IBM ThinkPad Power Series

The IBM ThinkPad Power Series (and subsequent IBM RS/6000 Model 860 Notebook) (800/820/821/822/823/850/851/860) is a laptop series from the ThinkPad line that was manufactured by IBM. It is based on the PowerPC architecture.

IBM ThinkPad Power Series
PowerPC ThinkPad logo on the 850 carrying case
An IBM ThinkPad 850 with its custom IBM-branded Logitech Chroma mouse
ManufacturerIBM
Product familyThinkPad
TypeLaptop
Release dateMarch 8, 1994 (1994-03-08)
DiscontinuedJanuary 30, 1998 (1998-01-30)
Operating systemWindows NT, AIX, Solaris
CPUPowerPC 603
PredecessorIBM RS/6000
SuccessorIBM RS/6000
This article is part of a series on the
ThinkPad
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History

The first PowerPC notebook released by IBM was the RS/6000 Model N40, which was developed together with Tadpole Computer. It was announced in March 1994.[1] The start of the sale was announced in October 1994.[2]

Specifications

Most of the 800 Series laptops used the PowerPC 603e CPU, at speeds of 100 MHz, or 166 MHz in the 860 model, although the earliest 800 (Type 6020), the direct ancestor of the 850, used a 603 and was apparently only offered to developers.[3] All units used SCSI-2 instead of IDE hard disks, and the ID of every SCSI device on the system could be configured in the cursor driven GUI-based BIOS. Another unusual aspect of the series is their unique startup chime, reminiscent of Apple Macintosh computers of the time.

The PowerPC ThinkPad line was considerably more expensive than the standard x86 ThinkPads — even a modestly configured 850 cost upwards of $12,000.[4] On the other hand, the 800, 850 and 851 (and later the 860 and 861) were capable of supporting an optional web camera, one of the first commercially available webcams available on a laptop.[5] These units could also record PAL and NTSC signals with onboard composite connectors, and the batteries contained internal processors to regulate power usage for optimized battery longevity.[6]

Software

All of the PowerPC ThinkPads could run Windows NT 3.51 and 4.0,[7] AIX 4.1.x, and Solaris Desktop 2.5.1 PowerPC Edition. Many of these PowerPC operating systems and the corresponding compilers are very scarce and hard to find. However, it is also possible to run certain PowerPC versions of Linux on the 800 Series.[8]

Models
IBM Power Series model list
Form Factor Class 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
Laptop Tadpole-based RS/6000 N40
ThinkPad/

Tadpole-based

 Affordable ThinkPad 820 ThinkPad 821;
ThinkPad 822;
ThinkPad 823
Hi-end ThinkPad 800 ThinkPad 850 ThinkPad 851 RS/6000 860
Desktop Power Series 600

RS/6000 N40

The ThinkPad line have a predecessor model (released in 1994[9] RS/6000 N40 with 50 MHz PowerPC 601 CPU and with design based on a Tadpole platform).

ThinkPad 800

The ThinkPad Power Series 800 (6020)[3][10] has a new case design, similar to contemporary 700 series models, but with additional rounded palmrest.

ThinkPad 820

The ThinkPad Power Series 820 has another case design (square case with small palmrest with two speakers).

This model has reported to run SuSE Linux and Windows NT 4.0 and that they are incompatible with Yaboot.[11] The availability started at April 15, 1996.[12]

ThinkPad 821/822/823

This model was just an upgrade of the 820 model.[13]

ThinkPad 850

The ThinkPad Power Series 850 (6042-G6D) has a similar case to an 800 model.

This model has a motion video capture card and optional snap-in video camera.[14][15][16][17][18]

ThinkPad 851

This model was just an upgrade of the 850 model.[13]

RS/6000 860

RS/6000 Notebook 860

The IBM RS/6000 Notebook 860, sometimes incorrectly to referred as ThinkPad 860 can be seen as the successor of the ThinkPad 850.

