Posts about Toshiba

Toshiba Thrive Tablet Cracks While Being Held: Sorry, That's Your Fault
Alex writes that his five-month-old Toshiba Thrive tablet cracked, sort of under its own weight. Is that possible? Maybe. Stranger things have happened to electronics. But everyone he's talked to at Toshiba doesn't think so, and they're acting like it was accidental damage. More »

Yes, Televisions Are Pretty Much Disposable Now
It seems like an ancient, lost world now, but there was once a time when people bought electronics or appliances, and when they broke down, they hired someone to repair the item and kept using it. This may not sound weird and obsolete to you or to me or to reader Donna. Toshiba, on the other hand, certainly thinks that it's not worthwhile to repair the television that she paid $1,800 for in 2007. She doesn't want anything for free, and is willing to pay for parts and repair. Only the needed part isn't available from Toshiba, or from anyone. More »

Toshiba Considers Using Your Laptop Mouse 'Abuse'
Even though his Toshiba laptop is less than a year old, Toshiba won't repair the touchpad of Justin's computer. He doesn't think that he's done anything out of the ordinary with the machine, but Toshiba insists that the button won't work because of "accident, misuse, abuse, neglect, improper installation, or improper maintenance." They're happy to sell him an extended warranty that will cover the repair, though. More »

Glasses-Free 3D Fails To Wow At CES 2011
If glasses-free 3D is truly the future of TV, you wouldn't know by the handful of companies that are showing off the technology at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. More »

Best Buy: 'Sorry, We Sold You A Laptop, Not An Operating System'
Sharon's husband had Best Buy repair a laptop, and when he got it back the Windows 7 operating system was missing. They complained to Best Buy, which refused to reinstall the system, saying it had held up its end of the bargain because it had originally sold them a laptop, not Windows 7. More »

Toshiba's Netbook Repair Runaround Is Demoralizing
One might think that the warranty repair of a netbook that failed after less than three weeks of use would be simple and painless. One would be wrong. Robert asks in his e-mail to Consumerist about Toshiba, "are all computer companies this crappy?" Yes, some of them, but it's a sad day in America when customers buy a laptop and can expect to encounter the same hardware failures and general runaround that Robert writes that he experienced. More »

Pair Arrested For Trying To Sell Blocks Of Wood, Paper Binders As Toshiba Laptops
If you were at the fair this week in Jackson, Mississippi and saw a bunch of Toshiba laptops that you thought looked awfully like blocks of wood and paper binders, well, you were right. Two men were arrested after trying to sell the blocks of wood—which were covered in bubble wrap and secured with duct tape and Toshiba labels—to an off-duty state trooper. More »

PC Repair Shop Owner: Toshiba Won't Let Us Fix Most Of Its Computers
Erik says Toshiba owners looking to get their warranty repairs done quickly by authorized providers are largely out of luck because the company refuses to let authorized providers fix most Toshibas, demanding instead that they be sent back to the company. More »

Reach Toshiba Executive Customer Service
Your laptop is a craptop, the hold music won't stop and the call center won't talk, so you're looking for a guy at the Toshiba top to get you back on top. Guy Lugo is that guy: More »

Toshiba Is Holding My Computer Hostage For $140
Getting something fixed under warranty is rarely a pleasant task. It often takes longer than expected and occasionally lapses into bouts of back-and-forth finger-pointing between the manufacturer and the owner of the faulty product. Just ask Consumerist reader Art, who says that Toshiba has not only had his busted laptop for three months, but they've reneged on their promise to replace it and now want $140 for his troubles. More »

CircuitCity.com Now Allows Returns From HP, IBM and Toshiba

—>CircuitCity.com, newly reincarnated as a Systemax subsidiary, has changed the return policy language that forbid returns from HP, IBM and Toshiba, ZDnet reports. Hooray.  More »

Batteries From Dell, Toshiba, and HP Laptops Recalled

—>35,000 laptop batteries from laptops sold from 2004-2006 have been recalled for fire and burn hazards. There have been 17 fires and 2 burns associated with these batteries, so if you've got one, make sure you take care of this issue.  More »

Morning Deals

• 6PM.com: DC Brand Shoes $20 + S/H, all sizes/styles, 856 to choose from
• Nicorette: free pack of Nicorette White Ice Mint (warning, site is slow)
• Circuit City: Panasonic SH-FX85 Wireless Multi-Room Speaker Kit for $44.96, requires in-store pickup

Highlights From Buxr

• Hewlett Packard: $400 Off $999 or more for Desktop Purchase w/ coupon code: DT1158 (Good for 2250 uses)
• NewEgg: Targus Notebook Wireless Optical Mouse for $8.99 w/ Free shipping after $20 off coupon code: EMCAKAKAK
• Buy.com: Av Lab Solar Backpack Charger for $29.99 w/ Free shipping after rebate

Highlights From Dealhack

• Best Buy: Toshiba Satellite Dual Core Notebook PC $500
• Geeks.com: Canon Pixma iP6210D Color Inkjet Photo Printer $35 with Coupon
• Musicnotes.com: 20% or 30% off Guitar Guru Interactive Lessons with Coupons

  More »

Round 24: Toshiba vs Microsoft

—>This is Round 24 in our Worst Company in America contest, Toshiba vs Microsoft. Vote which sucks more, inside...  More »

Amazon Offers $50 To HD DVD Refugees
Dear Amazon.com Customer,  More »

Best Buy Provides Excellent Customer Service!

