After twelve years of service, my first MP2100 is headed for retirement. It has been working very reliably over the years, but recently, one strange problem started to occur: It stopped playing sounds. I checked the usual suspects (wiring, software patches, …), however the very first Newton on this planet to play MP3 files is now mute.
This device is one of the first German MP2100s, and I bought it back in 1997 from a Swiss web store. I used to baby the Newton way too much, before I realized that it can only realize its full potential if I have it close by all the time. The case looks pretty battered now, even though all clips and doors are still in place. The backlight it maybe at 50% brightness, and the screen is slightly worn. This particular Newton has seen quite a bit of places from California to Australia, and went up all the way to 70° 54’ 48" North.
Now it is time to retire this lovely device, and start using its successor, probably one of the last produced MP2100 I bought already quite a while ago. I’m not sure if it will also see twelve years of service, but you never know :)