800820821/822/823850851860
System Type 6020 6040 7247 6042 7249 7249
Announced 1994/11/08[3] 1995/06/19 1996/02/20 1995/06/19 1996/02/20 1996/10/08
Withdrawn Un­known 1996/03/20 1996/07/26 1996/03/20 1996/11/08 1998/01/30
CPU 603 @ 66 MHz 603e @ 100 MHz 603e @ 100 MHz 603e @ 100 MHz 603e @ 100 MHz 603e @ 166 MHz
GPU GT10 GT10 GT10 GT10 GT10 GT20
Memory Bus 32 bit 32 bit 32 bit 64 bit 64 bit 64 bit
Maximum Memory 80 MB 48 MB 48 MB 96 MB 96 MB 96 MB
Display 10.4" 640 × 480 10.4" 640 × 480 or 800 × 600 10.4" 640 × 480 or 800 × 600 10.4" 640 × 480 or 800 × 600 10.4" 640 × 480 or 800 × 600 12.1" 1024 × 768
Video Capture built-in optional optional built-in built-in built-in

Power Series 600

The Power Series 600 was a prototype of a compact desktop system;[19] this model was never released, and only prototypes can be found.

Canon Power Notebook

Released by Canon Computer Systems in 1995, the Canon Power Notebook featured a 603e clocked at 100 MHz with 256 KB of external cache; 32 to 48 MB of RAM; an 810 MB hard drive; a double-speed CD-ROM drive; and a 10.4" active matrix color LCD. Though not marketed by IBM, Canon licensed the use of several components from the ThinkPad 755CD including the plastic case, and externally the Power Notebook was virtually identical to the 755CD save for Canon's logos.[20]

References
  1. Enterprise, I. D. G. (1994-03-14). Computerworld. IDG Enterprise.
  2. Tadpole to sell IBM's AIX-based portable. InfoWorld Media Group, Inc. 1994-10-17.
  3. "IBM Power Series Exotica". os2museum.com.
  4. Cordes, Trevor E. (24 July 2008). "IBM PowerPC ThinkPad History". tecnopolis.ca. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  5. "RS/6000 Notebook 860" (PDF). kev009.com.
  6. "IBM PowerPC ThinkPad Capabilities". kev009.com.
  7. "Windows NT on PowerPC ThinkPad". 8 January 2010. Retrieved 28 September 2013 – via YouTube.
  8. "Debian – PowerPC Port". debian.org.
  9. "IBM RS/6000 N40 - Computer - Computing History". www.computinghistory.org.uk. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  10. "IBM ThinkPad Power Series 850 – OSnews". www.osnews.com. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  11. Mädel, Tobias. "ThinkPad PowerSeries 820". tbspace.de. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  12. "IBM ThinkPad Power Series 820 and 850 Deliver High Performance and Graphics Capability to Mobile Users" (PDF).
  13. "IBM ThinkPad Power Series 820 and 850". www.ibm.com. 1996-07-09. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  14. "IBM Power Series Brings PowerPC Microprocessor Performance to Desktop and Mobile Personal Computers". IBM.com. June 19, 1995. Archived from the original on 2001-05-24.
  15. Holwerda, Thom. "IBM ThinkPad Power Series 850 – OSnews". OSNews. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  16. Lazenby, Daniel (1 Mar 2000). "Linux and IBM PowerPCs". Linux Journal. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  17. "ThinkPad 10th Anniversary Special 06". Watch Impress. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  18. October 2017, Avram Piltch-Online Editorial Director 05 (5 October 2017). "25 Years of ThinkPad: The Best and Most Innovative". Laptop Mag. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
  19. "6030 Front, Closed | OS/2 Museum". www.os2museum.com. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  20. Clyman, John (August 1995). "Power Notebook: PowerPC Goes Mobile". PC Magazine. Ziff-Davis. 14 (14): 40 – via Google Books.
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