Giant step up from eeepc, pretty nice laptop!
930624
I've been waiting to replace my trusty eeepc 1005HA for a while now, and while looking for another ASUS netbook with a 12 inch screen, all of a sudden Amazon offers this a 13-inch model for very little more than I paid for the 10-inch netbook almost 4 years ago. To be honest, I was expecting to be disappointed because the 1005HA has been so dependable and functional. But the U32U-ES21 is such an enormous improvement that it is really in a class by itself. I am still getting used to it and especially to Windows 7, but here are my first impressions:

- the screen angle issue is real, and obvious when compared to the excellent (matte!) LCD screen in the eeepc, but not a huge problem. Maximum brightness is about the same. The view angle might have to do with the U32U screen being LED-backlit, which probably saves battery drain. The much higher resolution and of course the extra "real estate" more than makes up for this, and blacks are richer too.

- It's a joy to have the additional keyboard size and especially a more conventional layout of the right side keys. The keys are a bit on the stiff side but I am making far fewer typing mistakes. (The eeepc also had some repeated key problems that I am happy to find absent now). My eeepc had a black-on-white keyboard, which is easier to see in dim light than the new one, but that's only an issue for hunt-and-peck typists in darkened bedrooms, like me.

- Fan is much, much quieter and the unit runs cooler than the eeepc!

- Windows7 is a great advance over the familiar and reliable but now clunky XP. The 4GB standard RAM seems to handle it fine.

- I've had no wi-fi problems at all so far, although I get different strength indications with the 2 laptops side by side.

- I have not put them on scales yet, but it is about the same weight as the eeepc with an oversize battery.
- Video playback is perfect at full screen, but I have not tried and HD yet.
- The Caps Lock and Num Lock lights are very welcome features, avoiding errors and/or the need to install an on-screen program.

One star down from perfect because of the stiff keyboard and screen issues, and the truly TERRIBLE Asus website, but really quite an amazing value.  Yes, I have to add that I have never even succeeded in registering my computer, getting access to their cloud storage, or even finding a list of models, on their website. I can only hope that I'll never need any type of real assistance. (Their webpage for driver downloads can't even recognize the model computer - I had to get drivers from other sites!  Boooo ASUS)

Six weeks later:  I'm noticing how flexy the keyboard is, but it doesn't matter to me. More worrying is that I had to reinstall the keypad driver a couple of times before I got the 2-finger scrolling feature to work right, and also the default settings have to be changed for it to work right. (Forget about the "Scrybe" junk). And if you switch between a mouse and the trackpad you will find a little program called Change Mouse Speed very useful.

To compensate for a slowish AMD CPU I installed another 4 Gb of RAM ($25), and disabled most of the Win7 screen animations. Now I am more than satisfied with the snappy performance, including HD videos (I'm not a gamer). I have rigged all my peripherals into a sort of quick docking station when I am not on the road - mouse, backlit keyboard, big monitor, backup HD. I have some issues with how Win7 handles its "Libraries", and can't for the life of me understand why ASUS makes the "OS" drive partition (C:) the default for data rather than the "Data" partition "D".

Maybe that is why the Mac Airbook is so popular - it's not a do-it-yourself project like ASUS always seems to be.

Now if Amazon would only quit changing the price every week it will be a great little laptop for about $400.
386721
After buying an ASUS N550 and discovering ASUS will not provide Windows 7 Drivers for their laptops, I thought I'd just try to migrate to Windows 8.  I quickly learned several high end audio editing applications/plugins would not work in Windows 8.  Since ASUS would not let me move to Windows 7, I sent it back.

Next, I tried the very affordable Toshiba S55.  I quickly discovered why it was so affordable.  While processor and memory were spec'ed high for its price, the display and output resolutions were limited to "postage stamp".  It was an impossible environment to get any mobile work done... and back it went.

