TOSHIBA has announced a new range of 486 notebook computers that cover both the general and specific needs of users. The range includes the T1900 and T1900C series through to the ''in-the-field'' capabilities of the T4600 series and what the company calls its ''mobile multimedia'' package, the T6600C. At 3.3 kg, Toshiba claims its T4600C machines are the lightest colour 33 megahertz 486SL notebooks available on the market. But the machines' weight does not seem to comprise its power and storage space, evidenced by up to 340 megabytes (MB) of hard disk space, and four MB of random access memory (RAM), which is expandable to 20 MB. The T6600C is one of the most powerful portables on the market. It ships with 66 MHz 486DX2 processer, eight MB RAM (expandable to 40 MB), a graphics accelerator, a huge 510 MB hard disk drive, and an integrated audio capacity with two speakers. The company said these machines were developed for high-end users, who needed plenty of power, like field technicians, site engineers and auditors, All models in this range have 640 x480, 26-centimetre active matrix SVGA 256 colour screen. The T6600C is loaded with MS DOS 5.0, Windows 3.1, Microsoft Sound System and PCMCIA card manager, and can be upgraded with an optional 5.25-inch CD-ROM (compact disk-read only memory) drive. Henry Tam, division manager, Chevalier OA, personal computer and printer division, said the series was marketed towards network analysis, document image processing, database storage and retrieval, field services, software and hardware developers. He added that it could easily replace a sophisticated desktop system without loss of power and capabilities. The T1900 and T1900C notebooks package includes pre-installed software (DOS 5.0 and Windows 3.1), a BallPoint mouse port, power management and a choice of monochrome or colour screens. Toshiba has also incorporated its proprietary video controller with a graphics accelerator to enhance the screen speeds of graphics programs. Again, with the field user in mind, the T1900 and T1900C come with a Kensington lock and power-on password protection.
