavy beast, so backpacking it is the only way to make it transportable. Not every shop has these in stock so it's best to call around. I've found other backpacks for twice to three times as much as well.

2) The external monitor out has trouble synching with a projector for presentations. Another friend of mine with the same computer had the same problem with a different projector than I used. I think it will just take another BIOS update. The interim solution is to use the S-Video out, which worked out well.

3) Battery life due to everything going on is around 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

4) There's a slot in the back for a Kensington lock, but it's in the plastic which is easily breakable. What's the point?

So it all depends on what your needs are, whether this will work for you or not. For me, the price/performance ratio was dead on. I learned to live without the extra features and long battery life. It's been a good companion on the 30-minute train ride to and from work, and I even got to use the laptop at its lowest brightness setting while a passenger in a car.

It's big, yes, but it's still a laptop.

-Tony

 

Thank you both guys
What you said was certainly very helpful. From what I hear I think the Toshiba quality has been going down hill in the recent years(which is a real diappointment because they used to be real good) the same goes for Compaq. I don't know about Hp or other brands but I'll be looking.
Thanks again
Mariner

 

Tony -

Can you please tell me if you got trubrite or normal screen , the spec says trubrite but when I tried to order I got normal screen and canceled .

Got any pics of your notebook / review ?

Thanks Gil

 

i am in the same doubt
either a i choose a toshiba Qosmio with Pentium 4- M centrino
or a Hp pavillion with Pentium desktop processor

How good is Toshiba Qosmio then is it solid build ?

 

Generally all manufacturers have declined in the overall build quality. Even companies like IBM are releasing units that weren't as "bulletproof" as their older models. I believe it's just a numbers game, increased quality = lower profit margins. I own one of their older models (Satellite Pro 4320) and it's been working for me for over 3yrs without any problems or repairs. I have also had no problems in getting services for other Toshiba notebooks I have or friends have. I normally contact a buddy that works in a Toshiba Authorized Service Center, I don't bother with dealing with Toshiba, I usually can troubleshoot the problem myself.

JakeTheSpud,
Just a few things on what you mentioned regarding problems:

1. Regarding the battery life, this should be expected for any P4 based notebooks, especially a 17" model. You're lucky you're capable of getting 2hrs out of it, some people don't even get that much.

2. The issue with the video out, it could be the resolution/frequency that your LCD is set to. Some projectors only handle specific resolutions/frequencies, so if you're running too high, you're probably just gona get a a blank screen.

3. The slot for the Kensington lock is made of plastic on the exterior, but is re-enforced with either steel or some alloy inside. It's not the strongest metal out there, but it's only supposed to slow the thief down, not 100% stop them from breaking it with enough time.

Mariner,
If you are considering this unit, make sure you note the battery life on this unit. I know you indicated that you wanted a DTR unit, but if you were ever gonna take it on the road, just remember, short battery life.

-Vb-

 

My sincerest gratitude to everyone who replied to me, specially you VB. I am not planning to take the notebook on a trip at least nowhere that I would not have an access to a plug. Unfortunately, I am nowhere near knowing which laptop to pick.People have different opinion on just about anything in regard to the quality and tech support of Toshiba or HP ( the two brands I am interested. I would have prefered Dell but they don't offrer a p4 with a 17" screen and they outsourced their tech support to India (everytime I talk to them the conclusion is the same use the "system restore cd!").
Help me choose!
help meeeeee![xx(]

 

I also feel that Toshiba's quality and workmanship are cheap and crappy, but after my 3 1/2 yr old Satellite died, I bought another. The main reason is that they offer walk-in/drop-off service at authorized repair centers across the country. That saves me 3 or 4 business days of down time just for shipping/processing.

When my keyboard went on the fritz, I literally brought the notebook during lunch and picked it up the next morning. With my old Dell Inspiron, the turn-around was at least a week to replace a stupid LAN card.

 

Bravo! I am switching to Apple (just bought a 17" PowerBook), and although they are overpriced, you get gorgeous screens, fully loaded PCs, bluetooth, wireless, DVD Burner, etc, all included. In addition, THEY DO NOT OUTSOURCE THEIR TECH SUPPORT TO INDIA!!!

