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Psion netBook Pro Documentation: Difference between revisions

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'''Psion Teklogix's own documentation for the [[Psion netBook Pro]].''' This is the best-documented machine in the Psion range covered on this wiki — Psion Teklogix published a proper user manual with a troubleshooting chapter and full specifications, and revised it twice.
'''Psion netBook Pro documentation''' is the set of documents for the [[Psion netBook Pro]] hosted here: two editions of Psion Teklogix's user manual, the quick start guide and the specification sheet, and Marc Nijdam's note on the BooSt boot firmware. No service manual, spare parts list or exploded diagram for the netBook Pro is known to survive.


No service manual, spare parts list or exploded diagram survives for the netBook Pro any more than for its EPOC predecessors.
{| class="wikitable styled-table" style="width:100%; text-align:left;"
|+'''Documents'''
! Document !! Publisher, part number, date !! Pages
|-
| ''NETBOOK PRO User Manual'' Rev C || Psion Teklogix, P/N 8100012 Rev C, 27 May 2004 || 172
|-
| ''NETBOOK PRO Win CE 4.2 User Manual'' Rev A || Psion Teklogix, P/N 8100012 Rev A, 10 October 2003 || 152
|-
| ''NETBOOK PRO Quick Start Guide'' Rev D || Psion Teklogix, P/N 8100010.D, 4 April 2005 || 92
|-
| "NETBOOK PRO Hand-Held Computer" specification sheet || Psion Teklogix, NBPRO 05/05 || 2
|-
| "How to enter the BooSt superuser mode in the Netbook Pro" || Marc Nijdam, v1.0, July 2007 || 1
|}


== The user manual ==
== User manual (Rev C) ==


172 pages, P/N '''8100012 Rev C''', 27 May 2004. Carries the battery calibration behaviour and the four conditions that reset the fuel gauge, the cumulative power-scheme timeouts, the soft and hard reset procedures, the troubleshooting chapter and the full specification.<ref name="um">Psion Teklogix, ''netBook Pro User Manual'', P/N 8100012 Rev C, 27 May 2004, 172 pages, hosted at [[:File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf]]. Also Rev A of 10 October 2003, 152 pages, for the earlier 8-to-14-hour battery-life figure.</ref>
The ''NETBOOK PRO User Manual'', P/N 8100012 Rev C, dated 27 May 2004, is 172 pages.<ref name="um">Psion Teklogix, ''NETBOOK PRO User Manual'', P/N 8100012 Rev C, 27 May 2004. Hosted on this wiki: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf]]. Title page (PDF p. 1) and contents.</ref> It has nine chapters and two appendices: Introduction; Getting Started; The Keyboard; Configuring The Unit; Files, Folders, and Programs; Using The PC Connection; Configuring Communications; Troubleshooting And Tips; Specifications; Support Services And Worldwide Offices; Program License Agreements.<ref name="um" />


<pdf> File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf </pdf>
{| class="wikitable styled-table" style="width:80%; text-align:left;"
|+'''Sections most useful for repair'''<ref name="um" />
! Section !! Page !! Covers
|-
| Caring for the NETBOOK PRO || 6-7 || Screen cleaning, approved chargers, backup battery, drop rating, IP rating, temperature
|-
| Finding and using the stylus || 15 || Stylus holder and eject button; touchscreen recalibration
|-
| Power management; main and backup batteries || 16-18 || Running-time advice, changing the main pack, changing the AAA backup cells
|-
| Power Properties; battery calibration || 21-22 || Gauge states and the four conditions that reset calibration
|-
| Power saving schemes || 22-26 || Dim, Stand-By and Suspend timeouts and defaults
|-
| Soft and hard reset || 33-34 || Reset procedures and what each preserves
|-
| The Flash folder || 65 || Storage that survives power loss and resets
|-
| Troubleshooting and tips || 119-121 || Forgotten password, turning on and off, resetting, battery life and charging
|-
| Specifications || 133-134 || Physical, environmental, display, power, processor, memory, keyboard, storage and I/O
|}


Download: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf|Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf]]
Printed page numbers run 20 behind the PDF page numbers (printed p. 133 is PDF p. 153).<ref name="um" /> The manual's specification contains two slips: the weight is printed as "1100 g / 2.95 lb" (1100 g is 2.43 lb), and the low operating temperature as "-0°C".<ref name="um-133">''NETBOOK PRO User Manual'' Rev C, p. 133.</ref>


