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Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138 Subnotebook Review

Lightweight. This is premium range business for well-heeled customers: The entire who-is-who of laptop technology is on-board for 2000 Euros (~$2252). Unfortunately, there is also some conservative equipment. A modern USB Type-C? - Not in sight. On the other hand, plenty of security and productivity features like a docking port, LTE modem and TPM are present.
Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138: Toshiba again relies on IPS and Full HD
Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138: Toshiba again relies on IPS and Full HD

For the original German review, see here.

The Portégé Z30-C succeeds the Z30-B model that was still furnished with a Broadwell processor. We did not have the B version in review, but we tested Toshiba's Satellite Z30-B-100 that is based on a very similar chassis. Toshiba has started using the same barebone with minor modifications for both the high-end consumer and the high-end business members this year. We will take a quick look at the Portégé Z30-C in this short test since it is largely known from the almost identically built Satellite Z30-B, apart from the technical Skylake upgrade.

Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138 (Portege Z30 Series)
Processor
Intel Core i7-6500U 2 x 2.5 - 3.1 GHz (Intel Core i7)
Graphics adapter
Intel HD Graphics 520, Core: 1000 MHz, Memory: 800 MHz
Memory
16 GB 
, DDR3L 2x 8GB
Display
13.30 inch 16:9, 1920 x 1080 pixel 166 PPI, TOS508F, IPS, glossy: no
Mainboard
Intel Broadwell-U PCH-LP (Premium)
Storage
Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY, 512 GB 
, 375 GB free
Soundcard
Intel Skylake-U/Y PCH - High Definition Audio
Connections
3 USB 3.0 / 3.1 Gen1, 1 VGA, 1 HDMI, 1 Kensington Lock, 1 Docking Station Port, Audio Connections: 3.5 mm combo, Card Reader: SD,SDHC,SDXC,MMC, 1 SmartCard, port for Toshiba Hi-Speed Port Replicator III
Networking
Intel Ethernet Connection I219-V (10/100/1000MBit/s), Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8260 (a/b/g/n = Wi-Fi 4/ac = Wi-Fi 5/), Bluetooth 4.0 + LE, LTE
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 17.9 x 316 x 227 ( = 0.7 x 12.44 x 8.94 in)
Battery
52 Wh Lithium-Ion, Battery runtime (according to manufacturer): 11 h
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64 Bit
Camera
Webcam: 2.0 MP FHD webcam
Additional features
Speakers: stereo speakers with DTS Studio Sound, Keyboard: 87 keys, Keyboard Light: yes, McAfee Life Safe (30 day trial), Office 365 (1 month trial), Cyberlink Power Director/Power2Go, Evernote, Spotify, Toshiba Tools, 24 Months Warranty
Weight
1.218 kg ( = 42.96 oz / 2.69 pounds), Power Supply: 312 g ( = 11.01 oz / 0.69 pounds)
Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

 

Case & Connectivity

The matte casing is not really a guarantee for highest stiffness; the look and feel resembles plastic (thin, hollow sounding surfaces, pliable display), although it is a magnesium alloy. The low weight of 1218 grams is impressive. The rivals are much heavier.

Everything typical for business is installed, including an LTE modem and fingerprint scanner. Even the old VGA dSub still exists here. The port for Toshiba's Hi-Speed Port Replicator III is on the underside. Maintenance is possible; the underside can be removed.

Left: AC, VGA, HDMI, USB 3.0, audio-out-/line-in combo, SmartCard
Left: AC, VGA, HDMI, USB 3.0, audio-out-/line-in combo, SmartCard
Right: SD reader, 2x USB 3.0, RJ45, Kensington
Right: SD reader, 2x USB 3.0, RJ45, Kensington
Front: No interfaces, speakers
Front: No interfaces, speakers
Rear: No interfaces
Rear: No interfaces
338 mm / 13.3 inch 237 mm / 9.33 inch 18.9 mm / 0.744 inch 1.6 kg3.48 lbs334.9 mm / 13.2 inch 232 mm / 9.13 inch 19.4 mm / 0.764 inch 1.7 kg3.83 lbs337 mm / 13.3 inch 234.5 mm / 9.23 inch 15.8 mm / 0.622 inch 1.4 kg3.19 lbs329 mm / 13 inch 235 mm / 9.25 inch 21 mm / 0.827 inch 1.5 kg3.31 lbs331 mm / 13 inch 227 mm / 8.94 inch 18.8 mm / 0.74 inch 1.4 kg3.02 lbs331 mm / 13 inch 227 mm / 8.94 inch 18.8 mm / 0.74 inch 1.3 kg2.97 lbs316 mm / 12.4 inch 227 mm / 8.94 inch 17.9 mm / 0.705 inch 1.2 kg2.69 lbs297 mm / 11.7 inch 210 mm / 8.27 inch 1 mm / 0.03937 inch 5.7 g0.01257 lbs

