Toshiba PORTEGE M200 Tablet PC (1.5 GHz Pentium M, 512MB, 40GB Hard Drive)

by Toshiba

Product Details

Product Manual [1.12mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 15.5 x 13.8 x 6.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00016KZGW
• Item model number: PPM20U-004JD4
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #893 in Computers & Accessories (See Top 100 in Computers & Accessories)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: December 11, 2003

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Marginally larger than the Portege 3500 Tablet PC it replaces, Toshiba's Portege M200 Tablet PC is also more adaptable, more battery efficient and substantially more powerful. Blending the speed of a standard-size midrange notebook with the convenience of pen-based input and subcompact portability, the Portege M200 is a great fit for those who are handier with a pen than a keyboard and value a truly petite profile.

The unit is most at home when used to enter, store and share notes and concepts that might otherwise be entered in handwritten format. In fact, measuring just 11.6 by 9.8 by 1.3/1.5 (depending on configuration) and tipping the scales at a scant 4.5 pounds, the Portege M200 is just slightly more bulky than a conventional paper-based notepad. Users input data in one of two ways -- either by sketching directly on the swiveling, double-duty 12.1-inch poly-silicon SXGA+ TFT color LCD display screen (maximum resolution 1400x1050) or via the system's 84-key keyboard.

Though the Portege M200 is not as powerful as a comparably priced but substantially larger desktop replacement notebook, it is one of the fastest tablets currently on the market. Sporting an Intel "Centrino"-based processor (1 MB Level 2 cache) running at 1.5 GHz, a whopping 512 MB RAM memory and an nVidia GeForce FX Go5200 32M graphics processor with 32 MB of dedicated DDR video memory, the unit will easily handle most day-to-day mobile computing tasks and the vast majority of today's most popular 3-D apps too.

The Portege M200 features today's most desirable connectivity options, including an integrated 56K modem for low-speed e-communications, a 10 Base-T//100 Base-TX Ethernet connection for fast LAN and Internet access, and Wi-Fi compliant wireless LAN technology for those times when you can't plug in. The system also sports a surprisingly large 40 GB hard disk and facilities for an external CD and/or DVD drive, a pair of ultra-fast USB 2.0 ports for plug and play peripherals, an integrated TouchPad, 13 function keys, a speaker and microphone and full 16-bit stereo sound. Battery life is estimated at a whopping 4.34 hours.

Product Description

[ Home > Laptops > Toshiba Portege M200 Tablet PC Intel P4M Centrino 1.5GHz 12in 512MB/40GB/802.11G ] Please note that these are RECERTIFIED Toshiba computers. Each laptop has undergone a thorough and stringent technical recertification process to ensure its quality. Manufacturer: Toshiba Condition: Recertified Manufacturer Warranty: 90 days 11.6 by 9.8 by 1.3/1.5 (depending on configuration) and tipping the scales at a scant 4.5 pounds, the Portege M200 is just slightly more bulky than a conventional paper-based notepad. Users input data in one of two ways -- either by sketching directly on the swiveling, double-duty 12.1-inch poly-silicon SXGA+ TFT color LCD display screen (maximum resolution 1400x1050) or via the system's 84-key keyboard Hardware Platform: PC Processor: 1.5 GHz Intel Pentium M System Bus Speed: 400 MHz Number of Processors: 1 RAM: 512 MB RAM Type: DDR SDRAM L2 Cache: 1 MB Memory Slots: 2 Windows XP Tablet PC Edition Hard Drive Size: 40 GB Graphics RAM: 32 MB Display: Poly-silicon TFT Color LCD LCD Native Resolution: 1400-by-1050 Network Connection: 10-Mbps/100-Mbps Ethernet and (Wi-Fi) Wireless Ethernet Firewire: IEEE1394 400mbps also includes Modem: 56 Kbps Size (LWH): 15.5 inches, 13.75 inches, 6.25 inches Weight: 8.5 pounds Battery is not included in warranty as they are dependable from Recertification & include a 30 day date from sale warranty.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good solid laptop - tablet hybrid, October 7, 2004

By 

J. Yoon (Ashburn, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Toshiba PORTEGE M200 Tablet PC (1.5 GHz Pentium M, 512MB, 40GB Hard Drive) (Personal Computers)

I got my M200 several months ago and am very satisfied with it.
However, I use it less than I had anticipated, so I only gave it 4 stars.

Common Tablet Features - neat, but not much used.
I enjoy taking notes in different colored pens, with the ability to erase notes written in "pen" and to add space between lines already written. I use the Journal and the pen for to-do items or short lists. For longer documents, I prefer to type. While suring the web, I find it inconvenient to have to open the input panel to write the web address, and then to look for and peck the "enter" or "go" button. I have used a pocket-pc for a number of years and often attempt to use the same input shortcuts on the laptop which do not work. I get confused between the pen input shortcuts on the tablet and the pocket-pc. I really love many of the "power toys" games that were offered free by Microsoft. I use my pen to play these games. So far, I do not use OneNote much. It forces me to use a different methophore to organize my files (from many folders to a single, very large, binder). This is really inconvenient for me because I have a lot of folders and subfolders already organized. I have reorganized one small project into a binder, but I don't think I will be transfering over more files into the OneNote format. I most often use the pen as a pointing device with full access to the keyboard in the "laptop" mode. I find the pen easier when I am moving a lot of files around (especially in FrontPage).

