Where, in the city or suburbs of Sydney, Australia, can I look at and
try out the Toshiba Portege 2010 and/or R100 ultraportable laptops?  I
can see them online at a number of places but nobody seems to have
them in stock and available for me to look at, feel, try out the
touchpad, look at the screen resolution, that sort of thing.

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 14 May 2003 19:35 PDT

Neet-ga,

I know what you mean...you just have to have it in your hands and give
it a test run before you know if it's the right machine for you.

I've identified a fair number of shops that are *supposed* to have the
Portege 2010 in stock.  But I hesitate to post this as a firm answer,
since you seem to have shopped around yourself quite a bit...I don't
want to give you a list of shops you've already tried.

Let's start off with three of those I've found, and you can let me
know if you've tried these out already, or if these are promising new
leads:

----------

According to the Harris Technology site at:

http://www.ht.com.au/Scripts/xworks.exe?M

a number of their stores stock the Portege 2010:

Portege 2010 PIII 866 256MB 40GB 56K/LAN 12.1" XPPro  

We currently have stock at the following locations:
  
North Sydney Business Centre (NSW) 3  
Abbotsford Business Centre (VIC) 6  
Distribution Centre (NSW) 4  
North Ryde Business Centre (NSW) 3  
Fyshwick Business Centre (ACT) 3  
Fortitude Valley Business Centre (QLD) 2  
Officeworks Chadstone Technology Centre 1  

The Distribution Center is:

Broadway Technology Centre (within KMart)
Corner Bay and Grose St.
(02) 9219 7319

The North Sydney store is:  

Harris Technology North Sydney
Address:  275 Alfred St., NORTH SYDNEY NSW 2060 AUSTRALIA
Phone : 02 9957 1142 Fax : 02 9957 3345

and the North Ryde shop is:

Harris Technology North Ryde
Address:  45 Epping Rd, NORTH RYDE NSW 2113 AUSTRALIA
Phone : 8879 5000 Fax : 8879 5120


Harris Technology also says they have the R100 in stock, but don't
identify the specific stores that carry it...but definitely give them
a call as well.

Please let me know if you've tried Harris Tech already.  If not, I'll
post this...along with a number of other stores in the Sydney
area...that are all supposed to have the 2010 in stock.

---

Clarification of Question by neet-ga on 14 May 2003 22:18 PDT

I went in to Harris Technology on the weekend, both in North Sydney
and North Ryde. Both said they didn't have any there but could 'get
one in for me'.  If this status has changed, great, but I'd like to
get some alternatives also, so if you have some others and could
confirm that they actually do have some there onsite that I would be
able to get my hands on, that would be very helpful.  When you use
them a lot, it's like clothing - they have to be comfortable from day
1 or you just don't buy it!

Hi there,

I contacted dealers listed at Toshiba Australia's website:
http://www.isd.toshiba.com.au/cgi-bin/ai1.exe/topic/public/where_to_buy/where_to_buy_small_list.jsp#nsw

Here's what I found:


Portable Computer Systems Company
---------------------------------
Level 18/111 Pacific Highway , (AGL Building),
North Sydney NSW 2060 
Phone : 02 8925 7272 Fax : 02 9922 6760

PCSC have both models in stock. They are not a retail store, but are
open to one-off sales from their showroom. The gentleman I spoke says
you are quite welcome to come in and have a look at them, although it
is preferable if you set a time with them beforehand.


Axon Computers 
--------------
Address: Level 2, Suite 206, 25-27 Solent Circuit
Marcarthur Point Building, Norwest Business Park
Baulkham Hills NSW 2153
Phone : 1800 787 883 Fax : 1800 787 882
Web Site : www.axoncomp.com.au

Axon are out of R100s, but they have a 2010 in stock. They sell retail
and it's fine to pop in and see it. Their price of $3683 incl. GST is
cheaper than HT by $170.  It is best to check if their salesperson is
going to be there when you visit. His name is Bradley Howe, mobile
0405126569


Harris Technology
-----------------
45 Epping Rd, North Ryde
Sales (02) 8879 5095

275 Alfred St, North Sydney
Business Center (02) 8923 9400

Harris Technology say they have 3 2010's in stock at their North
Sydney store and at their North Ryde store. I asked the salesman at
North Ryde "if I came in tomorrow would I be able to have a look at
one?" and he said "yeah, not a problem".

Obviously I cannot do more than take what I am told as being accurate.
If for any reason the dealers I have listed are not suitable, just let
me know via a clarification I'll find other options for you.


Best wishes,
robertskelton-ga

Very helpful and I now have a fresh surge of energy to start again!