Xref: utzoo comp.sys.tandy:2699 comp.sys.laptops:1547 comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware:3349 Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!magnus.ircc.ohio-state.edu!news From: smsmith@hpuxa.ircc.ohio-state.edu (Stephen M. Smith) Newsgroups: comp.sys.tandy,comp.sys.laptops,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware Subject: Re: Tandy 1500 HD (WAIT! DON'T DO IT!) Message-ID: <1990Nov24.223734.9245@magnus.ircc.ohio-state.edu> Date: 24 Nov 90 22:37:34 GMT Sender: news@magnus.ircc.ohio-state.edu Organization: The Ohio State University (IRCC) Lines: 75 Nntp-Posting-Host: hpuxa.ircc.ohio-state.edu wmf@chinet.chi.il.us (Bill Fischer) writes: >(Thru the mirror of my mind) writes: >=>What have people heard about the Tandy 1500 HD. It seems to be a good >=>machine for the price, any used it? > >Had one demo'd to me the other day. Very nice. Good display, keyboard is >acceptable, battery life supposed to be better than the 1400 I currently have. >I think the influence of Tandy's purchase of GRID shows in the design. > >At 1699, seems like a pretty good buy. PORTABLE COMPUTING magazine called it >one of the best in price / performance. I don't know why people insist on paying $1000 more than they have to when they can get a better product for much less money. Let me compare Tandy's 286 laptop (2800 HD) with Packard Bell's 286 laptop: TANDY PACKARD BELL 286 CPU 286 CPU 1 MEG RAM 1 MEG RAM 640x400 EGA 640x480 VGA 20 MEG Hard Drive 40 MEG Hard Drive COST: $2999 COST: $2099 In other words, you get a better display and twice as much hard drive space for $900 less if you buy the Packard Bell. (Can you say "Tandy is a ripoff"?) But let's suppose you don't have this much money, and you want to spend $1699 for a laptop (as one of you unfortunate souls just did). What then? Well, first of all you could have bought it for $1599 if you had ordered it from Fort Worth Computers (1-800-433-7283). According to their ad in the Computer Shopper they are selling the Tandy 1500HD for *at least* $400 less than the list price. (Can you say "Crap! I spent too much!"?) Or if you want to buy another company's laptop for the same price, compare the following: TANDY-1500HD COMPUTREND TOSHIBA-T1200XE 8088 CPU 286 CPU 286 CPU 640k RAM 1 MEG RAM 1 MEG RAM (1.64 MEG max) (16 MEG max) (5 MEG max) 720k floppy 1.44 MB floppy 1.44 MB floppy 640x200 CGA 640x400 CGA ? (ad doesn't say) 20 MEG hard drive 40 MEG hard drive 20 MEG hard drive COST: $1699 COST: $1699 COST: $1290 The above is taken from Radio Shack's 1991 Tandy Computer Catalog (with $400 taken off the price according to a supposed "sale"), and the other two were taken from the recent Computer Shopper magazine (I just glanced through it to find these prices, so I'm sure there are even better deals around). The main difference between these computers is that the Tandy is built on the 8088 CPU (can you say "slow"?). The other two will not only fly right by the Tandy, but their floppy drives will hold twice the info and they have nearly twice the RAM. Now, everyone together..."Tandy is a ripoff, Tandy is a ripoff..." S. "Stevie" Smith \ + / ,,@ ircc.ohio-state. \ + / {7%*@,..":27g)-=,#*:.#,/6&1*.4-,l@#9:-) " edu> \ + / BTW, WYSInaWYG \ + / --witty.saying.ARC