The OFFICIAL Panasonic CF-29 Toughbook Thread!

Mnen,
You better lay off of that Beet Vodka, I think it's making your hard drive spin down! LOL

 

But then what will I put in my Mountain Dew?

mnem<~~~ Also a fan of Tito's Handmade Vodka*

 

So... Anyway... I bought this CF-29...

 

And I though to myself... this little processor really generates some heat... so why don't I plumb some copper tubing to it and fill it full of BEETS...:wink:

mnem <~~~ Charter member of the Free-Range Alcohol Distillers Association*

 

Any ideas about how I can add CDMA EVDO, built in, that won't cost me an arm and a leg?

 

I hate to sound like an arse but what's CDMA? The 29 I bought is supposed to have that but I have no clue what CDMA stands for. My model number is CF-29ETKGDKM. Even if I knew what it was I probably wouldn't be using it anyway.

 

CDMA is one of the current standards for digital cellular voice communications; soon to be legacy along with analog voice.

Sprint & Verizon here in the states still use CDMA I don't know who else dos; most of the rest of the civilized world has stepped up to GSM. (The kind with SIM cards)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_mobile_phone_standards

Anyhow; EV-DO is their attempt at digital data transmission over their network as an answer to GSM's 3G (now 4G) data network; it is still a kludge of old technology that should have been scrapped 5 years ago. I can't WAIT until my contract with Verisuck expires; I'm getting an iPhone.

mnem <~~~ Hates Verizon almost as much as Sprint*

 

SN,
Mnem explained it better than I could. All of my "stuff", except for the satellite phone, is sprint right now. Their network is cdma EVDO revision A, which is the latest version. It's the only game in town in the rural area in which I live, except dial up, which sucks, due to the age of our phone lines.

If you have access to any other type internet; you're probably better off without it because it's not that fast, costs $60.00 a month, and you have to buy the device to plug into your laptop (PCMCIA, USB, or Express Card).

Mnem is correct in saying that the GPRS/Edge is more universally used. If you travel the World; that system would certainly be more flexible.

I want the built in version for use on my ranch. The types of "cards" that stick outside of the computer get abused, and don't hold up bouncing around in a 4 wheel drive, one ton pick up.

I'm trying to get a Billionton PCMCIA Bluetooth adapter, as modified by Toughbook (username) which will fit in my 29's slot with the cover closed. Then I can use my BT GPS receivers. (Yes, I'm challenged enough to get lost on my own place.)

Bottom line is, if you want use you built in cdma modem; you have to suscribe to one of the cell carriers providing that type of service. Sprint and Verizon are two of the biggest. As Mnem pointed out; their customer service leaves a lot to be desired. I'm not sure that the new AT&T is any better in that regard. The old AT&T sure was a PITA.

 

I use my cell phone with a BT connection to get online when I'm on the road, but it's slower than the dedicated card and you have to pay Verisuck the same monthly as if you HAD the card; They've deliberately disabled the MODEM function built into my KRZR to force us to "upgrade" to their POS wireless card. My reaction to this was to tell them to go F themselves; I'd be da$%ed if I was gonna give them a nickel more than I absolutely had to, and I would be cancelling my contract the instant it was up. Fortunately, my online office is really quick (mostly text) so I can still take work orders with the slower connection & YahoMail isn't too bad at "Slow broadband" speeds either.

mnem
Who dat say dat?

 

I was going to suggest going the BT phone modem route too. I get 128k service on my Cingular account. Not blazing fast but good enough for me to check my email if need be. I believe that you can set your browser to load minimal pages when doing this so the download doesn't cost an arm and/or a leg. They also load faster... You just don't get all the flash animation and pictures.

I read about a hack somewhere where the guy got an old PCMCIA card that accepted SIM chips. He would stop by the phone store where they sold prepaid phones at the really cheap rate. Then he would take the SIM out and put it in his card. And, VOILA.... A cheap way to access the Internet! It was at dial up speeds but it was cheap as heck!

May be something to look into!

 

Are there SIM chips for data that would have the latest (3G,4G) technology on them. I'm unclear if that is decided by the PCMCIA card or the SIM chip.

 

Pappy -

The SIM chip only stores your phone ID & personal data.

The idea is very simple: The SIM card is what is associated with your account; you are supposed to be able to pop your SIM card in ANY GSM phone device & INSTANTLY it becomes YOUR phone.

The reality is that (particularly in the USA) phone carriers are a bunch of greedy scumbags, and they have no qualms about STEALING away functionality (errr, disabling unnecessary features) built into your phone so they can try and SELL you that functionality BACK a la carte.
As a result, we have handsets (This is what they call a GSM phone - deliberately to separate the phone from the carrier) that are now LOCKED to a specific carrier.

!@#$%&! b@$tards!

