just joined the toughbook "club"

About to get a cf-m34 that I won a few days ago...


I currently own a reliable t-41..I call it tim duncan...........reliable,not flasy but dependable and works very well.



this toughbook...cult/club/secret society is pretty strong out in the world....what's the secret handshake?




no, seriously...........this board helped me greatly before I got the t41...and warned me of the motherboard issue...that was prevalent.



what do you guys/ladies use the cf-m34 for.......primarily....and what's gonna be something to watch out for...?

I bought it as a second laptop...and depending on how well it works...I'm gonna give it or the t41 to my nieces....




thanks in advance....

*and not for nothing..............aren't the smaller/older toughbooks the original olpc's if you think about it......and the original netbooks?



also...what do you guys think of the promo ads running for the toughbooks? life is tough....

 

768mb Mk5

Cf-m34 Xp

 

Welcome to the Toughbook forum

My thoughts on netbooks

Yes the m34 , and later on the cf18 and cf19 could possibly though of as a netbook , except for the price

The trend that started a year ago was helped by the poor economy
Pricing a laptop at $350 was perfect timing
The used toughbooks start at $350 for a used model and the main model that I use the most my cf-19 is still over $1000 used




Alex

 

LOL.... well, you guys are forgetting the Sony PictureBook series - they were the original "netbook" in everything but price; in fact, it is quite obvious that ASUS just took EVERYTHING from the PCG-C1VPK and made it... cheaper. They had a full function laptop one could use in the palm of one's hand back in the Windows 2000 days; those machines STILL have a fanatical following because they REALLY were ahead of their time.

Sony has always had this problem; they keep trying to "OWN" every market they enter and try to force their way into the "Aspirational Brand" slot wherever they go. I can remember a dozen different times with a dozen different products saying "if Sony would just get their heads out of their @sses and cut the price on this now-established product instead of waiting for the cheap knockoffs to kill them, they could completely OWN this market" but NO... they have this congenital cranial-rectal inversion going on, so even now they haven't produced anything in that critical 300-400 dollar range, and they're going to lose out on a market they COULD have been the household name of.

If they had sold those Picturebooks for $600 instead of $1600 back then, we would all be referring to them as a "Sony" the same way we refer to a photocopier as a Xerox...

mnem
a douc4ebag by any other name...

 

I have owned several M34s since they were introduced way back in the 90's. I recently 'upgraded' to a CF-18 for its video-out and integrated GPS features but I find myself going back to the M34 frequently. I found the lack of USB 2.0 and integrated Wifi on the earlier M34s to be somewhat limiting but these concerns were addressed in the mk7. Although the CF-18 is only slightly larger and heavier than the M34, IMO it 'feels' and looks 'plasticky'. It reminds me of my son's transformer toy and lacks the clean, dense, functionality of the M34. I still shake my head when I come across one of the 'winged-wonder' Verizon CF-18 ! Has anyone tried tossing one of these to see if it will glide ?

 

thanks all



the first olpc i saw looked exactly like a cf-18


Sony was worried about keeping their image as high end electronics company.

funny though...entry level sony products, when they do make them, are always garbage..

 

Welcome here and congratulations.

I still use two Sony 505's all the time and also have a working CF-31 that I still like a lot.

To me though the original was the HP OmniBook series with the pop-out mouse and instant on.
They were well made and mine still work great.
Why can't they get instant on to work yet....again?

Ed

 

The cfm34 are very good machines and were really well built.

They do have shortcomings and those are the fact that they only have one USB port, no video out for presentations and a 800x600 screen that is less comfortable for internet browsing than the 1024*768 of say the cf18.

I do have several toughbooks but when I go out traveling I take my well seasoned err..worn out cfm34 mk5 and confidently toss it anywhere inside my car without any fear of someone seating or stepping on it.I don't know if it's just me but I just don't feel the same way about the cf18.

 

libretough-

I am correct to assume based on your ID that you also work with the Toshiba Libretto ? I think those were the ultimate netbooks for their time and I still have a few laying around that I power up and play with from time to time. They were the perfect size anything even slightly bigger was just to big.

