Engineering:Panasonic Executive Partner
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| Manufacturer | Panasonic Corporation |
|---|---|
| Type | Portable computer |
| Operating system | MS-DOS 2.11[1] |
| CPU | Intel 8086-2 at 4.77 or 7.16 MHz |
| Memory | 128–640 KB RAM |
| Dimensions | 21.25 by 16 by 5 inches (54.0 cm × 40.6 cm × 12.7 cm) |
| Mass | 28–30 pounds (14 kg) |
The Executive Partner (stylized as the Exec. Partner; model number FT-70) is an IBM PC-compatible portable computer that was introduced by the Panasonic Corporation in 1985. The portable computer is AC-powered exclusively, weighs between 28 and 30 pounds (14 kg), and features a built-in printer. The Executive Partner was one of the first affordable portable computers with a plasma display.
Specifications
The Executive Partner is a portable computer in a clamshell form factor that measures 21.25 by 16 by 5 inches (54.0 by 40.6 by 12.7 cm).[2]:47 Depending on the configuration, the computer weighs between 28 and 30 pounds (14 kg).[2]:47[3]:135 Two models of the computer were released: one with dual 5.25-inch floppy drives and the other with one such floppy drive and a hard drive.[2]:47[4] All models in the Executive Partner range feature an Intel 8086-2 microprocessor running at user-switchable clock speed of 7.16 MHz or 4.77 MHz—the latter being the standard clock speed of the original IBM PC.[2]:47 The stock Executive Partner comes with 256 KB of RAM, expandable to 640 KB.[1][4] Users must upgrade all the RAM at once if they are to upgrade to 640 KB because of the non-interoperability of the 64-kb chips of the 128 KB RAM with the 256-kb chips of the 256 KB RAM.[2]:47 The computer has one ISA expansion slot, supporting only certain cards 6 inch in length maximum.[5]:140 An expansion box offering slots for three full-length (13 in) cards was offered as an optional accessory.[6]
The portable features a flat-panel gas plasma display measuring 11 in diagonally and the display housing holding the plasma panel being only 2 in thick. Because of the heavy current draw of the computer's plasma display, the Executive Partner is powered through mains AC exclusively. The plasma display produces a neon-orange image that was said to exhibit less glare than contemporary cathode-ray tubes and LCDs.[7] A special hinge mechanism prevents the display housing from slamming into the keyboard half of the chassis and potentially breaking the fragile glass layers of the plasma display.[6] The graphics adapter supports CGA video; in graphics mode, it can display up to 640 by 200 pixels,[3]:133 while in text mode it can display up to 80 columns by 25 lines.[7]
The Executive Partner features a built-in printer with two optional print heads: a thermal head and an ink-ribbon dot matrix head. The former requires special thermal paper, while the latter can use standard loose-leaf paper. The Executive Partner can print up to 60 cps in draft mode and 30 cps in near-letter-quality mode. The printer can feed out up to 80 inches of paper before jamming due to lacking a tractor-feed mechanism. It can print up to 132 columns of text per row.[8]
Development and release
Panasonic Corporation released the Executive Partner in late July 1985,[7] supported by a network of 78 value-added resellers and numerous retail outlets.[6] It was released a year after Panasonic's somewhat heavier Senior Partner portable computer, which also features a built-in thermal printer.[9] A hard drive–based model of the Executive Partner was released in late December 1985.[3] At US$2,595, the it was one of the first relatively inexpensive portables to feature a gas plasma display. Grid Systems had released a gas-plasma laptop—the GridCase III—earlier in the year, for nearly double the street price.[10]
Reception
InfoWorld's Tony Lima found the Executive Partner heavy like its predecessor, quipping: "It is portable—if you happen to be King Kong". Lima enjoyed the plasma display, calling the picture "rock steady, and while the red-orange color is disconcerting at first, you will probably adapt to it fairly quickly".[2]:47 He found the letter quality of the thermal printer satisfactory but noticed that the printer mechanism moved slower than was advertised. Lima concluded his review stating that, while "competitively priced for a computer and printer combination" in 1985, the Executive Partner was not a "particularly dazzling value", naming the HP Portable Plus as a competitor with more features.[2]:48
Like Lima, Jon Pepper of PC Magazine called the Executive Partner weighty but praised the plasma display as "extremely readable, especially if you have been laboring over a Tandy 100 or another first-generation LCD portable computer".[3]:132–133 Pepper called the Executive Partner's keyboard "comfortable during prolonged touch-typing" and called the compatibility factor with IBM PC software problem-free.[3]:134 A late 1986 article in the same magazine called the computer "simply too big to be called a true laptop" but wrote that the display was "beautiful and readable under any lighting conditions ... scroll[ing] without a flicker".[11]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Staff writer (July 1, 1985). "Panasonic Unveils New IBM-Compatible Transportable". Computer Systems News (UBM LLC) (218): 16. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A618898/GPS?sid=wikipedia.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Lima, Tony (September 23, 1985). "Panasonic Executive Is Reliable Partner". InfoWorld (CW Communications) 7 (38): 47–48. https://books.google.com/books?id=hi8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA47.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Pepper, Jon (December 10, 1985). "Panasonic Executive Partner". PC Magazine (Ziff-Davis) 4 (25): 132–135. https://books.google.com/books?id=Udw3QWX2LQ8C&pg=PA132.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Staff writer (December 2, 1985). "Panasonic Expands Computer Line". Computer Retail News (UBM LLC) (130): 99. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A661096/GPS?sid=wikipedia.
- ↑ Pepper, Jon (July 1986). "Panasonic Exec. Partner FT-70". PC Magazine (Ziff-Davis) 5 (13): 138–140. https://books.google.com/books?id=5hdeC0k_JHwC&pg=PA139.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Paznik, Jill (July 3, 1985). "New Panasonic Transportable Claimed to Pack a Big Wallop". MIS Week (Condé Nast Publications) 6 (27): 18. https://archive.org/details/sim_mis-week_1985-07-03_6_27/page/18/.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Wolfe, Lou Anne (July 3, 1985). "Panasonic Has Microcomputer with 2-inch Thick Screen". Journal Record (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: Dolan Media). https://www.proquest.com/docview/258943565/.
- ↑ Staff writer (July 15, 1985). "Panasonic portable bows". Computerworld (CW Communications) XIX (28): 75. https://books.google.com/books?id=tD4MjDGn6ScC&pg=RA1-PA75.
- ↑ Staff writer (July 8, 1985). "Panasonic Links New PC through Partner Name". Computer & Software News (Lebhar-Friedman) 3 (27): 2. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A652836/GPS?sid=wikipedia.
- ↑ Howitt, Doran (July 22, 1985). "Gas Plasma Price Breakthrough". InfoWorld (CW Communications) 7 (29): 21–22. https://books.google.com/books?id=AS8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA22.
- ↑ Willmott, Don (December 23, 1986). "DOS-to-Travel Updates: On the Road Again". PC Magazine (Ziff-Davis) 5 (22): 142–144. https://books.google.com/books?id=5hdeC0k_JHwC&pg=PA139.
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