Panasonic Executive Partner

Executive Partner
ManufacturerPanasonic Corporation
TypePortable computer
Operating systemMS-DOS 2.11[1]
CPUIntel 8086-2 at 4.77 or 7.16 MHz
Memory128–640 KB RAM
Dimensions21.25 by 16 by 5 inches (54.0 cm × 40.6 cm × 12.7 cm)
Mass28–30 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

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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 thermal printer with optional thermal transfer ribbon cartridge. The printer requires special thermal paper normally. Whereas the print cartridge allows use of 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

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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

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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

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  1. ^ a b Staff writer (July 1, 1985). "Panasonic Unveils New IBM-Compatible Transportable". Computer Systems News (218). UBM LLC: 16 – via Gale.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Lima, Tony (September 23, 1985). "Panasonic Executive Is Reliable Partner". InfoWorld. 7 (38). CW Communications: 47–48 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ a b c d e Pepper, Jon (December 10, 1985). "Panasonic Executive Partner". PC Magazine. 4 (25). Ziff-Davis: 132–135 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ a b Staff writer (December 2, 1985). "Panasonic Expands Computer Line". Computer Retail News (130). UBM LLC: 99 – via Gale.
  5. ^ Pepper, Jon (July 1986). "Panasonic Exec. Partner FT-70". PC Magazine. 5 (13). Ziff-Davis: 138–140 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ a b c Paznik, Jill (July 3, 1985). "New Panasonic Transportable Claimed to Pack a Big Wallop". MIS Week. 6 (27). Condé Nast Publications: 18 – via the Internet Archive.
  7. ^ a b c Wolfe, Lou Anne (July 3, 1985). "Panasonic Has Microcomputer with 2-inch Thick Screen". Journal Record. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: Dolan Media – via ProQuest.
  8. ^ Staff writer (July 15, 1985). "Panasonic portable bows". Computerworld. XIX (28). CW Communications: 75 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ Howitt, Doran (July 22, 1985). "Gas Plasma Price Breakthrough". InfoWorld. 7 (29). CW Communications: 21–22.
  10. ^ Willmott, Don (December 23, 1986). "DOS-to-Travel Updates: On the Road Again". PC Magazine. 5 (22). Ziff-Davis: 142–144 – via Google Books.
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