Toshiba Introduces A 17"-Screen Laptop 625
George Wright writes "Toshiba have announced a monster of a laptop with their Satellite P25. Seems they've decided to copy Apple's idea of fitting a 17" LCD on a laptop, but have ended making a true aircraft carrier in doing so. Notable "features" are the 2.8GHz P4, the 802.11a/b and the 10lb weight (!!!). Still a relatively low resolution though :("
And still (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:And still (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:And still (Score:5, Interesting)
I don't know about you, but most people I know orient their keyboard so that the whole keyboard (keyboard and keypad) are centered against the monitor, not just the main keyboard. Call it an aesthetics thing. That doesn't even consider the fact that most keyboards are already off centered to the left to a small degree already.
I have to agree with the first post, if you have that much real estate to work with, why not have a keypad on there. Hell, why not just dump the whole small keyboard footprint and go with a full 104 on there?
Re:And still (Score:4, Interesting)
Go on, do it.
You'd be offsetting the laptop on your lap. Either that or position your hands in a very uncomfortable manner to reach the main keys on the left side of the laptop.
When you use a laptop on your laptop you often end up balancing it on your knees by putting your hands on it. With your hands mostly on the left side that won't work out too well, especially with a bohemoth 17" laptop that sticks off your lap.
A full size keyboard just wouldn't be comfortable.
Re:And still (Score:3, Informative)
Re:And still (Score:3, Insightful)
You seriously think anyone will be using this thing on their lap ?
Like the 17" PB, it's clearly targeted at people who want a "portable computer", not a "laptop".
Re:And still (Score:5, Funny)
Re:And still (Score:4, Funny)
it's a space station.
Re:And still (Score:4, Funny)
Just a guess, but "what's going on" is probably colored blue.
Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:5, Funny)
Hah! The G5 might be a cheese-grater, but plastic it is not!
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:5, Informative)
Not really... clones were gutting the market anyway but they are a separate issue. x86 machines are $3000 too... and for a few less features overall as well (gigE standard, Airport built-in, PCI-X (coming), Serial ATA (coming) etc.). $500 x86 machines are made from the absolute cheapest and worst parts someone can slap together. I can't in any good consicence call them computers. Macs are actually only $3000 if you buy the most expensive G5. Most Apple hardware is in the $1500-2500 range.
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:5, Insightful)
I might be able to tell you why. I have the 15" screen Toshiba Satellite 2805-S603, which is just a few inches smaller. Toshiba builds their laptops like tanks. Mine has done a belly flop onto a hardwood floor more than once from the desk. Without crashing or interrupting my desktop applications.
At my work, Toshiba laptops may be regarded as a little bigger, but they take abuse. I have seen them slide off the vehicles onto the floor and strike fixed objects. They still work. That's important, because no one has got into trouble or lost their job for destroying a laptop. That 3 pounds is mighty nice insurance.
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:5, Informative)
In my experience, IBM Thinkpads are the one's which are built like tanks.
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than Macs? (Score:3, Informative)
The powerbook, which was still in the box along with my iPod, was quickly grabbed as I exited the vehicle.
It booted right up on the hood of the CHP's cruiser.
I was quite thankful.
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:4, Informative)
1) It's cheaper. If you don't have to make parts smaller, and you don't have to worry about the problems associated with high power in small areas, it makes things cheaper since you can put a larger heat sink in instead of designing a better air flow system.
2) Swapable bays. Now I haven't seen this laptop (the link is down) but if they use the swable bays, they have to change how things are controled, drives become heavier and it changes things.
3) Duability. While the powerbook and ibook durability is certainly not horrible, the thicker the laptop, generaly speaking the more durable it is (for example, the old clamshell iBooks could be dropped from fairly decent hights with no damage except maybe a busted CD rom cover.
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:3, Insightful)
That is actually probably the driving reason why no PC laptop can even come close to Apple machines in size and weight.
Re:Why are 17" PC Notebooks heavier than MACs? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:And still (Score:3, Funny)
There looks like there could be enough room under the keyboard for a suit, a change of shoes and a laptop.
Best wishes,
Mike.
