From: William Armstrong (warmstrong_at_waldinc.com)
Date: Tue Sep 01 1998 - 14:21:15 EDT
Robert,
I have this laptop (Model no. 9549-1AU). Bought it for top dollar at the
end of last year. It's a great machine for the most part. I can describe
two problems that you may want to be aware or. Apparently many of the
9549-1AU machines required an EZServe repair that involved the addition of a
wire on the main board. I had problems with my machine locking up on
occasion and this repair seemed to have fixed this problem. I don't know how
many of the 9549-1AU had this problem. Perhaps others will have more
insight. I also have had problems with the black paint coming off of the
keyboard bezel just below the trackpoint/mouse buttons (wher you rest your
palms). Others also reported this problem. IBM EZServe replaced the bzel
once and shortly thereafter the paint started coming off again. I'm like
you, I'm a solo guy, so returing the machine for servicing is a big deal and
I have not sent it back again to replace the bezel. I have reported the
problem, though. Both times IBM said that the repair would not be covered
under the warranty, but the first time at least it was repaired (with my
persistence, I might add!).
As for Pentium vs. Pentium II, I know that the newer PII machines are quite
a bit faster. They have an additional 2mb video RAM, which to my mind was
the biggest shortcoming of the original TP770 machines. I do CAD and
graphics work, so the additional video RAM would be appreciated. For regular
everyday correspondence, web surfing, etc., the 233 is plenty fast. The
screen is great and worth the money. Get a DVD drive, too, and you can watch
movies.
-Bill Armstrong
-----Original Message-----
From: Robert S. Frank [mailto:ethico_at_email.msn.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 01, 1998 12:49 PM
To: thinkpad_at_cs.utk.edu
Subject: TP 770 (Model 95491-AU)
I have a chance to buy a new TP 770 (91-AU) for a really good price. What
do you folks think? This is the model with a 14" screen, Pentium MMX 233,
32 MB, 5 GB hard drive, internal modem, MPEG-2 and enhanced video and audio
adapters.
My main interest is the 14" screen. I cant quite afford that screen in the
newer 770 E or ED versions, so I figured I buy this one, which has been
discontinued and really dropped in price. Just a few months ago, this was
the top of the line. Now, as you know, you're made to feel that it's old
technology.
My biggest concerns with a buying a laptop...whether for $2,500, $3,500 or
$4,500 are quality and reliability (I'm a solo entrepreneur with no back-up
MIS department to help me and no tolerance for being down for a week or
more), keyboard (I'm a touch typist), and monitor (this will be my one and
only business machine and I will be looking at it 8 to 12 hours a day).
That's why I'm just about ready to buy a ThinkPad and that's why I figured
I'd get this 770.
What would you folks advise? Though this particular 770 is no longer being
manufactured, will I still be able to buy compatible peripherals in the
future (Zip drive, PC cards, etc.)? Am I doing myself a disservice by not
getting a Pentium II? Should I sacrifice screen size and other features and
get a TP600 with the 233 Pentium II? Just so you know, slight performance
advantages are not a big deal to me. Also, I am not what you would call a
"road warrior", so portability is not the biggest deal to me either. This
machine will basically be a desktop replacement, maybe going back and forth
>from home to office each day (via a backpack I might add).
So, I'm just about to pull the trigger...I'm sure you've all been there
before. Your advice would helpfu.
Thanks for your time.
Bobby Frank
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