 

Yes, you are right I have worked a lot on the libbys. and also still have some laying around.
Mostly on the earlier ones...Then they were called palmtops and were the ultimate in portability and function for certain uses.You could run a Powerpoint presentation from them directly to a projector just by using the small port expander and it would fit into your lab coat pocket without any problem but the next generation of librettos was bigger and no longer fit into a pocket so in my opinion it actually became part of the mini notebooks like the Omnibook, the cfm31 the smaller Vaios from Sony or the 3000 series Porteges from Toshiba.
At that point the picturebook was the smallest full fledged laptop that you could get but it had a more usable keyboard and an integrated USB port.I did like it and still have one of the latter models that ran at 733 mhz however as I have said before..when I travel I use my faithful cfm34.
I got an ASUS Netbook as a gift and used it for a couple of weeks.It is lightweight but I didn't feel like replacing my Toughbook with it. If I need something really lightweight I would rather use the Libretto or the Picturebook depending on the intended use and/or need for a comfortable keyboard.At about the same size but noticeably heavier....and stronger than any netbook the cfm34 it's for me the best netbook even while it wasn't born as one..just retired to become one.

 

I still prefer the 16:9 aspect ratio of the PictureBooks to the 4:3 aspect ratio of the CF-34; though I still really did LOVE my Dell L400s for years and years. I had to let them retire though, for the same reason as my PictureBook - even with the fast Crusoe processor, it STILL wasn't up to the task of modern active-content websites; and that is my benchmark for minimum functionality - If I repeatedly websurf for less than 30 minutes and hit a site that my computer itself chokes on, it's time for a new one.

The drawback with my L400s and Picturebooks was the same bottleneck; LIMITED RAM. The BIOS in the L400 only supported 256MB; while the Picturebook used proprietary (Of course - BLEEP YOU, Sony) RAM that was never released in amounts providing greater than 368MB... Aftermarket suppliers purportedly made a custom board that would let you have a total of 512MB, but those were NASA expensive... I sold my Picturebook (with the merely incredibly expensive 256MB Total RAM) for enough to buy an ASUS netbook AND a 32GB SSD.

While I agree with you that the ASUS KB is a TOTAL P.O.S. the switch to Touchpad pointing device MORE than made up for it; if I NEVER see another BLEEEEPing J-mouse again it'll be too soon.

My next one WILL be an HP 10; I'm in LOVE with the 94% KB, and there are people hacking them for Touchscreen just like they're hacking the ASUS...

mnem
I know a guy named Jack; he looks like a bone in a paper sack, that's my friend Jack...

 

Yeap
I absolutely agree with you...the ram limitation was the ultimate bottleneck for those machines.
I really liked their form factor and general functionality.Fortunately the proprietary ram craze has faded away...at least for now.

 

the sony picturebooks grew out of the "PDA" genre?


I can't tell everybody how charged I am to be getting the toughbook....my friend said it's so small...i'm actually getting a tough/novel.tough short story instead of a toughbook.....

it's all good......


"retied and became a netbook" that's a good line...........


I first got fascinated by them when I'd see the listings for them on auction sites...and the specs weren't that great.....but they'd always sell before the end of the auction and the price was more than what I thought the specs justified...

 

As far as I know the picturebook was Sony's answer to Toshiba's palmtop..the libretto.
The cfm34 toughbooks were born definitely as anything but a cheap netbook they were the best compromise between size and ruggedness.. and for those of you that don't already know this fact there is one cfm34 on display at the Smithsonian air and space museum in Washington D.C. alongside the r14a dragon eye that it was used to control.
How many laptops do you know that ever received that kind of "honorable discharge from service"?

 

Never knew a toughbook was displayed at the Smith.

that adds to the legend/history of the machine.

The fact that military personnel / law enforcement...uses them really speaks to the durabilty and functionality of them.

During the "SUV trend " initial phase when people were rushing out and getting them...I was trying to warn people that most of those trucks were pretty and not much else. That winter....we saw tons of these suv's stuck along the road.....tires spinning...

What I told people was, if you're going to get one....speak to person from a country with bad roads and see what kinds of suvs that the people drive or what kinds of trucks people send back home....

what good are aesthetics if there isn't anything practical underneath it ?


the m34 is the rare thing that's visually appealing as well as practical....I make the joke that it's half french and half german.


*no offense..........au revior and auf wiedersehen

 

ok...I dug and found the link to the dos and dont's about buying/selling laptops online...........


sort of mirrors the rules i've used to get items from those sites in general......
generally...I won't buy from person without 100 rating because then they are completely motivated to do exactly what they said they will do and send the item exactly as described.....