Input Devices

Input devices - unfortunately, pointer keys provide weak feedback
Input devices - unfortunately, pointer keys provide weak feedback

The keys offer a clear drop and a soft stroke. However, the key surface does not yield but every single letter rebounds a bit in its place. The pressure point could be a bit more defined. The tester finds the feedback for a 2000-Euro (~$2252) device overall too spongy. The input device is not at all bad particularly since it features a TrackPoint and ClickPad. Unfortunately, the latter has a short drop and no dedicated mouse keys. The functionality of the two keys above it belongs to the mini-joystick. However, they also have an unsatisfactorily short key drop although they are easy to use thanks to their smooth-running pressure point. The ThinkPad T460s and Latitude E7470 do a better job in total here.

Display

The Full HD IPS screen is relatively bright and, of course, matte. Fortunately, Toshiba does not install a brightness sensor. Both contrast and DeltaE are in the upper midfield, but the grayscale level reproduction is fairly poor.

Subpixel FHD-TFT
Subpixel FHD-TFT
AdobeRGB 63%
AdobeRGB 63%
sRGB 98%
sRGB 98%
272
cd/m²
291
cd/m²
282
cd/m²
271
cd/m²
300
cd/m²
277
cd/m²
271
cd/m²
293
cd/m²
262
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
TOS508F tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 300 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 279.9 cd/m² Minimum: 14 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 87 %
Center on Battery: 300 cd/m²
Contrast: 968:1 (Black: 0.31 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 4.9 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 6.69 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
98% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
63% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
69.8% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
98% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
67.9% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.33
Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
FHD 1920x1080 IPS
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
FHD 1920x1080 TN
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
WQHD 2560x1440 IPS Touch
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20F9003SGE
FHD 1920x1080 IPS
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
WQHD 2560x1440 IPS
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
WQHD 2560x1440 IPS
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
FHD 1920x1080 IPS
Display
-27%
-1%
-38%
1%
-0%
-5%
Display P3 Coverage
67.9
48.93
-28%
67.2
-1%
41.65
-39%
68.7
1%
67.9
0%
66.7
-2%
sRGB Coverage
98
73.7
-25%
95.9
-2%
61.6
-37%
98.1
0%
96.8
-1%
90.8
-7%
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage
69.8
50.5
-28%
69.3
-1%
43.14
-38%
70.4
1%
70
0%
66.5
-5%
Response Times
1%
-5%
-2%
4%
-2%
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% *
42 ?(18, 24)
43 ?(20, 23)
-2%
48 ?(15, 33)
-14%
42 ?(19.6, 22.4)
-0%
35.6 ?(17.2, 18.4)
15%
46.4 ?(16.4, 30)
-10%
Response Time Black / White *
28 ?(7, 21)
25 ?(9, 16)
11%
27 ?(7, 20)
4%
29.2 ?(16, 13.2)
-4%
29.2 ?(14.4, 14.8)
-4%
26.4 ?(6.8, 19.6)
6%
PWM Frequency
217 ?(40)
204 ?(90)
-6%
220 ?(90)
1%
Screen
-38%
21%
-20%
1%
6%
0%
Brightness middle
300
366
22%
380
27%
226
-25%
257
-14%
327
9%
331
10%
Brightness
280
336
20%
354
26%
211
-25%
248
-11%
316
13%
309
10%
Brightness Distribution
87
87
0%
81
-7%
89
2%
94
8%
87
0%
82
-6%
Black Level *
0.31
0.65
-110%
0.26
16%
0.22
29%
0.26
16%
0.35
-13%
0.4
-29%
Contrast
968
563
-42%
1462
51%
1027
6%
988
2%
934
-4%
828
-14%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
4.9
10.26
-109%
3.11
37%
6.44
-31%
4.59
6%
4.39
10%
4.07
17%
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. *
8.91
6.73
24%
17.18
-93%
9.72
-9%
7.27
18%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
6.69
11.51
-72%
4.35
35%
5.87
12%
6.38
5%
4.69
30%
4.86
27%
Gamma
2.33 94%
2.4 92%
2.37 93%
2.37 93%
2.51 88%
2.15 102%
2.49 88%
CCT
6487 100%
12725 51%
6771 96%
6856 95%
6238 104%
7101 92%
6109 106%
Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998)
63
47
-25%
62
-2%
39.58
-37%
65
3%
62.52
-1%
59
-6%
Color Space (Percent of sRGB)
98
74
-24%
96
-2%
61.15
-38%
98
0%
96.71
-1%
90.6
-8%
Total Average (Program / Settings)
-21% / -28%
5% / 13%
-20% / -21%
2% / 1%
1% / 4%
-3% / -1%

