Dirt cheap PB180

[retrogmr]

First conquest post... and let me remind everyone that Craigslist is your buddy [] ]'>

Picked up a Powerbook 180 with AC Adapter for $20. It wouldn't turn on at first, which turned out to be as simple as removing the battery, then it fired right up. Bonus points scored because it has a 320MB drive and 14MB of RAM.

But in a dose of bad with good, the screen looks to be victim of tunnel vision, not sure how bad it will end up (it ran for about an hour before starting to fade out). In any event, it'll make a great spare for my other 180!

 

[MacDan]

How awesome. I'm off to Craigslist right......now.

 

[Franklinstein]

Tunnel vision is kind of sad. I've been wondering about how to cure it. I'm pretty sure it's caused mostly by failure of the adhesive holding the contacts to the panel, but am unsure as to how I would go about repairing it. Sourcing the replacement glue (some kind of special conductive junk) and removing the old stuff without damaging anything would most likely be the hardest parts.

But when they work, the 180s are wonderful, and that's not a bad price for one with those specifications.

 

[tomlee59]

Tunnel vision is kind of sad. I've been wondering about how to cure it. I'm pretty sure it's caused mostly by failure of the adhesive holding the contacts to the panel ...

Sadly, it's worse than that. It's in the panel itself. Evidently, the panel seals are defective near the corners, allowing moisture to diffuse in. Water is bad for liquid crystals.

 

[benjgvps]

Can the 180C suffer these problems as well?

 

[tomlee59]

I don't know. However, I can say that I've only seen this with monochrome active-matrix displays, for whatever that limited sampling is worth.

 

[retrogmr]

I have a 165C that has a very similar problem... although the effect is opposite; as the system is on longer, the corners go white, and eventually the whole screen gets washed out.

I also have a Duo 250 with the same problem, so it's definitely original active-matrix stuff. But when those screens are working right, they are oh-so-sharp and beautiful!