I broke my rule this time so i hope it turns out well...



a general question about these machines , assuming the machines are all functional......and just used for simple webs surfing, word processing....and realplayer download of videos

starting from a base of 900 mhz processor and about 786 mb ram....

which factor is more important and which one can be lowered..

for example 1.0 gigahertz processor and 512 mb

or sub 900 processor and 1 gig ram


which toughbook is the better value for the simple tasks the machine will be used for?

Again...I ask because I see 256 mb toughbooks disappear in 2 hours....and those are the ones where the max ram is 256....


I have friends and family that I can't loan items to because they are just too rough with things and they will get damaged .................

I generally get one gift per year to people i know and it's usually a very practical gift....for their birthday, chistmas, kwanzaa,"Festivus" all combined...
like i'd get subscription to consumer reports mag. or something...


store that I purchased from has a bunch more...so if this one is functional...i may just get all my shopping done at once.

 

Well, that was a baad rule to break.Always check why was the negative posted and unless it was a really frivolous one stay away from that seller.
I consider that right now the best values depending on the mix of weight/size/integration are the cf28s and cfm34s because the 29 and 18 have become more popular and affordable an thus have pushed the prices of the 28 and 34 down.
For basic tasks with a properly tweaked XP a 600mhz PIII with 256mb should be enough and 384 or 512mb even better.The ram is more important than the speed in most instances.
May I ask for the link to the seller or your purchase so I can give you more specific insight,

 

theres a company in virginia got a lot of m34s on ebay at the minute "2nd solutions", i got a m34mk6 minus the hard drive for$76 couple of days ago,its costing nearly same again to ship to uk, but over here they still go for 3 or 4 times, that i should hopefully have it in a week or so, any one else ever dealt with them ?

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/PANASONIC-TOUGH...ov05?hash=item4a9a53cf29&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

here is the listing.....


I contacted 3 ebayers who had purchased the same item from the seller(from the feedback list......all from different months)....and asked about how the machines worked and what the shipping was like... they all said things worked out well.

I generally do this before buying items too....haven't been burned...yet.

 

it was a choice between the one that I paid for and a bunch of similar spec cf 28s from this store and a few others...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Panasonic-Tough...ov05?hash=item4148acc0f2&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14



I went for the 786mb m34 over the 512mb cf-28s.....

 

Did you read the guy's feedback rating? The first guy on the list is still waiting for his CF-M34 over one month later...

I hope you have better luck. As one of the prior posts state... That was a bad rule to break.

 

Agree with you Rick

Did you happen to notice who that buyer was that left the last negitive feedback
He is an experianced ebayer that usualy sells toughbooks
I remember his listings as he uses the same red background panasonic wallpaper that I put on Robs public download site for our members to download

Back to your listing getthesenets

Your seller has said in the listing
"Refurbished"
"no need for any wifi adapters,this one is already buiilt in"

Well thats sort of true

The cfm-34 in the later models had built-in wi-fi , but in yours its just built-in my means of a pcmcia card

Refurbished
Thats nonsense
There is only a couple of ebay sellers that make a claim like that and get away with it , and that seller is not one of them

Alex

 

Yeah, you guys are all speaking truth.

I've opened a dispute with paypal so eventually I'll get my money back...
seller might be doing me a favor by being himself/herself.......




crooks are a waste of skin.....

 

I got the tracking number just a few minutes ago....

I'll keep you posted.....


any newbie reading this.............learn from my mistake......

 

I am not an experienced Ebayer for certain! I learned a hard lesson earlier in the month. I had put an offer on 3 toughbooks. Never came to my mind that what if all 3 take it! I did really low ball them though. One guy did take my offer so I had to buy it. Thank god it all worked out perfectly. Except for the Ram situation. I really got lucky to say the least. I ended up with a CF30 MK3 with 80 hours on it, not a scratch on it for about a fifth of what it sells for new. However, I could have gotten burned really bad.

I would like to get my son, 11 years old, a used Toughbook. I might need to look into the one's your looking at. He is rather rough on things to say the least!

BTW, welcome to the group! These are some of the most nicest, generous, knowledgable people on the net that I have come across. I hope you enjoy this place as much as I do!

 

Scary feedback.. but if you get one that is in good working order you got a good deal.

The feedbacks usually tell a lot about post sales behavior of the sellers.

Usually it is a good idea to pay a little more and play it safe.

