RFM@psuvm.psu.edu (05/12/91)
I almost freaked out when I finally got around to reading my May 6 edition of InfoWorld. They ran a comparison of 286 laptops, and here's the Tandy 2810 getting one of their top ratings, along with the Dell 212n and the Zeos Notebook 286. Two other machines that also got high ratings were the Grid 1720 and the Panasonic 270, both of which are Tandys under their skin. Wonders never cease! BobM
anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber) (05/12/91)
In article <91131.224709RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> RFM@psuvm.psu.edu writes: >got high ratings were the Grid 1720 and the Panasonic 270, both of >which are Tandys under their skin. Wonders never cease! Actually, just about every single MS-DOS machine that Tandy sells right now is actually a Pansonic. Sometimes the Tandy version is a bit different, like DeskMate in ROM. The Tandy 2810 is actually the Panasonic 270, just like the Tandy 1100FD is a Pansonic 150B, minus the backlight, and RAM expansion, but with DeskMate. The GRiD 1720 is really a GRiD, the company was bought out by Tandy some time ago. Basicly, Tandy just bought the right hardware. Tandy hasn't made original equipment for some time now, I think the Tandy 6000 was one of the last. I'm not even sure the CoCo was entirely developed by them. Still, it's good equipment. My TRS-80 M100 (custom manufactured by Kyocera for Tandy) is still working fine, after five years. -- <-:(= Anthony Stieber anthony@csd4.csd.uwm.edu uwm!uwmcsd4!anthony Psion Mailing List subscriber submissions psion ----------\ the (human) moderator psion-owner -------+--@csd4.csd.uwm.edu subscriptions and file requests psion-request ----/
<RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> (05/13/91)
In article <12082@uwm.edu>, anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber) says: >Actually, just about every single MS-DOS machine that Tandy sells right >now is actually a Pansonic... >The GRiD 1720 is really a GRiD, the company was bought out by Tandy >some time ago. Basicly, Tandy just bought the right hardware. Tandy >hasn't made original equipment for some time now, I think the Tandy >6000 was one of the last. I'm confused. I thought Tandy had factories in Texas where they made their products. What do they do? Assemble panasonics there and slap the tandy label on them? BobM
jackw@nstar.rn.com (Jack Wiggins) (05/13/91)
RFM@psuvm.psu.edu writes: > I almost freaked out when I finally got around to reading my May 6 > edition of InfoWorld. They ran a comparison of 286 laptops, and > here's the Tandy 2810 getting one of their top ratings, along with > the Dell 212n and the Zeos Notebook 286. Two other machines that also > got high ratings were the Grid 1720 and the Panasonic 270, both of > which are Tandys under their skin. Wonders never cease! > BobM I don't know about the others but my borother in law has a Zeos Notebook 286 and I agree that it's a nice unit. A bigger HD would've been nice... -- Jack Wiggins NSTAR conferencing site 219-289-0287/317-251-7391 internet: jackw@nstar.rn.com 1300 newsgroups - 8 inbound lines uucp: ..!uunet!nstar.rn.com!jackw 99 file areas - 4300 megabytes --- backbone news & mail feeds available - contact larry@nstar.rn.com ---
jim@rwsys.lonestar.org (James Wyatt KA5VJL) (05/13/91)
In article <91131.224709RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> RFM@psuvm.psu.edu writes: >got high ratings were the Grid 1720 and the Panasonic 270, both of >which are Tandys under their skin. Wonders never cease! And in <12082@uwm.edu> anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber) answers: >Actually, just about every single MS-DOS machine that Tandy sells right >now is actually a Pansonic. Sometimes the Tandy version is a bit >different, like DeskMate in ROM. The Tandy 2810 is actually the >Panasonic 270, just like the Tandy 1100FD is a Pansonic 150B, minus the >backlight, and RAM expansion, but with DeskMate. >The GRiD 1720 is really a GRiD, the company was bought out by Tandy >some time ago. Basicly, Tandy just bought the right hardware. Tandy >hasn't made original equipment for some time now, I think the Tandy >6000 was one of the last. I'm not even sure the CoCo was entirely >developed by them. Still, it's good equipment. My TRS-80 M100 (custom >manufactured by Kyocera for Tandy) is still working fine, after five >years. Since Anthony knows *so much* about what Tandy manufactures and what they buy, maybe he should look *inside* the Panasonic machines for a change... Tandy has several nice highly-automated, high-yield computer production lines here in Fort Worth. (It's nice to find repairable reject motherboards at the outlet stores here and roll-your-own machine!) Tandy has made many other computers since the 6000 for sale to Radio Shack (of course), Grid, Panasonic, Digital Equipment, and others. I've seen the press releases in the Wall Street Journal (for Panasonic) and EE Times (for DEC). The machines for Panasonic are interesting because the machines are made in Fort Worth, Texas, USA and sold to a *Japanese* company. Most of the custom ASICs used in Tandy's machines were designed by Tandy for cost/size/power reduction here in FW at Tandy's R&D department. The designs have come a long way from the old 3000HD to the 2500XL2, but they designed and *built* them both, they didn't '...just buy the right hardware.'! Since Tandy has so much invested in product design and manufacturing, they can make zillions of machines, label and bundle them however anyone wants, and deliver them for less than others can make their own. DEC makes minis, needs powerful PCs to network to them, and doesn't want to buy IBM PS/2s ( 1/2 8{), so they buy Tandy's. We know they can't make their own from the last time they tried. (I owned a Rainbow 250 for several weeks, okay?) Sorry for the diatribe, but I *hate* seeing a load of (pick one: crap, hogwash, rubbish, counter-truths, baseless idiocy, etc...) like that go uncontested, especially after working with the department being derated. I did notice, the first guy got it right. Most others in this group likely know the truth, right? (except Joe Applegate 8{) NOTE: I do software work (not DeskMate in ROM either! 8{) and (above all) I speak about, not *for* Tandy. I don't even make many decisions for them... ---- James Wyatt (KA5VJL) - Why is my life so much HARDER than everyone else's? jim@rwsys.lonestar.org or utacfd!letni!rwsys!jim (H)817-595-0571
