Hi folks,

Some time ago, I posted my small collection of Newton MessagePads (actually remnants from the 90s when I really used them) on this thread: https://tinkerdifferent.com/threads/messagepad-120.176/

I recently came across a lot of Newtons "for parts" and acquired it.

I intend to try to fix my 120 with the black screen and also attempt to repair a 130, which came in the lot and seems partially functional: it has no backlight and shuts down periodically, saying power was interrupted (regardless of whether it is battery-powered or connected to mains).

I was looking for some guidance to start my endeavor and only found a @Mac84 live stream where he fixes an original Newton.

I also found a video on YouTube that mentioned the 120/130 suffers from bad resistors. I usually see people recapping vintage Apple stuff, but I have never seen an instance where "re-resistoring" was necessary!

Does anyone know where I can find resources to guide me in my attempt to restore the 120/130?

As always, thanks for the help!

Frank Grundel of PDA-Soft has documented a number of fixes for the MessagePad 130, including mention of the "very poorly manufactured" resistors.


His full disassembly guide can be found here:


If you run into anything not covered in these guides, I would contact Frank directly or post a question to the NewtonTalk mailing list.

Thanx! You guys always amaze me!