Re:And still (Score:5, Funny)
Re:You are mistaken. The altitude is given in feet (Score:3, Interesting)
CPU performance in your computer product may vary from specifications under the following conditions:
use of certain external peripheral products
use of battery power instead of AC power
use of certain multimedia games or videos with special effects
use of standard telephone lines or low speed network connections
use of complex modeling software, such as high end computer aided design applications
use of computer in areas with low air pressure (high altitude >1,000 meters or >3,280
Re:And still (Score:3, Insightful)
I've noticed this too, there is quite a bit of room between the ends of the keyboard and the ends of the laptop, tons of room for a full sized numberpad instead of those crappy integrated ones that aren't aligned right and require some key combination.
Re:And still (Score:4, Funny)
Erm...why? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Erm...why? (Score:5, Informative)
My Thinkpad T30 is light, fast, quiet, and very reliable. The options are out there. Notebooks like the one in the article are for those that want a portable desktop. It's popular to see notebooks as gaming rigs now. Definately not for me.... but would be handy for taking to a LAN party.
Re:Erm...why? (Score:3, Informative)
You mean Toshiba?
Hell, my super slow P-III 866 with a geforce2 is faster playing quake 3 and Ut2003 than the new 2ghz dell laptops here at work.
One of my laptops (Which, ironically, is a P3-800mhz) has a GeForce 2. Now Toshiba uses GeForce 4's, and the P25 uses the GeForce FX 5200.
I think the reason why your laptops at work don't have high-end mobile video cards is because they're work
Re:Erm...why? (Score:5, Insightful)
You can't make money on those, you only make money on high end systems -- putting an extra 200$ on the cost (for profit) is much easier on a 2k machine than one that costs 500 bucks. (at least, if you want it to sell)
Re:Erm...why? (Score:4, Informative)
In the spring of 2003 Apple's laptop sales made it to 40% of all the Macs sold. In 2001 it was 30%.
Desktops weren't getting much better (Score:5, Insightful)
Now that the Freaking Awesome G5 machines are about to be released, the absolute number of desktop sales should increase massively, reducing the laptop percentage. With the new machines shipping in September or so, I'd expect that Apples 2003H2 laptop sales to drop to 20% or something (while still showing reasonable growth in absolute numbers).
Re:Erm...why? (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't know if I buy that. I mean, companies are all about providing what people want. If they weren't... well, their competitors would do it and they'd be sunk. I think it's rather like the discussions of software reliability versus software features: we all say we want reliability, but it's the feature list that makes us open our wallets. That's why developers make feature-bloated, unreliable software.
Besides, there's plenty of low cost computing to be had out there. I'd be surprised if the average personal computer sold today is over $800. It's just that these boxes don't represent technology innovations/improvements. The high-end systems occupy that role, almost by definition. So you don't hear about some new whiz-bang, revolutionary computer that costs $599... because there's nothing to report: it's a computer, it does what computers did last year but a little faster and a little cheaper. No, what you hear about is the $2000 machine that truly represents a New Thing.
Re:Erm...why? (Score:5, Insightful)
Uh, I don't know where you got that idea. Companies are about MAKING MONEY. Period.
Customer satisfaction is not necessarily part of the equation unless the product is new and differnet and you've got to woo consumers into buying it. All the big PC makers have pretty similar offerings. Even if they are not providing what people want and they're making money and keeping the shareholders happy, they'll happily continue doing it. The market is quite homogeneous except for the diamond in the rough that is Apple. The current business model of providing the 'latest' comptuers and hyping them with adversiting has worked for many years. It's tried, tested and true. And it's quite unlikely that one of the big PC makers will have the balls to break out of a pattern that is known to make money, even if it would increase customer satisfaction. Their boad of directors would eat them alive.
Remember, it's 'raising shareholder value,' Not products or customers.
Re:no (Score:3, Insightful)
Assuming it's not a monopoly, of course ;-) We all know that MSFT has been ingoring its customers for years but they still remain quite profitable.
What I'm saying is that since the PC Market is pretty much homogeneous among
Re:Erm...why? (Score:3, Insightful)
Or maybe they're also all about convincing people of what they want and then giving it to them. :) I agree with your points, but I'm not sure we have the same amount of faith in the free market.
