IBM to Introduce Its Own Laptop Computer Model

By DEAN TAKAHASHI

March 26, 1991 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

In its third attempt to successfully crack the fast-growing laptop computer business, International Business Machines Corp. is expected to introduce today its latest entry into the $5-billion market.

Industry sources said IBM’s PS/2 L40SX Laptop will include a host of attractive features, but its appeal could be limited because it breaks little new technological ground and is comparatively high-priced at $6,000.

The market for lightweight computers that pack the power and memory of a desktop computer in a machine that fits inside a briefcase has been growing rapidly, with more than 100 companies already selling laptop models.

IBM’s machine is expected to be a mixed blessing for market leaders Toshiba America and Compaq Computer. While IBM’s entry is expected to expand overall demand for laptops, it is also expected to take sales away from Toshiba, Compaq and others.

Analysts said IBM must compete in the market because laptops are expected to account for one in five personal computer unit sales by 1995. Apple Computer also plans to introduce a laptop computer in the second half of the year.

Suppliers said IBM has been working on designs for a laptop computer for more than a year. But while IBM worked to refine its laptop design to ensure that it would not flop like two portable computers the company marketed in the 1980s, dozens of competitors entered the market.

IBM introduced its first lightweight computer, the Portable PC, in 1983 to compete with a successful product made by Compaq. But the machine had fewer features than Compaq’s machine and fared poorly in the market.

Three years later, IBM introduced a laptop called the PC Convertible, but it was too large to be used while traveling on an airplane. IBM quickly withdrew the product from the market.

IBM shipped test versions of its new laptop in February and scheduled an announcement for late last month. But IBM was forced to delay the unveiling until this month after encountering a shortage of key disk drives. IBM officials declined to comment on the laptop until after a New York press conference scheduled for today.

The machine is based on the microprocessor of choice for top-of-the-line laptop computers, the 20-megahertz version of the Intel Corp. 386SX chip. It also includes a 60-megabyte hard disk drive--enough to store the complete works of Shakespeare eight times--a black-and-white liquid-crystal display that provides information on battery life and temperature, and a full-size, tilted keyboard.

Computer industry observers say those features, although not unique, will compete well with top machines from Compaq and, to a lesser extent, with Toshiba. The machine fits in a sub-category of laptops that weigh less than eight pounds and are known as notebook computers.

“It’s a jazzy machine with all the features you want,” said Richard J. Martin, an analyst at Prudential Bache Research in New York. “It is heavier and larger than most notebooks, so the question is whether people will think it is too big.”

Michael Rusert, executive vice president at Computer City Supercenters in Stanton, got a sneak preview of the machine at IBM’s headquarters. He said it was “surprisingly on target.”

“IBM will expand the market, but Compaq and Toshiba could see market share erosion,” Rusert said.

Toshiba America officials seem to be taking IBM’s announcement seriously. The company has been contacting reporters to remind them that Toshiba is still the leading seller of laptop and notebook computers.

Toshiba, which pioneered the laptop computer, would seem to have the most to lose from IBM’s entry into the market, analysts said. But Tom Martin, vice president of marketing at Toshiba America’s Computer Systems Division in Irvine, said his company could benefit if IBM’s product heightens consumer awareness of laptops.

“It’s nice to have company,” Martin said. “But this is a completely expected move.”

One Wall Street analyst, who asked not to be identified, said IBM’s computer is a “me-too” product and, at $6,000, is more than double the price of similar machines from other manufacturers.

“It will have some success because of the IBM name.” he said.

IBM’S NEW LAPTOP AT A GLANCE Specifications for IBM’s PS/2 L40SX laptop

Processor: 20 megahertz 386SX

Data pathway: IBM PC-AT bus

Main memory: 2 megabytes, expandable to 18 megabytes

Display: Super-twisted neumatic (STN) cold-fluorescent sidelit, VGA-compatible LCD with 12-to-1 contrast ratio

Floppy drive: 3.5-inch, 1.44 megabyte

Hard drive: 60 megabytes

Modem: Hayes-compatible internal modem with 2,4000 bauds per second data rate and expandable to include a 9,6000 bauds per second fax modem

Battery life: Up to three hours

Keyboard: Full-size with 84-full-size keys, tilted at a 5-degree slope

Weight: 7.7 pounds