AST Ascentia 900N 486DX2/50MHz Laptop 501299-201 12MB RAM 341MB HDD No AC

AST Ascentia 900N 486DX2/50MHz Laptop 501299-201 12MB RAM 341MB HDD No AC

The AST Ascentia 900N is a 486-class portable computer made by AST Research, Inc. in the early 1990s. This unit is the 4/50 CS10 configuration, powered by an Intel 486DX2/50MHz processor and running on a 24V DC power supply (not included). It carries 12MB of RAM, a 341MB hard drive, and a built-in 1.44MB 3.5-inch floppy drive. Two issues are documented: the AC adapter is not included and the CMOS battery is dead, requiring replacement and a BIOS reset before use.

Specifications & What's Included

• Make: AST Research, Inc.
• Model: Ascentia 900N (900N 4/50 CS10)
• Part Number: 501299-201
• Processor: Intel 486DX2 / 50MHz
• RAM: 12MB
• Hard Drive: 341MB
• Floppy Drive: 1.44MB 3.5-inch
• Display: Built-in LCD panel
• Pointing Device: Trackball (built-in, center below keyboard)
• Rear ports: VGA video output, DB-25 parallel, DB-9 serial, PS/2 mouse, expansion connector
• Power input: 24V DC, 2.2A (AC adapter NOT included)
• Country of Manufacture: United States
• Known issues: No AC adapter included; CMOS battery is dead
• Laptop only — no power adapter, no software, no documentation

Applications

The AST Ascentia 900N is a mid-1990s 486-era laptop from AST Research, a major PC manufacturer of the early-to-mid 1990s that competed directly with Compaq, IBM, and Toshiba in the business portable market. The Ascentia line was AST's mainstream notebook series, and the 900N represented a full-featured business machine of its day — built in the USA and targeting corporate users who needed a portable DOS or Windows 3.x workstation. The 486DX2/50MHz CPU was a competitive clock-doubled chip that ran at the doubled 50MHz internally while communicating with the motherboard bus at 25MHz, making it one of the faster 486-class processors available when the machine was new. Today these machines are sought by vintage computing collectors and hobbyists running period-correct DOS software, classic games, or early Windows environments. The documented rear expansion connector also makes it compatible with AST docking accessories of the era. A replacement 24V DC 2.2A barrel-jack adapter is required to power the unit; the CMOS battery (typically a barrel or coin cell on the mainboard) will need to be replaced to retain BIOS settings.