Core 2 Duo benchmarks?

Core i5 2430m

Not much here yet. (Probably because woot wasn't here for a while and then we were all wootbot for a while...)

I'm needing a laptop for daughter#2 soon (her birthday is in mid-September) and this one looks to have decent specs for her needs, so it boils down to what people think of this thing.

Comments from anyone who has one?

AdvTHANKSance.

stealthbug wrote:Core 2 Duo benchmarks?

Core i5 2430m

d'oh, i thought that seemed low for a ~500 dollar laptop, thanks for fixing it. I'll be honest, I was phoning it in tonight dragged myself away from packing moving boxes to post something in a bunch of dead forums.

Anyways, Thanks again.

Edit: Gonna try and redeem myself here

$733 new from toshiba. Along with 11 reviews averaging 4.5 stars over there

Here is a detailed spec sheet

Uh, what's with the "Tanga Rules! Woot Drools!" message on the laptop screen?

Are some rabid Tanganites responsible for the earlier site problems?

Tanga??? really?

My wife is lovin' the last Toshiba Woot deal... & now this one for a few dollas more! This one is an even better deal in that it is a true blue Intel core i5 vs. an AMD quad core. Regadless, the better half enjoys the the expansive keyboard & the way the keyboard responds. *Sigh*... I wish I had waited. Two thumbs up!

Comments for some of the other laptop deals have me afraid to buy these refurb laptops. I'm looking for a replacement laptop, since our Dell's battery is dying and Dell wants $150 for a battery for a five year old computer. That's insane.

However, others have said that these refurbished laptops are used for a while in business and then sold as refurbished. Can Woot really sell a computer that's been used for a while (a year?) in business as refurbished?

There's a battery upgrade available from Toshiba for $150 that might be useful.

ctviggen wrote:Can (anyone) really sell a computer that's been used for a while (a year?) in business as refurbished?

Sure, so long as it's been refurbished (factory-spec software bundle ugh, maybe a new touchpad, stickers unstuck, soda removed from keyboard, ... :-)

Thanks for the specs link.

Again though, no description of which gen SATA supported (looking for SATA3), no description of the webcam (probably VGA level), but does list a plethora of bloatware (to be expected in a brand name offering).

On a positive note, it does support SDXC flash cards and there are dock offerings for those in need.

bryane wrote:Sure, so long as it's been refurbished (factory-spec software bundle ugh, maybe a new touchpad, stickers unstuck, soda removed from keyboard, ... :-)

Then I won't be buying any of these. A year of business use is a lot of use (several years of home use), and if the bathtub curve is correct, these are well on their way to failing.

No matter what the tech specs VS price issues are, this series of shell case from Toshiba are notoriously weak at the hinges. Be gentle with it and you might be OK. I opened mine up and added epoxy to fill all the hollow hinge supports. You should too.

ctviggen wrote:Comments for some of the other laptop deals have me afraid to buy these refurb laptops. I'm looking for a replacement laptop, since our Dell's battery is dying and Dell wants $150 for a battery for a five year old computer. That's insane.

However, others have said that these refurbished laptops are used for a while in business and then sold as refurbished. Can Woot really sell a computer that's been used for a while (a year?) in business as refurbished?

I am pretty certain you can find a replacement generic battery for your dell for less than $50.

ctviggen wrote:Then I won't be buying any of these. A year of business use is a lot of use (several years of home use), and if the bathtub curve is correct, these are well on their way to failing.

I've bought several laptops from Woot and they've all been brand new. I expect this one to be also, since Toshiba is selling off all their old models to make way for the new. Other sites do sell actual refurbished equipment, I've bought some for work purposes, but I've never seen a used Woot refurbished computer, I think it's a way to lower the warranty to 90 days to get the cheaper price. Downside is that it doesn't have a USB 3.0 port for external drives or Blu-ray DVD drive for watching movies (not important to some).

