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About a month ago, when I first subscribed to the ThinkPad List, I wrote that I had just received my TP
701CS and that I planned to add a 32 Meg memory module as soon as possible. Another 701 owner, Bryan
Daum, wrote me saying he didn't recall anyone reporting the performance of a TP701 with 40 Meg of RAM.
Windows 95, OS/2 and Linux (and other UNIX based OSs) all benefit from increasing RAM. In my own limited
experience, OS/2 shows striking performance increases. I first saw the effects of increasing RAM on my
desktop OS/2 machine going from 16 to 32 and now 96 Meg. The performance improvement gained moving
from 16 to 32 Meg was the most dramatic; but I couldn't resist when the price of 64 Meg SIMMs dropped
below $400 last year <g>.
Well, I had to arm wrestle my "significant other" but I managed to come up with $309 to buy a 32 Meg module
from CDCE (Corporate Direct Computer Enhancements). Wow, what a difference. I am one of those OS/2
zealots who doesn't consider using anything from Microsoft; especially Windows 95. But OS/2 on a 486DX75
with only 8 Meg of memory really tempted me to drop back to Windows 3.1.
I am very pleased to report that with 40 Meg of RAM my little "Butterfly" flies like a eagle rather than fitfully as
its namesake. Now I can routinely "surf the net" with a web browser, while capturing URLs from a
newsreader, pasting interesting web text to a wordprocessor or data to a spreadsheet all the while with my
mailer open so I can send and receive email. The small screen with minimal VGA and only 16 colors is less
than ideal and the built-in 14.4 modem seems painfully slow at times but neither of those shortfall can be over
come with the addition of RAM. It is easier to live with when I remind myself that I bought the TP701 to
supplement my desktop machine NOT replace it.
The TP 701's soldered-in CPU makes it a poor candidate for user replacement of the CPU. Evergreen
Technologies offers a CPU upgrade for 486 portable systems, using the AMD 5x86/133 MHz processor and
claiming P75 performance. The installation is performed & tested by factory trained technicians and comes
with a one year parts and labor warranty. Unfortunately, it cost some $500. I am convinced that maxing out
the RAM is the most cost effective way to improve the performance of the TP 701. At least it was for me.
NOTE: IBM once cataloged a 32 Meg memory module for the TP 701 but no longer does so. There are
probably some genuine IBM 32 Meg modules still floating around in the used memory sector but I couldn't find
any. After searching the net for nearly a month the best price I could find was from CDCE (www.cdce.com).
They build their own memory modules and guarantee them for life. They're nice folks to deal with too.
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David Howery
Department of Biology Email - dhowery@trincoll.edu
Trinity College Phone - (860) 297-5189
300 Summit Street FAX - (860) 297-2538
Hartford, CT 06106-3100
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