—>You don't become the number one retailer of electronics to American consumers without getting a few things right awesome, as Daniel shows us in this letter of compliment he sent The Conglomerist about a recent experience at Best Buy:

I stopped in the other night because my old HD DVD player died so I went in hoping to get a deal. On the shelf I found 2 open box Toshiba HD-A30 HD DVD players. Looking around I found the department head Derrik and we went back over to the DVD player aisle.  More »

Best Buy Offers $50 Gift Cards To Those Who Purchased HD-DVD Players

—>Best Buy is offering $50 gift cards to people who bought HD-DVD players before Feb 23. say CNN.

The retailer said it will identify customers through its Reward Zone program, performance service plans and through online purchases and will mail out the gift cards to those individuals by May 1.   More »

Circuit City Extends Return Window For Suddenly Obsolete HD DVD Players
Circuit City, which has a usual 30-day return policy, is allowing customers who purchased HD DVD players to return them for store credit. The policy doesn't apply to HD DVD movie discs.  More »

The rumors were true. HDDVD... requiescat in pace. [CNNMoney]  More »

The Format War Is Over, HD-DVD Surrenders!

—>A Toshiba insider claims that the company will abandon its HD-DVD format, yielding the next-generation DVD format war to Sony's competing Blu-ray technology. So now that the war is over you should run out and buy a new Blu-ray player, right? Not so fast.  More »

Walmart: Thanks For Buying All Those HD DVD Players, We're Switching To Blu-Ray

"We've listened to our customers, who are showing a clear preference toward Blu-ray products and movies with their purchases," Gary Severson, head of home entertainment for Wal-Mart's U.S. stores, said in a statement.  More »

Best Buy is going to recommend blu-ray players to its customers. [NYT]  More »

Netflix Goes Blu-Ray Exclusive

—>Another nail in the coffin of the format war: top DVD rental service Netflix has announced that they will be going Blu-Ray exclusive.   More »

HD DVD Loyalists Start Petition To Save Their Format Of Choice

You had an article shortly after the WB exclusivity announcement on the 4th of this month, right? Well, I think this could make for a great follow-up that gives your readers the opportunity to voice their opinion, and hopefully sway the minds of the studio executives who've acted prematurely and stuffed words in the mouths of consumers everywhere.   More »

Warner Bros. Goes Blu-Ray Exclusive

—>Warner Bros. rolled up its sleeves in the format war today and announced that it was discontinuing support for HD-DVD after May 2008.   More »

Lawsuits Of The Week

—>Sutton vs McDonald's Corporation (PDF) Frank Sutton orders a Mickey D's Chicken Sandwich on August 8th, 2005. Bites into the sandwich and hot lava grease exploded on his lips. When approached about the matter, the McDonald's worker says something to the effect of, "This is what happens to the sandwiches when they aren't drained completely." Sutton wants $2 mil for his damaged puckers. While that might seem steep, McDonald's should make be making sure their employees are properly draining the chicken sandwiches.  More »

Are You Still Stuck In Vista Upgrade Hell?

—>If you bought a laptop at the end of last year, you probably qualified for a free Vista upgrade. We did and although it took 6 weeks to get the disc in the mail from our laptop manufacturer, we didn't run into too many hassles. No so for a lot of people, according to PC World:

"I was told it would be an easy process," says William Bond, of Tampa, Florida. But, he says, the process has been anything but simple. Bond purchased a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion desktop in November at Circuit City and is still waiting for his Vista upgrade disc from ModusLink, the company handling the program for HP.  More »

Meghann Will Ship Her Broken DVD Player Back

—>The people have spoken. Meghann will ship her broken DVD player, not make a video of her smashing it. Spoilsports.  More »

What Should Meghann Do With Her Brokeass Woot DVD Player?

After Meghann pitched her woe about getting a Woot!ed DVD player that wouldn't turn on, we tried to convince her to do ship it back to Toshiba.   More »

Woot: Thanks for the Broken DVD Player

—>We've been a member of Woot since Feb '05, but until the other day, we never saw anything we needed. Then our DVD player broke, and Woot had one, and it was like 40 bucks, and so we finally tried Woot!  More »

Format War Hurts Sales
"The fight between Blu-ray and HD-DVD, reminiscent of the 1980s battle between Betamax and VHS tape formats [is] shaping up as a business disaster for movie studios, electronics companies and retailers that had counted on a robust holiday selling season for the fancy new players - which cost $500 to $1,000 - and movies to play in them.  More »