Re:Erm...why? (Score:2)
Your typical first time buyer went down to the local computer chainstore and was sold a desktop PC, monitor, scanner, camera, printer, desk etc. This takes up space so is permanently sited somewhere out of the way, it's a chore to go and use the computer.
With a new cheap(ish) laptop and a wireless access point you do your computing where you want to. You can also put the computer away when you've finished with it. Why spend money on a quieter desktop when for a little more c
RAM, RAM, RAM (Score:5, Interesting)
Mom and dad can get to their hotmail account and check their stocks just fine on their pentium II (or even pentium 1...my wife's grandparents only upgraded because lightning fried their modem and screwed up their motherboard). Usually all they need is an operating system reinstall or a larger hard drive since they aren't capable of actually cleaning out their files themselves.
Saying that most people want faster computers is primarily the fault of Microsoft (flamebait, blah blah) wanting to up the number of features at the expense of speed, as well as these users not knowing how to defrag or that they should get rid of the dozens of things running in their system tray. And let's not forget Longhorn's aspirations towards 3d-accelerated desktops. Something Joe User simply doesn't need but will "have to have" once he hears about it. That and upgrading their RAM.
Saying that most people want quieter computers is the responsibility of chipmakers, not of OEMs. Put a Pentium 4 or Athlon XP into a box and it's gonna have fans. No question. Put a Crusoe or a C3 into a box for grandma, and you might even be able to go fanless if you do it right. But she wants that Pentium 4 the TV told her she had to have.
As far as cheaper goes, as long as mom and pop are buying from OEMs like Dell and Gateway, it's not gonna happen.
Personally, as far as desktops go, I think it'd be far more beneficial for people to stop looking at megahertz or gigahertz. A 1.2 GHz Athlon with 1GB of RAM is going to run faster than a 2.4 GHz pentium 4 with 128 MB of RAM for someone who doesn't realize he has 200MB of programs running in his system tray alone. When I build PCs from scratch these days, I do whatever I can to put a bare minimum of a half gig of RAM, preferrably a full gig. Why? Because modern software is bloated, and because average users don't do anything to help the situation. You can try to teach them.
But trust me on the RAM. it's honestly all the average non-technical person who wants to have a computer for internet and word processing needs to upgrade if their current system is 300mhz or higher
Re:RAM, RAM, RAM (Score:4, Insightful)
2:Companies should be spending more money on their computers systems than they are doing...if they need new computers. Most companies do not...penitum II in the office is plenty for MS Office.
3:There are large fixed costs involved in computers...for the OEMs and hardware manufacturers. But designing a gaudy case and bloated multimedia keyboard is not the kind of cost that the consumer should be forced to swallow.
4:Technology is controled by relatively few, and that's how Taiwan keeps the american companies' pricing in check (Viva VIA motherboard chipsets!)
5:Cost isn't an issue as much as people think it is...people don't upgrade because most people don't need to.
Re:RAM, RAM, RAM (Score:3, Informative)
and i would rather pay for a dell than overpay 4x for an already outdated used machine
trust friendly they are not, they're 2x as vicious as any oem because they have to be to survive.. they regularly lie thier asses off, grossly underpay for anything they buy and regularly fuck everyoen who comes in the door over
i've worked for 2 different small computer stores and both worked the same way
Re:Erm...why? (Score:5, Insightful)
I can bring it into the living room when i'm playing video games, or into the kitchen when i want to try out a recipe i found on google. I can even save the page of yahoo! travel and bring it to the airport when my parents are coming to town when i pick them up.
"Sure," I hear you shouting, "but what about paper?" I rarely touch the stuff. And when I do, I usually lose it. Printer ink is expensive. Sure, call me lazy. Sure, call my thinkpad a crutch. I could say the same about your paper and pen. It's just a different paradigm.
my 13.3 inch screen may not be huge, but it's an LCD flat panel with a compact pentium 2 system attatched to it that does most of what I need it to. Desktops are for gaming and for family workstations, now more than ever. The need for a fast desktop system is once again relegated to the CAD and 3D imaging industries as computer speed has outpaced the public need. A computer is an appliance, as many of us are apt to forget. It's important to remember that it's more useful when you can move it from room to room without difficulty. Now that the main obstacle of wired networks has been overcome for most people's purposes, laptops are at a severe advantage everywhere but price.