Finally, tired of messing around, I tried the Alienware 14.  This thing is a beast for audio production!  Not only does it handle everything I throw at it with grace, but the interior MSata expansion slot allowed me to quickly pop in a 1TB SSD.  I installed Win 7 64 to the SSD and have never had so much fun with a laptop in my life.  I'm an Alienware convert now.

Concering appearance, I was worried the lid would be giant, plasticky and convex because of the photos.  Not so.  This thing is flat, solid and metallic.  It's sturdy enough to beat a sasquatch into submission.  The lighting is fully customizable, including color, which is nice when I don't want to look like a 5th grader while working.  It is certainly much more attractive in person than in the photos.  All in all, this is the finest laptop I've ever owned, and I am glad the ASUS and Toshiba did not work out.

Incidentally, if you are considering buying a laptop, know that Amazon took the ASUS and Toshiba back without any questions, and even paid the shipping.  It was all automated and very fast.  I am no longer as apprehensive about buying electronics via Amazon.  They handled my issues with grace and speed.

***Note about HDD upgrades***  if you are planning to replace the DVD drive with another internal hard drive using an HDD caddy, be warned...  Windows will immediately go into a BSOD cycle if the mobo does not detect the OEM DVD drive during POST. I don't think Alienware (Dell) did that on purpose, but I doubt they are planning on a fix for it as it seems they used a 3rd party (Intel RST) driver for storage management (which includes the DVD drive).  That driver is famous for BSOD problems, so don't hold your breath for a fix.  Just go the MSATA SSD route instead and you'll be good to go.
1661723
I received this laptop yesterday, so these are my first impressions. First, pleasantly surprised by the build, sleekness and especially the light weight of this device. It is incredibly thin, yet has a full-size keyboard, a 14" screen AND ultra-high definition (1080) instead of the usual 760 pixels of most laptops in this price range. Believe me, the extra pixels make a huge difference in viewing webpages, and when I look at my previous laptop (Toshiba Satellite, also a great laptop), the difference is huge. The setup of my windows account was seamless, the computer is very responsive, and the 4GB RAM is more than enough for my typical uses (Word processing, spreadsheets, web surfing and e-mail). Also, programs load very quickly, much more so than with my 2-year old Toshiba. Despite its small size, the Asus E403SA is very functional, has a regular size hdmi port (for projectors or a TV screen), plus 3 usb ports and room for an SD Card (which may come in handy given the relatively small hard drive space). The only con is the touchpad, which is ultra-sensitive -- too sensitive for my taste, since sometimes it jumps from one page to another for no reason. But I suspect this just takes some getting used to, and of course you can buy a mouse for $10. Overall, for under $400, this is a great laptop, and the only *real* laptop in this price range with a full HD screen. A great alternative to the Macbook Air if you prefer Windows and don't want to spend an arm and a leg.
1571975
This is probably the best laptop purchase I have ever made, and I've owned five laptops prior to this one. Here are some things I absolutely love about this machine

* It has an extended keyboard. I'm not sure why it took years before laptop manufactures discovered that wider screens mean that there is now room for the number pad.

* Easily upgraded! There is a panel underneath where you can access the hard drive and memory. So if you want to swap the hard drive out for an SSD, then no problem! One of the first things I did was max out the RAM when I got it. It's a cheap upgrade and really adds a ton of performance.

* Good battery life. I'm not saying excellent or spectacular.. but good. The battery will last about 3-4 hours depending on what you're doing. My previous laptop's battery would only last about one hour when it was new, so this is something I really like

* I don't play a ton of computer games, but there are occasions when a friend will have me over to play some. The graphics accelerator on this laptop is nice. It could certainly be used as a gaming laptop.

* The machine is very quiet, cool and thin. It certainly doesn't feel like you've got a monster on your lap.

* built in webcam and mic, for video conferencing.

* The processor is fast (it's a quad core). It's advertised to run at 1.4GHz, but I've read that this particular CPU jumps to 2.3GHz for some processing operations. I'm not entirely sure if it does that or not on this particular machine, but it certainly feels fast enough that it might.