 

thanks...and yeah....i feel comfortable here....this is a REALLY cool place..reminds me of when I first started lifting years ago....and how lucky i was to be in a gym where everybody gave me great and practical advice...it made a huge difference in my development.


my idea to go ahead and buy the machine was temporary brain freeze...but thanks to the replies here....I feel like it's a learning experience however it turns out.


I was being selfish at first....and was reluctant to share my story for fear of looking like a rube.....but if somebody else can read this and make a better informed decision in the future...I can deal with feeling like a sucker... it's all good....

there's a learning curve with everything


i'm a toughbook convert so this won't be my last machine....

 

machine came in


bigger than I thought it would be.........

heavier also

screen is not as tiny as I imagined....


seller is just very unprofessional...machine was filthy....top cover was considerably more scuffed up than the photo.....screen was dirty...strap was filthy


machine is functional though...

my toughbook starter kit





it'll do............

 

So the sellers claim that it is "Refurbished" is …just printed words on a EBay listing

But I’m happy that you received it



Alex

 

Well, I contacted her through 3rd party resolution and I get the impression that she just might be in over her head. Like she has a contact in some institution that gets her access to the machines..............but doesn't know the basics of commerce or tech stuff.

not understanding the difference between used and refurbished....


not tested or anything...but I went ahead and bought it anyway


no excuses for the machine to arrive in such a dirty condition..........though...





THERE is NO way I could give this machine to ANY member of my family...
so I have to part ways with my t41......and make do with this one..


it works decently though.....so it's all good.............

gonna search the forum for ways to coat/paint the exterior top............the scuffs and scrapes are too much..even for a toughbook....

 

Painting is not that difficult...if you prepare the surface properly. Attached is the CF-M34 I did in flat OD green and it was quite scratched before I started. If you have any deep gouges, try using some body filler first. Just make sure you do the sand/prime/sand before you go to the color coats. Also, you will get opinions from everyone in this forum on whether to paint/not paint and reasons why/why not. It is yours and if you want just go for it as it really will not hinder the ops in any way for most of your applications.

 

Dood... It's a TOUGHBOOK! You should have seen some of the ones I've seen over the years... Soda, coffee, crumbs, hair (of all animals) tar, dust, dirt, grease, grime... You name it. I had one I bought from another auction house that came with a case. Inside the case were a few cards of the veterinarian (apparently) that it belonged to before. That Toughbook had soooooo much hair on it and inside it... Mostly cat hair (It looked like). The Toughbook overall was in pretty good condition... It just needed a good vacuuming and to be disinfected. (Which I do with all mine) And these are the ones I buy from good, reliable sources that I have purchased from in the past!

The ones I have purchased from ebay in the past have been VERY bad. They always seem to be worse than the pictures or different entirely. Missing port covers that aren't mentioned, etc.

I would leave the appropriate feedback so the next buyer knows what they are getting!

 

ST,

thanks...that color is HARD!!

Toughbook,

thanks also..how do you disinfect a toughbook?.....yeah I gave the seller negative rating and explained that she's just unprofessional....and to not buy from her.


she was using the same images from
previous sale items and just using stock descriptions from her previous auctions

 

Rick, I saw his post about painting and thought you were going to scowl.

I am glad it all worked out for you in the end! You have just been injected with a highly addictive drug, a great non illegal drug!

 

BTW, if you are still interested in painting, here is another scheme I have used.

 

That looks pretty freakin awesome Troop!

 

That looks excellent Robert

Quite professional looking…It complements the Toughbook look

Someone here will be using your pictures for their avatar I’m sure
Cough Toyo Cough

Your completed paint design is not like the average ebay seller that just takes a can of red or blue spray paint to a scratched up model

I used to paint the lid on the cf-71’s that I sold a few years ago
That model had no rubber bumpers to protect the lid and the surface was smooth so even the three year old models that I received had major worn-out places on the lids

I just prepped and painted them a close to the original grey that I could find
Most of the over two dozen that I sold are still in use today
My restoration work did not hold out too well as the paint did not adhere as well as the factory
The lack of the rubber bumpers to protect the edges on the early semi-rugged cf-71’s was the main issue

How durable is the paint on the units that you have worked on
Have any been used for a few years


Alex

 

Alex/Toyo,

I have only done a few painted Toughbooks, like everyone else I prefer to leave them "au naturel" if possible. If I am going to paint, I approach them just as I would any other paint project...prep!prep!prep! Using a quality paint is good, but disassembly (as much as you can/dare) makes for a more professional result. The process the Toughbooks go through is more like powder coating or a baked finish and it is almost impossible to duplicate unless you have the professional equipment. I am thinking about using Duracoat or one of the other gun finishes on a Toughbook to see if it gives a more durable finish. If using one of the baked on finishes you have to be careful when putting a TB lid in an oven (could be bad!)

