Which laptop has a floppy that I can use to make 800k disks?

[ioncehadamac]

Hi guys,

I have an SE, and I would like to have a second machine that can make disks for it.

For the superdrive, I think any model of powerbook should do, since they all use 1.44 floppy drives, and if they have a USB port I can just use an external usb drive to make floppy.

But for the 800k I have no options since that require a specific drive running on a real macintosh, so I can't use anything else.

Which ones are the models that can make 800k disks, among the old powerbooks? I was thinking about the Wallstreet or the 1400c? Would these be good for a bridge machine between my modern mac pro and the old SE?

 

[rsolberg]

The PowerBook G3 Wallstreet/PDQ is the last to be equipped with a floppy drive, and it is 800k compatible. I use my Wallstreet 292 running OS 8.6 as a bridge between my modern Macs and older ones. I have a 2GB CF card formatted HFS+ that I use in place of a flash drive. It goes into a USB card reader on my modern Macs, then into a PC Card adapter in the Wallstreet. It mounts on the desktop without any fuss in 8.6, and by using HFS+, El Capitan can write to it and I don't get wrecked resource forks.

 

[Carboy7]

Floppy drive? I recommend the PowerBook 500 series. Nice little laptop and has a built-in 800k floppy drive.

I like the Wallstreet series idea, but it could be hard to find a working one that has the FDD module installed.

 

[ioncehadamac]

Thanks for your suggestions.

So the wallstreet would be fine; and same goes for the powerbook 500 series. The Wallstreet seems to come with the cd as default, which means that I have to hunt down the floppy module; and that makes me a bit nervous since I didn't find any on sale lately that has it.

The 500 would be a better option, I see plenty of 520 and 540 around, although no color version. So it would be better a 500 series compared to a 1400 series? I am also looking for something that can eventually become collectible, and from what I can tell from the prices, the 400 and 1400 seems to be entering in the collector area I don't have space to fit multiple machines, so I have to pick one that can be considered the "all around" laptop from the powerbook era, that can both work with new and old macintosh.

 

[TheWhiteFalcon]

1400's not a bad option either.

 

[ioncehadamac]

I was thinking about the 1400 because it has a ppc, and a PCMCIA, so I "assume" that I can plug in a ethernet PCMCIA card and a CF adapter, so I can both have networking on it, and a solid state drive so I can put aside the original noisy drive.

BTW is the 1400CS and 1400C the same? From what I recall the only difference was the monitor, which is worst on the CS; but they both are pretty bad, considering modern standards so should not really matter, tight?

Not sure if I can do the same with the 520

 

[asaggynoodle]

I'd stick with the Wallstreet, as it's the most modern of your options. Plus you're going to pay a collectors premium on anything older than the Wallstreet, as it's probably the most economically feasible option. There are a few FDD expansion modules on eBay for it too: 

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2055119.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xpowerbook+floppy+module.TRS2&_nkw=powerbook+floppy+module&_sacat=0

Be warned, of all the PB's i've had (a ton), a VAST substantial majority of them have unreliable Floppy Disk Drives.

 

[ioncehadamac]

I see; although I am more interested in the machine as bridge between the old and new world, and for the collector "feel"; I am not planning to use the machine for any modern activity like surfing the web and such, so if it is more modern or less modern won't really change things for me

I did check the prices on Ebay, and seems that the price may vary wildly to be honest. Some were on sale for 40 dollars, others for 300, and they were mostly the same (I did check 520, 1400 and wallstreet g3); obviously the "untested" ones were cheaper, but I am looking for a machine that is already in working condition. I may able to snug a wallstreet for less than a hundred maybe; which is what I had in mind, plus the floppy module

 

[CelGen]

I use a 100 series Powerbook with 800k disks regularly but I can also agree that a Wallstreet Powerbook is more preferred due to onboard network connectivity.

 

[danikayser84]

I use a Wallstreet as my bridge machine between the modern and classic world; I put a USB PCMCIA card in one of the slots so I can use a flash drive on the machine for easier transfer (the other slot can be a CF to PCMCIA adapter for transfers to 190/1400 PowerBooks, a FireWire adapter or the DVD playback card) Also have a VST ZIP 100 drive and a VST LS120 drive for it as well as the standard Apple floppy drive and DVD drive (wasn't there some VST CD burner for the Wallstreet too?)

 

[MidnightCommando]

Wallstreet or 1400c. 

Can't go wrong. 

 

[bunnspecial]

I heartily endorse the Wallstreet/PDQ

The 3400c/Kanga is also a good choice if you can find one, but you'll pay more than for a Wallstreet/PDQ

 

[Cory5412]

+1 for the 1400 recommendation, especially over the 500 series, where the floppy drive is built in, but the 500 series isn't fun unless you're in it for the long haul, buying and restoring bits for that particular machine.

I had two, they were nice performers for their age and size, but their hinges were both broken, and although I was able to bring the batteries back to life, the systems were far from portable, for the hinge issue.

Running system 8.6, the 1400 will read CF cards, although mine won't read them in 7.6.1. The 2400 and 3400 should read CF media with a pcmcia adapter in system 7.1 though, so the 3400 or a 2400 with the floppy diskette drive may be the best way to go if you want to run 7.6.1 on the bridge machine.

 

[Carboy7]

Ah yes, those hinges. I have to agree with you there, Cory. Stupid threaded inserts, always breaking and ruining my day!

You just need to prop it upright and well enough that the hinges don't blow up... b:

 

[ioncehadamac]

Thanks for your suggestions! So far I was able to acquire a 520; one of my coworkers had one and was trashing it; so I jumped on and got it it is not the color version but it is fine as is.

Although I did realize that it does have a SCSI drive and no PCMCIA (forget about getting a module for it), so while it is a nice extra for my collection (did I mention free? ) ; I am looking for the 1400 at this point (ide drive, PCMCIA, score!); not too many at interesting prices, so still looking. I did find some ibook clamshell though; which I really like...but I guess it won't work using an external USB floppy, since it won't make 800k disks

I saw few wallstret; at reasonable prices, but not with the floppy module; I could get it as separate purchase, and that would solve the problem. Or hope that another cowrker has one

 

[Bunsen]

Wallstreet or 1400c. 

Can't go wrong. 

Both are good, but the Wallstreet has Cardbus (32 bit) rather than PCMCIA (16 bit), so has the advantage of being able to use USB and Firewire cards, for example.

They also use standard SODIMMs for RAM, and can take a lot more of it (512MB?) than the 1400's 56MB limit of impossible to find model-specific proprietary RAM.

They're just in general all-round better machines, IMO, and strangely, not attract the collector-frenzy pricing yet.

BTW the 1400c LCD is much, much better than the cs.  Worlds apart.

 

[Bunsen]

Sidenote, if a floppy drive can write 800k disks, can it also write 400k disks?  Or is there a different cutoff for those?

 

[rsolberg]

400k support is limited by software. System 7.1 (Update 3) is the latest to have read, write, and format capability for MFS disks. System 7.5.5 can read and write, but not format MFS. Mac OS 7.6.1 is read only. Mac OS 8 and later cannot read or write MFS floppies, but Disk Copy 6.3.3 can make 400k MFS disks from an image on any 7.x-9.2.2 system with a built in floppy drive.

 

[FacnyFreddy]

I have the VST LS120 drive in a pismo that works perfectly with nearly every floppy I've run across... except for the much loved 800kb!!!

I could never get it to work and instead moved everything over to 1.44MB as a result.

The LS120 VST drives are out there, but, they are not a savior by any means for every formatted disk.