Digital Archaeology: Fujitsu FMV-BIBLO NF/D70
I picked up this laptop because of its relative uniqueness. First, it's a Fujitsu which I haven't had much experience with (except for one Lifebook I own). Second, it's a bright red color which I really like. Finally, this appears to be a laptop that was released in Japan...whether exclusively or localized for I'm not sure. The keyboard has a slightly different layout and there are Japanese characters on each of the keys in addition to English letters.
The model as printed on the laptop itself in the lower left corner of the keyboard is FMV-BIBLO NF/D70. The hardware consists of the following:
- CPU: Core 2 Duo P8700 @ 2.53GHz
- Memory: 6 GB DDR3-1066 (PC3-8500)
- Video: Intel Mobile 4 Series Chipset Integrated Graphics Controller
- Screen: 1366x768
For more complete specs, check out the output of HardInfo.
I have mixed feelings about this laptop. On one hand, the screen looks beautiful and is one of the nicest looking screens I have see on a laptop. On the other hand it may look nice but the resolution is pretty much the lowest available at the time. On one hand, it has a fast CPU for the era with one of the fastest Core 2 Duo CPUs ever made. On the other hand, it uses Intel's integrated graphics solution which is as low end as they come.
the 1366x768 was a pretty common resolution but it was also pretty much the lowest wide screen resolution available. Being a later Core 2 Duo model this laptop does look like it supports up to 8 GB of fast (for the time) DDR3 memory (with 6 GB currently installed). A lot of older Core 2 Duo laptops only supported 4 GB or in some cases only 2 GB which helps ensure they are obsolete a lot faster. Older Core 2 Duos also only support DDR2 memory. This laptop should actually run Windows 10 fairly well, especially if you were to put an SSD in it and max out the RAM. However, I am currently running Linux Mint on it. When new it shipped with Windows Vista.
This could have been a great laptop but a few things keep it from reaching that category, namely the low resolution screen, lack of a decent video chip, and minor issues with key placement and size. To be fair, the presense of the fingerprint reader probably indicates this was intended more as a business laptop so the graphics probably weren't important (though screen resolution still is) and the key size and placement issues are probably more a localization thing. It still seems to be a good laptop, just not as good as it should have been.
Like all hardware I own, I run various BOINC projects on this laptop when it is up and running. Currently, it has completed work for Asteroids@home, Einstein@home, Milkyway@home, Rosetta@home, Universe@home and World Community Grid which are all the projects I currently participate in on a regular basis. You can also check out how it is doing over all on FreeDC.