As for the PCMCIA card, THAT is where the 3G/4G technology resides... and that is what you need to shop for. Look for a "universal carrier" or "unlocked" model; but ask (both the seller and your carrier) before you buy if it is supported by your carrier. I don't know how widespread 4G coverage is in North America yet; it has been adopted in many European countries and of course Japan always spearheads the newest communication technology; but here in The States companies have more of a "Let them suffer with the old technology as long as we can make them so we maximize our profit on the initial investment while we dole out the new stuff bit bit bit" kindof attitude - just like M$ & Intel.

You need to shop hard & educate yourself carefully... otherwise you'll wind up stuck in a 2 year relationship with a complete B!TCH (Like I did with Verisuck).

mnem
What a novel notion Apple has... ASK the customer what they want & MAKE it for them, instead of making what you want and telling the customer what they'll get...:wink:

 

CF-29 recovery disks. Saw these in case anyone needs them....

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-CF-29-Tough...ryZ42205QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Thanks! I've been looking for those every day for two weeks! Today was the first day I didn't look... Until now!

I bought them!

 

Those are for the MK4 are you sure that's what you all have? If not they will no worky

 

I think that most of us here have the mark 2. I know that mine is an ETK.

 

Crap... I have an MK2... I wasn't even paying attention to that. Are you sure they won't work?

I guess I can always throw them back on ebay.... The two set that guy had were snapped up really quick!

 

Why wouldn't they work? I'm asking cause I got no clue.

 

toughbook, i have not read the whole thread, but this is the model i work on the most.

the sled is indead the wireless modem. your sled is a sb555 (cdma) modem. either verizion or sprint.

gps on the unit, is in that sled as well. there is a third screw on the modem cover of the sled in the center to remove the cover. in the part of the cover that is extended a little bit is where the gps antenna goes, i cannot tell from the pics if yours has it or not.

its a little square antenna about 2x2 at max.


blue tooth, if you remove 2 screws from the rear of the hinge cover on the right side as your looking at the unit normally. then open the lid, remove the 4 from the keyboard cover and remove that, if your unit has blue tooth you will see a small pcb on the left above the hinge cover with a blue wire going to it,

then lift the keyboard up, be careful as the normal keyboard is held on the sides by the top cabinet.

there will be another 5 screws around a square piece where the keyboard cables go under. remove those 5 also remove the other 2 on the same hinge cover as before, and remove both covers.

once you get that off, you will see the pcmcia slots on the bottom right of the opening, then you will see the wireline (mdc) modem held on by 2 screws. then the lcd and inverter cables just above the modem.

BE CAREFUL if you remove those cables as they are easy to tear and not fun to replace.

i dont know off the top of my head if the 29 mark 2, (29E) came with bt or not. and i may be wrong on the following info, but i will keep an eye out for a board and make sure. but next to the modem you should see a spot for a cable to plug into but nothing is there. if your unit has no bt installed. if it does have bt there will be another pcb to the left of the modem.

i do know for sure that bt is an option on 29L and 29N models.

if you buy another 29 for parts, make sure you get the same mark, CF-29C is mark 1
CF-29E mark 2
CF-29H mark 3
CF-29L mark 4
CF-29N mark 5

 

the only recovery disks that will work with different marks are the 4/5

everything else will not work with another.

 

part number for the CDMA (SB555) modem is SB555S (for sprint) SB555V (for verizion)

gps kit part number for marks 1,2,3 is cf-wgp291
gps kit part number for marks 4,5 is cf-wgp292

i am unsure of the modem install kit for the sb555 at this time. i will try to find it in a few days tho.
gps kit has a different price than i was thinking. sorry yall im unsure of the price
cdma modem is around 350 (i think)



you can call panasonics tech support center, heartland services, and ask for the parts and give them the model number you want the parts for.

http://www.heartlandsi.com/contact/contact_us.aspx

they can tell you over the phone for sure what the prices are, and can get the parts to you.


for everything i am going to guess around 600

 

SOME 29s have a 12" screen, most of them are the 13"

the 12" screen is the transflective screen and is geared towards daylight, but even the 13" is decent in sunlight.

 

29s do not have a sensor to shut off the backlit keyboard.

none of them do. and the emissive keyboard is the one you have, its alot better than the rubberized.

 

TBTech... Thanks for the GREAT info.

What do you think the chances are of retrofitting the stylus sheath that comes on the handle of the CF-30 to the CF-29? Is it molded into the handle? Do you think it could be retrofitted? (Of course it can!!)

Also... With regard to the GPS on the CF-29.... I am assuming that it is a module that plugs into the bay like the Sprint module pictured above. Does the kit come with the antenna too?

Thanks for the info! It's nice to have a CF-29 tech hanging around!

 

TB Tech,
Welcome aboard! You raised the collective knowledge of the 29'ers a bunch.

