Toshiba C660 - €399 ( argos )

tommyjin83

As per the title, this laptop was going for €599 in argos and now it's down to €399. Currently looking for a laptop for personal use, so would love some advice.

Linky ->http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5087585.htm?cmpid=IE253&params=IE253&storeId=10152&ET_rid=241109326&ET_cid=3871266&referredURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.argos.ie%2Fstatic%2FProduct%2FpartNumber%2F5087585.htm&referrer=IE253


Hopefully the above link is working.

So what do you guys think?

Mellio

Yes I had a look at this yesterday and the spec is good to include:

• Intel I3 processor
• 4GB Ram
• 640GB HD (I think)

My only gripe with it is that it doesnt offer HDMI output and I like to hook up my laptop to my tv to watch movies or use the Internet .e.t.c.

you can use a vga vable and audio cable but I think all modern laptops should have hdmi output as minimum. this is what reduced price is based on, you would not pay €599 for this type of laptop spec.

Check out Amazon uk, they have some really good deals and you get it delivered to you for free.

Cheers

slave1

And as it's Argos, check stock levels!!!

nava

slave1 wrote: »

And as it's Argos, check stock levels!!!

Yes very low stock levels, none is most of Dublin stores. Checkargos.com stock

uck51js9zml2yt

I have one of these. great little machine

tommyjin83

Mellio wrote: »

Yes I had a look at this yesterday and the spec is good to include:

• Intel I3 processor
• 4GB Ram
• 640GB HD (I think)

My only gripe with it is that it doesnt offer HDMI output and I like to hook up my laptop to my tv to watch movies or use the Internet .e.t.c.

you can use a vga vable and audio cable but I think all modern laptops should have hdmi output as minimum. this is what reduced price is based on, you would not pay €599 for this type of laptop spec.

Check out Amazon uk, they have some really good deals and you get it delivered to you for free.

Cheers

yeah, was having the same concern myself... Other than that, i am pretty happy with the specs and the price. Decision time...

ComeraghBlue

tommyjin83 wrote: »

yeah, was having the same concern myself... Other than that, i am pretty happy with the specs and the price. Decision time...

It says it was previously sold at €349. I ha e a similar spec laptop and it does most basic tasks at ease. Remember windows 8 coming soon.

tommyjin83

ComeraghBlue wrote: »

It says it was previously sold at €349. I ha e a similar spec laptop and it does most basic tasks at ease. Remember windows 8 coming soon.

Had a look again at the linky above, at the bottem of the page it says " Please note item 5087585 has previously been on sale at €359.99. ".... weird..
Yeah, i know Windows 8 is coming, but how soon are we talking? Might wait until that's out, massive price reduction anyone?

mcgovern

tommyjin83 wrote: »

Had a look again at the linky above, at the bottem of the page it says " Please note item 5087585 has previously been on sale at €359.99. ".... weird..
Yeah, i know Windows 8 is coming, but how soon are we talking? Might wait until that's out, massive price reduction anyone?

Out in about ~10 days, wouldn't expect huge price cuts though.

manu2009

tommyjin83 wrote: »

As per the title, this laptop was going for €599 in argos and now it's down to €399. Currently looking for a laptop for personal use, so would love some advice.

Linky ->http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5087585.htm?cmpid=IE253&params=IE253&storeId=10152&ET_rid=241109326&ET_cid=3871266&referredURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.argos.ie%2Fstatic%2FProduct%2FpartNumber%2F5087585.htm&referrer=IE253


Hopefully the above link is working.

So what do you guys think?

Not a great deal really, you'd get a second gen i3 processor for that price, plus the C660 is one of toshiba's lowest models, doesn't look nice imo and i also don't like the plastic finish and no hdmi out.

This Fujitsu or this Packard Bell would be better.

skeg16

Looks a great buy, I have the same model and havent had any issues so far, mine has more RAM and hard disk space but this looks a bargin!!!!

BostonB

€399.99
was €599.99
previously been on sale at €359.99

Its a low end laptop (build quality/features GFX, USB2, average screen etc but with an ok processor). I wouldn't say it was a bargain, but its a reasonable price for a bricks and mortar shop. I would doubt its ever been at €599.99 for any length of time, and then only to say its a sale price if they use any other lower price after that.

