Toshiba Libretto Stuff

 Toshiba Libretto Master Page

This is the main page for all my info regarding Toshiba Libretto laptops. On this page you will find links to specific units (if I have any useful insight on them) as well as some general info regarding these neat little UMPC Laptops. 

Model List 

First generation Libretto 

Toshiba Libretto 20
Toshiba Libretto 30

Toshiba Libretto M1

Second generation Libretto

Toshiba Libretto 50CT

Toshiba Libretto 60

Toshiba Libretto M2

Third Generation Libretto

Toshiba Libretto 70CT

Toshiba Libretto 100CT
Toshiba Libretto 110CT
Toshiba Libretto SS1000
Toshiba Libretto SS1010
Toshiba Libretto M3

FF Series
Toshiba Libretto ff1050
Toshiba Libretto ff1100CT/V

L Series
Toshiba Libretto L1
Toshiba Libretto L2
Toshiba Libretto L3/Adidas Edition
Toshiba Libretto L5

*I know of the U and W series but I am not interested in these units so I will not be posting anything about them*

The hype surrounding the Libretto in the modern era

You might be wondering why these machines are adored by folks around the world, and the answer is simple : they're little technical marvels. 

When these machines were new, they were designed to be an ultra portable solution for people always on the go. When the thick bulky notebooks of the era were too much of a burden to carry with you everywhere, the Libretto was there to give your back or shoulders a break with it's impressively small dimensions of just 210×115×34 mm. 
What was even more attractive about the Libretto was it's price. A base unit would have run you something just shy of 1,000$ USD back in its heyday, a rather impressively low cost considering it had a TFT display, x86 CPU, PCMCIA slot, high color capability, and healthy amount of RAM (for the time). 
Most notebooks of the era had comparable specs, but cost more than double the Libretto, and usually had poor dual scan passive matrix display panels. 
That isn't to say that the Libretto was notebook replacement, though. The compromises Toshiba had to make to create such a device meant that a lot of performance and feature sacrifices had to be made. So while a notebook may have had the same CPU and RAM as a Libretto, the notebook would most certainly be faster as it had a full-fletched chipset while the Libretto had something more of a crazy little chipset that was very limited. 

So what does the above have to do with anything? Well, it's just really neat to see such a tiny little PC from all these years ago. When things were big and bulky, it serves as a reminder that some companies were way ahead of their time making devices and gadgets that would eventually become the norm in our lives way, way later on into the future. While UMPCs never really took off outside of Japan, I can think of a little computer that almost everyone carries with them anywhere they go, a Smartphone. 

I like cool vintage tech, should I buy a Libretto?

The simple answer : probably not.
A lot of people want to use these for retro gaming, and that's fine & all, but there are such better options out there, I promise you. Just because it's a tiny little "retro gamer" PC, doesn't mean it's going to be easy or fun to use. 

These systems are increasingly becoming more and more expensive, they're hard to find unless you know what you're doing, they're extremely fragile, and due to their tiny design, they're understandably extremely proprietary in nature. Especially for DOS gaming, the sound card in these is a proper pain to get working. It may be a Yamaha OPL3-SAx, but from my experience it's a proper PITA to configure for games like Doom II or WOLF3D. Not, impossible to configure, but you need to know what you're doing with IRQ settings (spoiler alert, I don't know what I am doing).

I would say that the Libretto series is for people who have some sort of need for legacy environments on the go, or for collectors. Later Librettos are a lot more forgiving in terms of their usability and features, but anything first or second generation is really nothing more than a cool conversation piece or collectors prized shelf piece. 

I want to buy a Libretto, where should I look to find one?

Look no further than... 

Yahoo Auctions Japan is your best bet. It will be up to you to choose one of many proxy buying services to arrange for payment and delivery of the system (Yahoo Auctions Japan does not ship overseas)
Keep in mind that due to COVID, you are most likely going to be stuck with a courier like DHL, FedEx, UPS... These couriers, while often times fast (except you, FedEx. F*** you, FedEx) will often deliver your parcels at lightning fast speeds, but charge you an arm and a leg for their service, and further upcharge you later on for their brokerage services & duty fees. You need to get ready to accept that you will likely be spending 100-150$ just in shipping depending on where you are located in this world. 
I would avoid eBay unless you can find Librettos for sub 300$ CDN all in there, as they may actually be a *fair* bargain at that price. Most sellers I see on eBay that are trying to sell off Librettos charge as much as nearly 1,000$ CDN for these things, which is mind boggling.

Spoiler alert, no one is going to spend 1,000$, let alone even 500$ on a 30+ year old Toshiba Libretto, バカやろう. 

What should I look out for when shopping for a Libretto?

This really comes down to what you want out of your Libretto and what series of Libretto you're looking at. For example if you want something for collection purposes, then you need to be aware of the common cosmetic issues or flaws with a certain series of Libretto.
If you're attempting to game or run old software, you will likely care more about performance, features, and stability vs cosmetics.
Any one of the Libretto models listed at the top of the page that has a link tagged to it will contain "buyer beware" lists to help you assess whether or not a certain model is suited for you, and whether or not the unit you are looking at has already experienced some form of common failure.