ASUS Zenbook UX303 (Nvidia GT 840M)

Also updated the atk package?

http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/nb/Apps_for_Win8.1/ATKPackage/ATKPackage_Win81_64_VER100037.zip

These updates are not directly for our ix-4xxxx notebook but for the ix-5xxxx one. Most of them are working for our notebook too.

 

Updated both ATK and smart gesture. Same CPU spike during multi finger gesture (scroll)

 

I am realy sorry for you, but I just can't confirm this. Checked it with cpu-z now too, and I don't get your results.. My CPU stays at 798,38 MHz while scrolling with the touchpad.. Tested with power connected and disconected. Perhaps you need to reset your powersaving settings.

 

Isnt the core speed suppose to be around 2 Ghz for this machine ? How are you getting 798 Mhz ....?

@tomdot : did you try the "lower zenbook power consumption" script?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...consumption-due-to-asus-smart-gesture.741039/

I didnt try it personally I was hoping for a fix directly from Asus via a SmartGesture update...

 

I think this is some kind of idling state of the cpu, have a look at the screenshot attached. The multiplicator can be between 8 and 31 and when I get this freq its @ 8 (Intel Speed Step?). Using the default balanced power plan of windows and not using any script

 

I did try the script which means it goes off 100% after 3-4 seconds. However I am also trying to avoid it by having a proper touchpad driver. Slightly disappointed as I've tried in the last few hours to update every single drives from the ux303ln - i5xxx CPU range to no avail.

I love that it idles in 0.77ghz which I often seen in 1080p MKV (h.264) decoding. However I've now tried resetting all my power plans in Balanced and Power Save to get this "fixed" Smart Gestures driver and frustratingly haven't come to good results!

 

...btw i've disabled/deleted the script but it gave me a 1hour boost in battery life easily (significant) given i'm averaging 3-4hours at most

 

hmmm ill have to check this out...
And you are using the new drivers for ATK and SmartGesture right? for the 5xxx machines

I havent done anything on my laptop yet, just fully disabled auto/adaptive brightness with the 3 steps i posted on last page

I really wish smartgesture would stop getting my cpu to 3 Ghz... I guess ill try the new drivers but tomdot said the update didnt do anything for him

Really? 3-4 hours?
I get 6-7+ hours easily when using Chrome/word/excel and youtube sometimes
but it all depends on what you do I guess

 

to be clear I have the ux303ln QHD i5. Turbo boost in Chrome/IE whenever I gesture scroll. For 3-4 hours i'm simply browsing on WIFI with BT OFF, display brightness at 30-40%, keyboard backlight at level 1

 

Does anyone know how to disable/enable the touchscreen and if there is a keyboard shortcut for it? Thanks

 

Hi, I'm seriously considering getting this ultrabook for school and other recreational purposes. I do have a few questions about the machine though and would like to hear directly from other UX303LN users before I go ahead and make the purchase:

1) I understand going into this that the screen suffers from poor color calibration (specifically the yellows). I also understand that there is a fix on this thread for it, but that it's also a somewhat risky one. There aren't any stores around here where I can directly view the poor yellows, so I would like to know how bad they really are? On top of that I'm a little wary about flashing a brand new computer. If things went south would I be able to return it or claim warranty; and is it even worth trying to patch a brand new machine? (I'm guessing probably not.) Also does the patch have any negative effects on the battery life that you can speak of?

2) How bad are the DPI scaling issues? Would it look blurry if I switched to 1080p; and if so is that fixable?

3) How does it handle video games and image/video editing? Obviously it's going to have a weaker CPU/GPU than a full-sized gaming laptop, but will it be able to handle most things thrown at it?

4) Finally, how would this compare to the Brodwell version of the UX303LA linked above? A Gen 5 Intel processor sounds tempting, but I'm afraid of losing too much performance in terms of gaming/editing. Especially if gaming/editing already has to take a hit in the LN version for a super portable form factor. Would it be worth going with the LA model when considering the Yellow issues? Or would you still recommend the LN version over it?

