Toshiba Satellite Notebook
Pentium 4 CPU 3.06 Ghz
480 MB Ram
Windows XP
My laptop occasionally (several times a day if I leave it on all day) “partially” freezes - it will lock up for 1-2 seconds and then unfreeze another 2-3 seconds, continually until I restart. When this happens the internet (wireless connection) also stops functioning so I always wondered if it had something to do with the wireless, but I doubt it since this only started a few months ago.
Also, if I try to play any video or run certain programs it simply shuts off. This is after I hear the fan whirring out of control for an extended period so I believe it is an overheating problem.
I got a new desktop, transferred all my files, and completely wiped the hard drive, re-installing the factory set-up. And guess what? It is still doing the same thing.
So is it just junk now or is there still some hope of salvation?
It sounds like an overheating problem to me as well. Do you have any warranty? You will probably have to send it back to a repair facility to get it fixed. The problem is probably a fan or maybe an obstruction but it may costs $$ to get it fixed. It looks pretty new however so it may be worth it. I would get them to upgrade the RAM another 512 MB while they are at it if they have to take it apart.
Amateur laptop repairs, unlike desktops, are usually not recommended if it is possible at all.
It’s not quite as new as it looks unfortunately, I got it in 2002, so I’m almost certain the warranty is expired. (my parents bought it for me actually, I’ll have to ask them)
So are you saying the “partial freezing” phenomenon is also a component of overheating?
If it’s out of warranty and you can’t afford to get it serviced there are various cooling pads with built in fans available that will pull air through the machine. I have an HP ZD7000 which is a big 17" 3 Ghz space heater of a notebook and I use one of these.
If the unit stability is on the edge due to heat the cooling pads may help, it it’s a failing component issue they are unlikely to do much good.
Absolutely. Overheating will cause all the problems you describe. It may not be hard to fix but it costs dollars and time just to have a laptop taken apart and looked at.
However, your specs on your system and the dates do not seem to match well. The ones you listed seem more like one produced in the last two years rather than 4 years ago. I could be wrong if they spent some serious money for the absolute cutting edge then but I don’t think a 3 ghz was widely available then on a laptop. Do you mean a 1.06 or a 2.06?
If you need to replace it, Best Buy and the big box stores run ads every week for pretty good laptops in the $650 - $800 range because they buy tons of them and that is honestly the best way to get the best bang for your buck on a laptop. Dell runs good specials as well.
I’m sure of the specs because I checked it through the control panel, and then I realized where the discrepancy is from - I also took the date of 2002 from there, and that might have been when Toshiba developed it or something, but when I think about when my parents got it for me it was actually in August of 2003. (when I started college). I still don’t think it had a 3-year warranty but I’ll have to find out.
In any case, I just got a nice new Dell XPS 400 Desktop, and I’m quite happy with it. I hardly ever took the laptop out of my apartment anyway, I just wanted to know if I could salvage it.
I just had a vaguely similar problem, which turned out to be caused by the wireless card. I discovered that if I pulled out the wireless card (it’s external) the computer would unfreeze. It’s worth a shot to try that and find out. I got a new card and everything is good again.
Toshiba has a warranty checker on their website - plug in the serial number, and it will report the warranty status.
If you’re still in warranty, wonderful. Find a service depot and bring it in.
If not, with some looking (and the exact model number) it should be easy to find instructions for replacing the processor heatsink/fan assembly. You don’t want to do this (yet) but you do want to know how to get at it so you can clean out the dust bunnies that have probably accumulated.
Toshiba has a known problem with dust getting in the processor heatsink and causing the problem you describe. Mine had the same issue. I had an extended warranty, and it was covered. It took an excessive amount of time for them to clean it, but my warranty came with a loaner. (One time buying the extended warranty actually paid.)
I never found a Toshiba admission of this problem, but when I googled it I got a Toshiba board that described it.
Intel hardware especially will do what you describe if overheating. It could be something as simple as accumulated dust, or (only slightly more complex) a broken or suboptimal fan.
I’d unload a bunch of canned air in all the vents first. If that doesn’t work, it probably wouldn’t take a whole lot to have it looked at. If you’re used to that kind of thing, laptops aren’t super hard to take apart. Find out which parts pop off first, know how to take ribbon cable connectors apart… a fun few hours for me last month when I cleaned a few years worth of oil rig dust and soda from this Toshiba Satellite PS280C I’m posting from, and spray-painted it purple while I had the chance.
Calling it ‘junk’ seems harsh and premature. Even if you can’t figure out what’s wrong and fix it, such a machine would fetch at least a few hundred dollars on EBay.
do you use it on a desk or on your lap? when i worked as a pc tech we had a laptop come in that worked forever on the bench but over-heated when it got back to its owner everytime. turned out the owner used it on a tour bus and sat it on her lap… her leg was covering the underside heat vent.