And as you mentioned above, laptops are faster and run cooler than desktop PCs.
Re:Erm...why? (Score:3, Interesting)
the pen interface is way more intuitive than the keyboard for most people - and the majority of people's use of the computer doesn't really require a full keyboard/mouse. not when you consider how well the tablets do handwriting recognition nowadays (unless you have 2nd grade handwriting).
having to open the clamshell and support the box on a surface or your knees is unnecessary now. fighting with the eraser-nubby style mouse po
Re:Erm...why? (Score:3, Interesting)
My story is the same as yours, but I moved from a Win2k desktop to a 12", 600Mhz iBook that became my primary machine. It goes with me everywhere, does everything I ask of it (even editing a short video while I was on the road and didn't have access to our Final Cut Pro machine).
It's bombproof - solidly built and with no ports or doors sticking out. It feels sturdy and has survived a drop onto the floo
all you need (Score:5, Funny)
Slashdot DDOS attack on Toshiba servers (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Slashdot DDOS attack on Toshiba servers (Score:4, Informative)
Portables->Satellite->P25
Read the specs (Score:3, Informative)
The Toshiba would be clearly better except for the fact that the it is 3lbs heavier, has no support for 802.11g or bluetooth, is bigger in every dimension, has a tray loading drive, has no L3 cache (vs 1MB DDR on the PB), no built-in mic, 10/100 enet (vs 10/100/1000), one FireWire 400 port (vs 1 FW 800 and 1 FW 400) and less than half the battery life.
Where the Toshiba actually is better:
Price. It is expandable to 2GB Ram while the PB maxes out
Try this link (Score:5, Informative)
Here [toshiba.com]
21" laptop (Score:5, Interesting)
The next step: The 21" laptop.
People keep innovating until technology is completely useless. Then they go back, and settle for the things that are usable.
This look like: I have a bigger xxx than you have!! Biggest car, biggest house, biggest whatever. But who needs a 200 room house if he lives alone? Some thing for laptops. Who needs 17" to carry around? You only need a screen that big in the office/home, and there, you could connect the laptop to a decent LCD monitor.
Re:21" laptop (Score:3, Insightful)
17" Laptop is what I think is the limit on what can be considered portable. Unless they can start folding the screens to get 21 when it is open and 17 when it is closed. But the way that most laptops are used is that they will carry it to work and open it up on a desk and work with it. Then they go home and put it on their desks and play with it. 21" is getting beyond good protability as well as 19" A laptop should never be much bigger then a standard newspaper fl
Pixels, man, it's all about the pixels.... (Score:3, Insightful)
I understand that steve jobs has vision issues and likes his pixels big, but the NEC guys can't all be like that - or at least have accepted vision correction.
Dell has the right idea [dell.com]: 1920x1200 pixels in a 15.1" display. Now that's useful. Pixels.... mmmm pixels. All I want is pixels. More pixels.
By far the most stunning image reproduction I've ever seen, in any format (incl
there are other 17" notebooks available too (Score:5, Informative)
Sager has a 17" notebook that has been on powernotebooks.com for a little while now:
http://www.powernotebooks.com/products.php3?displa y_size=17 [powernotebooks.com]
Re:there are other 17" notebooks available too (Score:2)
It weighs the same though (10 lbs?!), only has a 1.5 hour battery (WTF?!), and has the same crappy 1440x900 screen resolution.
Desktop Replacement (Score:4, Insightful)
Mac Powerbook (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Mac Powerbook (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Mac Powerbook (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Mac Powerbook (Score:4, Insightful)
while you claim that 1440x900 is "nice" - I can get 1400x1050 on my 15" screen of my laptop right now. And I currently don't like it - I want one of the new laptops that can do more than that -there are plenty of laptops out there that go higher. I want to be able to fit more on my screen - not just have everything look bigger.