* ... smaller is better

Display Response Times

Display response times show how fast the screen is able to change from one color to the next. Slow response times can lead to afterimages and can cause moving objects to appear blurry (ghosting). Gamers of fast-paced 3D titles should pay special attention to fast response times.
       Response Time Black to White
28 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 7 ms rise
↘ 21 ms fall
The screen shows relatively slow response rates in our tests and may be too slow for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 67 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (21.6 ms).
       Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey
42 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 18 ms rise
↘ 24 ms fall
The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 63 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (33.9 ms).

Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)

To dim the screen, some notebooks will simply cycle the backlight on and off in rapid succession - a method called Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) . This cycling frequency should ideally be undetectable to the human eye. If said frequency is too low, users with sensitive eyes may experience strain or headaches or even notice the flickering altogether.
Screen flickering / PWM detected 217 Hz ≤ 40 % brightness setting

The display backlight flickers at 217 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) Flickering detected at a brightness setting of 40 % and below. There should be no flickering or PWM above this brightness setting.

The frequency of 217 Hz is relatively low, so sensitive users will likely notice flickering and experience eyestrain at the stated brightness setting and below.

In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 18100 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured.

CalMAN Grayscale
CalMAN Grayscale
CalMAN ColorChecker
CalMAN ColorChecker
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps

We did not observe a bluish tint in this panel although Toshiba does not deliver a color profile. The grayscale level's slight tendency to shift into yellow could be lessened via the color profile linked in the box above, which we created with our photospectrometer. The grayscale screenshot Target versus Actual shows a light yellowish tint.

Direct sunlight
Direct sunlight
Comparison with HP EliteBook 840 G3 (TN panel, right)
Comparison with HP EliteBook 840 G3 (TN panel, right)
Outdoors in the shade
Outdoors in the shade

Performance

We tested the pricey 2000-Euro (~$2252) maximum configuration based on a Core i7-6500U (2.50 GHz), 16 GB of DDR3 RAM (2x 8 GB) and a 512 GB SSD. The price for the entry-level model with a Core i5-6200U and 256 GB SSD starts at 1700 Euros (~$1914). It also sports the LTE modem.

When looking at price comparisons, Toshiba's Portégé Z30-C with i5-6200U and a 256 GB SSD is listed at a starting price of just 900 Euros (~$1013). Its disadvantage is the HD panel (1366x768 pixels). The more expensive Portégé Z30-C-10H is the first to have a matte FHD panel. We cannot say whether it is the same as in the review sample. Toshiba speaks of an "anti-glare Full HD TFT High Brightness eDP display with 16:9 aspect ratio and LED backlighting." The screen in the present Portégé Z30-C is described in exactly the same way.

Processor

The Turbo clocks stably at 3.0 GHz for the first few minutes. The clock then drops to 2.7 - 2.8 when a core temperature of 78 °C is reached, so after around 3 minutes, and it remains there permanently even over longer periods. That is less than the same SoC in the EliteBook 840 G3 achieves. Cinebench calculates stably at 3.0 GHz here. We can observe the impact of this in the single-core test where the Z30-C lags behind the 840 G3 by 42% and 12% in the multi-core test. The upper-range i7 cannot really unfold its potential and is sooner on par with the older i5-5200U.

