Toshiba Portege X30-D, 3-year old tech, purchased new, talk me out of it

team teri on 28/07/2020 - 15:34
Last edited 28/07/2020 - 16:32

I quite spontaneously pulled the trigger and ordered this Toshiba Portege X30-D Ultrabook from Amazon for $1125.83. As long as I don't open it I have 30 days to change my mind for a full refund.

I realise this "D" model is 3 year old technology, from 2017. The i7-7600U is dual core, all the newer ones are quad core.

What I love about it - and didn't find with any other ultrabook I looked at (Dell XPS13, Asus Zenbook, Lenovo Thinkpad 13 / X, even Macbook Air):

  • RAM can easily be upgraded to 16/24/32GB, 2 slots, most likely comes with 1x8GB
  • 3 year warranty included as standard (4 with the extra year from my credit card)

What I like:

  • very low weight, 1.05kg
  • good reviews for screen, both colours and brightness

What is meh:

  • only 256GB SSD. It can be upgraded, but is more involved (need to remove the mainboard to get to it)
  • dual core only

Overall, I believe the extra RAM will be more useful than the extra cores for my typical use: 100s of tabs in browsers open, plus dozens of spreadsheets, text documents, PDFs. Occasional photo processing, hardly ever video processing.

So here's the chance for forum members: what better alternative did I miss? Non-negotiable requirements: weight < 1.3kg, screen >= 13'', RAM either installed or upgradable to at least 16GB, price < $1500 including 3 years warranty

The reason I didn't post it as a deal is that only 3 were available when I placed my order (now 2). If someone looks into buying this, also consider the 14'' Tecra X40-D here for $1271 (3 available as of posting this).

Edit: interesting to see that people favour the 3rd option, but no one has actually suggested an alternative yet. Maybe because I failed to mention an essential bit of information? My old laptop is in dire need of a replacement. It's either this one or something else…

Poll Options

  • 0
    you found yourself a deal, be happy and enjoy
  • 4
    meh, each to their own
  • 20
    you must be crazy, cancel/return
Computing

Comments

  • scrimshaw on 28/07/2020 - 16:39

    Vote for crazy.

    Flexibility of RAM and storage upgrades aside, you still cannot upgrade a dual core i7-7600 to a 8-core Ryzen 7 4000 CPU.

    • team teri on 28/07/2020 - 16:52
      -1

      Horses for courses. This is an ultrabook - from what my research came up with, something like this, with a current gen CPU, would set me back around $2000 and it would still not be suitable for gaming. And that is fine, since that's not what I need it for.

      The aim for me is not: get the maximum CPU performance for a given budget, no matter how heavy the brick gets. I try to get the best value ultra portable with good warranty and plenty of RAM.

  • Drakesy on 28/07/2020 - 17:27
    +2

    3 years is a long time in terms of technology advances, with the new Ryzen tech accelerating this. If you paid say $6-700 for this it would be fair, but for $1125 a brand new laptop with Ryzen would give you far more bang for buck. Honestly it was a bit steep the day you bought it, even with the warranty.

    Also consider a refurbished Lenovo Ultrabook as you'd be getting the same specs as the toshiba for 70% of the price.

    • team teri on 28/07/2020 - 17:44

      Thanks for the tip, I had not considered that before.

      I just had a quick look. Quite a few Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon on Ebay around the $700 to $800 mark with i7-6xxx and 8GB of RAM.

      Unfortunately as per Google:
      Re: Upgrading RAM and SSD on the X1 Carbon 4th generation
      It's not possible to upgrade the RAM alone. The only way to get more RAM is to buy a new motherboard with more RAM.

      Might explain why someone is trying to sell the 16GB version for $1250 here.

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