Build A Custom 'Whitebook'

Now, with Intel eager to put wireless technology in as many hands as possible, times have changed. The chipmaker has pushed manufacturers and distributors to open the floodgates to the channel. It is now possible to customize a notebook in no more time than it takes to build a desktop. While the state of interchangeable parts for notebooks is still not as advanced (or as cost-effective) as it is in the desktop world, it's a far cry from simply selling through a major vendor's notebook with your own brand on it. In fact, market research from IDC indicates that at least 60 system builders are actively competing in the whitebook segment. Because of the smaller range of competitors and the value-add a wireless notebook brings, margins tend to be better than in the desktop world.

But before you plunge into the whitebook market, there are a few things you need to know. The first is that the big manufacturers are likely to continue owning the very bottom of the pricing ladder for some time, if not forever. Whitebooks are simply not yet cost-effective enough to compete in the basement, although that may change as volumes increase. It's in the mid-range and high-end, particularly catering to thin-and-light power users, that a whitebook can be tailored to meet customer requirements without selling through someone else's brand.

To get started, you need an upstream distribution partner who handles the growing range of build-to-order notebook components. You need a supplier who can reliably provide the barebones notebook along with mobile CPUs, hard drives, RAM, optical drive upgrades and wireless networking cards suited to your market. Ensure that your supplier will back these products, particularly the hardware in the barebones notebook, with at least the same RMA (return materials authorization) turnaround and technical support they provide on their more established products. In other words, they need to stand by their whitebook components the same way they'd back a dead desktop motherboard or video card.

Take care when shopping for the barebones notebook platform. Some too-good-to-be-true models may feature an external battery, or no battery at all. Neither is acceptable with today's customers. Also, remember that the notebook integrates motherboard, power supply, and display along with all the I/O, so you cannot customize those parts once the chassis is purchased. First International Computer (FIC) in particular has led the way with simple, elegant designs that look and feel like a mainstream notebook.

The only other question is,how to get your notebooks ready for sale? True whitebooks are minimally branded, leaving plenty of room to apply your own identity. The only catch is that even a notebook with all the required Intel Centrino components cannot be branded "Centrino" without Intel's approval and licensing.

Our whitebook parts for this demonstration were kindly supplied by D&H Distributing Co., which provides both barebones and custom-assembled unbranded notebooks to the channel. More information on whitebooks is available from Intel through the Mobile Channel Leader and Build-To-Order programs.

Ingredients

• FIC MB02 Chassis. The FIC MB02 platform is an increasingly popular barebones whitebook. It weighs less than five pounds when fully assembled, the slots and sockets are all easily accessible with a minimum of screw-turning, and the price, typically around $800 in single quantities, favors the mid-range thin-and-light buyer. The chassis includes case, motherboard, optical drive, display, keyboard, touchpad, battery, and integrated 802.11b antenna.
• Intel Pentium-M CPU. Intel's latest mobile CPU runs on the slow side compared to other options, but it is extremely easy on battery life. We used the entry-level 1.4 GHz CPU.
• 2.5-inch IDE hard drive. We used a 40 GB, 5400 RPM Seagate model for our test install, but virtually any standard 44-pin notebook drive will do.
• DDR SO-DIMM memory module. The MB02 sports two slots for system RAM. We used a single 512 MB, 266 MHz module.
• Intel PRO/Wireless 802.11b Mini-PCI card. This provides the wireless networking portion of our mobile notebook.
• Windows XP Professional OEM edition. Like any system, the new notebook needs an OS. You may of course substitute another Windows variant, Linux, Solaris, or any other OS that suits your customer. One of the beauties of building a whitebook is that you can provide OS flexibility, which rarely comes from the large notebook suppliers.
• Burn-In software. Options abound here, and you may choose the benchmark or burn-in suite that appeals to you most. We opted for SiSoftware's Sandra program.
• Logo/brand stickers (optional). The whitebook MB02 comes with a small rounded-rectangle bearing the simple legend "Notebook," which you may replace or augment with the logos and names of your choosing. After all, it's your product.

A Notebook In Minutes

Now that we have our components assembled, let's start building. Gather the laptop parts on a work table, get out your favorite small Philips-head screwdriver and an anti-static wrist strap, and get to work. It doesn't take long to go from bubble wrap and boxes to a notebook with a pulse.

1. Unpack the MB02 notebook. Set aside the AC adapter and battery for now.

2. The first order of business is the hard drive. Take the drive out of its seal, and ensure that the jumper is set to Master. Flip over the chassis, and remove the screws on the hard-drive door. Open the door; you should see a carrier for the hard drive, a plastic base with metal side rails. Use the supplied screws to mount the drive in the carrier. Then plug the 44-pin ribbon cable from the motherboard into the drive. Place the mounted drive in the cavity, replace the door, and screw it closed.