Bottom line to remember...above all else it is a Toughbook! Some people view the scrapes, bumps and scratches as badges of honor. However, if you have one you wish to paint, why not go for it? The nice part about painting, if you get scratches or chips, just use a small brush and touch up the spots! the other nice thing about paint...if you f@#K up you can just repaint.

Just as life is more about the journey than the destination, working with TB's as a hobby is meant to be enjoyed (although frustrating at times), so whatever you wish to do....

Robert

 

I was scowling under my breath... You guys know what I think of painting these... But I think long-term... Not short-term.

getthesenets... I use a variety of solvents but good old 91% isopropyl alcohol over every exterior surface is what I end up doing. You can't do that on the CF-28 though as some of the coatings will come off. In that case I use a mix of 91% isopropyl alcohol, soap and water... Every laptop is 100%dirt and germ free...

 

it's a lemon


not only doesn't hold a charge.....doesn't power up with the ac adaptor


less than 5 days after receiving it...

 

I too just joined the toughbook club, Have been reading all I can on my model here, the cf-29HT. I have learned alot already.

Thanks for the education, I may have to go back to school to understand you guys !

Derrick

 

Thats bad
Batterys I understand,my cfm34 battery would only hold about 5 minutes charge
The first thing I did was to replace the battery

Will it show a charge light when pluged in
Or is it dead/no lights

Alex

 

even when plugged in.......orange light.....but doesn't power up....or turn on...

 

You'll get the hang of it quickly...

 

just an update

the seller is no longer on ebay....and third party is currently working out how suckers...er i mean buyers like me will be compensated...

just an ugly ugly ordeal...some stressed out miserable people out there ripping people off....



we keep it moving though...

this time i stuck to my original ebay rules...

100% feedback.....actual photos....and they answered 3 of my questions BEFORE the purchase...

got a cf 48 coming in.....good warranty and will get the square trade one once this one expires...

at the very least this item is functional and clean

So Once again.....

asking about what to expect with the cf-48................


thanks for the feedback in this thread...it helped me make a more sensible (and informed) decision this time

 

You should Google "Square Trade Warranties" and see if it is worth your money. I'd say no. This forum is your warranty!

 

Yeah I've gotta get out of the civilian(maggot) ranks and into the game.

You make sense TB, though for some strange reason now..i feel like I've got to do 50 pushups.....and carry my rifle with my thumb in my mouth...now...

 

Every time I buy another Toughbook off Ebay, I always get the "protect your purchase with Squaretrade Warranty" email. I look at it this way, if I was spending big bucks on another vehicle I would probably get an aftermarket warranty (a valid/reputable one) as they can be well worth the money if one major system goes bad. (After 11 years at a Chevy dealer, believe me I know they can be worth the cost). However, with a TB, unless you are spending several thousand $ (and then you should still have factory warranty), there is really no need for a warranty as most of the parts can be had fairly cheap. Plus, as TB said, this forum can give you as much (or more) than any warrranty for no charge!

 

Hi all,

Just thought I'd say hi and thanks to everyone here. I've been in the club (and on the forums) for a few months, I started with a cf-28P I bought to use at work but the screen was too small (12 inch touch) so I got a newer 28M with the 13 inch screen, promptly bought another that was too good to pass up, and finally sprung for a 29H a couple of weeks ago, all off eBay and all in pretty good shape. The information here is great, it's helped me figure out what toughbook to get, and helped with the add ons like wifi and getting the touch screens working. My plans are to take two of the 28's, adding the external antenna wifi hack and putting them back on eBay to see if they'll pay for the 29, and keep the old and beat up 28 for work. I also use a Toshiba Satellite, but the Toshiba is like a racehorse where the Toughbook is like a warhorse, she's fast and pretty to look at but really delicate. Now, if I can only justify buying a 30...

Tom

 

ok.............got the 48 early this morning....

gonna test it and clean it later....


now.....gonna try to salvage the m34....since it's already paid for and 3rd party isn't gonna give me recourse

kind of regret throwing it against the floor now out of frustration...