Cinebench R15
CPU Single 64Bit (sort by value)
Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
84 Points
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
119 Points +42%
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
142 Points +69%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20F9003SGE
HD Graphics 520, 6200U, Samsung CM871 MZ7LF192HCGS
116 Points +38%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
141 Points +68%
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
124 Points +48%
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
91 Points +8%
CPU Multi 64Bit (sort by value)
Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
288 Points
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
322 Points +12%
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
334 Points +16%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20F9003SGE
HD Graphics 520, 6200U, Samsung CM871 MZ7LF192HCGS
288 Points 0%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
347 Points +20%
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
303 Points +5%
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
250 Points -13%
Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64Bit
84 Points
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64Bit
288 Points
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64Bit
25.57 fps
Cinebench R15 Ref. Match 64Bit
97.9 %
Help

System Performance

Of course, the Z30-C is fast thanks to its SSD, but the T460s takes first place with Samsung's SM951a. PCMark 8 Home sees a plus of 8% here. This marginal difference is insignificant for real-world use; all listed devices sport an SSD and offer a very smooth utilization alongside short waiting times.

PCMark 8 - Home Score Accelerated v2 (sort by value)
Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
3271 Points
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
3231 Points -1%
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
3344 Points +2%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20F9003SGE
HD Graphics 520, 6200U, Samsung CM871 MZ7LF192HCGS
3024 Points -8%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
3542 Points +8%
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
3305 Points +1%
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
2919 Points -11%
PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2
3271 points
Help

Storage Device

Toshiba's THNSNJ512G8NY SSD is apparently somewhat weaker than Samsung's SM951 (T460s and Folio 1040). That is primarily due to the tremendously fast read rates no matter whether small, random or large, sequential blocks are read.

Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
CrystalDiskMark 3.0
15%
26%
152%
153%
-19%
Read 4k
21.17
27.02
28%
36.32
72%
51.3
142%
53.3
152%
28.73
36%
Write 4k
86.3
82.6
-4%
110.9
29%
139.3
61%
159.9
85%
66.4
-23%
Read 4k QD32
227.3
388.5
71%
400.9
76%
561
147%
559
146%
91.6
-60%
Write 4k QD32
174.7
242.8
39%
191.7
10%
277
59%
376.7
116%
95.7
-45%
Read Seq
518
497.8
-4%
518
0%
1778
243%
1649
218%
506
-2%
Write Seq
423.3
241.4
-43%
300.7
-29%
1530
261%
1265
199%
343.2
-19%
AS SSD
18%
25%
212%
268%
9%
Seq Read
494.9
505
2%
495.5
0%
2039
312%
1839
272%
502
1%
Seq Write
431.9
231.6
-46%
283.7
-34%
1407
226%
1190
176%
324.6
-25%
4K Read
16.97
25.24
49%
30.91
82%
45.41
168%
47.72
181%
31.82
88%
4K Write
65.6
72.4
10%
85.1
30%
114.4
74%
126.6
93%
58
-12%
4K-64 Read
217.9
362
66%
336.1
54%
968
344%
1858
753%
194.7
-11%
4K-64 Write
147.9
190.6
29%
170
15%
366
147%
344.3
133%
169.2
14%
Total Average (Program / Settings)
17% / 16%
26% / 25%
182% / 182%
211% / 210%
-5% / -5%
Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
Sequential Read: 518 MB/s
Sequential Write: 423.3 MB/s
512K Read: 414.8 MB/s
512K Write: 379.9 MB/s
4K Read: 21.17 MB/s
4K Write: 86.3 MB/s
4K QD32 Read: 227.3 MB/s
4K QD32 Write: 174.7 MB/s

Graphics Card

The HD 520 is furnished with dual-channel here, which leads to very good results - of course on the overall low level of this integrated graphics card. Games also benefit from that, but they will unlikely be on the schedule of a typical business user.

3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance (sort by value)
Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
1559 Points
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
1468 Points -6%
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
1418 Points -9%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20F9003SGE
HD Graphics 520, 6200U, Samsung CM871 MZ7LF192HCGS
1238 Points -21%
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
1600 Points +3%
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
1539 Points -1%
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
1183 Points -24%
3DMark 11 Performance
1559 points
Help
low med. high ultra
BioShock Infinite (2013) 48 29

Emissions & Energy Management

Noise characteristics: Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138 with Core i7-6500U
Noise characteristics: Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138 with Core i7-6500U

System Noise

The Z30-C basically only knows two fan states: Loud and roaring or just quiet. The fan is disabled in the latter case, and the device runs silently. The cooling speeds up very audibly to 43.3 dB(A) during simple and full load. The slim Portégé cannot be overheard then. The opponents do a better job; they are throughout quieter during load.

Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
Noise
3%
9%
10%
11%
10%
off / environment *
31.2
31.2
-0%
31.2
-0%
29.2
6%
29.1
7%
Idle Minimum *
31.2
31.2
-0%
31.2
-0%
29.2
6%
29.1
7%
29.6
5%
Idle Average *
31.2
32.1
-3%
31.2
-0%
29.2
6%
29.1
7%
29.6
5%
Idle Maximum *
31.2
33.1
-6%
31.2
-0%
29.2
6%
29.1
7%
30.2
3%
Load Average *
43.3
36.2
16%
31.9
26%
33.7
22%
32.6
25%
35.6
18%
Load Maximum *
43.3
37.8
13%
31.9
26%
38.5
11%
37.8
13%
35.9
17%

* ... smaller is better

Noise Level

Idle
31.2 / 31.2 / 31.2 dB(A)
Load
43.3 / 43.3 dB(A)
  red to green bar
 
 
30 dB
silent
40 dB(A)
audible
50 dB(A)
loud
 
min: dark, med: mid, max: light   Audix TM1, Arta (15 cm distance)   environment noise: 31.2 dB(A)

Temperature

The Turbo clock rate does not remain as unaffected during the stress test as during simple processor load. The processor's clock is throttled to 1.6 GHz within one minute, and the HD 520 continues to clock at 950 MHz. Thus, the processor's performance is reduced in favor of the graphics. The core temperature climbs to 72 °C and remains just below this rate with throttling. The clock is still at 1.6 GHz at the end of the stress test, i.e. one hour of simultaneous Prime95 for the processor and Furmark for the graphics. The clock climbs to 2.6 GHz within seconds when stopping Furmark. That is not a good Turbo stability since the clock remains behind the potential of this SoC during simple load (realistic scenario) like seen under Performance.

Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
Heat
-0%
0%
-9%
-21%
-13%
Maximum Upper Side *
40.6
37
9%
38.2
6%
40.8
-0%
43.2
-6%
41.6
-2%
Maximum Bottom *
37
37.1
-0%
36.5
1%
40.3
-9%
47.1
-27%
41.7
-13%
Idle Upper Side *
24.5
25.3
-3%
25.1
-2%
27.6
-13%
30.5
-24%
30.6
-25%
Idle Bottom *
24.9
26.6
-7%
25.8
-4%
28.7
-15%
31.5
-27%
27.5
-10%

* ... smaller is better

 24.1 °C
75 F
24.5 °C
76 F
24.5 °C
76 F
 
 23.6 °C
74 F
24.1 °C
75 F
23.6 °C
74 F
 
 22.8 °C
73 F
22.6 °C
73 F
23.1 °C
74 F
 
Maximum: 24.5 °C = 76 F
Average: 23.7 °C = 75 F
24.6 °C
76 F
24.9 °C
77 F
24.2 °C
76 F
24.5 °C
76 F
24.9 °C
77 F
23.6 °C
74 F
23.6 °C
74 F
24.4 °C
76 F
24.4 °C
76 F
Maximum: 24.9 °C = 77 F
Average: 24.3 °C = 76 F
Power Supply (max.)  27.5 °C = 82 F | Room Temperature 20.9 °C = 70 F | FIRT 550-Pocket
(±) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 32.5 °C / 91 F, compared to the average of 30.7 °C / 87 F for the devices in the class Subnotebook.
(±) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 40.6 °C / 105 F, compared to the average of 35.9 °C / 97 F, ranging from 21.4 to 59 °C for the class Subnotebook.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 37 °C / 99 F, compared to the average of 39.4 °C / 103 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 23.7 °C / 75 F, compared to the device average of 30.7 °C / 87 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 27 °C / 80.6 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(±) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 28.3 °C / 82.9 F (+1.3 °C / 2.3 F).

Speakers

Pink Noise
Pink Noise

The speakers produce a thin sound that neither contains low tones nor clearly differentiated trebles. Thus, listening to music or web-radio is everything but enjoyable. That is completely different with the dual-array microphone - it records voices crystal clear and the speaker can even change their position. Plus points are awarded for that.

Power Consumption

The power consumption is average in the category comparison. The high consumption during medium load is striking - measured with 3DMark06 here - and the low requirement during full load. The reason for this is CPU throttling in the stress test.

Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
Power Consumption
12%
-11%
-3%
-30%
13%
Idle Minimum *
3.2
3.8
-19%
5.1
-59%
3.8
-19%
6.3
-97%
3.2
-0%
Idle Average *
7.8
6.3
19%
8.5
-9%
7.1
9%
9.4
-21%
6.3
19%
Idle Maximum *
8.7
6.8
22%
10.1
-16%
7.8
10%
10.1
-16%
8.6
1%
Load Average *
42.2
34.4
18%
35.2
17%
36.3
14%
33.3
21%
30.3
28%
Load Maximum *
35.7
28.3
21%
31
13%
46
-29%
49.5
-39%
30.4
15%

* ... smaller is better

Power Consumption
Off / Standbydarklight 0.2 / 0.6 Watt
Idledarkmidlight 3.2 / 7.8 / 8.7 Watt
Load midlight 42.2 / 35.7 Watt
 color bar
Key: min: dark, med: mid, max: light        Metrahit Energy
Currently we use the Metrahit Energy, a professional single phase power quality and energy measurement digital multimeter, for our measurements. Find out more about it here. All of our test methods can be found here.

Battery Runtime

The battery life of the Portégé Z30-C-138 of 5:45 hours is in the lower field among the rivals. An EliteBook 840 G3 lasts 30% longer and the TravelMate P645-S even 55%. Too bad: the 52 Wh is far from reaching the manufacturer's specified 11 hours.

IPS is nice to look at even outdoors. Comparison with the FHD TN panel in HP's Elitebook 840 G3.
IPS is nice to look at even outdoors. Comparison with the FHD TN panel in HP's Elitebook 840 G3.
Battery Runtime - WiFi v1.3 (sort by value)
Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Toshiba HG6 THNSNJ512G8NY
345 min
HP EliteBook 840 G3 T9X59ET#ABD
HD Graphics 520, 6500U, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
453 min
Dell Latitude 14 7000 Series E7470
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD PM851 M.2 2280 256GB
346 min
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20F9003SGE
HD Graphics 520, 6200U, Samsung CM871 MZ7LF192HCGS
395 min
Lenovo ThinkPad T460s-20FA003GGE
HD Graphics 520, 6600U, Samsung SSD SM951a 512GB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVMe (MZVKV512)
340 min
HP EliteBook Folio 1040 G3
HD Graphics 520, 6300U, Samsung SM951 MZVPV256HDGL m.2 PCI-e
309 min
Acer TravelMate P645-S-58HK
HD Graphics 5500, 5200U, Kingston RBU-SNS8100S3256GD
535 min
Battery Runtime
WiFi Websurfing
5h 45min

Pros

+ IPS panel, matte display
+ light magnesium casing
+ decent build
+ very good system performance
+ fast SSD, often noiseless
+ LTE modem
+ good interface diversity including dock
+ very good microphone

Cons

- poor speakers
- loud during load
- input devices' weak feedback
- weak Turbo utilization
- comparatively short battery life

Verdict

In review: Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138. Test model courtesy of Toshiba Germany
In review: Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138. Test model courtesy of Toshiba Germany

Toshiba's Portégé Z30-C-138 is an extremely lightweight premium-range subnotebook for the business world. Buyers who put 2000 Euros (~$2252) on the counter will get business-suitable connectivity (LTE, docking) and the best security features including TPM and fingerprint scanner. It might seem that Toshiba doesn't miss out on anything when looking at the Core i7-6500U and the 512 GB SSD. Unfortunately, the SoC's Turbo utilization is comparatively low, and thus the processor cannot provide the promised performance already during simple load (not stress test). The input devices' weak feedback also disappoints us; the Latitude, EliteBook and ThinkPad do a better job here. The Portégé Z30-C-138 is sooner a device for those with sensitive natures who hit the keys very carefully.

The hottest rivals of Toshiba's Portégé Z30-C-138 are doubtlessly Lenovo's ThinkPad T460s, Dell's Latitude 14 E7470 and HP's EliteBook 840 G3. The latter slightly steps out of line due to its TN panel. However, HP also offers an IPS model with WQHD and not FHD.

Toshiba Portege Z30-C-138 - 04/18/2016 v5.1(old)
Sebastian Jentsch

Chassis
91 /  98 → 93%
Keyboard
81%
Pointing Device
76%
Connectivity
58 / 80 → 73%
Weight
73 / 35-78 → 88%
Battery
86%
Display
87%
Games Performance
54 / 68 → 79%
Application Performance
80 / 87 → 91%
Temperature
94 / 91 → 100%
Noise
84%
Audio
68 / 91 → 75%
Camera
58 / 85 → 68%
Average
76%
85%
Subnotebook - Weighted Average

Pricecompare

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Reviews > Toshiba Portégé Z30-C-138 Subnotebook Review
Sebastian Jentsch, 2016-04-14 (Update: 2018-05-15)