3. Remove the CPU heatsink and fan by removing two screws accessible from the outside of the unit. Remove the two screws in the perforated vent area north of the hard-drive door.

4. Flip the notebook over and open it. Using your fingers or a tape-wrapped flathead screwdriver, gently pry off the cover above the keyboard, where the power and programmable buttons are located.

5. Getting at the meat of the motherboard requires a few extra steps. Slide the keyboard up and pull gently on its ribbon cable, then set the keyboard aside. Remove the thin black mylar sheet that insulates between the keyboard and RF shield, and set it aside. Finally, remove the single screw holding down the perforated RF shield, and lift it off as well. Removing the screw makes it possible to slide out the optical drive. Place both the screw and drive in the same pile with the mylar and RF shields.

6. Locate the two remaining screws on the heatsink/fan combo at the northeast edge of the motherboard, and remove them. After detaching the power lead to the fan, you can set aside the heatsink. Although if you have enough slack on the cable, you may set it aside as you reveal the CPU socket. The Pentium-M socket is zero-insertion but with a twist,instead of the customary lever, the mechanism closes through the turn of a small flatheaded screw. Ensure that the socket lock is turned to the unlocked position.

7. Remove the Pentium-M chip from its packaging and place it carefully in the CPU socket. Be sure to align the gold triangle on the corner of the chip with the socket edge that's missing a pin. Press down gently on the chip to ensure that it is held in place, then use a small flathead screwdriver to turn the screw to the locked position.

8. Replace the heatsink/fan combo atop the chip, and replace the two screws removed in step 6.

9. Unwrap the DDR memory modules, and place them in the SO-DIMM slots located in the center of the motherboard.

10. The two leads from the 802.11b antenna should be taped to the motherboard. Remove the tape and separate the wires. Unpack the 802.11b card and note the two antenna connectors. Press the lead marked M into the Main connector, and press the antenna lead marked A into the Aux connector. Then click the Mini-PCI card into place in the socket located south of the SO-DIMM slots, just north of the touchpad.

11. It's time to reassemble the notebook. First, slide the optical drive back into place. Then replace the RF shield, taking care to mate all of the metal tabs along the edge under the lip of the case. Next, replace the RF shield screw, then place the mylar sheet on the shield.

12. Reattach the keyboard. This is actually the most difficult step of the entire installation. The short ribbon cable makes it tricky, but if you flip up the bar on the socket that holds the ribbon cable, it becomes much easier. Place the keyboard down on the mylar sheet, and mate it to the case when finished.

13. Snap the top cover into place, then flip the unit over and replace the two screws removed in step 3. Put the battery in and connect to AC power. Let the unit charge up before you install or burn in, which should be about three hours.

14. Install the OS. First, unpack the Windows XP Professional license pack, then power up the notebook and place the CD in the drive. Follow the instructions to partition and format the hard drive, then let it work its magic as the operating system unpacks.

15. Once the OS is in place, put the machine through its paces. The first order of business is ensuring that the OS and hardware have all installed and are properly recognized. The easiest way to verify this is in the system control panel's Device Manager. Any devices with a red X or yellow exclamation point should be checked,a driver may simply have failed to install, but it may indicate a more serious problem with the board.

16. Use the Wireless Connections control panel to establish a WLAN connection in your own facilities. Depending on how your WLAN is configured, you may attempt to make an outside Web browsing connection, connect to an intranet server, or simply pass a few files back and forth though Windows networking, as appropriate. If this step fails, ensure that the wireless device driver is properly installed and recognized. If the card functions but no connection can be made, the antenna leads may not be secured to the Mini-PCI card. If that's the case, you will need to check by cracking the machine open once more.

17. Install SiSoft Sandra and click the Burn-In Wizard option. Page through the wizard and select at least one full pass,the more passes, the more thorough the testing, although extensive burn-in testing can place undue strain on hardware. We recommend at least three full test cycles to ensure that the machine will not overheat or crash due to faulty hardware.

It may seem years overdue, but the whitebox laptop is now a reality. Most desktop-building experience translates quite well to the whitebook world. The better whitebook suppliers are conscious of the need to build for rapid customization and quick changes, as evidenced by the fairly low incidence of screw-turning in our recipe. Whitebooks provide you with one more tool to position yourself as a complete technology solutions partner for your customers. They enable you to deliver the same high-power, long-lived portable computing as the industry titans.

JASON COMPTON is a technology writer who has covered topics ranging from 8-bit entertainment to supercomputing for more than a decade.