IBM 345C

[PandorasThinkpad]

Hi there!

There seems to be the chance to get to such an 345C 2610, what should i look for or ask for, would it be really an good advise to get in touch with such an 345C, does it have any really great advantages out of all the older models of early (old) thinkpad?

Have already an 701c which is part of an art installation.....would the 345C be a great thing or is it just an "not so good" thinkpad IBM has made in those early days?

Any comments, any ideas?

What would it be usable for? Win2000?

Kindly regards,

Pandora

[Norway Pad]

A little background information for you: The 3-series was the predecessor to the R-series, so back in the days these were the budget line Thinkpads. They lacked the rubberized finish, were a bit heavier, and maybe a little bit cheaper built. But as we know from the R-series, they were excellent work tools, which could last just as long as the more expensive siblings.

So from a collectors standpoint, I would say Go for it! If you collect rare Thinkpads, and the seller doesn't demand dumkopf-kind of money for it, I would not hesitate. There is really nothing much to check, apart from seeing that it powers on, shows the IBM Setup (BIOS) and responds to key input. Maybe it even comes with an OS installed. If you are going to display it in your art installation, you might want to make sure it looks decent.

Hardware-wise it is pretty much the same as your 701C, with a 486DX4 75MHz CPU. So it can do the same as your 701C, which isn't much by today's standards. I *think* the 345C came with Win95 when it was new. It falls below the minimum CPU requirement for Win2000, but it might run to some extent, depending on how much memory the 345C can accept. I have never tested W2K on hardware this old. But you won't be able to use it for much anyway, so I would have gone with Win95 or Win98. And unless you have access to a PCMCIA CD-ROM, you need to do some tricks in order to install an OS that isn't based on floppies.

Let us know how it turns out. FWIW, in my opinion it belongs next to your 701C as a piece of Thinkpad history.

Anyway, feel free to post pictures of the mentioned art installation. It triggered my curiosity.

[PandorasThinkpad]

Hey NorwayPad,

well given information, thank you!!

At the moment i try to find out in which condition it is....and then the picture of it doesn't show an 345C......just take a look, the picture is any other thinkpad...http://kleinanzeigen.ebay.de/anzeigen/s ... 7-278-4318

I don't know which one....

I'm waiting for response until now..because i like to get original pictures.

The only answer i got is that it is in good shape, all is well, nothing is broken, even the display has no fault.

But i really want to see all this by myself,...so pictures must be...

And the art installation, it is strictly forbidden to take pictures of it, you would have to come to the gallery it is shown...otherwise you wouldn't get the chance to take a look

Sincerly,

PT

[Norway Pad]

Yes, the picture shows a 770-series. A totally different laptop, so make sure to get some pictures. From the description, it's still working, and they apparently managed to install Win ME on it..

Here is a German page that contains the best into I found on the 345 so far: http://thinkwiki.de/345

I thought the art installation was in your own home. Is it a public art exhibit with old technology, or is it something else?

[PandorasThinkpad]

Hi NP,

four more pictures, but it isn't a 770 series, just look at the four pictures that had been given now....which thinkpad would this be, didn't find anything on the wiki in range 770 or so that will fit...oh no, such an lack of no knowledge, if it wouldn't be so difficult to look what the sign shows, which model it is...

And no, not at home, so it's not that easy to share it...

Update...

no further info about, which model it definately now would be, so no deal.....i will stay with my 701c.....an no other old vintage toy yet....

PT

[Norway Pad]

The Thinkpad on those last and newly added pictures is a 380 or 385. Starting from 380XD and on, the 380 series got USB and stereo speakers, so it could be a 380XD, 380Z or a 385, which has similar shape as the 380. I have never owned or seen a 385, but according to ThinkWiki only the 385XD had USB. So in that case, it can be a 385XD.

Still a worthwhile collectible. Not as old as the 345, but with better and newer hardware, and maybe capable of running a lightweight Linux distro. A 380Z gives you access to PII MMC-1 CPUs, which is the same as I use to run Linux Antix and even go online with my 600 and 560Z. If the price is right, I would still give it a try, provided that the laptop on the pictures really IS the laptop that's up for sale.

But I am not surprised with the lack of info from the seller. I have tried to buy laptops from people who, despite being told, fails to understand that the model number is printed on the laptop. And they seems to be physically unable to describe it or take a picture. A "Thinkpad" is a Thinkpad, no matter if it is from 2000 or 2007, right? Sometimes dealing with such people has brought me some excellent deals, other times it has brought me junk.