Will a Laptop with Blu-Ray Writer, and Windows 7 Pro ever happen?!

jamesfparks wrote:Downside is that it doesn't have a USB 3.0 port for external drives or Blu-ray DVD drive for watching movies (not important to some).

I'm not positive on that. I just bought the 15.6" version with an AMD A6 and 640GB for $500 from Walmart, and although the online spec sheet for mine did not specify a USB 3.0, the box and interior manual both highlighted one USB 3.0 slot. Maybe it's an oversight?

Can someone explain what this means? and how much it costs?


Buy Microsoft® Office 2010 to activate a full-featured Office suite preloaded on this PC.

trifool wrote:Can someone explain what this means? and how much it costs?


Buy Microsoft® Office 2010 to activate a full-featured Office suite preloaded on this PC.

The Office pre-installed on this is just the basics. Excel, Word, and PowerPoint I believe. Outlook not included. Plus, they have ads in the programs while you're working. It's somewhat annoying. If you want all the Office features and no ads you're going to have to purchase the normal Office, which I believe you can pick up over on Amazon for anywhere between $99 and $269 depending on what you need.

cappo wrote:Uh, what's with the "Tanga Rules! Woot Drools!" message on the laptop screen?

Are some rabid Tanganites responsible for the earlier site problems?

Months ago (maybe they do this more often than that?), they posted a deal on their site, and they had written that on it as a joke. This deal was then posted on deals.woot...maybe even by a tanga employee?

Just a little friendly jibe, if i recall.

Dual-Core i5 is great to see on this. However, I'd like to point out how much I dislike the numeric keypad situation. More to the point - I hate how adding the keypad to the laptop means the touchpad is not centered with the screen.

I purchased a Lenovo laptop last year that is stylistically very similar to this Toshiba. I can tell you that I was able to deal with the odd placement of the touchpad in the beginning - but the longer I had the laptop the more annoyed I got with it. It just seemed more ridiculous every time I used it. I didn't have a problem with the keyboard - but the touchpad seemed like it should be centered with the screen, regardless of where the rest of the keyboard is.

So - I may be crazy. But maybe you are too, yes? So perhaps you should really look inside yourself to see if this is going to drive you nuts if you purchase and use this laptop.

does this qualify for the tax free thingy?

hillabeans22 wrote:Dual-Core i5 is great to see on this. However, I'd like to point out how much I dislike the numeric keypad situation. More to the point - I hate how adding the keypad to the laptop means the touchpad is not centered with the screen.

I purchased a Lenovo laptop last year that is stylistically very similar to this Toshiba. I can tell you that I was able to deal with the odd placement of the touchpad in the beginning - but the longer I had the laptop the more annoyed I got with it. It just seemed more ridiculous every time I used it. I didn't have a problem with the keyboard - but the touchpad seemed like it should be centered with the screen, regardless of where the rest of the keyboard is.

So - I may be crazy. But maybe you are too, yes? So perhaps you should really look inside yourself to see if this is going to drive you nuts if you purchase and use this laptop.

"I just met you,
And you think I'm crazy
But there's your fair points,
So buy me maybe?" - Toshiba 17.3" Dual-Core i5 Laptop

inkycatz wrote:"I just met you,
And you think I'm crazy
But there's your fair points,
So buy me maybe?" - Toshiba 17.3" Dual-Core i5 Laptop

HAHAAH. That was good for a laugh. I am going to have the stupid song stuck in my head all day now.

ctviggen wrote:Comments for some of the other laptop deals have me afraid to buy these refurb laptops. I'm looking for a replacement laptop, since our Dell's battery is dying and Dell wants $150 for a battery for a five year old computer. That's insane.

However, others have said that these refurbished laptops are used for a while in business and then sold as refurbished. Can Woot really sell a computer that's been used for a while (a year?) in business as refurbished?

Can't say anything specific about the state of this deal I can offer that I bought a "refurbished" HP laptop off woot and it came out of box looking brand new. My guess was it was a repaired DOA unit or a return which have to be sold as used.