A few of the cons (note none of these are major, and I'm still giving this laptop 5 stars!)

* The display quality is mediocre. Though the brightness is good.

* The skin of the laptop is a glossy plastic that accumulates smudges in the worst way.

* If you're used to hitting the spacebar key with your right thumb, sometimes the angle is a little weird, just because the home keys are off-center to make room for the number pad. It's something to get used to.

When I bought this machine Amazon had it on sale for $425. I was floored that I got all of this at that price! Competing laptops are still in the $800 range. I had this laptop within 18 hours of when I ordered it. I'm incredibly pleased with this purchase!
3166268
CPU: it's not dual-core, but it is Hyper-Threaded (remember that?), so there is some multitasking capability.  It's fully capable for anything you'd want to do on a netbook.  My work laptop is only 2 years old and and the Wind is only slightly noticeably under that in terms of lag etc.

Memory: 1 GB is just fine for XP, but I'm recoring mine with Vista so I definitely had to go for the upgrade.  An extra 1GB is ridiculously cheap ($15), and it's a very easy install--just don't get squeamish about taking the entire bottom off of the thing.  Could certainly have been easier but still only took <5 minutes to do, and it worked perfectly the first time (no BIOS tweaking required).

Graphics: It's a low resolution, but it looks perfectly fine and for most purposes, it's just great.  Also remember that the screen itself is smaller than a normal notebook's, so proporitionally, it's just the real estate you want.  If low resolution is the major factor holding you back, do what I did--size some of your most-used app windows on your current machine to 1024x600 (I used MS Paint and created a blank pic at this reso, then just dragged windows around).  You may be surprised at what you can still get done.  I wouldn't want to play WOW or something on it, but then that's not what you're buying it for.

Weight, Battery, Form Factor, etc: Ridiculously slick and tiny, but the keys are still very usable, even for long periods of time.  Keys do feel a little cheap to begin with but they can definitely take the punshment.  Can't speak to battery life yet but from what I've heard on the forums, the 6-cell is definitely worth it.

Connectivity: Wireless worked perfectly and swiftly immediately.  This is a first for me.  It's brilliant.  USB mice work perfectly too.

Versatility: You can upgrade the memory (see above), replace the HDD with a standard 2.5" (so once SSDs come down in price you can make it shock-proof and speedy, or you can spring for that half-terabyte for all your movies on the go), replace the OS (fairly straightforward actually), and plug tons of stuff into it.  It's damn near perfect.

Screen: Ultra, ultra bright.  Brighter than any laptop I've used, actually.  Even in daylight it's fully usable.

Geeky: Updating the BIOS is easier than with any other machine I've done that on.  However, I did scout around for a "within-Windows" version of the installer.  Took five minutes and worked perfectly.  It's nice to see a company offer one-button overclocking too.

Recommendations:
--Update the BIOS when you get it.  Google for the installer I found so you just download, double-click, and reboot; no funky floppies or bootable USB sticks.
--I'm using this for work on the go, so I also bought a screen privacy shield from 3M and it works great.  You just have to cut it down for the netbook-sized screen.
--If you're replacing WinXP with Vista, spring for the extra GB of memory of course, but also pick up an ultra-fast 4 GB SDHC card and stick it in the card reader.  Tell Vista to use it for ReadyBoost and voila, you've got yourself extra performance.  SanDisk Extreme is the brand I've seen recommended.  This will pretty much max out your Wind in terms of performance tweaks from what I've researched.
1146978
This is a very capable entry level laptop, it's based on the Ivy Bridge Architecture, basically this is a Core i3 with neither Hyperthreading nor Turbo Boost.

It comes with a very nice, glossy 14 inch with the same resolution as the 15.6 inch, meaning you get more pixels per inch resulting in a very nice screen experience.

