shitty laptop

Discussion in 'Silicon (v)Alley' started by pawlywog, Feb 7, 2011.

  1. hey blades.. question.

    so yesterday i had no problems, today the touch pad on my laptop seems to be gone. i sometimes use a USB mouse but i don't see how that could cause this problem

    driver is installed and up to date, it shows up in devices but i can't do anything with it from there

    suggestions? :eek:

    oh.. its a god awful toshiba piece of shit
     
  2. Two things...

    One, the touchpad could be disabled using the hotkey. Apparently it may be Fn+F9, but the key will have what would look like a "touchpad disable" icon on it. Mine's got a touchpad symbol with a "no" line through it.

    Two, the touchpad might be broken. Beat up on your computer recently? I've done that... :laughing:
     
  3. the hotkey thing was a fucking amazing idea, i didn't even realize what that symbol meant haha but it didn't work. the touch pad must be fucked...

    it was time to upgrade anyway, this thing has been pissing me off to no end recently. toshiba makes some quality products let me tell you.. the sole fan on this thing is offset in the case with like 1/3rd of the fan with no vent holes. heating issues out the ass let me tell you..

    i think i'm gonna go for a dell this time, i'm more familiar with them
     
  4. I've got a Toshiba Satellite and they do have issues with heating up, but mine is from 2005 and still works OK.
     
  5. Hmm, maybe I can still help... many modern laptops don't even have a fan vent on the bottom anymore, they utilize a design that actually takes in air from all over the case instead of through just one easily-blocked vent. I actually like that design more now that I understand how it works. Mine has no direct bottom vent but has a protrusion on the bottom of the case where it allows air to flow in from other vents in the bottom, passing the air through the case before being vented through the fan. Works pretty well... maybe if yours has space around the fan vent, it might be doing the same thing?

    Also: dust out that heat sink!! Heat is the biggest killer of computers, dust blocks airflow, blocked airflow equals heat buildup :p

    As for the touchpad... you happen to know what kind of touchpad it is? Failing that, what model Toshiba is it? Should be on a sticker on the bottom, for Toshibas they're usually "Satellite x123-x4324" (X being a letter).
     
  6. Normally I would say "get a Mac" because I love mine, but I don't want to turn this into a mac vs pc thread.

    If you end up getting a new comp, I would look into Asus. I have been hearing amazing things about them. So much so that I've been considering one as my next comp, forsaking my beloved Apple.
     

  7. Asus here! :wave: N61Jv-X2 model. Damn fine machine once you get over its quirks... not entirely the best design, but it's got two killer features - USB 3.0 and nVidia Optimus - that this was the only notebook with those features at the time. Gigabit Ethernet, Core i5, and b/g/n wireless were just bonuses (most laptops have those now). But now that Optimus and USB 3.0 are inching out more into the mainstream, it's easier to find in more refined notebooks... the touchpad on this thing (an "elantech"?!!) is pretty terribad, Asus made a terrible design decision with the stupid ultra-bright "indicator eyes" on the sides of the unit, and it's missing a few features... but it's still a pretty damn good decision IMO. I'd say look over nVidia's Optimus technology page for a list of computers to choose from as a starting point (if you even have any intention of using the PC for gaming, that is)... then look through those for the features you like ;)
     
  8. Synaptics PS/2 Port TouchPad

    sat L505D - S5965

    and no, it has one lone vent on the bottom of the it that is horrifically off set, its actually pretty embarrassing that they let these ship like this, my friend got the same computer and hers has the same fucking problem.

    i'd love to get a mac but i simply cannot afford it for what i want to be able to do with it. i don't have 2g's to drop on a mac haha

    edit - gaming WILL be done on my new laptop.
     
  9. Hmm, Synaptics is usually pretty f'ing solid of a touchpad vendor... definitely my touchpad of choice; if Asus used a Synaptics touchpad instead of this "elan" shit, I'd be much better off.

    For your touchpad, I'd say start here: Model Content Page . Grab that BIOS update first if you've never updated your BIOS before, those are uber important to keep on top of - most of them solve thermal issues that were screwed up when they shipped it. Then pick an OS and pick Touchpad category, DL the touchpad driver and try reinstalling it, just in case something messed up your drivers (even if it says it's installed, it might have corrupt filters causing chaos). If that fails, well... *shrug* :/
     
  10. updated the bios, i'm embarrassed to say how far behind i was... fixed the problem :p

    if it helps with at all with thermal problems, you may be my new best friend.

    my fan sounds like a fucking jet engine and it still overheats
     

  11. Awesome!! :hello:

    And the fan sounding like a jet engine is a BAAAAD THING... rule of thumb: more sound a laptop makes, the more pain it's in. Think of it as yelling "CLEEEAAAN MEEE!!!"... have you blown the heat sink out lately? If you don't have a can of duster, close your eyes and give a strong and concentrated PFFFF into the heatsink outlet on the side... should get a nice big cloud of dust out of it. Keep puffing until no more dust comes out and it should be much happier! :)
     
  12. You think you're having problems with your Toshiba? It'll be 10x worse with a DELL. Every DELL I've owned was a overheating piece of shit with a motherboard that fails every year. Stay away if you know what's good for ya.
     
  13. Dell has like the 3rd highest failure rate of all computer manufacturers. I would say invest in an Asus like previously stated. They make some of the best computers ive ever used.
     
  14. i think i'll look into asus then. haven't really heard of them, to be honest i thought of accer when someone said it haha i'll do some research into them. maybe find one with a better touch pad, four says some can be shit.
     

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