If you look at an earlier post of TB's; he posted a photo of the exterior of his 29, with the bumpout antenna. Is that antenna part of the CDMA or what?

Do you know the part number for that antenna?

 

Thanks for the info. That answered a lot of questions...

 

the gps kit does come with the antenna, im unsure about the handle on the 30 atm tho, ill have to check that.


the gps antenna plugs into a sub pcb on the modem sled, it goes under the pcb that looks like an "L" be careful removing those screws on the pcb, they strip eaisly unless your using a really small screw driver.

the sub pcb will then connect to a zif socket on the "L" pcb, check yours first on the under side, some do not have this socket.

 

the bump out on the modem sled is where the gps antenna goes,

the antenna for the cdma and evdo modems are on the lcd cabinet, its a pull out antenna on the left side, rear cabinet.

i do not know that number off the top of my head.

 

I posted pics of the sled I have a few posts up. Can you tell by the pictures if I have the required connector?

 

I don't know about you guys but I added to TBTechs reputation as much as I could! I suggest everyone with a CF-29 should do the same!

 

Yea. Cool. I'd like to hear more about the GPS for the 29. That might be a mod that even I could handle...

 

Well... It looks like these kits are going to be around $500 - $600+ so I think I'll be modding my own. I just shot an email to Heartland to see what the pricing is. The first response was that they were out of stock and on backorder. I emailed Kara to see if she could dig up some more info.

I'll keep you all posted.

 

sorry that price does not seem right honestly. but then again i just service the stuff lol.

 

Heh heh heh... Look what I just picked up. Hopefully an easy fix...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=180215229035&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=008

 

Nice job TB. Here's to an easy fix for ya!!

 

If I can... And I think I can... It will be my test platform. It also has a bluetooth module in it that will go into the one I have now. I'll put my PCMCIA card in another one. The BT modules go for close to $300 online! (Crazy, I know!) They said it had a floppy in it but the picture showed a DVD. The good thing is... Heartland stocks parts for these... If I can get it fixed cheap enough I may buy the GPS sled for it!

 

ok guys i got the number for the handle from the cf-30 with the pen holder

the number is

DFKH8009YA-0


i do not know if it will interchange or not tho. or what it would take to make it fit. ive only worked on a couple of cf-30 and it was keyboard replacements.

 

It looked like the nylon stylus holder would come off of the handle on the CF-30. I've seen them on ebay without the stylus holder... Unless they were earlier versions. It looked like it would snap on the handle. You would think that someone would make a retrofit piece for the CF 27, 28, 29, etc. It would cost about .10 cents worth of plastic/nylon. I'm surprised they didn't make one earlier on!

 

The handle comes apart (split horizontally) and the stylus holder has a piece about 4" long held inside it. You'd have to cut off the insert and glue it onto the 29 handle. I'll have to look at dimensions but you might be able to just swap handles completely.

 

I'd bet it just needs a new internal hard drive cable since that's a pretty common problem.

 

Good job man - I was watching it but I jump out at $200 - was not sure what I was getting into so I let it go - glad you got it and have fun.

 

Mega... You bid on it?

Zero... That's what I was thinking... You wouldn't happen to know the part number off the top of your head would you?

 

Ya but I pussed out early - was not sure what was the deal - going to get a clean one first before I start getting abused orphans. I am sure you get a jem though. I am tying all my money up on other projects but going fishing for a good 29 once I get these done.

 

Not tonight I don't but I can check in the morning.

 

Well... They swear it goes out the next day and it's being shipped via Priority so I reckon I'll get it on Saturday or Monday. I'll keep everyone posted as to condition...

 

wHOO DOGGIE! Looks like ye got a steal there booBoo... I gotta imagine you'll be able ter fix it!

mnem
*Soooo F-ing tired*

 

Ok, I confirmed it. The handles for the 29 & 30 are interchangeable as a whole piece. The stylus part on the 30 will NOT work on the 29 unless you break off a thick piece & glue it on.

Toughbook - The # for the cable is DL3UP1269AAA. Also check your PMs

I just had to jump in on this one. Panasonic stopped using the 291's quite awhile ago and only use the 292's for all of them now. It's still ok to know for trying to find online but as far as Panasonic & Heartland is concerned, they aren't used anymore.

 

So, the only way to put GPS in the CF-29 is by a custom modded install? ( I guess unless you can find an old kit?)


Zero... We truly appreciate all your help! I've given you rep points until I can't anymore... I sugest that everyone else do the same!

Thanks a million!

 

So... "Handle - DFKH8009YA-0" will include the stylus too?

 

Not the stylus, just the stylus holder.


As for the GPS, I've never installed an entire kit, just replaced various parts. I'll check but I think the kit TBtech mentioned (CF-WGP292) has everything you need. If it's like any of the other kits though, it's a bit confusing to put together.