brs@cci632.cci.com (Brian Scherer) (05/13/91)
In article <12082@uwm.edu> anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber) writes: >In article <91131.224709RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> RFM@psuvm.psu.edu writes: >>got high ratings were the Grid 1720 and the Panasonic 270, both of >>which are Tandys under their skin. Wonders never cease! > >Actually, just about every single MS-DOS machine that Tandy sells right >now is actually a Pansonic. Sometimes the Tandy version is a bit >different, like DeskMate in ROM. The Tandy 2810 is actually the >Panasonic 270, just like the Tandy 1100FD is a Pansonic 150B, minus the >backlight, and RAM expansion, but with DeskMate. > >The GRiD 1720 is really a GRiD, the company was bought out by Tandy >some time ago. Basicly, Tandy just bought the right hardware. Tandy >hasn't made original equipment for some time now, I think the Tandy >6000 was one of the last. I'm not even sure the CoCo was entirely >developed by them. Still, it's good equipment. My TRS-80 M100 (custom >manufactured by Kyocera for Tandy) is still working fine, after five >years. >-- ><-:(= Anthony Stieber anthony@csd4.csd.uwm.edu uwm!uwmcsd4!anthony > Psion Mailing List >subscriber submissions psion ----------\ >the (human) moderator psion-owner -------+--@csd4.csd.uwm.edu >subscriptions and file requests psion-request ----/ You are wrong, tandy still does r&d work, and manufactures their own computers. They do all their own design work, then put bids out to not only their manufacturing facilies but also to others. The lowest bidder who can deliver the quality pruduct wins. Tandy manufactures their own ms-dos computers in fort worth, grid manufactures some for tandy and itself (they are owned by tandy) and tandy manufactures panasonic and others in their manufacturing facilities in forth worth area. Brian Scherer
bill@bilver.uucp (Bill Vermillion) (05/14/91)
In article <12082@uwm.edu> anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber) writes: >Tandy >hasn't made original equipment for some time now, I think the Tandy >6000 was one of the last. Tandy is OEMing for Panasonic and DEC at least. And that is in addition to ther onw computersr. Some of their machines are made by others - but they also make machine for other people. Check your facts please. I had a Pansonic Business Partner apart the other day, and it says Manufactured by Tandy Corporation. (Nice machine. Pop of the top, and you have to have a key to get into the guts. No one is going to tamper with your data and you not know about it. Very modular and easy to work on). -- Bill Vermillion - UUCP: uunet!tarpit!bilver!bill : bill@bilver.UUCP
davyt@rocity.Corp.Sun.COM (Davy Thomas - Western Solution Center) (05/15/91)
>>Actually, just about every single MS-DOS machine >>that Tandy sells right now is actually a Pansonic >You are wrong, tandy still does r&d work, and >manufactures their own computers. Actually, you are only partly wrong :-) I looked at the underside of my 1100FD (essentially a Panasonic CF150B), Serial Number 9JKKAxxxxx, and was greeted by: "Custom Manufactured in Japan for Radio Shack" Davy
anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber) (05/20/91)
In article <12082@uwm.edu> anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber) writes: >Tandy >hasn't made original equipment for some time now, I think the Tandy >6000 was one of the last. I have gotten many responses to this posting. I was quite wrong. Tandy designs, manufactures, and sells computers to DEC, GRiD, and Panasonic. I made the assumption that if a US company and a Japanese company both sell nearly identical equipment, it's the Japanese company that actualy designed and built them. It's clear to me now that the desktop machines are Tandys. It's not so clear about the laptops. One person posted that they are built by Panasonic. Could this be a coopertive venture similar to the TI/Sharp laptops? -- <-:(= Anthony Stieber anthony@csd4.csd.uwm.edu uwm!uwmcsd4!anthony Psion Mailing List subscriber submissions psion ----------\ the (human) moderator psion-owner -------+--@csd4.csd.uwm.edu subscriptions and file requests psion-request ----/
dalek@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Dale B Klipstein) (05/20/91)
From article <12251@uwm.edu>, by anthony@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber): > that actualy designed and built them. It's clear to me now that the desktop > machines are Tandys. It's not so clear about the laptops. One person > posted that they are built by Panasonic. Could this be a coopertive > venture similar to the TI/Sharp laptops? > -- Having also worked for Tandy in sales, and then marketing, I know that Tandy does make the sytems they sell, either to consumers or to other corporations for thier label. This includes all of the laptops I have seen (up to August '90). Other than the motherboard, case, and keyboard, however is made by other companies. Floppys from Teac, hard drives from Western Digital, printers from Okidata or Citizen, etc. What I don't know is who makes the monitors. I have been inside the manufacturing plants of Tandy, and have seen the testing process of their motherboards. By far I would say they are the most thorough in their testing. In years of using Tandys, I haven't seen a motherboard fail yet. My only gripe is the selection of the periphial componets. Its my silly little opinion that Tandy tends toward the cheaper side instead of the higher quality end when it comes to buying the componets. Just me 2 cents worth... Dale Klipstein