[lmst]

I recently purchased from a well-known big box electronics retailer an open box Toshiba Satellite notebook computer running Windows XP. All I got was computer w/ battery and ac adapter. Their tech department supposedly did a "restore" on it before they gave it to me. I am still within the window of time I can return it. My questions...

1) The computer came with no recovery disk - the drive has a partition with everything for a restore to factory condition and the retailer will make a recovery cd for $30. Is there any way I can make this recovery disk myself (I've been researching - are we talking making a hard drive disk image here? I don't mind paying the $30 to the retailer if that's the best way, I just want to make sure I'm not getting ripped off.) and what would it have on it?

2) Have I made a mistake purchasing an open box computer? I realized I have no product key for Windows, etc. Am I missing anything I really shouldn't be caught without? This was a display model - if I see no external damage am I OK if they did a "restore" before I got it?

Thanks...

Update: Some possible answers I've found in other threads...Toshiba won't sell a recovery disk and there is no application I can find on the laptop to create one.

[ulater6000]

What are the specs on the PC, and how much did you pay for it?

[lmst]

Bear with me, let me know if you need to know anything else....

120 GB harddrive
Intel Pentium M 750
1024 MB DDR SDRAM
DVD +/- R double layer
14" screen
wireless 2200bg
Windows xp home edition

I use a computer for freelancing work, mostly word processing. No gaming. We also use it for wireless surfing the internet.


Paid $820 plus tax and $200 service contract which will replace the battery once.

[lmst]

I should add...

I bought open box because I had picked out that particular model and they didn't have any in stock. It was on clearance so getting one from another location was a long shot. We discussed it probably won't run Windows Vista very well, but that's OK, I anticipate no desire to upgrade to Vista.

Why I'd like to have the recovery disk. On an old Compaq laptop with the same setup, we messed with the partitions when installing Win 2000 on it to run a certain program, and the "restore cd" wouldn't work when we wanted to get a clean slate - all the info was still there in the other partition - Compaq sent a "recovery cd" and it worked fine.

[Nukem]

My wife has a toshiba and I has to "re-formet" her's once... It does ask for that disk when I started the recovery, so IMO I would spend the money and get one.

[Edward]

There is a way to make yopr own recovery disk I don't know how usually the software is on the computer if not it should be possible to download it from somewhere. If that fails there was a post on these forums in the last 48 hours describing the process. You could try looking for that.

[lmst]

Thanks, all.

[Keadonen]

30$ for a recovery disk?! wow that happened to me with a computer but they sent me a free one cheap... asses.