🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <DHrKD4.K38@aphasia.us.com>,
Frank McConnell <fmc@aphasia.us.com> wrote:
>ybukhash@lynx.dac.neu.edu (Yousuf Bukhashim) wrote:
>>The Reno CD-ROM is being discounted very heavily (around $99 in most
>>Does anybody have any positive or negative experience with this CD-ROM
>>drive? 
>
>My understanding is that Mediavision is getting out of this sort of
>business, which would explain why these drives are being discounted.
>I would not expect warranty service.

That's right.  Just call the "toll-free service" number advertised
on their Reno boxes.  It's an answering machine that answers some
more or less common questions about their products, and otherwise refers
you to a third-party service (toll call!).

>Here in Sillycon Valley the drives seem to be turning up at surplus
>and refurb electronics stores (*) for $79, which gets you the drive,
>its dock/base widget, and AC adapter.  This is OK for desktop
>operation.  An "accessory pack" containing the battery (needed for
>portable operation) and a nasty smelly carrying bag is another $10.

Yup, I got a drive from CSC, in exactly this configuration, after having
had one from Fry's for a short time that was rather noisy (but otherwise
working).  It turned out that the drive from CSC was 1 1/2 years old
(manufactured in June 94, as opposed to April 95 or so for the Fry's drive).
The version number as displayed by my SCSI software was a 1.0x, as 
opposed to 2.x.  It didn't work under OS/2 (the Fry's drive did work).
As stated before, both drives went back to the shops.

>It makes "clunk" sounds when accessed (but maybe my desktop CD-ROM is
>just drowned out by the fan in its case).  It's also slow, but maybe
>I'm spoiled by having a quad-speed drive to compare it to (it's a
>double-speed).

Mine didn't make that "clunk" sound, it sounded like it was scratching
the CD with something.

>Without the dock/base widget it is a portable CD player.

Probably with a lousy battery life, though.

>Maybe by the time I screw up and break it there will be another cheap
>replacement, or I will find that it is just not that useful after all.
>In the meantime I can deal with it, and I expect I will probably get
>my money's worth out of it.  YMMV.

If the $79 drive had worked with my machine and OS, I would have kept it.
But after two failures, I am sick and tired of this.

>(*) I've seen ads from Disk Drive Depot and Halted Specialties.  The
>DDD ones are in no-frills shrink wrap and cardboard boxes.  DDD also
>had "complete" sets in prettier boxes that included PC and Mac stuff
>for more $$.

Yup, CSC shipped mine without any manual or Mediavision warranty card
etc. in a brown box.  Mediavision's sysop on CompuServe says that they
don't honor any warranty if a company (like CSC apparently) sells them
in this OEM-ish way.

Oliver