'''A note on revisions.''' The earlier '''Rev A''' of 10 October 2003 (152 pages) quotes the battery life as '''8 to 14 hours'''; Rev C revises that down to '''8 to 11 hours'''. Both are Psion Teklogix's own figures for the same machine, and the pages on this wiki use the later one.<ref name="um" />
== User manual (Rev A) ==


== The quick start guide ==
Rev A of the manual, dated 10 October 2003, is 152 pages with the specifications in chapter 8 (pp. 115-116).<ref name="umA">Psion Teklogix, ''NETBOOK PRO Win CE 4.2 User Manual'', P/N 8100012 Rev A, 10 October 2003. Hosted on this wiki: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev A).pdf]]; from Internet Archive item psion-netbook-pro-user-manual-rev-a.</ref> It gives the battery life as 8 to 14 hours, which Rev C revises to 8 to 11 hours.<ref name="umA" /><ref name="um-121">''NETBOOK PRO User Manual'' Rev C, p. 121.</ref> The PDF's internal title reads "netpad Win CE 4.1 User Manual", carried over from the manual for Psion Teklogix's netPad; the content is the netBook Pro manual.<ref name="umA" />


92 pages, P/N '''8100010.D''', 4 April 2005 — the last revision. Covers battery calibration, the backup batteries, the memory card slots, screen care and the temperature limits.<ref name="qsg">Psion Teklogix, ''netBook Pro Quick Start Guide'', P/N 8100010.D, 4 April 2005, 92 pages, hosted at [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Quick Start Guide (Rev D).pdf]].</ref>
== Quick start guide ==


Download: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Quick Start Guide (Rev D).pdf|Psion netBook Pro Quick Start Guide (Rev D).pdf]]
The ''NETBOOK PRO Quick Start Guide'', P/N 8100010.D, dated 4 April 2005, is 92 pages in five languages: English, then Spanish, Italian, French and German.<ref name="qsg">Psion Teklogix, ''NETBOOK PRO Quick Start Guide'', P/N 8100010.D, 4 April 2005. Hosted on this wiki: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Quick Start Guide (Rev D).pdf]]. Contents on PDF p. 3; language sections begin on PDF pp. 17, 35, 53 and 71.</ref> The English section covers the box contents, main features, installing the main and backup batteries, switching on and off, battery calibration and charging, the stylus, the SD/MMC, CompactFlash and PC Card slots, and support and repair contacts. It states a twelve-month return-to-factory warranty.<ref name="qsg" />


== The specification sheet ==
== Specification sheet ==


Two pages, document code NBPRO 05/05. Worth having alongside the manual because the two disagree:
The two-page "NETBOOK PRO Hand-Held Computer" specification sheet, code NBPRO 05/05, is a US-format marketing sheet with a hardware, software and physical specification on page 2.<ref name="spec">Psion Teklogix, "NETBOOK PRO Hand-Held Computer" specification sheet, NBPRO 05/05. Hosted on this wiki: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Specification Sheet.pdf]].</ref> It adds details the manual lacks and differs from it in places:


{| class="wikitable styled-table" style="width:100%; text-align:left;"
{| class="wikitable styled-table" style="width:100%; text-align:left;"
|+'''Where the specification sheet and the user manual differ'''
|+'''Specification sheet and user manual compared'''<ref name="spec" /><ref name="um-133" /><ref name="um-134">''NETBOOK PRO User Manual'' Rev C, p. 134.</ref>
! Item !! Specification sheet !! User manual
! Item !! Specification sheet !! User manual (Rev C)
|-
|-
| '''Display''' || "SVGA (800x600) TFT transmissive display with '''CCFL backlight'''" || "800 X 600 pixels 16-bit colour display with backlight"
| Display || SVGA (800 × 600) TFT transmissive display with CCFL backlight; resistive touch screen || 800 × 600 16-bit colour display with backlight
|-
|-
| '''Weight''' || 2.4 lb / 1100 g || "1100 g / '''2.95 lb'''" — internally inconsistent; 1100 g is 2.43 lb
| Audio || AC97 codec; 2.5 mm stereo headphone/microphone socket; speaker || Integrated headphone jack and speaker
|-
|-
| '''Humidity''' || 5–93 % RH at 40 °C || 0–93 % at 40 °C
| USB || Mini USB 1.1 master || One USB mini type-A port for peripherals
|-
|-
| '''Temperature shock''' || ±10 °C over 5 minutes || not stated
| Weight || 2.4 lb / 1100 g || 1100 g / 2.95 lb
|-
| Humidity || 5-93 % RH at 40 °C, non-condensing || 0-93 % at 40 °C, non-condensing
|-
| Temperature shock || ±10 °C over 5 minutes || Not given
|}
|}


