This is the single biggest issue with PowerBook 2400c laptops. This model used a Nickel-Metal Hydride 6-cell battery pack made by VARTA as a PRAM battery. These batteries have essentially a 100% leak rate in their current age. The question to ask isn't if yours has started to leak, but how badly it already has. These are tricky laptops to disassemble, but just DO IT, ASAP. The battery is placed directly under the logic board and WILL nuke it with corrosion if left there. A vast number of 2400c PowerBooks have already fallen victim to this fate, and before long, any unit with the original battery installed will be rendered completely unrecoverable.
The 2400c may have better build quality than other Apple laptops of the age, but the plastic is still becoming just as brittle. Don't drop it, and use care when taking it apart. The rubber bumpers on the bottom of the laptop and those on the LCD bezel will also melt with age 100% of the time.
Most PowerBook laptops from this time (2400 included) period will display solid green on the sleep indicator light if the Logic Board can't successfully POST. This can be caused by a variety of reasons, but on the 2400c this is usually the result of PRAM battery damage. If you've verified this isn't the case, another common cause is incorrect seating of the CPU card. It's very easy to seat it incorrectly when reassembling the laptop. I suspect this issue is actually at least part of a common misconception about the 2400c - which I'll cover next:
A common myth about the 2400c is that it needs a working PRAM battery to be installed for the laptop to start. Apparantly, without a battery some units would enter a GLoD condition. This is untrue. Many, many people run their 2400s perfectly fine with no battery installed. I suspect that the CPU card seating issues are part of what's behind this rumor - imagine the following scenario.
Anyways, that's just my theory anyway. The rumor had to spread for SOME reason. In reality, no PowerBook laptop ever made needs a working PRAM battery to start. Later PowerBook G3s and early G4s won't start a lot of the time with a dead one installed though funny enough. If you unplug it they'll work again.
Either Apple or IBM managed to screw up the pin-out of the EDO memory standard on the 2400c. Because of this, standard modules larger than 32MB actually won't work in the 2400c, you'd have to get one that's specially made for it. Good luck finding one!
Vinegar Syndrome is a common issue with nearly all vintage LCD screens. For an explanation of this fault, see this page. I felt like mentioning i there though because this issue is especially common in screens coming from Japan, likely due to climate factors. Due to the fact that most 2400s floating around are located within Japan, it's worth a dedicated mention.
As mentioned on the home page, the 2400c's have better build quality than other Apple laptops of the day due to being built with IBM. Because of this, the display hinges are far more drama free than in other laptops of the era. I've seen a few with broken plastic standoffs, but those can usually be fixed up with plastics epoxy, and I've seen issues far less often on these than with other laptops.
On the topic of electrolytic capacitors, the 2400 should also be trouble free! The power section of the logic board on these used Sanyo OS-CON Polymer caps, which look like electolytics but have no liquid electolyte to leak or degrade. Generally, if you see purple caps on a board, it's these type. Check the label to make sure though!
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