Would have no fear to order one from Woot again.

rmcmahon001 wrote:Can't say anything specific about the state of this deal I can offer that I bought a "refurbished" HP laptop off woot and it came out of box looking brand new. My guess was it was a repaired DOA unit or a return which have to be sold as used.

Would have no fear to order one from Woot again.

Be afraid, very afraid.You will be on your own, since Woot doesn't back up their refurbed products, they will send you to the manufacturer who probably is in India and never heard of Woot.

Well i can tell you guys that this laptop is good new my friends mom just got one and i used it to play some games while i was visiting and it performed surprisingly good. Although i don't exactly know what has been refurbished im a little scared to say id buy it with such a low price i have no idea whats wrong but you can return it within 60 so i'd say go for it if your looking for a semi cheap good laptop

I purchsed the refurb Acer from woot a bit back. Only issue i had was 1usb port is flaky. The device will not install on that port, but will charge. The other 2 ports are fine. Cheata deals supplied the units to woot. A few days later they sold it direct for 50 less that woot.

rmcmahon001 wrote:Can't say anything specific about the state of this deal I can offer that I bought a "refurbished" HP laptop off woot and it came out of box looking brand new. My guess was it was a repaired DOA unit or a return which have to be sold as used.

Would have no fear to order one from Woot again.

There are no USB 3.0 ports. If you look at all the provided pictures of the laptop you'll see that none of the USB ports are blue, meaning none are USB 3.0.

kirkboswell wrote:I'm not positive on that. I just bought the 15.6" version with an AMD A6 and 640GB for $500 from Walmart, and although the online spec sheet for mine did not specify a USB 3.0, the box and interior manual both highlighted one USB 3.0 slot. Maybe it's an oversight?

hillabeans22 wrote:I didn't have a problem with the keyboard - but the touchpad seemed like it should be centered with the screen, regardless of where the rest of the keyboard is.

The reason is that if the touch pad is centered while the keyboard isn't, your right hand/thumb will be 'using' the trackpad as you type making it uber annoying.

I wonder when some of these laptop manufacturers will realize that ethernet at 10/100 max is pathetically outdated. It's a shame that the other good specs are undermined by this bottle-neck. No USB3 or eSata and a 750 gb hard drive means this PC will take ages to back up/image when the hard drive is at least half-full. Not impressive at all.

Bah! I hate when this happens :-(
One of NewEgg's ShellShockers today is this same laptop but with faster processor (2.5GHz) for $424.99. Deal is live from 1pm - 3:59pm PST.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834214902

You will only see this price reflected if you click on their ShellShocker link on the main page or click on the link above during the sale period. Otherwise it shows it's standard price.

Is it worth saving $50 & getting a slightly faster processor to cancel/return your woot order??? You've got a couple hours to decide.

Evolution2001 wrote:Bah! I hate when this happens :-(
One of NewEgg's ShellShockers today is this same laptop but with faster processor (2.5GHz) for $424.99. Deal is live from 1pm - 3:59pm PST.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834214902

You will only see this price reflected if you click on their ShellShocker link on the main page or click on the link above during the sale period. Otherwise it shows it's standard price.

Is it worth saving $50 & getting a slightly faster processor to cancel/return your woot order??? You've got a couple hours to decide.

Worth it for sure. No tax and shipping. Plus there's a USB 3 input! I'm still deciding though. I'd like a keyboard that's backlit, my daughter's Dell Studio has that. Plus the battery life doesn't seem that good. One reviewer said only about 2.5 hours for his first charge. Perhaps conditioning the battery will bring it closer to the advertised 4 hours (which is still pretty short!).

Received mine last night. First time I booted it up the display was all messed up. There were horizontal lines across the screen and there were a bunch of ghost images. I restarted and the problem went away. But every now and then the same thing happens on the far right side of the screen only (not the whole screen like the first time I booted it up). The only way to get it to go away is to restart.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to deal with this? I tried updating the display driver (I updated it from Toshiba's website) but that didn't fix it. It is usable, but the problem is very annoying and I worry that it will get worse over time.