What is the advantages of Toshiba over other brands?

I heard it doesn't get out of order as often as Dell or HP.

 

Don't think of them as brands. Every brand has good products and bad products.

What specific laptops are you interested in?

 

As of now I already own one but was wondering what are its advantages.

 

none, you have to go by models. AFIK most toshibas are Compal and Wisetron manufactured and designed anyways.

 

Yeah, go by specific models of the brands. Too many times people avoid whole brands because of a few problematic models.

 

A good example of what others have already posted is the HP DV2000 series laptops. Most of these systems included nVidia GPUs that were faulty. I have one now that was bought used and non-working. The same "trick" to fixing an XBOX 360 from a RRoD issue was used to bring the HP DV2000 I obtained. It worked but the real question that remains is for how long. But...HP has other models that don't suffer from this issue that are great computers in their own rights. I had a Compaq I was using for college work that was a good computer until an accident happened that caused the screen to crack. Even now the laptop still wants to work but the crack, of course, keeps it from being of any use. The Toshiba I use now has an nVidia GPU as well but it has not had any issues.

But the truth...it doesn't matter what brand or model laptop you have...they all are dependent of the owner's care and are at the mercy of the operating system installed. And it's always possible that a model can be built with a defective part or two. Everything now a days is based on quantity and not quality. Do your homework...visit a local computer store or a popular outlet like Wal-Mart, Best Buy, or others. Try the computers hands on...all of them that are on displayed and working. The one that works good and feels comfortable to you then that is the one to take home.

Personally, for me, the real differences are on the inside. What I look for are the following:

CPU - Intel or AMD are the only choices. You never hear of VIA or Cyrix anymore. I'm an AMD fan so AMD-equipped systems catch my eye first.

GPU - Intel, AMD/ATi, or nVidia. Intel, to me, appears to be entry-level but I have very little experience with their GPUs and I try to avoid them. nVidia is great if you can find a system that doesn't suffer like most I have been reading about (Dell XPS and HP DV2000 come to mind). Since I am an AMD fan I tend to lean towards ATi/AMD's Radeon series but I have two laptops, both with nVidia graphics, but both have different CPUs (Intel on a Toshiba, AMD Turion on an HP).

RAM - believe it or not size is one aspect of this very important system component. But an often overlooked aspect of RAM is its speed. 2 GB of RAM with a clock speed of 1333 MHz can out perform 4 GB of RAM with a clock speed of 800 MHz. This is the real bottleneck of any computer system regardless if it is a desktop or laptop. Average amount included is usually 3 GB but pay attention to the system's specs on the box for its speed.

Those are the specs I pay attention to the most. Hard drive space is usually not a big deal for me because files and apps I work with are usually not that space demanding with Adobe and Windows being an exception. 250 to 500 GB will serve you well.

 

Can you replace the RAM with another one you buy? For example if you can only have 4GB can you replace it with 8GB that has a higher Mhz than the 4GB? Or are you limited to a certain type of RAM for each computer that doesn't go above a certain speed?

 

For the most part they're replaceable and come down to what the motherboard can handle. Most laptops don't have the ram soldered in so its a 2 second swap.

 

Like Thundr has mentioned, for the most part, RAM in one system will usually interchange with another. But, don't expect DDR2 RAM to fit in a system with DDR3 memory. Likewise, each system has its limitations that are based on the motherboard's specifications AND the operating system in use. If you use Windows 7 make sure you are getting a 64-bit operating system because 32-bit operating systems are usually limited to 3 or 4 GBs regardless of the motherboard's limitations.

Another aspect to look for is the speed of the RAM. If you take the memory you already have that is slower than what your project computer came with it will hinder the computer's performance. Likewise, mixing RAM of various speeds will result in the memory system working at the clock speed of the slower RAM installed. Always match your RAM as best as possible.

When looking for a new model, be sure to get the model number and look online, if possible, for the system's abilities (how much it can be expanded if any). Use search statements like "Dell XPS 702 Specs" and you should get immediate results returned from either CNET or the computer's manufacturer. Use these to determine a system that will fit your needs.

 

we use the tecra line at work and they've been pretty solid for us.

 

I spent an entire year researching laptops. i did this to get the best possible idea of what manufacturer had in way of good/bad responses. taste for a brand is pure personal belief.

I finally ended my research by asking trusted employees, what they bought. I finally settled on the Toshiba line because one employee sat me down in the break room and had the same idea as me to do research. He and his wife never regretted buying Toshiba.

a suggestion, I'd look into figuring out their designs or models. usually the better models will be more $$$ and are the creme de la creme. They use popular higher performance parts and "tend" to be very reliable. hence the, "you get what you pay for." just so happens that the P series, the one I'm on as I write this is their more popular line not their more high performance mind you.

I have had discussions with several Dell owners and they generally had issues with the monitor part and had to have frequent repairs under warranty and wishing they never bought Dell. But I might be considered bias but I know what I'm talking about that I have only had 1 bad issue with Toshiba on a dead main board for THIS laptop but the new one runs much better and my laptop doesn't get anywhere near as hot.

as an owner, their service has been great, they honor their warranties and my repair was just after Christmas during a chaotic time and they STILL sped it home to me. 2 day service