This machine has 2 slots for RAM sticks but only one is occupied, meaning that to upgrade to 8gb all you have to do is add a second stick. The RAM type is DDR3

You'll find a nice surprise, this laptop has an Optical Drive, HDMI and VGA port. Sadly there's no Bluetooth, but solvable with a dongle if you really need it.

This one is not touchscreen, but that's really gimmick for me.

On the USB department, there is only 2 of them, one is 2.0 and the other 3.0.

There is really no competition, no other laptop at this price point can match the performance. Price wise, the closest is the chromebook but this is one way better than a chromebook
744380
I purchased this computer a week before XMAS after looking at an Acer Timeline X and SONY Viao.  I own an&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/ASUS-Eee-PC-1000HE-10-1-Inch-Black-Netbook-9-5-Hour-Battery-Life/dp/B001QTXL82/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">ASUS Eee PC 1000HE 10.1-Inch Black Netbook - 9.5 Hour Battery Life</a>and have been satisfied with it so I decided to give Asus a look.  This unit comes with a graphics card which was one of my parameters, along with speed and long battery life.

I found a "like new" unit from Amazon Warehouse Deals for about $660.00  The unit arrived in it's box and packaged nicely.  Upon start-up, it clearly had been used as I saw photos and there had been some personalization of windows.  This surprised me but maybe I was naive?

I am pleased with the unit so far.  Like others, I was hoping it would have weighed less while maintaining it's sleek profile.  The screen is great!  The two track pad buttons do feel cheap as others have stated.  Wireless works well.  I have loaded and played Battlefield 2 and Just Cause so far with no issues.

I just replaced the standard hard drive with this:&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Seagate-Momentus-XT-750-GB-7200RPM-SATA-6Gb-s-32-MB-Cache-2-5-Inch-Solid-State-Hybrid-Drive-ST750LX003/dp/B00691WMJG/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Seagate Momentus XT 750 GB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 32 MB Cache 2.5 Inch Solid State Hybrid Drive ST750LX003</a>&nbsp;I have noticed additional speed.

Yes there is a lot of bloatware but given time you will be able to remove it.  The speakers do not suck but how good can speakers be in such a small space?  Think thin LCD TV's.  You can only get so much quality sound in such a thin space.

The long rubber foot which runs the entire length of the battery is falling off at one end.  This rubber strip supports the entire rear of the PC and helps prevent scratches to your work surface.  I think I will have to apply some glue.

I am very pleased with my purchase and feel I got a great bargain!
219509
I pondered long and hard before I decided to purchase this one. I researched Asus and Acer and I don't know what, before I was convinced by friends and colleagues to go with Asus. After a quick little research, I found that this one was probably the best due to battery life. So the decision was made.

It was a long agonising wait before it arrived. Of course when it arrived, I couldn't open the box quickly enough, and my cat was just as curious as I was. It came with a small cover and a cleaning cloth, which I thought was a nice touch. Fingerprints do stick to the cover, but the cleaning cloth is perfect to shine it up. The blue colour is really nice, deep blue.

It doesn't come with a lot of software, no MS office, but it does have Star Office, which is made by Sun. For most cases, it is more than adequate for home users. It can read documents written by MS office, as well as export to those formats for portability. Macros may not work though. The machine also has a few games, but other than that, no more than the standard MS packages. I got the MS version, because I needed it for my phone. However, the HD was divided into two partitions, so I have since installed Fedora 11 (Leonidas) on the second partition. This too worked out of the box, hibernation as well as wireless.

What really impressed me was the battery life. I have not managed to get it to the 9 hours promised, but I constantly get about 7 hours before I charge. That goes for both Windows and Linux.

One thing I found a bit frustrating is the resolution. There is no reason why they couldn't have made this a 1280x1050 or something like this. However, the resolution is 1024x600. It can be increased to 1024x768 with one of the soft buttons (doesn't work on F11, but it is at least 1024x600 with proper configuration. I guess I also could program the button, but haven't gotten around to it). I prefer the extended resolution, even if it means I don't get to see full screen.

