Difference between revisions of "Toshiba T4600C"

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== Features ==
== Features ==
*Intel Mobile 486 DX4 75MHz CPU
*Intel Mobile 486 SL DX 33MHz CPU
*8 MB EDO RAM (standard) up to 32 MB Max (24MB on Toshiba proprietary format RAM module)
*4 MB EDO RAM (standard) up to 20 MB Max (16MB on Toshiba PCMCIA RAM module)
*11.3-inch STN color LCD (640x480 resolution, 20:1 contrast ratio, 256 colours palette)
*9.5-inch TFT color LCD (640x480 resolution, 60:1 contrast ratio, 256 colours palette)
*Chips&Technology CT65220 GPU (1MB VRAM, 16-bit colour capable, but only on external monitor)
*Chips&Technology CT65220 GPU (512kB VRAM, 256 colour capable)
*No sound card
*No sound card


*520 MB HDD
*120, 200, 320 MB HDD
*3.5 inch FDD (unreliable)
*3.5 inch FDD (unreliable)


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*2xPCMCIA Slots
*2xPCMCIA Slots
*VGA Output
*VGA Output
*NimH rechargable battery
*NimH rechargeable battery
*Single PS/2, Serial, Parallel ports
*Single PS/2, Serial, Parallel ports
*Built-in 110-240V power supply
*Built-in 110-240V power supply


*Windows 3.1 and Windows 95 support
*Windows 3.1 and MS-DOS 6 support
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[[Image:Toshiba T4600C.jpg|Toshiba T4600C 12"]]
[[Image:Toshiba T4600C.jpg|Toshiba T4600C 9.5"]]
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== Best retro purpose ==
== Best retro purpose ==
Early DOS gaming and Windows 3.1 use although capable of running Windows 95 as well, with a bigger, newer IDE hard-drive (manufactured earlier than 2000, not compatible with late large and fast disk drives) or Compact Flash card with 44pin adaptor. Not suitable for racing, action games or anything demanding except with external VGA monitor. The built screen does not offer great room with just 640x480 resolution.
Early DOS gaming and Windows 3.1. Due to the very slow CPU and graphics support anything that is mildly taxing, such as Windows 95, is way too much for such a machine. The built screen does not offer great room with just 640x480 resolution, although the contrast is quite good for a machine of its time (1994).


Can run Wolfenstein 3D well, DOOM is borderline and Quake is unbearably slow. Best suited for slow-paced games (turn-based) such as Heroes 1&2.
Can run Wolfenstein 3D well, DOOM is borderline playable. Best suited for slow-paced games (turn-based) such as Heroes 1&2 if you can find or have a good mouse.


== Benchmarks ==
== Benchmarks ==
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== Review ==
== Review ==
A mostly low-end, quite slim laptop, released in 1995, with a very poor LCD screen having very low contrast even for its time. The display has only two brightness levels, standard and energy saving, and a contrast knob that has to adjusted from time to time, for darker or lighter screens. Response time is very high, with lots of ghosting, making the laptop best suited only for office use. Overall, the screen is the biggest drawback. Unfortunately, it cannot be easily replaced with a similar era TFT one due to the different video chipset connectors and control being used.
A mostly midrange, quite slim laptop, released in 1994, with a quite good LCD screen but an outdated chassis and no integrated pointing device. The display has only two brightness levels, standard and energy saving. Response time is acceptable.


It has a medium performance CPU, with a quite fast video controller for a 486. The CPU does not release too much heat so active cooling is not neccessary. The keyboard has reasonable tactile feedback but it is far from being the best, with quite a long key travel and a mushy feel. The Accupoint cursor system (mouse compatible) is reasonably accurate but the cap disintegrates and the click buttons rubbery face fails similarly, in time, becoming sticky. The laptop's plastic case is only slightly durable, far from the best.
It has a low performance CPU, with an average video controller for a 486. The CPU does not release too much heat so active cooling is not necessary. The keyboard has reasonable tactile feedback but it is far from being the best, with quite a long key travel and a mushy feel. The Ballpoint cursor system (if you have the rare side mouse attachment available) should be allright. The laptop's plastic case is quite durable but the internal design is horrendously complex, requiring lots of disassembly to acces even the harddrive.


The FDD drive was a very poor choice, since the belt driven disk rotation fails after many years, compatible belts being harder to find unreliable. The removable disk bay is very good for a laptop of its generation and the rechargeable battery can be easily removed or replaced. There were many Toshiba laptops that used the same battery and working with a removed battery does not affect stability or aesthetics. There are two more internal rechargeable NimH batteries inside the laptop that may leak and are somewhat harder to replace (not the typical, compact CR2032 3V button cell). They are used for Bios settings and memory suspension features.
The FDD drive was a very poor choice, since the belt driven disk rotation fails after many years, compatible belts being harder to find unreliable. The removable disk bay is very good for a laptop of its generation and the rechargeable battery can be easily removed or replaced. There were many Toshiba laptops that used the same battery and working with a removed battery does not affect stability or aesthetics. There are two more internal rechargeable NimH batteries inside the laptop that may leak and are somewhat harder to replace (not the typical, compact CR2032 3V button cell). They are used for Bios settings and memory suspension features.


The integrated speaker is quite good, although capable of only the standard PC beeper output. No effort was made for integrating a sound card, quite odd for a laptop released in 1995, and especially so for a Japanese laptop.
The integrated speaker is quite good, although capable of only the standard PC beeper output. No effort was made for integrating a sound card, not entirely unsurprising for a laptop released in 1994, but quite so for a Japanese laptop.


The standard HDDs supplied by Toshiba have a known tendency to have their heads stick to the parking position limiter when old, making the drive fail to start. Careful internal dissassembly is required to unstick the heads from the parking position. Use care and touch only the drive arm near the center pin to slowly unstick it. Overall, the hard-drive offers medium performance while having quite a pleasant sound in operation.
The standard HDDs supplied by Toshiba have a known tendency to have their heads stick to the parking position limiter when old, making the drive fail to start. Careful internal disassembly is required to unstick the heads from the parking position. Use care and touch only the drive arm near the center pin to slowly unstick it. Overall, the hard-drive offers medium performance while having quite a pleasant sound in operation.


Software support is great in DOS and Windows 3.1. In Windows 95 you start to feel the sluggishness of the system as the video controller has insufficient acceleration and low screen scrolling performance and the CPU is quite slow for a reasonably loaded Windows 95 system. Although the video controller is faster than some Trident models and especially so in comparison with Paradise Western Digital chipsets of its time, the CPU is by far the slowest component.
Software support is great in DOS and Windows 3.1. The video controller has insufficient acceleration and low screen scrolling performance and the CPU is quite slow meaning that even running in 640x480 is quite taxing for the machine. The CPU is by far the slowest component.


{{footnotes|
{{footnotes|
# Only the screen and video chipset configuration are different between 2130CS and CT models, all specifications and the potential performance is the same. The CS version was marketed as a low cost option of the CT model due to the cheaper screen. A 486 DX4 laptop was quite a poor choice considering that some Pentium laptops started to enter the market in 1995-1996 and most had some sound-card capability.
# Only the screen and video chipset configuration are different between C (Colour) and standard grayscale models, all specifications and the potential performance is the same. The standard grayscale display version was marketed as a low cost option of the C model due to the cheaper screen.
}}
}}


[[Category:Toshiba]]
[[Category:Toshiba]]