But in fairness at least they tell you that.

skeg16

Its by no means low end, fair enough its from argos, heavy and is not the highest specked laptop in the world but this is a good deal in my eyes....not every1 has a need for a macbook air-like laptop

Capt'n Midnight

If you are not in a hurry Tesco may have some €299 laptops again

https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=80404035
https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=75087420

If you are looking at a €399 laptop you aren't number crunching.
The compaq from Tesco had HDMI
Last years €299 emachine from Tesco also had HDMI,

BostonB

skeg16 wrote: »

Its by no means low end, fair enough its from argos, heavy and is not the highest specked laptop in the world but this is a good deal in my eyes....not every1 has a need for a macbook air-like laptop

Kinda think you are missing the point. Its an entry level machine. Thats not slagging it off, its simply pointing out how it compares with other laptops.

http://www.cnet.com.au/toshiba-satellite-c660-339317473.htm
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Toshiba-Satellite-C660-Notebook.43702.0.html
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Toshiba-Satellite-C660-Notebook.43702.0.html

andy125

Was going to buy this at €360 but the priced changed today to €400 as you can see so will not bother as there is better laptops in that price range out there.

Zonda999

Another thing is that the chip in this, while quite decent, is quite old, it uses the core i3 architecture from 2010, so this must be quite old stock at argos..

BostonB

Its an ok CPU though. At the price I wouldn't have a problem with the CPU. Its the rest of the features/spec.

irishbigfoot

manu2009 wrote: »

Not a great deal really, you'd get a second gen i3 processor for that price, plus the C660 is one of toshiba's lowest models, doesn't look nice imo and i also don't like the plastic finish and no hdmi out.

This Fujitsu or this Packard Bell would be better.

Happened to be looking at laptops earlier for a friend and saw that Fujitsu- decent basic spec, HDMI and the processor is a Sandybridge so not too old. If you do buy a new laptop now you can avail of Windows 8 for 15 euro here

BillJ

irishbigfoot wrote: »

Happened to be looking at laptops earlier for a friend and saw that Fujitsu- decent basic spec, HDMI and the processor is a Sandybridge so not too old. If you do buy a new laptop now you can avail of Windows 8 for 15 euro here

So the consensus is that the Fujitsu is better than the Toshiba in Argos? Hoping to get a new laptop in the next few days and don't want to be kicking myself a few days later seeing a better laptop for the same price.

Would I be correct in saying that a processor with speeds of about 2-2.5 GHz is what to aim for with this budget? Or is the type of processor very important too?

ShaunC

Sorry Bill, but that's the way it works, as soon as you buy your laptop you will find better spec machines for cheaper. I thinks it's "sod's law" or "Murphy's law" or something like that.:rolleyes:

BillJ

What about this one below? look fairly well specced for the price, any opinions on it?

http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Acer_TS11-HR-686UK-i3-2350_6GB_500GB_W7HP_Bl_NX.BYJEK.001/version.asp

irishbigfoot

BillJ wrote: »

What about this one below? look fairly well specced for the price, any opinions on it?

http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Acer_TS11-HR-686UK-i3-2350_6GB_500GB_W7HP_Bl_NX.BYJEK.001/version.asp

I definitely agree with ShaunC- no matter what after you click on the buy button you will find one cheaper!

As for speed- it's not the only concern these days. With the new processors it's down to cores, die-sets, hyperthreading...list can go on. For a minimum spec I would be on the lookout for the i3/5/7 Sandybridge (i3 2XXXX) or if you can configure the machine then the latest Ivybridge (i3 3XXXX) This would have the better integrated graphics and lower voltage for better battery life.

I only looked at the Packard Bell now- I would have never recommended them before but I didn't realise that Acer had taken them over in 2008 so they have probably improved. The spec on the Packard Bell is slightly better for chip, ram and capacity and it does have HDMI as well. Further general specs for the Fujitsu on their site here and for the Packard Bell on Amazon.

At the end of the day it is really down to what you need the machine for. I personally not only would try to get an i3/5/7 chip but would look for a dedicated graphics card and USB3 slots if possible.

If you can stretch your budget then this Lenovo G570 has a good spec for £399 (appx €498) with i3 Sandybridge and Bluray with a dedicated graphics card or this Acer Aspire 5755G for £439 (appx €548) with i5 Sandybridge, dedicated graphics and USB3.

I ordered a machine new machine myself last week from Lenovo direct using a discount from Meteor- you have to follow this link though and the code for 15% off is 'METEOR15LNV' The ability to configure the machines isn't the best though and aimed at the very lowest and very highest chips.

BostonB

I don't get the point of doing this...

2x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.0 I'd want more than one USB 3 port myself. I certainly wouldn't buy a machine without USB 3 at all.

loki7777

It depends for what you are using it. I recommended this toshiba to my friend, who just need it for skype,youtube and facebook. She paid 349 for it. The quality is good(i3(even the old one) is still a lot better that intel Bxxx), maybe the spec aren't good enough for now, but you cant expect more for that money(and you dont have to wait for it and pay extra for postage).

BostonB

You can always upgrade the processor. (most people won't fair enough), RAM and Hard drive. But you can't upgrade the rest of the laptop, screen, keyboard, USB ports, graphics card.

loki7777

You can upgrade GPU but it is not worth - most of the time it is cheaper to buy new one:)

irishbigfoot

BostonB wrote: »

I don't get the point of doing this...