Why do you go up in screen size but not increase the resolution? I don't see what the point is.
Re:Mac Powerbook (Score:3, Insightful)
In fact, the first thing I thought of when I started seeing 17" screens is that there SHOULD be room to expand the keyboard and give us something approaching ergonomic
What happened to WYSIWYG? (Score:5, Interesting)
10 lbs. (Score:5, Funny)
It's a floor wax. It's a dessert topping. It's both!
JSP pages with unique session ids. (Score:2, Informative)
$2,179.00
P25-S508
In addition to 10/100 Ethernet and V.92/56K modem, this system offers integrated Wi-Fi(TM) (802.11a/b) and Microsoft Windows XP Professional.
In Stock
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 2.80GHz
Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional
512MB PC2100 DDR SDRAM (256MB x 2)
17" diagonal Wide-Screen XGA Display (1440 x 900)
NVIDIA® GeForce(TM) FX Go5200 GPU w/32MB DDR memory
60GB HDD
Crap that rez sucks (Score:3, Interesting)
Although I haven't seen it (page is dead), it sounds bulkly (10 lbs?!). But the absolute kicker is that resolution. A 17" (!) screen that only does 1440x900?! Oh man that sucks.
My 15" Dell is running at 1600x1200 right now (and looks wonderful). Ah, love that UXGA. Toshiba made a huge mistake.
Re:Crap that rez sucks (Score:3, Funny)
1986 Compaq (Score:2, Insightful)
Ten pounds sounds heavy... (Score:5, Funny)
Alternative (Score:4, Informative)
powernotebooks [powernotebooks.com]
(I don't work for them, and I would never buy one. I'm just suggesting an alternative).
And suddenly i am a laptop owner.. (Score:5, Funny)
Impressive (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Impressive (Score:2)
Not portable, just easy to move... (Score:2, Informative)
Whether you take it from room-to-room or set it up for the whole family to enjoy, the Satellite P25 Series will delight your senses with its 17" threatre like display, rich harman/kardon® sound and smooth NVIDIA® GeForce(TM) FX Go5200 graphics.
Så it's not really a laptop per say...but if your family is to damn lazy to go to the entertainment center, then the entertainment center will come to your family.
17" Screens (Score:2, Interesting)
Laptop screen resolution (Score:5, Interesting)
Why would I want a laptop with a bigger screen than my 12.1" one if I don't actually get that many more pixels?
Re:Laptop screen resolution (Score:4, Insightful)
easy: no one has health insurance! (Score:3, Funny)
*duh*
Functioning link (Score:2, Informative)
http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/tais/pc/pc_cf_
Still not comparable to an Apple (Score:5, Informative)
The first laptop for overcompensating men. (Score:4, Funny)
Low resolution (Score:2)
Having built-in WiFi doesn't thrill me either; this thing is a portable desktop, not a "laptop". I don't see people moving this around as they move around the house. Might as well plug it in. If you do decide to go wireless, that's what PC Card slots are for -- and you'll pay a whole lot less than for the built-in unit
Keep it Comin (Score:2, Funny)
So to upgrade to Wi-Fi and get a modem, (Score:2)
As stated earlier, I think they could possibly have worked a 10 key number pad off to the side, that would have made a great addition to.
Give it a roll up LCD [businessweek.com] and a keyboard [cappuccinopc.com] and you might even be able to fit the whole thing in a bag f
Looks pretty good (Score:2, Informative)
But I will wait till they ship with the Athlon64. There's really no sense buying 32-bit hardware right now, unless you just get some cheap desktop solution like a 2500 Barton to keep you going untill 64bit is affordable.
btw, if you haven't seen them yet, THG had posted the first pics of the Athlon64 [tomshardware.com]
Just serves to make me more curious what Intel has up their sleave.. I wish they'd be more open about it.
