{"id":2904,"date":"2026-05-11T22:57:31","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T22:57:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vintage.bohemiancave.org.uk\/?p=2904"},"modified":"2026-05-11T22:57:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T22:57:33","slug":"hewlett-packard-200lx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vintage.bohemiancave.org.uk\/index.php\/hewlett-packard-200lx\/","title":{"rendered":"Hewlett Packard 200LX"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Hewlett Packard developed three handheld DOS <\/a>machines, the 95LX<\/a>, 100LX and 200LX. The first, the 95LX was introduced in 1991 a couple years before the 100LX and the 200LX was released in 1994. These are the only DOS machines in the series, future models being Windows CE<\/a> devices. The cases on the DOS machines are very similar but the CE machines have a different aesthetic.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Hardware<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The 200LX features a 7.91 MHz 80186 compatible “Hornet” processor which is the same as the 100LX and noticeably faster than the 95LX which runs a NEC V20 at 5.37 MHz. The Hornet is a SoC (System on Chip) that combines the CPU and much of the PC hardware (there’s info available on hermocom.com<\/a>). It’s compatible with the 8086, 8088, 80186 and, to an extent, the 80286 and contains most of what’s needed to build a PC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is 2 MB of RAM in my machine, but I believe it came in 1, 2 and 4 MB variants. There are add-ons to increase it to 16 or 32 MB. 640 MB is used as system memory and the rest is generally used as a RAM disk, although I’m led to believe it can be used an EMS or XMS. The machine also contains a 3 MB ROM with DOS 5.0 and a whole bunch of software (see below).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The screen on the 200LX is 640×240 pixels, much higher resolution than on the 95LX (240×128 pixels).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also run it in 4 shades of grey at a cost of half the horizontal resolution.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The keyboards are very similar. They are both clicky calculator-style hard plastic keys, good for thumb typing and OK for touch typing, just not great for that. Apart from the obvious colour difference, a few keys have been switched around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The batteries on the 200LX are the same as on the 95LX, 2xAA with a CR2032 to keep the memory alive when they die or need changing. The machines can also be powered off an external 12V adapter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Both devices have a PCMCIA port. This will take SRAM or flash memory. I have a tried an 8M compact flash card in an adapter and a 32M smart media in a suitable reader. I’ve read that cards up to 2G can be used with a suitable driver. The 95LX will not take flash and I don’t have any RAM cards to try (they’re expensive if you can find them).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The PCMCIA slot takes the entire left side and the other ports are all on the right. These are the same between the 95LX and the 200LX. They are: the backup battery slot, infra red port, serial port and power jack. The serial ports are different between the 95LX and the 200LX – the former has just 4 pins (no handshaking) but the latter has many more pins to accommodate all the signals that are on a 9-pin RS232 connector.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Summary<\/h3>\n\n\n\n