IBM ThinkPad 701C

The ThinkPad 701C used the ingenious two-piece TrackWrite keyboard, which expanded beyond the narrow case as the lid opened. This provided a near full-size keyboard with a compact 10.4-inch notebook footprint.

Known as the Butterfly, it became an icon of industrial design despite a short production life as larger notebook screens made the mechanism unnecessary.

Notable Features

• The interlocking keyboard automatically spread outward when the display opened.
• Its design is represented in the Museum of Modern Art’s collection.

Historical Significance

• Known as the Butterfly, it became an icon of industrial design despite a short production life as larger notebook screens made the mechanism unnecessary.

Collector’s Notes

• Original IBM documentation, matching display and keyboard, and an unmodified configuration add historical context.
• Memory, storage, displays and expansion hardware should be documented because configurations often changed during a system’s working life.

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	IBM ThinkPad 701C
Manufacturer	IBM
Launched	Wednesday, March 1, 1995
Discontinued	1995
Country	United States
CPU	Intel 80486DX4 at 75 MHz
Units Sold
Form Factor	Ultra-compact notebook
Power	Rechargeable battery or AC adapter
Networking	Optional modem and PC Card networking
Operating System	PC DOS with Windows or OS/2
Expansion / I/O	PCMCIA, serial, parallel, VGA, audio and docking interfaces
Keyboard	TrackWrite expanding keyboard with TrackPoint
Storage	Internal hard disk; external floppy drive
Sound	16-bit audio
Colours	256 colours
Graphics	VGA-compatible colour graphics
Display	Built-in 10.4-inch colour TFT; 640 x 480
ROM	IBM BIOS
RAM	4MB or 8MB standard; expandable
CPU Speed	75 MHz