Overall, I love my new netbook. It's all I need and more. It's light, small to carry around, and have long battery life. It doesn't have a cd/dvd-player, but it works excellently with an external DVD-drive. Absolutely worth the money!
484927
Got mine today; went through and did all of the necessary updates and such, and couldn't be happier! As others have noted, the disc drive button activates far too easily and often, and the speakers scratch a little at certain frequencies (something I'm sure any audiophile could fix but I cannot). Complaints about flimsy construction couldn't be more inaccurate; its sturdy despite it's ridiculous weight. The fingerprints do stick on the matte plastic, but unless you are extremely obsessed with cleanliness they aren't very bothersome. The keyboard feels nice, good click and actuation force. The trackpad at first seemed annoyingly not slick, but after about five minutes of wear it works beautifully; shortcuts and all. It has two mechanical buttons as well, a godsend in these days of trackpad-integrated buttons (eugh). The display is absolutely GORGEOUS, wide viewing angles is very accurate, both horizontally and vertically. The brightness is astounding (not sure, but I believe I was told 300 nits); I went out at full brightness and angled the glare directly at the sun and it was still visible (with only a slight squint necessary, which I can thank the matte display for). As for games; Skyrim Legendary Edition with the High Res textures ran beautifully at 49FPS in windowed mode (have yet to test full screen, but I imagine there would be a difference). The laptop ran cool with everything I threw at it except (oddly enough) minecraft, which heated it up dramatically but not to the point of discomfort. no issues with the USB's as others have suggested. Charging brick is a brick, but it's an effective brick, so it's fine (though it weighs about the same as the darn laptop). Will update if anything changes, but so far no issues at all, VERY happy with my purchase ^-^
2362782
I actually bought this laptop to use as an Ubuntu server running Postgres and Tomcat, and it works great for that purpose.  4GB is plenty for what I need.  I installed Ubuntu on a new SSHD, so incompatibility with Win8 was not an issue for me.  Bootup time is lightning quick.  The bottom panel slides off after removing one screw, and the harddrive can be replaced with almost no effort.  The screen has a nice resolution.  This is a huge upgrade from the 10" aspire one running on the Atom processor.  Overall, I'm very impressed with this computer.
3560439
<div id="video-block-R3VSA8RZY2588R" class="a-section a-spacing-small a-spacing-top-mini video-block"></div><input type="hidden" name="" value="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91r6KfF4ZYS.mp4" class="video-url"><input type="hidden" name="" value="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81w6UqZIxbS.png" class="video-slate-img-url">&nbsp;This is an update!

So I was able to receive a quick and easy replacement from Amazon.
The new laptop works just as well as the last, and now the screen issues are long gone!

Some info that might be useful is that the bottom cover of the laptop is really easy to remove (just one screw). This enables you to upgrade the storage and memory quite easily. I have already popped in an extra 500gb SSD for gaming's sake and can upgrade the memory at any time if needed.

This computer does have a backlit keyboard and you should also update all your drivers through device manager the moment you begin using this laptop.

I am now satisfied with my purchase! :) I just wish I hadn't had to go through a faulty product first.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I really do like this computer.

It is strong enough to give me consistent performance on all the games that I've been playing (Fallout 4, etc.) and it has been working splendidly for all my web browsing needs.

I have one major gripe though, and I am pretty sure it is a defect in the hardware itself. It is also a deal breaker unfortunately, and I am now looking to either replace or return this laptop. Within the screen, there is a habitual diagonal line from the top left corner to the bottom right corner that tears the monitor's image. It appears when I am moving images on the screen and it happens when I am playing games, watching movies, or even just scrolling a web page. Granted, it doesn't happen all the time, but that just makes it more confusing as to what could be causing it.

I've included a video of this phenomenon. I also used a screen recorder to record it, but it doesn't show up on the recording so I'm even more sure that it is a hardware defect.

