v127p9xg@ubvmsa.cc.buffalo.edu (Robert J Miskines) (11/15/90)
<info gathered from magazine reviews and second-hand discussions, ive never used one> THe PS/1 is a 286/10 'AT compatible' type machine. It has a number of unique features, both pro- and con- It comes with a DOS burned into ROM. This can be taken as good/bad. Yes, its easy and fast, but what about upgrades? Noone has ever accused an OS-level change of being fast & easy, but to require hardware modification? It comes standard with a VGA monitor. In itself, this is good. However, dont think that IBM made that easy either. The PS/1 has no expansion slots. This , combined with the fact that the power supply is built into the monitor, means that upgrades for video will be difficult and expensive, to say the least. Standard is one 3.5" 1.44 meg floppy. Nothing wrong here, except that if you must transfer software via 5 1/4"'s, youre out of luck. It has a built-in 2400b. modem. However, they decided to leave out the serial port. IBM believes that a modem is what the majority of users would use a serial port for anyway, which may be true. Still, in the event you need a serial port... There is an expansion box available, allowing you to add 3 AT-standard cards. This, from what I understand, is quite expensive. The PS/1 is a plug 'n' play machine. If a 286-10, etc, etc is all you will ever need (no upgrades), then it appears to be a decent machine. However, if you ever plan to upgrade in just about any way, dont bother with the PS/1. (besides, for $1650, you could get a better clone rig) Robert J Miskines V127P9XG @ Ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu