Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!xrxedds!toml From: toml@xrxedds.UUCP (Tom Love) Newsgroups: comp.sys.laptops Subject: request info on toshiba t1000se Message-ID: Date: 12 Feb 90 17:18:53 GMT Sender: news@xrxedds.UUCP Distribution: comp Organization: Xerox EDDS, Herndon, Va. Lines: 97 i've been keeping my eye on the laptop market pretty closely for some time now. i want a machine to serve as a combination word processor, personal info manager/daytimer, telecomm terminal, and general computing home away from home (where home is a sun3 or sun4 workstation). i don't need a power machine, and i'm deferring on the hard disk mostly to save weight and money. my priorities are, in rough hi-lo order: 1. light weight/small size - the machine's usefulness to me will depend on it being with me all the time. 2. reasonable cost - i have a skeptical wife. 3. good touch-type keyboard - atari portfolio is right out. 4. good display - i'm currently figuring rearlit, >CGA as a requirement. 5. safe storage - read that as a floppy - i don't trust battery-backed ram. dos compatibility is not a requirement, although odd-ball machines for which i cannot readily or cheaply get good software are automatically penalized. i was initially pretty interested in the cambridge z88, but it has too many strikes against it - dinky display, expensive 3rd-party external floppy, utterly nonstandard, ... i'd go for a portable which runs mac software in a minute if i could afford it and it weighed less than 8 lbs. wallaby? i kind of like the poquet, but i'm very dubious of its keyboard, and its price is way too high. i've considered the nec ultralite. its price was a major barrier, though that seems to be coming down some (they're even showing up used occassionally now). is it rear-lit? the tandy 1100 FD meets many of my criteria, but i have a lot of psychological problems with buying a radio shack product. plus, it's a fairly large machine, volumetrically; the display is 640x200, less than ideal; and it's not rear-lit. the toshiba t1000 is attractive primarily for reasons of price - i can get a used one for $400-500, new for $595. the display is a major turnoff, and (correct me if i'm wrong) i believe the battery is not removable. i'm generally settling in on the toshiba t1000se. it's a bit more money than i really care to spend ($1150-1200 in the d.c. area), but it seems to meet most of my criteria. now, to the meat of my (many) questions: does anyone have any real experience with the t1000se? i've read a few mini-reviews in magazines, but nothing too substantive. i'm particularly interested in the experience of anyone who's lugged the thing for a period of time. how does it work for you? durability? warranty? batttery life? keyboard feel? display quality? is it possible to hook up a (non-toshiba) external hard drive, preferably homebrew? how about an external monitor? is the battery removable (i believe i read that it is)? how heavy/bulky is the charger? does auto-resume last across battery changes or not? how does one properly make use of memory above 640K? any good leads on prices less than $1150? (i don't qualify for student discounts.) any hidden disadvanges to this beast? any pointers to reviews, pro or con? anyone care to suggest alternatives machines? i'm also curious about the general (subtle) bashing toshiba seems to incur in this newsgroup. what is the problem? just pricing of add-ons? i'll probably use an external modem, but will probably have to bend over when it comes to additional ram. copious questions... anyone out there with copious answers? i'm interested in as much input as i can get. post or mail, though responses may be of sufficient general interest for posting. thanks in advance. tom love Xerox Engineering Design and Documentation Systems 607 Herndon Pkwy, Herndon, VA 22070 703-787-2027 ARPA: toml.herndon@xerox.com XNS: toml:herndon:xerox UUCP: uunet!xrxedds!toml {sun|rlgvax|hadron}!sundc!ra!toml GENIE: tomlove (infrequently used) Disclaimer: they didn't do it, i did, so leave them alone. -- tom love Xerox Engineering Design and Documentation Systems 607 Herndon Pkwy, Herndon, VA 22070 703-787-2027 ARPA: toml.herndon@xerox.com XNS: toml:herndon:xerox UUCP: uunet!xrxedds!toml {sun|rlgvax|hadron}!sundc!ra!toml GENIE: tomlove (infrequently used) Disclaimer: they didn't do it, i did, so leave them alone.