Can someone explain... (Score:2)
Hyundai... (Score:3, Informative)
Features: 2.4 GHz P4 (supports up to 3.06 Ghz),
512 MB 333Mhz DDR SODIMM (Rare, the rest are usually 266Mhz), 40 GB HDD, 1.44 floppy, ATI Mobility Radeon 9000 w/ 64MB non-shared DDR RAM,
17" Wide screen TFT display, Combo drive, integrated WEBCAM & Microphone, Integrated 5.1 channell output sound with builtin FOUR point speakers, Keyboard with NUMPAD.
USB2.0, Firewire (Passive, sadly), PCMCIA, 56k, LAN, LTP, Serial, VGA, RGB, IrDA and Wifi. Selling for the Equiv of US$1841.
The thing here is that while all these Desktop replacements pack a punch, they are poor laptops, at 4.5Kg and with a battery life of 2 hours, you're not going to get any work done on the go.
SUV mentality (Score:4, Insightful)
This introduction of 17 laptops is just an adoption of SUV culture where bigger is supposedly better. My boss who is a mac fanatic, picked up a 17in powerbook not long after it came out. I haven't seen him bring it out once yet, he still uses his older 800mhz 15 with a big crack in the ti case. The 17 is simply a monster to carry and I know Mac fanboys will blab on about how companies are copying Apple's "innovations" but sticking a 17in LCD in a laptop is not innovation, its a step back.
Re:SUV mentality (Score:3, Insightful)
I've had a 17" powerbook now for about 2 months. It's the only computer I've used in those two months. I carry it all over the house. I work at a university research lab...I gave away the two computers I used to have on my desk there to other lab members, and now I just bring my 17" powerbook with me to the lab. It may be too big for you, but it's just right for me.
CPU Disclaimer (Score:5, Informative)
CPU performance in your computer product may vary from specifications under the following conditions:
use of certain external peripheral products
use of battery power instead of AC power
use of certain multimedia games or videos with special effects
use of standard telephone lines or low speed network connections
use of complex modeling software, such as high end computer aided design applications
use of computer in areas with low air pressure (high altitude >1,000 meters or >3,280 feet above sea level)
use of computer at temperatures outside the range of 5C to 35C (41F to 95 F) or >25C (77F) at high altitude (all temperature references are approximate).
CPU performance may also vary from specifications due to design configuration.
Under some conditions, your computer product may automatically shut- down. This is a normal protective feature designed to reduce the risk of lost data or damage to the product when used outside recommended conditions. To avoid risk of lost data, always make back-up copies of data by periodically storing it on an external storage medium. For optimum performance, use your computer product only under recommended conditions. Read additional restrictions under "Environmental Conditions" in your product Resource Guide. Contact Toshiba Technical Service and Support for more information.
"Notebook" not "laptop" (Score:3, Funny)
Bigger is not always better... (Score:4, Interesting)
They were awful proud of their laptops and made disparaging comments about my "cute little toy" -- a Fujitsu Lifebook P2120. I was then subjected to a prosetylization sermon that would have done the Jehovas Witnesses proud.
It was my turn when BOTH of them tried to use those behemoths at the same time -- on the fold down trays in economy class, right next to each other.
Those beasts, while pretty, can't be used in economy class airline seats without seriously annoying the person sitting next to you. They're too big.
All they were doing was answering e-mails (offline), checking their calendar -- mostly showing off the new toys and attempting to spread the gospel of St. Steve.
Once I got the point across that I didn't WANT a big screen on a laptop, but preferred a lighter weight (3.5 lbs) and longer battery life (10+ hours with my secondary battery), they left me alone. It also helped that I wasn't running any version of Windows.
maybe slightly OT, but... (Score:3, Informative)
I'm actually very happy with it. It is not the most portable machine but it does fit on the plane (although not super comfortable). Not such a big deal for me since I spend a lot of time online and have yet to get internet on a plane. it is good for watching DVDs though.
For actual work work (I'm a unix admin) it simply rocks. I can do everything I need to do, plus the stuff that others want me to do (like Office). My only real gripe is that there is no Outlook calendaring for it, but we have webmail on Exhcnage 2k, and Terminal services (which is up to date on the mac, supports RDP5).