I have absolutely HAD IT with calling an 800# for tech support and being transferred to someone in Bangalore who a) doesn't know the product, b) doesn't speak English, c) who uses "System REstore" as their standard answer to every problem.

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

 

"On looking through a local flyer I found a Toshiba P30-JC1 with P3.2GHz 512MB RAM 80GB HD with a 128MB discreet RAM video card and a 17" widescreen for only $2200 CAD. Yes, the HD is only 4200RPM and it doesn't have infra-red. But I was planning on buying a bluetooth key anyway to synch with my cellphone, so the IR would have been an added expense I didn't need.

-Tony"



I am currently on my p30-jc1, having just lugged it home - yes it is quite the beast. I have 14 days to figure out if i want to keep this thing... which is why i'm here =)
Tony, where did u get urs for $2200? i was overpriced then!! (not too much more, but still!)
i used to have an acer aspire 1200... it was only a celeron 1.2GHz but still, i noticed immediately that it was faster opening web pages than this huge machine (alho now it's like being in the front few rows of a cinema). any1 else have probs with speed? i'm about to load up HL2, so i'm gonna give it a run for its money.
has any1 had probs with screen brightness? how do u even change it?

k, well any replies might make or break my decision to keep this satellite =) thx guys!

jimmeh

 

Hey jimmeh77, did you get your laptop at Future Shop?

 

Hey Mariner~
I would love to help you in any way possible. Could you post the specs you want your new laptop to include? I have done a LOT of research and could probably come up with some ideas for you. Get back to me.[ ]

~Zinger~

 

I've been offline for the longest time and haven't checked this thread. My P30's been keeping me pretty busy. I decided to keep it after the first week, but kept the protective plastic on the cover for a second week.

Jimmeh, I found mine at Staples, but I haggled with them in that Future Shop was selling them at the time for $200 less. So I got a heck of a deal. Now I've seen them for $2099 at Costco, but you have to pay cash/Amex.

Venombrite, thanks for the tips on the Kensington slot. I feel more secure about locking it to the table at the coffee shop when I start doing my work away from home.

Gilo, I believe it's Trubrite. Regarding pictures, I was going to record a video of a mock ceremony when I removed the plastic protector, but couldn't find the time. I'd love to write a review once I've played with it a little longer.

In my review I'd probably note that Toshiba provided a bunch of idiot-features that make the tech in me want to scream, but as a consumer find pretty cool. The Toshiba Console handles all sorts of controls including power management profiles, and when I tried to change these settings in XP's control panel I was told to use the Console.

Depending on the power management setting, the screen brightness can change automatically when battery life gets to a certain point. For instance, you might start at level 7 but at 50% it drops to level 4 to help squeeze out extra working time.

There are also brightness controls on the keyboard, controlled by the "Fn" key.

My 3-year old really likes Fn-1 and Fn-2, the keystrokes that activate the Toshiba Zoom utility.

A cellphone store near my office cells bluetooth keys for $30. I'll keep you posted on how that goes.

Missing features: IR, parallel port (already mentioned), and now I just learned my digital camera's compact flash card isn't compatible with the 6-in-1 card reader. Strange that the machine accomodates only SD, Memory Stick, Smart Media, MMC, xD-picture card, and Memory Stick Pro. Also, only 3 USB ports... though I guess that's why they make hubs.

Still, the sound quality is absolutely amazing for a notebook. On the first day I brought the P30 to my office we used it to display a video presentation for a retiring staff member. The DVD played perfectly and the music and sound effects were incredible and easy to hear across the room.

-Tony

 

Hey guys!

Yeah i ended up getting my machine at Staples and to cut a long story short, got it for $2149 but it included an HP all-in-1 printer, free (after rebates, value $180). Unfortunately it was the last one, but if you're still looking, tech_girl, let me know!

Happy Holidays!

jimmeh

 

Way to go Jimmeh! I really should know better than to get anything so close but not close enough to Christmas. I noticed all the stores started doing the free printer giveaways just before Christmas. Good thing I'm not a big fan of HP printers anyway. (Yeah, I'm sulking. [ ])

 

jake!

my condolences... dun worry.. i'm sure u'll strike a good deal soon enuf! january sales are here =)

jimmeh