I think perhaps we've both misinterpreted the datasheet a little bit.
Look at table 6.5 in this Texas Instruments datasheet. There we can see that indeed the maximum input current is 1.35mA at 3.85V but a little bit further down we can see that an input current of 250uA will still produce a collector current of 100mA while only dropping a maximum of 1.1V.
Input current on CMOS series logic chips seems to be in the uA range so no problems there.
Bookmarks