The display line matters for repair: '''CCFL''' means there is an inverter, and it explains the faint buzz some machines make at certain brightness settings.<ref name="spec">Psion Teklogix, ''netBook Pro'' specification sheet, document code NBPRO 05/05, two pages, hosted at [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Specification Sheet.pdf]]. Source for the CCFL-backlit SVGA transmissive TFT description, the 2.4 lb / 1100 g weight, the 5–93 % RH humidity range and the ±10 °C over 5 minutes temperature-shock figure, each of which differs from the user manual as tabulated above.</ref>
== BooSt supervisor mode note ==


Download: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Specification Sheet.pdf|Psion netBook Pro Specification Sheet.pdf]]
A one-page note by Marc Nijdam, v1.0, July 2007, on the netBook Pro's boot firmware, BooSt. It is not a Psion Teklogix document.<ref name="boost">Marc Nijdam, "How to enter the BooSt superuser mode in the Netbook Pro", v1.0, July 2007. Hosted on this wiki: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro BooSt Supervisor Mode.pdf]].</ref> It shows the normal boot menu (run or clean-start the operating system, YMODEM load, configuration, audio, display, touch and RAM tests, NAND ECC, erase flash file system), explains how to reach the superuser mode with a 33-68 kΩ resistor across two pins of the docking connector, and gives commands to set the keyboard layout, recalibrate the touchscreen and erase the NAND flash from block 18 after a failed Linux installation. It warns that erasing below block 18 erases BooSt and leaves the machine unbootable. Its screen captures record MLB rev. D, 32 MB of Samsung K9F5616U0 NAND and 128 MB of RAM on the author's machine.<ref name="boost" />


== BooSt supervisor mode ==
== What these documents do not contain ==


A one-page note on entering '''BooSt''' supervisor mode, used for advanced configuration and boot options — the route to reflashing a machine whose Windows CE installation is damaged.<ref name="boost">''netBook Pro BooSt supervisor mode'', one page, hosted at [[:File:Psion netBook Pro BooSt Supervisor Mode.pdf]].</ref>
* No schematic, component values or board layout
* No exploded view, spare parts list or part numbers for assemblies
* No disassembly procedure
* No rating for the AC adapter; the manual lists it only as "Adaptor for battery charging"<ref name="um-134" />


Download: [[:File:Psion netBook Pro BooSt Supervisor Mode.pdf|Psion netBook Pro BooSt Supervisor Mode.pdf]]
Paul Vigay's Psion archive hosts the last released Windows CE 4.20 ROM image.<ref name="vigay">[http://www.vigay.com/psion/ "Psion, NetBook, NetBook Pro and EPOC Support"], vigay.com. Retrieved 2026-09-30.</ref>


The last released Windows CE 4.20 ROM image is not hosted here, but survives at [http://www.vigay.com/psion/files/nbpswfeb18english04218.zip vigay.com].
== Pages that cite these documents ==
 
* [[Psion netBook Pro]]
* [[Psion netBook Pro General Maintenance]]
* [[Psion netBook Pro Troubleshooting Guide]]
* [[Psion netBook Pro Battery Service]]
 
== Documents ==
 
<pdf width="800" height="500">File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf</pdf>
 
Downloads:
* [[:File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf|Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev C).pdf]]
* [[:File:Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev A).pdf|Psion netBook Pro User Manual (Rev A).pdf]]
* [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Quick Start Guide (Rev D).pdf|Psion netBook Pro Quick Start Guide (Rev D).pdf]]
* [[:File:Psion netBook Pro Specification Sheet.pdf|Psion netBook Pro Specification Sheet.pdf]]
* [[:File:Psion netBook Pro BooSt Supervisor Mode.pdf|Psion netBook Pro BooSt Supervisor Mode.pdf]]
 
See also [[Psion netBook Documentation]] and [[Psion Series 7 User Guide]].


== References ==
== References ==
<references />
<references />


== Related pages ==
{{Navbox-Psion|state=collapsed}}
 
* [[Psion netBook Pro]] · [[Psion netBook Pro General Maintenance]] · [[Psion netBook Pro Troubleshooting Guide]] · [[Psion netBook Pro Battery Service]]
* [[Psion netBook Documentation]] · [[Psion Series 7 User Guide]]


[[Category:Service Manuals]]
[[Category:Service Manuals]]
[[Category:Psion]]
[[Category:Psion]]
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