nfs@cs.Princeton.EDU (Norbert Schlenker) (11/23/90)
In article <1223@casbah.acns.nwu.edu> steve@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Stephen C. Wong) writes: >Hi folks, > >I have a Toshiba 5100 with a 40 megabyte hard drive. A while >back, Toshiba sent me information about a 100 megabyte hard >drive upgrade offer. When I called and inquired about the >cost, they told me it was $1499.00. It is fair to say that >I did not take them up on the offer. > >However, I still would like to install a bigger drive in my >Toshiba. Does anyone have any information on how I can do >this without going through Toshiba? The cost is important >to me. Are there any vendors that would sell me the drive kit >so I can perform the installation myself? You can do the upgrade yourself with a screwdriver, a pair of tweezers, a little bit of cash, and up to date BIOS ROMs from Toshiba. You also need to be willing to void any warranty you have, and to take the risk that you will break something that must be fixed by an authorized repair shop. That said, I'm happy to say that I upgraded my T5100 myself. Even a fumble fingered dolt like me managed to replace the drive with a Conner CP3104, and I certainly appreciate the extra space. The new drive is obtainable from numerous mail order supply houses (recent prices are $550-$600, methinks). I bought mine from Hard Drives International; I have heard good things about Dirt Cheap Drives as well. Your local Conner distributor may also be a good bet - when I upgraded, they quoted me the best price (but had no stock). You must get up to date ROMs from Toshiba. At the least, the ROMs must support the CP3104. When I began, my ROMs said they did. After replacing the drive, the machine would intermittently freeze with the disk light on steadily. As this happened only under DOS, and not with protected mode operating systems, the ROMs were an obvious suspect. Toshiba admitted to a timing problem with the ROMs I had, and sent replacements when I asked (nicely). Norbert
billd@informix.com (William Daul) (11/23/90)
Do dealers take trade-ins? What kind of prices (percent-wise) do they give? Any ideas where in the SF Bay Area they might take trade-ins? Thanks, --Bi((