2x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.0 I'd want more than one USB 3 port myself. I certainly wouldn't buy a machine without USB 3 at all.

Not sure why either but from a quick google it appears it might have to do with the Intel motherboards and chipsets. It appears that the older Intel chipsets only have controllers for USB2 and the USB3 controller would be something tacked on by the manufacturer. Article here and 5th comment down here.

The new range of Lenovo Thinkpad Edge's- E530 have 3 USB3 ports at least and 1 powered USB2 one.

BillJ

People have said that the toshiba option and Fujitsu option previously mentioned are good enough but that they would buy better specced alternatives for the same money.

I can't seem to find anything better for the budget, I'm talking 400 max. Ideally it would have the following:

• i3 processor
• 4-6GB RAM
• Approx. 500GB HD
• At least one USB 3.0
• HDMI output

Maybe there just isn't anything with all of the above for <€400

Seems that at least two from the above list are missing in all the options i've seen

BostonB

loki7777 wrote: »

You can upgrade GPU but it is not worth - most of the time it is cheaper to buy new one:)

How can you upgrade the GPU. Usually its soldered on the motherboard. Very few have cards, and usually you can only swap to the same model.

So of all these laptops mentioned in this thread, how do you upgrade their GPU's?

You can upgrade their CPU if it had an integrated GPU, thats the only way I can see.

http://smidgenpc.com/2012/05/11/intel-hd-4000-mobile-performance-review-is-great-gaming-now-standard-on-your-laptop/

BostonB

BillJ wrote: »

People have said that the toshiba option and Fujitsu option previously mentioned are good enough but that they would buy better specced alternatives for the same money. ...

I think you might have to drop to lesser to tick more of the boxes.

http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5087729/Trail/searchtext%3EGREAT+DEALS+ON+COMPUTING.htm

http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/catalogId/14551/partNumber/5087695.htm

http://www.zdnet.com/toshiba-satellite-pro-c850-10n-3040155301/

Though if it were me, I think I'd pay more and get a i3 AND tick more of those boxes.

BillJ

BillJ wrote: »

People have said that the toshiba option and Fujitsu option previously mentioned are good enough but that they would buy better specced alternatives for the same money.

I can't seem to find anything better for the budget, I'm talking 400 max. Ideally it would have the following:

• i3 processor
• 4-6GB RAM
• Approx. 500GB HD
• At least one USB 3.0
• HDMI output

Maybe there just isn't anything with all of the above for <€400

Seems that at least two from the above list are missing in all the options i've seen

Maybe this? (Cheaper with Parcel Motel.)

BillJ

That's almost perfect Aristotle!

€429 in PC World over here so it's only slightly over budget, might pick this up over the next few days

irishbigfoot

BillJ wrote: »

People have said that the toshiba option and Fujitsu option previously mentioned are good enough but that they would buy better specced alternatives for the same money.

I can't seem to find anything better for the budget, I'm talking 400 max. Ideally it would have the following:

• i3 processor
• 4-6GB RAM
• Approx. 500GB HD
• At least one USB 3.0
• HDMI output

Maybe there just isn't anything with all of the above for <€400

Seems that at least two from the above list are missing in all the options i've seen

The better spec machines for the same money mentioned were before all of those options were in play- if that budget needs to be close to the 400 then you would need to decide which was least important to you. For my money I would drop USB3 since I wouldn't be moving that many files and go with the Packard Bell mentioned since it ticks the rest of the boxes.

Deleted User wrote: »

Maybe this? (Cheaper with Parcel Motel.)

That machine looks good alright esp at the stg price...although it doesn't have an optical drive so keep that in mind.

'The Asus X501A is designed to be thin and portable. The laptop does not have an optical drive to play discs, which makes space for other components like the powerful processor and memory.'

mbarosin

Anyone have any thoughts of this Packard Bell?
http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Acer_TS44-HR-686UK-i3-2350_6GB_500GB_W7HP_Wh_NX.BZ2EK.001/version.asp#maindesc

Processor - Intel Core i3 2350M - 2.3 GHz
RAM - 6 GB
Hard Drive - 500 GB
Operating System - Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
- Upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for only £14.99!
Click here for more info.
Optical Drive - DVD SM
Warranty - 1 Year

Looks pretty good to me for €420 (apparently 39% off!!).
Can't find anything about USB 3.0 though which would be annoying.
Still I think for the circa €400 mark, this looks like the best one I've seen in this thread.

irishbigfoot

mbarosin wrote: »

Anyone have any thoughts of this Packard Bell?
http://www.laptopsdirect.ie/Acer_TS44-HR-686UK-i3-2350_6GB_500GB_W7HP_Wh_NX.BZ2EK.001/version.asp#maindesc

Processor - Intel Core i3 2350M - 2.3 GHz
RAM - 6 GB
Hard Drive - 500 GB
Operating System - Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
- Upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for only £14.99!
Click here for more info.
Optical Drive - DVD SM
Warranty - 1 Year

Looks pretty good to me for €420 (apparently 39% off!!).
Can't find anything about USB 3.0 though which would be annoying.
Still I think for the circa €400 mark, this looks like the best one I've seen in this thread.

