New Toshiba Laptop problems - advice on what to do

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jumcc87

40 posts

Geek

#147466 20-Jun-2014 10:11

Good morning

I posted on here a couple of weeks ago asking advice on what laptop I should buy with a store credit I had (from a faulty laptop HPJ121tx).

I went into the store last Sunday and was all set to go with the HPJ118TX (as it was on special) and I do like that laptop. However, at the store the manager talked me into going for the Toshiba L50-B Satellite here

Now just looking at it it says $1199 and at the desk he said he 'could do it for $1200' (it was $1250 when I was there on Sunday). That's annoying. So I paid $50 more and got this laptop.

The guy at the store said it is a good computer and when I asked him if it would perform the same as the HP laptops mentioned above he said it doesn't look as good on paper (as the J118) but for what you are doing it will perform and it will also be more reliable being a Toshiba. I was using the J121TX which is similar in specs and had no problems - the fault was a screen defect..

The problems:

- I work from my laptop and have a lot of tabs and a few programs open. Nothing crazy - about 15 chrome tabs sometimes and maybe excel and word open. This computer is driving me insane as it keeps freezing when I switch between programs, start something up or try to shut something down. I am often getting the unresponsive message. I work pretty fast and decided to pay more for a laptop that would be fast too - but this is really getting frustrating. It's not as though the programs I use are competing for huge resources - just chrome and office?

- The fan is always on and every ten minutes or so will blast up for 20 seconds or so and get's quite hot. If I play a video it will always do this - for a brand new computer with these specs I find it really strange that it would do this and it's very annoying (i hate too much fan noise). I'm not gaming or using any programs that need a lot of resources.

- Minor detail and I'm not sure what I can do but the touch pad is very hard to push and I have a lot of pain in my shoulder. RSI pain from using it. I've now resorted to plugging a mouse in and using that but it's still there. Although it's not a spec problem it is a very bad problem as you are pushing that button a lot. I'm not sure if that can be a used against the computer though.

I am really angry writing this and it's not helped by my excruciating shoulder pain. I rang Toshiba and was advised to take to the store for them to assess - but maybe this is just how this laptop runs and they won't find a problem. I think the point for me is I was sold something that doesn't perform how I was led to believe.

What are my options do you think? I want to replace for the HP i originally wanted but I'm not sure what tactic to take. The point is that he sold me something that is not what he said it would be. Any advice would be really appreciated.

Thanks very much!

wellygary

8312 posts

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#1070766 20-Jun-2014 09:40

It might be faulty, But I think only having 4GB of RAM ( which is being shared with the video card?) could be a contributing factor...

gzt

17104 posts

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#1070769 20-Jun-2014 09:41

Nothing crazy - about 15 chrome tabs sometimes and maybe excel and word open. This computer is driving me insane as it keeps freezing when I switch between programs, start something up or try to shut something down. I am often getting the unresponsive message.

Something is obviously wrong there. This is a fault of some kind, it is not a performance issue with the laptop specification. Take it in and get the store to look at it as suggested by Toshiba.

If they were happy to credit a previously faulty machine for you maybe they will do the same for this one if that is still what you want. If that is the best way to solve the problems for you just ask them when you get there. There is no obligation for them to do that, but if they have done it previously then maybe they want to keep you happy.

Edit: The other stuff is neither here nor there but it is obviously not the right computer for you. Just explain that and ask them to replace it with something better. If you have to offer to give up another couple of hundred to make it happen it's probably worth it instead of getting stuck with this one.

beachgeek

64 posts

Master Geek

#1070848 20-Jun-2014 11:32

I make these comments as a ex computer retailer.

I cant find the specs for the Hp but I am picking they would be similar to the Toshiba. In my humble opinion the last computer in the world that I would buy is an HP as they are very unresponsive as a Company ( or at least were when I sold Computers). That aside it sounds to me as though the problem is having to many windows open in your browser. With 4gbs of ram you are probably using the Hard Drive cache and hence hearing the fan going etc.

The current laptop I have had 2 gbs of ram when I upgraded it 6gb for $ 60 and the difference was light years. Most people look to hard drive and processor and forget about the Ram when purchasing computers. But having a fast processor is only going to help if you are doing lots of processing (like video edit etc). Using excel and word most of the time the processor is sitting waiting for you to press go.

