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Toshiba Qosmio E10 (Pentium M Processor 735 1.7GHz, 512MB RAM)

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List price as of Sep 22, 2004:
S$4699

Product Summary

Excellent

8.1

out of 10

The good: One of the brightest LCDs weve seen; QosmioPlayer plays movies/music without bootup; high level of connectivity options; superb sound reproduction.

The bad: Poor battery life; heavy weight; expensive, no TV and remote available as yet.

The bottom line: Superb features such as a wide range of port options, clear image reproduction and great sound quality embody the Qosmio. Poor battery life let the unit down, and so does the current absence of the TV tuner and remote.

Read full review of the Toshiba Qosmio E10 »

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CNET Asia Review

By Stephen Tong
Sep 22, 2004

Toshiba's long-awaited Qosmio has finally arrived. Being an AV-capable PC, there are a wide array of ports for AV in/out, some which cannot be found on standard notebooks. Sound quality is as good as, if not better than, its "predecessor", the Satellite M30 Special Edition (SE). The screen is probably the brightest ever seen in a notebook with the combination of clear and crisp images onscreen. However, this comes with a price: Battery life is mediocre. Sadly, there's no integrated TV tuner or remote for the current unit but models from early 2005 should include these functions. Yet, if this is supposed to be an AV notebook with an improvement in audio and video quality, we might have a winner in the Qosmio.

	The new Toshiba Qosmio E10

Design
Gargantuan is the word to describe the Qosmio when you see it. The unit measures 338 x 285 x 43.1mm and has a weight of 3.5kg. With the 500g adapter, the whole package tops 4kg. The silver plastic casing doesn't exude much class but when the laptop boots up, the 15-inch unit incorporating Toshiba's Clear SuperView technology will dazzle you with its 600 nit brightness which is supposedly better than an LCD TV's. The Phantom Menace was viewable from almost all angles indoors and even under direct sunlight. In addition, the QosmioEngine (named Video Engine on the M30 SE) does a good job in delivering crisp, high-definition images.

	The stylish and useful media buttons

A touchpad with a two-directional scroll is provided but there is no pointing stick here. Lined above the keys is a row of stylish aluminum media buttons. They are handy in playing DVDs and switching chapters. Out of the other buttons, the most useful one starts the QosmioPlayer (which is essentially the same as the Toshiba Express Media Player), offering instant playback of DVDs/CDs without starting up Windows. Other buttons include one for output devices where you can toggle between views on laptops and projectors, two to zoom in and out of photos, and another to adjust brightness. The Function keys are very well used for several applications such as power management and putting the notebook on standby or hibernation.

Above the keys are the Harman Kardon speakers which give the "oomph" factor. Toshiba claims these are the largest, highest wattage speakers to be included in a notebook, and so it delivers. Sound quality is definitely a standout as the Harman Kardons with SRS TruSurround XT ensure you have a great time experiencing a DVD's sound effects.

The remote control to ship with upcoming Qosmio E10 models will definitely be useful in maneuvering through DVDs or MP3 playlists. Consider waiting for it if you aren't in a hurry to get a Qosmio, as the current models are not configured for remote handling.

Features
Being the massive laptop that it is, the Qosmio comes loaded with features. Similar to the M30 SE, the E10 uses the Pentium M Processor 735 1.7GHz and is packed with 512MB RAM, a 60GB hard drive with shock absorber and a 64MB Nvidia GeForce FX Go5200 graphics card. The non-swappable optical drive supports all DVD formats such as DVD�RW and DVD-RAM, again similar to the M30 SE.

	Which notebooks have an S-video in and a composite-in?

For connectivity, there is a wide array of AV options stacked at the rear of the E10. Not many other notebooks feature ports such as an S-video in, a composite-in and a D-video out port. The composite-in and the more uncommon D-video out allow users to connect their AV hardware, such as their Xbox or camcorder, to be viewed on the 15-inch screen. All these ports including the standard S-video out and VGA-out are all geared toward maximizing the AV options.

Networking is handled by Bluetooth, 802.11b/g wireless LAN, infrared and Gigabit Ethernet. The switch to activate wireless devices is on the left edge. S/PDIF is included for more surround sound options. The handy 3-in-1 flash card reader supports Secure Digital (SD), Memory Stick (MS) and xD-Picture Card formats.

As disappointing as it is, watching TV broadcasts will not be available for now in Singapore as the current Qosmio does not include this, but if you really want to maximize the use of the E10, we recommend you wait until around January to March 2005 for the complete version of the Qosmio packaged with TV capability and a remote; although this will come at a premium.

Performance And Battery Life
Based on MobileMark 2002, a score of 214 was attained placing the Qosmio at the higher end of the performance spectrum. This was comparable with the M30 SE (203) which uses the same Processor 735. The M30 SE was included in the comparison even though it is a thin-and-light because there are many similarities in the two models.

BAPCo MobileMark2002 performance rating

Toshiba Qosmio E10

214

Toshiba Satellite M30 Special Edition (thin-and-light)

203

Click here to view full comparison

3D performance was graded based on 3DMark2001 SE and an impressive score of 6,846 was gotten. This was slightly better than the M30 SE's score of 6,751.

Futuremark's 3DMark2001 SE

Toshiba Qosmio E10

6846

Toshiba Satellite M30 Special Edition

6751

Click here to view full comparison

Battery life was horrendous, clocking a mere 111 minutes (almost 2 hours). This was one of the lowest scores seen in past months, but understandable considering that Toshiba never mentioned the laptop was made for those on the move. However, we stand by our battery life rating of "5" as you can barely watch a movie without the 500g adapter. However, the overall rating is not affected as much because the emphasis for a quality desktop replacement is not on the battery life, but the performance and features (View our link to understand our rating system).

Service And Support
The unit runs on Windows XP Home Edition and includes software such as Microsoft Office OneNote 2003, Sonic RecordNow! 7.0, ConfigFree for networking and Toshiba Console, which is a user-friendly interface to manage functions such as power management, button controls and hotkey assignment. DVD playback is handled by InterVideo WinDVD whereas InterVideo WinDVD Creator 2 is self-explanatory. The QosmioUI manages access to videos, music and photos in a well-designed user interface and is very useful. However, its presence may not be obvious to users and Toshiba should highlight it as a desktop icon if they want to promote the use of it.

Toshiba provides a one-year carry-in international warranty inclusive of parts and labor which covers the battery, too. Customers can call in toll-free to the new Toshiba Global Support Center which provides 24/7 round-the-globe services and support. The contacts are clearly stated on their Web site. Although the warranty is fairly short, it is a thorough one for its duration.