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486 Laptop

Z

ziloo

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What is your recommendation for a 486 laptop that I should look around for.
I need a system that is durable, bright screen, available peripherals... Should
I expand my range to include Pentium as well? I intend to use it mainly for
running DOS applications.

Thank you

ziloo
 
ziloo said:
What is your recommendation for a 486 laptop that I should look around for.
I need a system that is durable, bright screen, available peripherals... Should
I expand my range to include Pentium as well? I intend to use it mainly for
running DOS applications.
Click to expand...

The ThinkPad 750 series has varied levels of 486 CPUs with most parts interchangable and is fairly common...
 
I have three Toshiba Satellites that have not failed me yet. One, I have had close to eight years and it still runs as well as the day I got it. I hauled that one around for about two years (Satellite, 75mhz Pentium) and it's even been dropped a couple of times and it still keeps going. For dos it's my champ.

Nathan
 
not sure if you're interested, but i have a toshiba satellite 2535 cds. it's a pentium 1 @ 300 mhz.

only problem is the screen doesnt stand on it's own. yes i know, that's kind of a major issue. lol. other than that, works just perfectly. not sure if the HD is good, it's been a long time since i've used it. but last i tried, it booted up and was running debian nicely. still has about 30-45 minute battery life on full charge.
 
Thank you all for your comments!!

Now, what would be a reasonable price for a 486/Pentium I Laptop system with
AC adapter, working battery, HDD?

ziloo
 
I wouldn't pay over $25 - 30.00 for a 486 or low-end Pentium, unless there were something really special about it, in which case, I might go as high as $50-or-so (but then, I am a cheapskate).
As for working batteries with something that old, consider it a bonus if you find any. I've been pretty luck so far in that area, purchasing lappies with 'untested' batteries which turned out to be pretty good sometimes. If the seller has tested and knows the condition of the batt, expect to pay a little more for it (of course).

--T
 
Shop around but don't be too off about paying more. You get what you pay for, and with a battery and ps equipped working-well laptop, I'd say around $80-100. I paid $80 shipped for the 75mhz, but it had a good battery and charger AND it still is working. The slackware laptop I paid about $120 in all, and it still works too. Pent, 166mhz, 96mb ram, Satellite pro. About these satellites, the batteries are rebuildable. They have packs of AA's, nothing at all special about them. Just best to reuse the plastic from an original batt so you can get the contacts and so it fits well. I'm a bit of a cheapskate, too, and these prices are spread over a pretty long time (two months for the $120, a month for the $80 one).

Nathan
 
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IBMMuseum said:
The ThinkPad 750 series has varied levels of 486 CPUs with most parts interchangable and is fairly common...
Click to expand...

I'll be another to chime in on the vote for the IBM Thinkpad. I've owned a Thinkpad 755CD for the past year and a half now, and it, along side my modern Everex, have been the best laptops I've owned.

The 755 comes in both 486 and Pentium 75 configurations, and you can buy new/refurbished Li-Ion batteries for them (and that is not a mistype). I get an average of 2-3 hours out of the 755 off batteries. Also, even the new multi-purpose Laptop power supplies fit it (I have a $100.00 I-Go). The replacement parts on E-bay are dirty cheap in most cases, and I run mine under Windows 98 SE, and it has never crashed once.

Other good ones include the Twinhead SlimNote II 433DX/S, and the AT&T Safari 3151.
 
Druid6900 said:
I guess you'll just have to wait until you get your logic analyzer, won't you? LMAO
Click to expand...
I doubt that the ol' K-II will be up to the task of keeping-up with even a low-end '486. It's role in life from now on will be (mainly) to sit around looking pretty, and to totally pwn all the n00bs that have occaision to view it's awesomeness .

--T
 
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Hey T,

Maybe you should just set up a shrine to it and let people make pilgrimages to it to bathe in it's splendour. Alternately, you could wear a hat if you're going to be out in the sun a lot :)
 
Terry Yager said:
Heh! I just (finally) picked up a (semi-functional) Safari last week. Any klew why it shows no video? (It's been a long time since I've been inside of one).

--T
Click to expand...

The Ribbon cable might be loose, I had that problem with my 3151 when I first got it. That was probably the best of the "Old Creeping Net" (pre DSL) laptops I've owned.
 
NathanAllan said:
I have three Toshiba Satellites that have not failed me yet. One, I have had close to eight years and it still runs as well as the day I got it. I hauled that one around for about two years (Satellite, 75mhz Pentium) and it's even been dropped a couple of times and it still keeps going. For dos it's my champ.

Nathan
Click to expand...
I recently acquired one of those as a freebe. It looks like it's been through hell. It even has a crack in the case but it works just fine. This is the first laptop I've ever owned so I don't know jack about hardware for these things. Would it be hard to come by an ethernet adapter for it? Also, would it be possible to lose the floppy drive in favor of a cd-rom?
 
Smitty said:
I recently acquired one of those as a freebe. It looks like it's been through hell. It even has a crack in the case but it works just fine. This is the first laptop I've ever owned so I don't know jack about hardware for these things. Would it be hard to come by an ethernet adapter for it? Also, would it be possible to lose the floppy drive in favor of a cd-rom?
Click to expand...

You can use any 16-bit card in it, not a problem. If it says cardbus(32-bit), it can't be used, though. It was only that picky, iirc. They're out there to be had, for sure. If you have the same model as mine, the floppy drive is hard-wired in the case and it can't be swapped out. Looks like it could be, but it's mounted to the motherboard that way. I used to use an external backpack cd-rom and it worked great. What's the model number? 100 or 110?

Nathan
 
Thanks for the info :) It's a T2105. I'll have to call down to the one shop I deal with. They have tons of parts but very little vintage items. He always laughs when I walk in looking for something 15+ years old. It wouldn't surprise me if he has an ethernet card for it though. Infact, I think I'll call down there right now...lol

EDIT: They do have a 3com Etherlink III 3c589D. I was able to find the driver so I'm going to run down there tomorrow after work and pick it up.
 
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I remember going to this store in Lebanon, TN, and he thought the same of me. Though, oddly enough, he had everything I needed when I went in looking for old parts.

nathan
 
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