Opening 15 windows in a browser will use alot of Ram. Open Windows task Manager and look under the Performance tab. This will tell you what resources are being used.

rhy7s

623 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1070903 20-Jun-2014 12:15

beachgeek: In my humble opinion the last computer in the world that I would buy is an HP as they are very unresponsive as a Company ( or at least were when I sold Computers).

Just another opinion, but I've always had a good experience with HP. Even had overnight pick-up in a very rural location outside warranty. Their service manuals tend to be excellent. On the other hand I've found it to be very rare to come across a Toshiba without fit and finish and durability issues. However both brands' entry level offerings are basically disposable, better buying second-hand from their business lines for the same price.

jumcc87

40 posts

Geek

#1071889 21-Jun-2014 21:54

Thanks everyone for your replies. Perhaps it was the ram, but seriously I could not believe how many times unresponsive was coming up! It was very fustrating.

I went back to the store and they were actually really accommodating and replaced the laptop for the HP i was originally going to get.

Thank you everyone!

sonyxperiageek

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#1071911 21-Jun-2014 23:02

Chrome does use quite a bit of memory.

Sony

timmmay

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#1071945 22-Jun-2014 07:41

Chrome uses massive amounts of memory. Increase your RAM to 16GB and install an SSD. Heat you can't do much about, an SSD will be a little cooler but modern CPUs put out a lot of heat.

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Yabanize

2350 posts

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#1072027 22-Jun-2014 13:08

timmmay: Chrome uses massive amounts of memory. Increase your RAM to 16GB and install an SSD. Heat you can't do much about, an SSD will be a little cooler but modern CPUs put out a lot of heat.

My chrome works fine on 8gb, it works fine on 4gb too, and probably even 2gb?

timmmay

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#1072031 22-Jun-2014 13:17

Yabanize:
timmmay: Chrome uses massive amounts of memory. Increase your RAM to 16GB and install an SSD. Heat you can't do much about, an SSD will be a little cooler but modern CPUs put out a lot of heat.

My chrome works fine on 8gb, it works fine on 4gb too, and probably even 2gb?

4GB is a lot different from 8GB. The OS takes 1-2GB, a bit of disk cache, leaving 1-2GB for chrome. Chrome for me is using 1GB. 4GB in theory should be ok, but I find in practice it's not quite enough for a high performance PC, especially with a spinning disk. SSD helps a lot.

1101

3122 posts

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#1074127 25-Jun-2014 12:16

jumcc87:Nothing crazy - about 15 chrome tabs sometimes and maybe excel and word open.

- The fan is always on and every ten minutes or so will blast up for 20 seconds or so and get's quite hot.

Is it just me, but 15 tabs open in a brower IS a bit crazy.

Some laptops run hot , some run too hot. Not a good sign of things to come, looks like you have swapped it for a better one now :-)

jumcc87

40 posts

Geek

#1074130 25-Jun-2014 12:19

Thanks, im really happy with the HP Envy.

Why is 15 tabs crazy, i need to cross reference a lot of things

timmmay

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#1074218 25-Jun-2014 12:56

I have 14 Chrome tabs open right now, no problems at all. 4GB RAM i5 with a spinning HDD.

lokhor

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#1074229 25-Jun-2014 13:08

I would honestly never want to use a computer without an SSD these days, the response difference is huge.

I have an HP Spectre XT for work which only has 4GB of ram and I pretty frequently run into memory issues with Chrome - it often uses 2GB+ memory with 10-15 tabs open. I did find an extension that helps a lot, it's called The Great Suspender and it suspends tabs that aren't in use (saving memory).

If you can upgrade the RAM I am sure that will definitely help, 8GB is enough unless you decide to do heavy photo/video editing. Replacing a mechanical HDD With an SSD also makes a pretty massive difference.

All comments are my own opinion, and not that of my employer unless explicitly stated.

MadEngineer

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#1085936 9-Jul-2014 18:54

Regarding comments on HP vs Toshiba support, they're each to their own but HP support seem to call me back to follow up on any support calls. Toshiba support is highly scripted and they often don't understand what you're explaining to them. HP also have a much greater range of laptops which is great when you're trying to find specific specs.

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