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I work at a computer shop and got one of these to chuck due to the damaged power jack. After destroying the drive and beginning to tear the machine down for recyling, I figured I'd attempt a repair and perhaps see what it's capable of. So I repaired the jack, threw in 4GB RAM, and reloaded Windows on a new hard drive. At first, it seemed pretty decent. I didn't have very high expectations but having a Atom N270 based netbook I use frequently, I had some expectations for the single core processor. Oh was I wrong...Generally speaking, it wasn't too bad. I'm sure the 4GB of RAM, no paging file, and a clean install of Windows really helped out. However, this system gets bogged down entirely too easily. The latest drivers all around, latest flash, etc... flash video playback was practically nonexistent. Local HD video playback was equally poor. And even simple multitasking would cause the system to shutter and freeze momentarily until it had time to catch up.
Now, I know this isn't meant to be a powerhouse. It's basically a netbook in a 15.6" case. However, let me bring my previous netbook back. I have a Dell Mini 9 running Windows 7, 2GB RAM, and a generic 16GB SSD. While this lil system will get bogged down frequently, it seems to play back most flash-based videos tremendously more smoothly than the much newer E-240/HD 6310. This completely baffles me and honestly sickens me that even the latest low-end processors from AMD are essentially the same performance as Intels Atom's from a couple generations back.
OK, well I got a bit off topic there regarding the CPU. A bit more with regards to the laptop itself. All in all, the case and materials aren't too bad. Plastics do have a cheaper feel to them, but I find many current Toshiba's share the same plastics... Over-all build quality isn't bad though. Everything seems to fit together nicely. Being such a simple laptop, there's not a whole lot to creek or be wrong.
Audio and video are fine. The screen is your standard 15.6" as most any laptop shares now of days (it's already been removed and placed in a Dell N5030 :P) Speakers are fine too. Not your high-end harman kardon you find on some previous models, but decent sounding for what they are. However, there is NO WEBCAM... Here I thought all laptops had webcams today! HAH!
Battery life is quite good. Being a netbook underneath, expect similar battery life. I've gotten 4 hours quite easily out of this laptop under basic usage (casual surfing, occasional video, lots of chatting online). Also remember this laptop was used before I got my hands on it!
And finally, heat. I find this quite disappointing. The fan runs constantly. While the laptop itself doesn't heat up too much (to the touch) the CPU runs way too hot in my books. Everything I see points it runs at about 55*C to 75*C depending on what's being done. Max temp for the chip is 90*C. I confirmed the fan was fine, no obstructions/dust, even repasted the heatsink (which helped a little)... But still, much hotter than I should be running and I suspect it'll be the death of these.
So in short, stay away from this laptop. Spend a little more and at least get the duel core model. Or heck, as much as I discourage used computers, a nice used laptop would be substantially better for the price!
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