Tadpole ALPHAbook

RDI ALPHAbook
© RDI 1998

Tadpole ALPHAbooks were RISC laptops based on Digital Alpha processors, released in 1995 into the fledging RISC laptop markets. They were the only Alpha-based Laptops and designed for the OpenVMS operating system – in contrast to other RISC laptops that targeted mobile Unix applications.

ALPHAbooks were very expensive at time of introduction, very rare and often limited to government usage like Defense applications, communications and Mission Critical Applications (OpenVMS). They were binary-compatible to Digital Alpha 64-bit workstations, and used the special 21066A Alpha processor, developed for integrated solutions.

ALPHAbook 1
Introduced 1995-96
CPU Alpha 21066A
233 MHz
Cache 512 KB L2
Design 64-bit RISC Digital Alpha
RAM 32-128 MB
Video WD 90C24 1MB
Screen 10.4″
Drives SCSI drive (2.1 GB) and floppy
Expansion PC Card
I/O VGA, (SCSI), PS/2, audio, docking, serial, parallel
OS OpenVMS
Price* $17,450

At the time when Tadpole released the ALPHAbook, the second generation RISC and Unix laptops were available, consisting of SPARC-based RDI PowerLite, various SPARCbooks and PowerPC IBM 800s laptops. Tadpole might have planned another ALPHAbook in the 1990s, calling this product ALPHAbook 1, which was based on a strategic agreement with Digital.

RDI ALPHAbook RDI ALPHAbook RDI ALPHAbook
Tadpole ALPHAbook © RDI 1997 and DECUS 1996

Technical details

ALPHAbooks were 64-bit Alpha RISC computers, based on custom Digital/DEC design, which Tadpole integrated into a laptop. Chipset and devices used were:

Usage Device Type External Bus
Chipset CPU memory, PCI controller integrated 64-bit
Chipset 82378ZB Intel SIO PCI/ISA bridge PCI
Storage 53C810 8-bit single-ended SCSI-2 50-pin (docking) PCI
Media 87332 Floppy 20-pin HD ISA
Video WD 90C24 1 MB frame buffer, WD9024A2 VGA 15-pin PCI
Cards CLPD6279 PCMCIA controller two slots PCI
I/O 87332 Serial and parallel I/O serial (docking)
parallel port		 ISA
I/O 82C42 PS/2 for mouse one port ISA
Audio CS4231 16-bit stereo sound headphone ISA

Expansion and I/O

There were quite a few possibilities to expand the ALPHAbook with devices:

Device Type Details
Memory Two SIMM modules 60ns for 32-128 MB RAM
Storage SCSI one 2.5″ SCSI drive (1.2 GB)
Media External floppy 3.5″ Floppy for 1.44 MB
Cards PCMCIA two Type II or one Type III
Input PS/2 82-key Lexmark M6 keyboard and three-button pointer
Output Display 10.4″ 800×600 TFT (256K)
Docking Mini-Docking Station High-density connector for expansion
with: SCSI 50-pin, one PS/2, serial, 8-pin audio

The ALPHAbook case was made out of magnesium and powder coated. Battery was one internal NiMH 1.8Ah for 1.5h of typical use and one external with 5Ah capacity for four hours charge, which would block the rear I/O panel.

PCMCIA cards were meant to be static configuration only and supported 3Com Ethernet (3C589) and TDK Modem.

Operating systems

RDI ALPHAbooks were designed for and supported the Digital OpenVMS operating system. Some product pages mentioned planned Digital UNIX support but it is unsure if this materialized.

Driver support for PCMCIA cards in OpenVMS was probably provided by Tadpole.

Benchmarks

SPEC benchmark data and comparisons to contemporary laptops and workstations:

Model CPU SPEC92 int SPEC92 fp SPEC95 int SPEC95 fp
Reference (ALPHAbook) DEC 21066A 233 MHz 94 110
Comparison
Reference Intel 486DX 33 MHz 19.5 8.9
Reference Intel 486DX2 66 MHz 32.4 16.1
Siemens PCE-5S Intel Pentium 100MHz 96.2 81.2 4.04 2.35
Sun SPARCstation 20 Sun SuperSPARC II 75MHz 125.8 121.2 3.11 3.10

References

Specifications

Articles and reviews

Announcements

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