IBM ThinkPad 380 Series

The ThinkPad 380 Series were mid end/consumer laptops, first released in May 1997 and discontinued in June 1999. This series is really what comes to my mind when I think "90s ThinkPad". They're rectangular bricks, thick as can be, built like tanks, and high-quality throughout.

The ThinkPad 385 Series are essentially identical minus some small configuration differences in regards to hard drive size and whatnot. 380 models were sold to businesses and 385 models were sold at retail. The photo on the right is actually a 385XD.

Specifications

Spec	ThinkPad 380	ThinkPad 380D	ThinkPad 380E	ThinkPad 380ED	ThinkPad 380XD	ThinkPad 380Z
Release Date	May 1997		September 1997		March 1998	September 1998
CPU	CPU Type: Unknown Intel Pentium @150MHz	CPU Type: Unknown - Intel Pentium @150MHz - Intel Pentium MMX @150MHz	CPU Type: Unknown Intel Pentium MMX @150MHz	CPU Type: Unknown Intel Pentium MMX @166MHz	CPU Type: Unknown - Intel Pentium MMX @233 or 266MHz - Intel Mobile Pentium II @233 or 266MHz	CPU Type: Unknown Intel Mobile Pentium II @233 or 300MHz
Chipset	Intel 430MX				Intel 430TX (MMX models) or 440BX (PII models)	Intel 440BX
RAM	Type: EDO, 1x 144-pin Slot Standard: 16MB Maximum: 80MB				Type: EDO, 1x 144-pin Slot Standard: 32MB Maximum: 96MB	Type: EDO, 1x 144-pin Slot Standard: 32MB Maximum: 160MB
Storage	2.5" IDE Requires Adapter: No Standard: 1.08GB	2.5" IDE Requires Adapter: No Standard: 1.35 or 2.1GB	2.5" IDE Requires Adapter: No Standard: 2.1GB	2.5" IDE Requires Adapter: No Standard: 2.1, 3.0, or 5.1GB	2.5" IDE Requires Adapter: No Standard: 3.2, 4.0, or 5.1GB	2.5" IDE Requires Adapter: No Standard: 4.0GB
Display Options	12.1" Passive Matrix LCD @800x600	- 12.1" Passive Matrix LCD @800x600 - 12.1" Active Matrix LCD @800x600	12.1" Passive Matrix LCD @800x600	- 12.1" Passive Matrix LCD @800x600 - 12.1" Active Matrix LCD @800x600	- 12.1" HPA/Passive Matrix LCD @800x600 - 12.1" Active Matrix LCD @800x600	13.3" Active Matrix LCD @1024x768
Graphics Chipset	NeoMagic MagicGraph 128ZV (NM2093) VRAM: 1.125MB				NeoMagic MagicGraph 128XD (NM2160) VRAM: 2MB	NeoMagic MagicMedia 256AV (NM2200) VRAM: 2.5MB
Audio	Crystal CS4236				Crystal CS4237B - Stereo Speakers - Microphone
Main Battery	NiMH (non-intelligent)	NiMH or Lithium Ion (both non-intelligent)	NiMH (non-intelligent)	NiMH or Lithium Ion (both non-intelligent)	Lithium Ion (non-intelligent)
CMOS Battery	Unknown	CR1220 Lithium	Unknown		Proprietary Lithium
Power Supply	Barrel Jack
Media Drives	3 Spindle - 3.5" 1.44MB Floppy Drive - CD-ROM Drive (Optional)	3 Spindle - 3.5" 1.44MB Floppy Drive - CD-ROM Drive	3 Spindle - 3.5" 1.44MB Floppy Drive - CD-ROM Drive (Optional)	3 Spindle - 3.5" 1.44MB Floppy Drive - CD-ROM Drive
PC Cards	2x PCMCIA Slots - ZoomVideo Support (Lower slot only)				2x PCMCIA/CardBus Slots - ZoomVideo Support
Networking	None
Other I/O	- 1x Parallel - 1x Serial - 1x VGA Out - 1x PS/2 - 1x Dock Connector - 1x Mic In - 1x Line Out				- 1x Parallel - 1x Serial - 1x VGA Out - 1x PS/2 - 1x USB 1.x - 1x Dock Connector - 1x Mic In - 1x Line Out
BIOS	IBM BIOS w/ Easy Setup
Pointing Device	TrackPoint

Resources

Link	Details
	IBM ThinkPad 380/380D User Manual
	IBM ThinkPad 380Z User Manual
	IBM ThinkPad 380/380D/380E/380ED Hardware Maintenance Manual
	IBM ThinkPad 380XD/385XD Hardware Maintenance Manual
	IBM ThinkPad 380Z Hardware Maintenance Manual
	IBM ThinkPad 380/380D Product Brochure (Japanese)
	IBM ThinkPad 380E/380ED Product Brochure (Japanese)
	IBM ThinkPad 380X/380XD Product Brochure (Japanese)
	IBM ThinkPad 1992-2001 Personal Systems Reference (PSREF)

Common Faults & Maintenance

The ThinkPad 380 is a very well-built laptop, and very reliable. They almost always boot to BIOS.

Brittle Plastic

The plastics on the 380 are becoming brittle with age. That being said, the build quality of these laptops is excellent, so they generally hold up well. The following problems can present themselves due to the plastic deterioration:

ThinkPad 380Z models are becoming prone to forming cracks near the display hinge. This is because it has one less hinge mount than earlier models in the series due to using a larger LCD. If you notice cracks near the display hinges, you will need to reinforce the area with epoxy.
Earlier models in the series can also develop cracks near the display hinges. This is currently very rare, I've probably only seen it 2 or 3 times out of over 100 380s I've seen on eBay.
The thin part of the lower case plastic between the palmrest and the CD-ROM drive is prone to cracking. You can see this crack in the photos of my 385XD in the gallery below.

Sticky Rubber

The palmrest of the 380XD is coated in soft-touch rubber. This coating usually goes sticky with age and will have to be removed. All other models in the 380 Series, including the 380Z, do not have this coating.

Design Differences

All 380 models up to the 380XD have a mono speaker and non-modular hard disk, which is located under the keyboard. The 380XD changed the design slightly, adding stereo speakers and making the hard disk modular (accessible through a door on the left side of the case). The 380Z also uses the updated case design.