It's really become my primary machine. My desktop at home is used mostly for playing a single game, and occasioanlly setting up downloads. I have a dual g4, w/ a 22" cinema display, but it's in the wrong office
It's speed is good (although I occasionally notice a stutter when i'm running sans AC power, I have the cpu clock down turned on). I normally carry around a backpack, and it fits right into it. It has adequate, if not stellar, battery life. Fairly rare when I spend an extended time away from power, so it's 4.5-hour-only-when-you-don't-hit-disk-at-all battery is fine (it managed to go 4 hours playing mp3s with no complex Fluid screensaver and monitor-off turned on after 1 minute)
I think at 6.8 pounds (that's the weight _with_ the battery) it's a good deal. at 10 pounds, I would have gotten a 12" instead.
not to mention that a 17" silver laptop does get a lot of oos and ahhs, even from the ladies
Design goal? (Score:4, Funny)
PHB: "Have you seen the new Apple laptops? They've got 17" screens! What are we doing to counteract this?"
Engineers: "Well, we have been working on it for a while sir. It only seemed to be the next step."
PHB: "When will it be ready?"
Engineers: "Given the current status, we have to redesign some things to accomodate for the power and size. Maybe two years."
PHB: "Two years! We need this out by next summer! And make it as powerful as possible. We need to beat out anybody else on power."
Engineers: "But what about battery life? If we use mobile Pentiums and use Intel's Centrino specs, we could save on power--"
PHB: "I want MORE power."
Engineers: "But, it'll weigh a ton. Laptops are supposed to be light."
PHB: "La la la. Not listening. Just make it have a 17" screen and make it more powerful."
Engineers: "Okay, we'll do it."
Toshiba: Both excellent and ignorant (Score:3, Insightful)
For example, there are buttons on the front of the laptops that operate with very, very little pressure. They start Windows Media Player whenever you accidentally press them.
I called Toshiba support to ask them about an error I found in the manual of each of the laptops. Toshiba technical support a) did not have a computer to test, and b) could not fix the error in the manual by calling someone in the company. Toshiba technical support seems to be VERY separate from the rest of the company, and seems to have no power to serve customers. Before I bought the laptops, I asked about the maximum resolution of the video card when used with an external monitor; Toshiba technical support could not help me, even after several calls and an acknowledgement that the manual was faulty.
On the good side, Toshiba uses nVidia video chips, and the chips use the standard nVidia drivers. They work great with an external monitor at 1600 x 1200 and 75 Hertz resolution. Very, very nice. They work with IOView KVM switches.
A step backwards, really. (Score:4, Insightful)
I also miss the cPad that my S607 has - the touchpad has a small LCD under it that can be used for things like changing the logo under it, as well as used as a keypad, a calculator, a signature capture device and (with a download) a theramin simulator. It's sufficiently odd as to be very amusing, and can be very useful in some situations.
Re:yup, Apple made one first... (Score:5, Informative)
Apple ain't so light... (Score:5, Insightful)
Uh no, the 17" Apple weighs in at 6.8 lbs.
Re:Market (Score:4, Interesting)
Good point. In the business world (biggest purchasers of laptops I think), laptops are usually used from hotel rooms and airport lobbies. Having been in this situation for over 10 years now, where email, web applications, power point presentations, etc -- make up the bulk of the reasons why I carry the thing around the country -- I have a hard time seeing why anyone would want something any bigger than the smallest possible option. I could use a variety of these "new fangled" laptops to work on my presentation's in airport lounges, but I still choose to use an "old/slow (400 Mhz Cely)" IBM TP 240 at 2.9 lbs. I may give up the bells and whistles, but it sure beats lugging around a 6-10 lb. monster around the country.
Re:Market (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:excellent (Score:2)
well for starters Apple's 17" PowerBook isn't a TiBook - it's Aluminium.
I'm happy you're drooling, but I think from the looks of the thing you're in a minority - this is a decidedly unimpressive copy-cat reaction, same old same old: Apple inovates, everyone else imitates.
No you don't....trust me (Score:2)
And, this is
Will!!
Will won't!!
Re:No Floppy? (Score:3, Insightful)
Here's the starting point of a nice little rant on the subject. [userfriendly.org]
Re:4500 rpm?? (Score:4, Insightful)