As the entire interface is based around the monitor, I really can't stand it. How would I go about contacting the seller?
4163810
This is a Lenovo IdeaPad G780 (which is why, as previously mentioned, it's dealt separately from ThinkPads).

I bought an upgraded version of this for my wife for Christmas (our version has a i5 processor and a dedicated NVidia graphics card). However, the laptop itself is the same model.

I work in an IT department and we use Lenovo products. At work I have enjoyed most of their lineup (had some issues with the old X1 laptops and X220 tablets/laptops, but their traditional laptop models were excellent), and the price of this laptop is very competitive, so I decided to give this laptop a try.

So far it has been excellent. I've enjoyed getting used to Windows 8 (yes, it does take some getting used to, but it's essentially a "spiffy" version of 7 with a different Start Menu), and the laptop has performed very well. The build quality is excellent, it looks aesthetically-pleasing, and the screen size is wonderful (I'm a fan of 17" laptops now!).

I had to contact Lenovo about an Windows 8-related issue, and they were very professional and helpful and did a great job of helping me resolve the issue.

I would recommend this laptop to anyone needing a high-quality, low-price laptop.

Pros:
Price!
Build Quality
Aesthetics
Screen size
Lenovo support

Cons:
Having to get used to a new Operating System
2398220
What a laptop! My work involves web development and this laptop handles every aspect. I wasn't sure about Vista 64 home pro or it being a factory refurb, but am slowly realizing that it isn't that bad. With the additional memory and graphics card there hasn't been a video or program that this laptop could not handle and handle well. The factory refurbishment is top-notch, not a scratch on the screen or casing. I am also an amateur photographer and the laptop handles large (NEF) RAW photos/jpgs/gifs with ease. I have worked on Dell's, HP's, Acer's, Sony VAIO's, etc and this laptop beats them all for speed and battery life. The only extra I needed for this was a laptop bag and picked up a reasonably-priced Samsonite bag that does the job. The glossy casing is the only downside and very minor. Just wipe it with a camera lens cloth or a suitable rag and voila! Very much like your cell phone if it rests on your cheek - Just wipe it and go!
1262765
Got this from Acer Outlet for $599 last month (April 2014) and the laptop was as good as new without a mark on it.

I got used to the format instantly and love the versatility. Stuck a Crucial mSata 120GB card in and did a clean install of Windows to it leaving the 1TB drive for storage and it absolutely flies.

Some people have had problems with the Broadcom wireless card, but mine has been fine. I don't know if there are different varieties, mine is BCM943228HMB. I was going to deduct a star because of some backlight bleed, but that would be picky and I barely notice it anyway.

I can't fault the quality and wouldn't hesitate to recommend this machine.
2733990
Out of the box, I was impressed with the performance, considering the little 4gb of ram and a 5400rpm HDD. The Pentium is snappy even with the default setup, but being the tech junkie I am, I decided to buy hardware upgrades that arrived with the laptop..

I installed:
an 8gb 1.35mv stick of crucial ram (about 70 on amazon) and a crucial m500 240gb SSD.

After successfully cloning the HDD and booting from the SSD, I noticed an immediate increase in performance - a night and day difference.

I clocked cold bootups on the HDD around 32-35 seconds. After installing the SSD, cold boot time is anywhere from 4-7 seconds.
The multitasking and HD video is average with the default HDD and 4gb ram, but after upgrades and I can watch stutter-free HD video with the processor underclocked to about 1.3ghz (accessible under advanced power management).

If the processor was an i3, this laptop would easily be categorized as an ultrabook.
The Pentium is actually nearly identical to an i3, it just doesn't have Hyper-threading, which isn't even noticeable on an i3. But the i3 was not upgraded to haswell, so this little penitum is much more battery-friendly than most of the other, more powerful haswell intel's.

