IBM ThinkPad 365
The IBM ThinkPad 365 is a notebook computer series developed by IBM as a part of the ThinkPad brand of notebook computers. It was released in North America in November 1995. It was the successor of the ThinkPad 360 series and was succeeded in 1997 by the ThinkPad 380 series. The series had 8 models that were released before being discontinued.

History

Introduction 
On November 7th of 1995, the 365 series was introduced with the 365CS, C, CSD, and CD models. It started at $1,999 for a entry-level 365CS which had a Cyrix 75 Mhz 486 processor, 10.4-inch DSTN screen, 8 MB of ram, and a 540 MB hard disk drive, going up to $3,099. The introductory price was originally going to be $2,300 but IBM reduced it in order to compete more with Toshiba's Satellite line with even cheaper systems. IBM earlier in the year had a 27% market share for portable computers while Toshiba had 23%.

E/ED and X/XD Introduction 
In March of 1996, Cyrix 100 MHz 5x86 and Pentium I 365 series ThinkPad's were announced to be in the works, which would later become the E/ED and X/XD models. The E/ED would be directed towards consumers and sold through retailers, while the X/XD would be for use in corporations. They were rumored to release the following month in April, and after that the 486 model 365 ThinkPad's, the CS, C, CSD, and CD would be discontinued.

The release of the E/ED and X/XD ended up being in May of 1996, with the CS, C, CSD, and CD being discontinued in June.

Discontinuation 
In February of 1997, IBM started to reduce prices on 365 series ThinkPads due to the introduction of new 365 and 560 series notebooks that would be coming out the following month, and because Intel at this time cut OEM prices for their desktop and notebook processors.

Prices for the series dropped by up to $400, starting at $1,799 for a base model. A 365 model coming out next month with a 120 MHz Pentium I and 1 GB Hard Drive would cost less than $2,000.

In April of 1997, IBM cut prices even more on their older ThinkPad models, including the 365 series.This was because of the introduction of new ThinkPad models, the 760XD and XL.  A ThinkPad 365X with a 120 MHz Pentium I, 8 MB memory, 1GB hard drive, and 10.4in TFT display cost $1,862 versus $4,734 for a 760EL with a 133 MHz Pentium I, 16 MB memory, 2.1 GB hard drive, and 12.1in TFT display.

Reception 
Reception of the series was fairly positive, with reviewers saying it has a "seductive price" along with a good screen quality and colors. Early models of the series were however criticized for having a "weak" 75 MHz processor and dual-speed CD-ROM drive, which was said to give it 486 performance.

Models and specifications

365CS/C 
In November of 1995, IBM released the first models in the series, the 365CS and 365C. They were based on the 75 MHz Cyrix Cx486DX4 processor, and had 8 MB of 70 ns, non-parity, 72 pin SO-DIMM memory in a slot on the motherboard. Included was a NiHM battery that was claimed by IBM to last up to 9 hours. The 365CS had a 10.4in 640x480 dual scan color screen run by a Chips and Technologies 65545 with 512 KB of video memory, while the 365C had a 10.4in 640x480 TFT active matrix color screen and 1 MB of video memory. Aside from a hard drive which came in options of 340 or 540 MB, both had a built-in 3.5in 1.44 floppy disk drive that was non-removable. For software the 365CS and C had the options of having IBM DOS 7.0, Windows 3.11, OS/2 Warp 3.0 or Windows 95 preinstalled. Both the 365CS and C had 2 PCMCIA 2.1 slots, and a serial, parallel, infrared, and port replicator ports, along with a TrackPoint III device.

If the user wanted to upgrade their device, there was a few options. For memory, it is installed in a slot on the motherboard, which can be easily accessed and removed. This let the user upgrade the memory to a maximum size of 24 MB. Additionally, the hard drive used a standard Parallel ATA EIDE connector at the time, allowing it to be easily replaced with a maximum capacity of 8.9 GB due to a bios INT 13 limitation.

365CSD/365CD 
The 365CSD and 365CD models were released alongside the 365CS and C. They had a few notable differences, such as having a 5.25in double-speed CD-ROM drive installed in place of the floppy disk drive, with a external floppy disk drive port on the back to compensate. The CSD and CD also had audio support, with a internal speaker and ES1688 16 bit audio chip. A built in microphone, input and output stereo jack, a microphone jack, and a joystick/MIDI port were also included.

365E/ED 
In May of 1996 IBM released the 365E and ED models, which were based on the 100 MHz IBM/Cyrix 5x86c processor with 8 MB of ram like the previous models. They had a NiHM battery that was claimed to last up to 2.5 hours, a 540 MB hard disk drive, and a 10.4in 640x480 dual scan color screen using the Chips and Technologies 65545 with 1 MB of video memory. The 365E had a built in 3.5in 1.44 floppy disk drive while the ED had a 5.25in 4x speed CD-ROM drive. For software the 365E and ED had Windows 95 preinstalled. The 365E had no audio support and ports like the CSD and CD but the ED did. Both the E and ED had a TrackPoint III device.

365X/XD 
Alongside the 365E/ED, IBM released the X/XD models. The series used Socket 3 IBM/Cyrix processors up until the X and XD models, where they began switching to Intel Pentium I integrated processors running from 100 to 133 MHz. Additionally IBM switched to using their own BIOS, IBM BIOS, and changed the ram type to EDO.

The 365X was based on the 100 MHz Intel Pentium I with 8 MB of ram, a NiHM battery that lasted up to 2.5 hours, a 810 MB hard disk drive, and a 3.5in 1.44 MB floppy disk drive. The 365X had the option of a 10.4in 640x480 dual scan color screen or a 10.4in 640x480 or 800x600 active matrix color screen run by a Trident Microsystems Cyber 9320 with 1 MB of video memory. The 365X came with audio support, the same as the previous models but without a joystick port. For software the 365X also came with Windows 95 preinstalled. For ports, they had the same as the previous ED and a TrackPoint III device.

The 365XD was the same as the X, but with the options of the Pentium I running at 100 or 120 MHz, a 810 MB or 1.08 GB hard disk drive, and a 4x speed CD-ROM drive. Along with the 10.4in dual scan or active matrix display options, the 365XD had a 11.3in 640x480 or 800x600 dual scan or active matrix display option. For software Windows 95 or OS/2 WARP was offered.

In the fall of 1996 IBM offered another upgraded model of the X and XD models, with 120 or 133 MHz processor speed options for both. For the 365XD a 4, 6, or 8X speed CD-ROM drive was available, a 1.35 GB hard disk drive, and Windows 95 OSR2 was an option given.

The 365X and XD could be upgraded to 40 MB of ram maximum with a 144-pin EDO SO-DIMM slot inside the device. Later on this size increased to 72 MB.

If the user wanted to upgrade their hard drive capacity past 1.35GB, the BIOS had a hard drive capacity limitation of 8.9 GB because of BIOS INT 13H.

Comparison

Trivia 

 In July of 1997, the Santa Cruz Sheriff's office purchased 29 IBM ThinkPad 365X's to be used in patrol cars by officers. This was said to be more efficient by allowing more time for officers to deal with problems and reduce time hand writing reports by up to 2 hours a day. The ThinkPad's were purchased through a grant of over $59,000.

References

External links 
 IBM ThinkPad 365X, 365XD Windows 95, 98 Drivers, Software
IBM ThinkPad 365 1996 Commercial Advertisement
IBM ThinkPad 365X/XD Part Replacement Guides

IBM laptops
ThinkPad