Thoshiba 5205-S703 Questions

agentb159 · January 3rd, 2003, 01:57 AM

Im pretty set to buy the above noted laptop, mostly for gaming and and other desktop stuff while on the roads at hotels or on vaction or while at the parents house w/e. I just wanted to know if this laptop would be a suitable comp for games such as Counter Strike, Anarchy Online, possibly Solider of Fourtune 2, and say Photoshop 7, Macromedia MX programs and the like. Has any one here used it. What are the pros and cons that you know of, and is the screen have good quality. Im asking this because I'm bout to spend a fair amount on a Laptop and don't want to be disappointed. Would you have anyother recommendations.

Thanks

Alex

PresterJohn · January 3rd, 2003, 02:02 AM

hmmm, it's a little hard to post an opinion w/o knowing what the actual specs are

toshiba is a quality brand name, but i strongly suggest you look for an local outlet near you (since toshiba is not a 'closed' distributed brand like dell) that would have this model in-store so you can make a subjective evaulation for yourself.

edit:also helpful would be the price

Judas · January 3rd, 2003, 02:49 AM

Here's the Toshiba page link:
http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/t...ST&poid=238486

Specs:

Processor : Mobile Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor - M
Processor Speed : 2000MHz (2.0GHz)
Memory : 512MB PC2100 DDR SDRAM (2 - 256MB)
Display Type : UXGA Active Matrix (1600 x 1200)
Display Size : 15"
Graphics : NVIDIA GeForce4 460 Go™ graphics controller w/64MB DDR external VRAM video memory
Hard Drive : 60 Gigabyte
Multimedia : DVD-R/RW multifunction drive
Design : 2-Spindle Design w/Toshiba StyleBay (USB FDD optional)
Modem : Integrated V.92/56K modem
Networking : Integrated 10/100 Ethernet
Wireless : Integrated Wi-Fi™ (IEEE 802.11b)
Operating System : Windows® XP Home Edition
Additional Software : Panasonic MotionDV Studio™, Microsoft® Works plus Toshiba Great Software Offer
Dimensions : 13.1" x 11.6" x 1.8"
Weight : 7.7lbs
Warranty : 1 year parts and labor, 1 year battery
FireWire : i.Link™ (IEEE 1394) port

Ninjak · January 3rd, 2003, 03:40 AM

Actually, I've been looking hard at this laptop for myself over the past week. Only thing that's delayed me has been searching for the lowest price outside of NY. All around, it should be able to handle most needs, although I really wish they'd have included a Radeon 9000 chip instead of the Geforce 460 Go. This system cries out for a DirectX 8 chip. You should be able to play the games you mentioned, but don't expect any great shading or bump-mapping, as this chip lacks that. Still, I hear it's decent enough for general things. If you're a hard-core graphics user or gamer, I'd look elsewhere, though.
I expect Toshiba will put out a version with the ATI-9000-killer GeForce 4200 Go in a few months, but anandtech.com is concerned with power consumption issues it may bring.

Graphics aside, it appears great and has everything else I want in a laptop. I was seriously considering a Sager 5660 before since its got everything, including graphics ability, but the battery life of 2.5 hrs on a dual-battery setup is inexcusable for travel for me.

Another high point of the Toshiba for me is the Yamaha-based sound w/ harmon kardon speakers. Anyone else have any input? Thanks!

agentb159 · January 3rd, 2003, 12:27 PM

Ok sorry guys for not posting the specs, but I can get it locally for just over 2,000. Does that sound like a good deal. I understand that it won't be on par with radeon 9000 mobile but im not that heavy of a gamer or graphics intensive user. One final question, with the components and parts given do you guys believe that it would be possilbe to run in on say Red Hat 7.3(2) or SuSe 8.1 linux.

Alex

Ninjak · January 3rd, 2003, 02:37 PM

If you can get it for just over $2000 from a reliable vendor, that's a GREAT deal! In fact, could you tell me where you've found it? Best I can do so far is Buy.com for $2448 w/ free shipping and no tax. Thanks!

PresterJohn · January 3rd, 2003, 10:14 PM

>Ok sorry guys for not posting the specs, but I can get it locally for just over 2,000

that is not a bad price at all.

what is the nic chipset on the machine? i'm sure rh or suse will run on it...the problem is, if the chipset is very new, they may not have native driver support for it. if this happens and if the vendor does not offer linux drivers, then you are square out of luck.

i've installed linux on many desktops & laptops. ironically, the most 'compatible' systems were machines that were released 1.5-3 years ago. every linux distro recognized the video, nic, etc.

timid1 · January 13th, 2003, 02:11 AM

The Toshiba S703 just had a $300 price break at CompUSA and there is a $100 manufacturer's mail-in rebate. In regards to running Linux on the laptop, you will void the manufacturer's warranty. If you have the urge to run Linux, I'm sure that you will have no problems running it without a hitch (i.e., without compatibility issues).