Overall, I have no complaints other than fantasies of a backlit keyboard, which would make this product even more premium than a MacBook air, but that's a minor spec and a luxury that just isn't a deal-breaker.

Looking for something powerful enough for school but battery-friendly enough for long stints away from the charger?
this little bad boy will do the job very well.

Good luck and enjoy it if you get it.
2081712
PROS:

+ Fairly well-equipped with the i5-460M and, coincidentally, GeForce 460M
+ For a gaming laptop, very tasteful and not-at-all ostentatious styling
+ 18.4" screen

CONS:

- If you review the specs in advance, this computer won't disappoint

I'm pretty impressed with this laptop. In terms of raw horsepower, the performance is outstanding: the combination of Intel's i5-460M and Nvidia's GeForce 460M made it so this laptop outperforms my desktop with a Core 2 Duo 2.65GHz and GeForce 8800GTS (both outdated, but still - this is a LAPTOP!).

I've been amused by some of the other reviews where the buyers were shocked about this laptop's size. The screen is 18.4 inches. Think about that for a second - 18.4 inches is over a foot and a half. Of course it's huge! And heavy, for that matter! But, when you look at the computer itself, Toshiba didn't waste any space. The LCD panel takes up almost the entire lid with just a small space for the webcam. Very efficient, Toshiba.

Given that I'm completely happy with it and it came almost entirely loaded, I'd only have a few suggestions for Toshiba:

1. Include Bluetooth. I know a lot of people don't use Bluetooth (me included, most of the time), but for a high-end laptop, it would've been nice to have built-in Bluetooth support for keyboard and mice. Especially given that the Bluetooth chip is really cheap (heck, most laptop makers only charge $20 for the feature).

2. 1080p, please. Again, the cost of the laptop is such that asking for full 1080p is tantamount to being a spoiled brat, but when you see this 18.4-inch screen, it would've been really nice to have 1080p.

Outside of that, the only thing I've noticed is that the power brick (and it IS a brick) has a tendency to make a squealing noise when the laptop's first booting up (or in anything DOS-related). Once in Windows 7, no noise at all. I had Toshiba send me a replacement (they even shipped it overnight) and the new one does the same thing. Given that it's a 180w monster, I guess that makes sense.

Overall, I've had good luck with Toshiba laptops and that really made me jump on the Lightning Deal. I picked up this laptop for $899.99 and love it. Would I buy it for $1100? Maybe. It would definitely be a contender.
4090643
This is the largest laptop I've ever bought and was a little leery, but it is surprisingly sleek and light for its size... somehow more-so than the last laptop I purchased (15.6"). The full-color customizable LEDs on the keyboard are just plain cool. It's quick and all of my games run faster on 'ultra' than they did on 'low' before (I don't have any newer games yet -- newest is Skyrim unless you count the newest version of WoW! I'm upgrading from a machine with half the RAM, previous generation i7, and Nvidia 220M). The screen is bright, colors are great, and picture is crisp and better than my external monitor. The sound is better than any laptop I've ever had. Loud and clear, and doesn't distort as you turn up the volume.

Windows 8.1 makes applications outside of gaming feel a bit sluggish, it's slow to leave sleep, and every time I reboot it 'updates features', gets to 100% and sits there for like 20 minutes. I've already updated it to most recent updates from Windows Update so it's not that. Not a fault of the laptop though I think... still looking into that!

Issues of the actual laptop: it came with a stuck-ish/dead cluster of pixels. If I lightly tap on the screen they flicker back on, but eventually they go out again. We'll see how that pans out. The battery makes me giggle -- it's teeny-tiny in both size and capacity and I don't understand why they wouldn't give a few more cells to such a powerful laptop. I also don't understand why the 1TB HD was split in two. It gets super-hot when it's really working but has a fan with a nice boost... which makes it quite loud, but keeps it cool enough. Will need to invest in a cooling mat!

All in all I'm really liking it though, and really can't beat the price I got this at!