I have a fully configured desktop 2 Ghz machine at home with 17" LCD monitor and real keyboard. The M200 is great, but does not match user-interface with a full desktop. I do use it more at the office.

Machine specific review:
The screen has a bad glare in "tablet" mode when I am at my office where ceiling lights are directly over my desk. Glare is not an issue at home where a table lamp sits next to the laptop. All the colors seem to be washed out when I get a bad glare. The screen is wonderful with a very high resolution when there is no glare. The pen feels silky smooth when it glides on the screen. Keyboard is excellent! Love the cushy bubble-like feel. Audio recording is amazing. It has noise-cancelling through 3 tiny microphones build into the screen bezel. Music sounds very good through plug-in headphones. Built-in speaker (mono) is loud and good enough for hearing recorded conversations. It has a very extensive set of ports including an SD card slot. It is very fast, even with modest memory (I have the Dolthan version). Ethernet connection is fast (have not tries wireless yet). Battery seems to last about 4 hours of continuous light use. Overall, it feels solidly and well built. The hard disk made annoying, continuous, clicking sounds when I first got it. But after I turned some processes off and twicked power save options (and windows has optimized itself) I don't hear the clickings as often. I thought not having a CD/DVD drive might be a pain, but I found it to be easy to set up another desktop with a CD/DVD drive to share it on the network. I thought the 4.5 lbs weight might be too heavy but I find it to be not too bad. I am glad I bought a hybrid instead of a slate model, since I am not using the pen very much. Setting aside the tablet features, the M200 is a very well made high performance laptop with an amazing screen (in the right viewing angle). But if I were to exclude the tablet features, I could have gotten a 2.4 lb laptop (Toshiba R100) or a 3 lb laptop with a built-in CD/DVD drive (Panasonic W2). So, I gave it only 4 stars, but I still think I made the right choice. I may learn to use more of the tablet features in the future as I grow more proficient at it, and I use it occassionally now.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The tablet to get, if you're getting a tablet., April 29, 2004

By 

Christopher Wanko "-C" (Nutley, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Toshiba PORTEGE M200 Tablet PC (1.5 GHz Pentium M, 512MB, 40GB Hard Drive) (Personal Computers)

Pros: fast CPU, very configurable build options, convertible style means you can go "laptop" if you need to get serious data entry accomplished, built-in Ethernet and WiFi, SD card slot.

Cons: price is real hefty, lacks some high-end options like fast-big HDD, no Firewire.

This tablet is really the only true competitor to Fujitsu's long-time reign as tablet leader. It has a rich feature set, brilliant LCD display, and the processor power to exceed Fujitsu's latest offerings. Of course, the true utility in a tablet is the software, and Windows XP Tablet PC edition more than handles the job of capturing pen taps, clicks, and sketches (handwriting, lettering, or drawings).

As a portable PC, however, it is an extremely pricey solution. The largest hard drive is 80Gb -- for a laptop that is about the max -- but the rotational speed is 5400 RPM. No doubt this saves power and generates less heat, but the speed hit is significant.
Also significant is the cost of RAM upgrades for the unit. Two sticks of 1Gb RAM will set you back another $1700 over the sticker.

Getting past the price premiums, though, it's easy to see that the M200 can be a replacement PC with a decent docking station. You'll miss the Firewire connectivity, but the USB 2.0 ports are available and it does comes with an SD card reader in the unit itself. Nice.

With the WiFi radio, built-in Ethernet, and built-in modem, there's really no reason why you can't connect on the road. You can opt for the 802.11b or 802.11g radio, but opt for the 11g and get the 54Mps instead.

I was a big fan of the Portege 3505 series from Toshiba, and this tablet marks a nice upgrade from that series. Adding WiFi, SD card reader, faster processor, and more RAM options makes this the tablet if you need one... and have the bucks for it.

Fred

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A breakthrough technology, sign of things to come., July 4, 2004

By 

"amazon16611" (Vancouver) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Toshiba PORTEGE M200 Tablet PC (1.5 GHz Pentium M, 512MB, 40GB Hard Drive) (Personal Computers)

This thing is amazing. Since I got it a month ago I no longer touch either of my desktops and I nearly stopped using paper (I mean, to write on!). Superb 1400x1050 resolution exceeds anything you find useable on a desktop monitor. The tablet mode is great, too, with high resolution, intuitive interface and a comfortable pen. I write equations a lot, which is basically impossible with just a keyboard and a mouse, so the tablet mode is very handy. Handwriting recognition is very good, not that it matters, since most people type faster than they write, anyway. Speach recognition is also built in, but I never bothered to train it properly, and it's useless without training. Microphone and (monoaural)speaker are good enough for Skype and MSN Messenger, but not for watching DVD movies. Which is a moot point since there is no built-in optical drive of any kind. Had to buy an external USB 2.0 DVD-RW. No Firewire port, either. Can't have everything. Not yet anyway. Battery life is good, about 4 hours in the long-life mode, enough for most domestic flights, if you hate the inflight movies. The wow factor is fun, too, no question, especially when I take handwritten notes on it.

I wish this tablet was thinner, as it's hard to write on a surface a full inch above the table level, so I either prop its far side with something, or simply keep it on my laps. It gets a bit hot at full power, but quite nice in the long-life mode. Built-in wireless networking is 802.11b, not .g, which is good enough for now.

As this technology matures (thinner, slide-out keyboard, more tablet-friendly apps etc.) it will likely displace both regular laptops and pure tablets, since the price difference is not that high.