Toshiba Satellite A100 Any Good?

I discussed with my parents about getting a notebook when they showed me a flyer where the Toshiba Satellite A100-SK9 and Toshiba Satellite A100-TA6 is on sale.

Previously I had Toshiba notebooks before and they stood the test of time.

Are there any major problems with the Toshiba Satellite A100?

 

My sister has owned a Toshiba A100 SK1 (i think the variant model is correct) for over a month and so far no problems. If you're buying in person, you can judge whether you like the screen and keyboard or not, although personally I prefer the LCD on my good 'ol Satellite A70 (P4 Prescott).

Oh, and one last thing: do the world a favor, don't get a model with Intel GMAs. Just don't.

 

i have the sk9 and love it, amazing gfx card bundle with it

 

you guys are lucky you guys have sk9's i want one now that it is on sale at the store for only $1199 CAD, i currently have a dell that i got for way more and that isnt as good as the sk9

 

What "store" has it for $1199? I saw it online at Staples for that but that doesn't mean anything because it's never in stock.

 

In Canada? Future Shop and Best Buy are the two most common. DO NOT BUY RETAILER WARRANTIES. I learned the hard way. $350 for nothing.

 

Where besides Toshiba direct can you find a SK9 preconfigured?

I looked at Best buy, Costco, etc and couldn't find any.

Thanks

 

i saw it at staples for 1199, futureshop usually has it for 1799 and i havent checked best buy

 

I have the A100-SK9 so far no problems with it, it does everything that I need it to including running wow. I also saw it advertised at Staples for $1199.00 I paid $1499.00 about 2 months ago. Also buy the extended warranty through Toshiba not the store.

 

Bestbuy doesn't seem to carry the sk9, but they do carry the P105 JD3 and JD4 - 17" screens, but only the go 7300 which stinks compared to the 7600. The SK9 for $1199 is a stellar buy.

 

The Toshiba A100 SK9 is indeed advertised for $1199.85 at Staples Canada until Oct 24 2006.This also includes a software bundle which can be downloaded from various vendors and a HP inkjet printer as part of their 15th Staples Canada anniversary.You can also apply for the 15 month no payment no interest credit card promotion.This sounded like an awesome deal and I planned to purchase this laptop today. But I found out they don't have any more new sealed boxed units left anywhere in Ontario, they will however sell me the display demo with additional $50 bucks off. I am a little leary of this (I really wanted a new one), but went to the store to check out the display model, it seemed ok, a little bit smudged,no dead pixels that I could see and the keys looked in good shape. Has anybody bought and had problems with display demo laptops before? Do you think the A100 SK9 at that price for a demo is a good deal? I'm sure that the Toshiba 1 year warranty will still be honoured but should I get extended warranty coverage?

Thanks

 

good price, but check if it has a Pioneer drive...if it's Mat****a, prepare for warranty service.

 

yeah, i got mine on the 21st, there was nothing in winnipeg so i had the guy ship it in from brandon, i got mine for something like 1350, pretty good deal. also the mail in rebate looks like junk to me since its only for like a month or two......i was having trouble with the battery since its like averaging only 2.5 hrs and then without wifi like 3.5, but that's like with everything at minimum, anyone have any luck with that......if its available in your area you should buy it. Awesome deal better than dell

 

I've had my Toshiba demo model for 9 months now with no problems whatsoever. It's still fast as hell! And it also has a Matshuita drive.

 

Ever use Sony media?

 

No, I haven't. Why do you ask?

 

Well I bought the demo from Staples, no probs so far, I think I picked a good one. I do want to reformat, partition and reinstall my copy of WinXP pro and install the latest drivers from the Toshiba site. There seems to be alot of non essential Toshiba downloads that I won't need on their website. Can you guys/gals point me in the right direction as to what software is necessary for the optimum operation of the A100 SK9? My main uses for this laptop are video editing, gaming and watching dvds.

Thanks for your replies.

 

seems that the drive isn't very compatible with Sony media

 

Thanks for letting me know that. I usually use Memorex brand DVD's and CD's.

 

Paleo is right, the Mat****a drive is a piece of junk. I am seriously thinking of returning this laptop only because of the dvd burner. I've made 10 coasters already trying to burn DVD with Nero 6.0, Theonly media that worked so far is Memorex DVD+RW at 2.5x. Maxell 8x +R and -R did not burn at 8x same with the Verbatim 16x +R. No luck burning at 4x and 6x either. The only other complaint I have about the A100 sk9 is battery life,but I could live with that, everything else about this laptop I like.

 

I am also having limited success ripping dvds. I'm using Anydvd with DvdShrink 3.2 on both the laptop and my home pc. I can copy to hdd with my home pc Pioneer D106 burner but only one of those has copied with the Ma****a UJ-84S1. Playback on the laptop works fine so far.I have read that many people are having the same or worse problems with this burner. Someone had reported entire drive failure after 3 months. With this in mind and the fact that I like this laptop and the price I paid, I am going ask Staples to upgrade the burner and I'll agree to pay extra for this. Can anyone recommend a better quality dvd burner as an upgrade to the Toshiba A100 SK9? Paleo you said that one of the Tosihba's you used had a Pioneer burner.
Can you remember the model number? Would it be a good fit for my laptop?

Thanks

 

U can get the laptop at Compusmart for $1499.

 

I Got my A100 a few days ago, AND IM VERY HAPPY. One thing, its got Xp home preinstalled, should i install Xp Pro ???

 

Yes, out of the more than dozen a100's i had, only ONE had a Pioneer drive in it...i think it's the K16. This is the drive in the Acer i'm using presently. No problems at all. Actually, i was thinking about heading out to check the new line up of A100's (the ones with media centre edition) to see if they have the Pioneer drive. It's really hit and miss. The mat's drives are garbage....you say 3 months? Ha, try not working right out of the box!