Not sure if it was there yesterday but there is now a machine on Laptops Direct that will tick all the boxes and coming in at €394- the
Asus X55C. Page has very little information but specs on official site.

Essentially it has:
i3 Sandybridge (2.2GHz)
4GB Ram
500GB hard drive
HDMI
USB2(1) along USB3(1)
Optical Drive

Comes with Windows 8 so won't ship till after Oct 26th but you can order it now.

BillJ

Quick update on this for anyone that's interested.

Ended up going slightly over budget and got this

http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5089105/c_1/1%7Ccategory_root%7COffice%2C+PCs+and+phones%7C14418968/c_2/3%7Ccat_19780850%7CLaptops+and+netbooks%7C14419039.htm

Quite happy with it so far, spec is just what I wanted and battery life seems good. Not so sure what to make of windows 8 though, will take a bit of getting used to.

GarIT

It's not good value for money at all, I don't know what people are saying about the processor, it is the oldest and one of the slowest i3 processors there are. Some people see anything from the i series and think its great but there are laptops of the current generation with celeron and pentium processors more powerful than this. Processors have gone through two major upgrades since this processor was released and have improved a lot, this is really old tech.

Even this is more powerful than a lot of the i3 laptops sold in argos http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5085570/c_1/1%7Ccategory_root%7COffice%2C+PCs+and+phones%7C14418968/c_2/3%7C19780850%7CLaptops+and+netbooks%7C14419039/c_3/4%7Ccat_14419039%7CLaptops%7C14419040.htm You can check it on pasmark. i3 really means nothing its just a name, it doesnt equate anything to performance.

GarIT

BostonB wrote: »

I'd want more than one USB 3 port myself. I certainly wouldn't buy a machine without USB 3 at all.

How many high speed external hard drives do you intend to use at once? I would rarely ever use one, I can't imagine using more than one ever.

BillJ

GarIT wrote: »

It's not good value for money at all, I don't know what people are saying about the processor, it is the oldest and one of the slowest i3 processors there are. Some people see anything from the i series and think its great but there are laptops of the current generation with celeron and pentium processors more powerful than this. Processors have gone through two major upgrades since this processor was released and have improved a lot, this is really old tech.

I see what you're saying but I don't completely agree, it's actually one of the faster i3 processors i3-3110M 2.4GHz.

I know the i5 and i7 are out aswell but they are not available at the budget I was looking at, the cheapest i5 I would have wanted was 530+ and I was already over budget with what I spent.

So yes the processor may not be the best in the series but for the price I think it is reasonably good value.

BillJ

GarIT wrote: »

How many high speed external hard drives do you intend to use at once? I would rarely ever use one, I can't imagine using more than one ever.

That was BostonB said that not me just to clarify:) the laptop I got has one which is all I need aswell

GarIT

BillJ wrote: »

I see what you're saying but I don't completely agree, it's actually one of the faster i3 processors i3-3110M 2.4GHz.

I know the i5 and i7 are out aswell but they are not available at the budget I was looking at, the cheapest i5 I would have wanted was 530+ and I was already over budget with what I spent.

So yes the processor may not be the best in the series but for the price I think it is reasonably good value.

I was referring to the OP possibly a bit late though. the i3 370M is terrible compared to what you can get on a budget now. The 3110M is significantly better.

As said before frequency doesnt matter at all ether anymore some of the best processors operate at around 1.7GHz.

The number really doesnt matter at all there are now i3 processors that are better that what were the best i5 processors from the original series and some of the current gen i3 processors can even come fairly colse to the original i7 processors.

BostonB

GarIT wrote: »

How many high speed external hard drives do you intend to use at once? I would rarely ever use one, I can't imagine using more than one ever.

How else can you backup a large drive except to another?

I can have 3 or 4 drives connected sometimes.

BostonB

For me the most important things on a laptop are the keyboard and the screen. They are often what suffers on a cheaper laptop. There only one way to test this, that by trying them.

GarIT

BostonB wrote: »

How else can you backup a large drive except to another?

I can have 3 or 4 drives connected sometimes.

I didnt really think there would be a need for that. I'd survive with one, connect the drive being read to the USB2 port and then there won't be much of a difference. You must have a lot of data :P

BostonB

If you've nothing important probably not. If you have work projects, art, photos and music. Then it adds up over the years.