i-Buddie 4 Desknote Review

Hi All,

I had the same problem with the power plug burning and the peg falling out. David Cai fixed the problem very quickly and professionally, and it's been about a month since without any further problems with the computer.
 
My DeskNote just died on me. The laptop overheated and teh power cable going into it melted. The cable's end does not fit into the power hole. I have tried using my battery (which has power connection that is not melted and fits properly) but it does not turn on. With the battery, it makes some clicking noises but then never powers up. Now, absolutely nothing happens.

I have a limited knowlege of electronics. Does any one have any suggestions of what went wrong? Did something in the computer or mother board melt?

MOST IMPORTANTLY,
I want to salvage my screen. I Took the screen off and found two bundles of wire (with smaller wires within them). Is there any way I can covert the screen into a monitor for my other desktop computer? Where can I find a detailed wiring schematic for the DeskNote?

Thanks.
 
Another quick question...

Who is ECS? I bought my DeskNote from a company called MicroPro in Ohio. The desknote has "MICROPRO" logo on it. Is ECS the manufacturer? Woud MicroPro be some sort of distributor?
 
Hi,
Yeah. A928 is from ECS, made in tainwan.
The power system problem of Your A928 is common to this model. I can fix it.

David
DC SYSTEM, Tel: (416) 788-6788 E-mail: (e-mail address removed)
 
Thanks,

How much would it cost for a repair? And i had a question. Is there any way i can recover my hard drive immeaditly. I need some important files that I was working on. My friend has a Dell laptop. Could I stick my DeskNote hardrive in his Dell notebook to recover files and burn them on CDs?

Can you think of any other way I can recover a few of my files before i send it in for repair?

Thanks.

(e-mail address removed)
 
Windows XP gets a tad arsey about user security...it may work though, but if its an off the shelf machine the warranty would be voided most probably
 
Gentlemen & Ladies,

Please, try not to post your email address, unless you don't mind getting spammed.

Although ever precaution is taken to protect your email address we cannot stop simple crawlers from picking up posted addresses.

Using the PM system is far more secure.

Thank you.

:)
 
I have 2 A928's and the hard drives move back and forth, no problem, but you have to activate XP each time. After 2 activations, you need to do it by phone. XP should reconize other systems, but may be unstable. Better option is to get a firewire or USB2 drive caddy and you can access all your files at reasonable speeds.




theowl007 said:
Thanks,

How much would it cost for a repair? And i had a question. Is there any way i can recover my hard drive immeaditly. I need some important files that I was working on. My friend has a Dell laptop. Could I stick my DeskNote hardrive in his Dell notebook to recover files and burn them on CDs?

Can you think of any other way I can recover a few of my files before i send it in for repair?

Thanks.

(e-mail address removed)
Click to expand...
 
theowl007 said:
Thanks Albroswift.

Do you think the hard drive is "swap-able" with a Dell notebook?
Click to expand...
The hard drive can use in Dell laptop, but its windows XP system may be not working. But you can transfer the data via USB hard driver adapter if you just want to back up the data.
 
My i-Buddie Deskbook (Desknote?) has just had a melting three prong plug also. I'm searching for an adaptor but the problem seems to be with finding another cord that fits into the computer.

My purchase of this computer was from a company that no longer seems to exist: MicroPro Computers www.microproinc.com

Question to fellow i-Buddie users, did you also purchase from MircorPro?
 
My i-Buddie Deskbook (Desknote?) has just had a melting three prong plug also. I'm searching for an adaptor but the problem seems to be with finding another cord that fits into the computer.

My purchase of this computer was from a company that no longer seems to exist: MicroPro Computers www.microproinc.com

Question to fellow i-Buddie users, did you also purchase from MircorPro?
 
I purchased a ibuddie 4 two years ago; about six months after i bought it, the desknote just stopped working. Nothing wrong happened to it, but it wont turn on nomatter if im using my battery or wall adapter. No lights, or sounds happen when i press the power button. I took the thing apart and nothing seems to be out of order. None of my prongs are missing or have pulled out of the unit and the end of my ac adapter is slightly melted, although this does nothing. Can anyone tell me what might be wrong with my system?
 
While this is a problem/design flaw no one is happy with, the guy to contact to correct this is David Cai, at DC SYSTEM, Tel: (416) 788-6788, (e-mail address removed) Mr. Cai is nothing less than a miracle worker. For $130 plus shipping he will resolve this problem. Obviously a big saving from the cost of a new notebook. I suggest that you contact him and lower your frustration level.
 
theowl007 said:
Thanks for the info.

dc system, you mentioned a "USB hard driver adapter". I am unfamilar with this item. I searched for that on Ebay and found this,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=41911&item=5164600961&rd=1http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=41993&item=6742200053&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

Is this what i need?
Click to expand...

That looks like it's for a standard (desktop, 3.5 inch) hard drive. I think you want one like this (2.5 inch):

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=51064&item=6743361694&rd=1

I bought something similar but haven't tried it out yet.
 
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=41911&item=5166316828&rd=1
this is the 1 i bought, it flies on the firewire connection. i used norton ghost to clone my drive, and super file syncronizer to maintain files. with new drives you have to go through the initialize and partition procedure (xp) and format, or fdisk (prior win vers) the cloned drive swaps easily in and out, i cloned my 20gb to a 60gb and my laptop couldnt tell the difference, photoshop cs did and needed to be reactivated, but no problems.
yekim said:
That looks like it's for a standard (desktop, 3.5 inch) hard drive. I think you want one like this (2.5 inch):

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=51064&item=6743361694&rd=1

I bought something similar but haven't tried it out yet.
Click to expand...
 
Hi there. I just wanted to thank everyone for their posts. You guys are great!

My i-Buddie just did the fragging plug meltdown thing too (bought it September 2002), so it was nice to find the info that was posted here. I was convinced that it was the adapter that was the problem but now I know better.

Until now I have actually been very pleased with the i-Buddie, considering its bang for the buck. Too bad we have to deal with this silly problem.

Live long and prosper.
M.
 
Hi again to all ECS sufferers!


I come here from time to time to read the updates and i am glad that many have solved their problems by themselves or by getting professional help.

To you who have the melting plug problem:

I had the same (see my earlier posts) and i was able to solve it with my little soldering knowledge. It has been more than 6 months since i took my DeskNote apart and since then it has been working flawlessly. I also bought a CoolerMaster coolpad that i use under my DeskNote to keep it cooler and i believe that really helps. I can tell by touching it on the power inlet side and it is cooler with its help. I suggest you buy one. There are better models than mine. Mine is simple with two fans connected via usb, no on-off whatsoever. I keep it running all the time.

Good luck with it!

I have a question to A928 users. I am thinking of upgrading my memory and my cpu. I already had the hd changed.

What is the most powerful cpu i can use and the fastest memory module?

Can i use DDR400? And is 2.8ghz the top?

Thanks guys.
 
Sorry for the double posting. Just came to my mind. I use an external usb2.0 case for another drive. And lots of other usb 2 stuff. I recommend anyone who thinks of connecting usb devices to thei piece of crap is to use external power adapters for their devices or at least use an adapter powered usb 2 hub since all those devices you connect to it will suck 5v power from your DeskNote and believe me the more stuff u connect to it the less stable it gets.
 
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