I'm going to dig through the previous pages on this thread to try and find some answers by myself but all help is much appreciated. Thank you in advance to anyone who can help me out!

 

Update: Got the laptop back from service on Friday evening, they replaced the motherboard. Asked the service tech to install the yellow fix patch and give it to me. He said that it was my responsibility if the patch killed the motherboard again (had not installed the patch before the mother board crash). Having installed the patch the yellow has definitely improved.
Can also verify that I am seeing the same CPU spikes when scrolling even after updating to the Nvidia drivers and the ATK package and Smart Gesture Driver shared above.

I know I read this somewhere in the forum and would appreciate it if someone could respond or point me to the post regarding how to get the Nvidia drivers to kick in for specific apps like vlc etc.

 

I didn't know your problem was due to the Yellow Patch fix. I re-read your original message and it wasn't clear that your laptop had shutdown whilst applying the LCD firmware (Yellow Fix). Good warning for those applying. Plugged in or not, make sure all sleep/hibernate notes are enabled. It's a rather long process (15 mins?) to keep your mouse moving around.

Nvidia GT840m kicks in by application. You can force it in Nvidia control panel.

 

Different Subject:

I have never tried to send my laptop video to my TV. I have the HDMI cable connected. TV input is set to the HDMI 3, PC is set to duplicate to second screen. BUT, I get just a black screen on the TV.

Any suggestions?

Thanks, Jim

 

I don't believe that the yellow patch is any more dangerous than any other bios/firmware update on electronic device. As with all flashes make sure the battery is 100% or at least your are running on AC power. Also, turn off hibernation, sleep, and screen off before the procedure. You can turn back on after completed. Just follow the procedure and should not be a problem.

 

Still no fix for this issue i guess

I just tried with mine: When i connect an hdmi cable from laptop to tv, i automatically see my laptop screen on tv, so im not sure what the problem is with yours sry

 

You have to do it in Device Manager. Disable 'HID-compliant touch screen'.

And for the HDMI issue, try a different cable or try wobbling the connector when it's in the HDMI port in the notebook.

 

Thanks for the thought about the HDMI. But, I have another laptop (Lenovo Yoga 11s) that works as expected with the HDMI cable and TV. I thought maybe there was a known issue with the Ux303, or a driver update that I needed. I did update to the latest Intel video driver, but that didn't help.

Best regards, Jim

 

I would still try a different HDMI cable.

I've had a couple of instances where I've had the same issue and a second cable has worked fine.

 

I've now tried Smart Gesture driver 3.0.10, 3.0.11 (latest) and 3.0.12 from the Asus Support site
http://www.asus.com/supportonly/ASUS Smart Gesture/HelpDesk_Download/

They all spike to 2.50ghz upon multi finger gestures. Still no luck.

 

Sorry for confusing the issue. The motherboard failure was not due to the yellow patch (I just connected it to the charger after it went to below 7% battery hibernate and never came back on), so people should not be scared to apply it, but I agree that they should take your instructions seriously. I mentioned what the service tech told me cause he was unwilling to take responsibility for the patch causing a similar failure, since I asked him to do it.

Totally agree with you.

 

Anyone else seeing the CPU idle at 1995 MHz when a second monitor is connected via HDMI?

 

For anyone still on the fence about whether or not the patched Ux303LN is a good bet or not. Please look at the attached screenshots, one if at 40% brightness on both devices and the other at 100%.
I have also used tomdot's profile that can be found here - http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...03-nvidia-gt-840m.746873/page-83#post-9859404

For me the screen is brilliant, watch the GoPro Hero4 video in 4K on this screen and you will see what I mean. Even the Dell S2440L screens that I have don't come close to the clarity of the screen. choice is yours.

 

For some reason the attachments were not being added in the above post. Sorry for the double post.
40%

100%

 

Well, I switched cable ends and tried a different sequence of startup. I plugged the cable in to TV and powered it on. HDMI 3 did not appear as an input option. Then I plugged the cable in the laptop. TV now had HDMI 3 as an option and gave message "searching for a signal". Then I powered up the laptop. The laptop display came up on the TV. I didn't have to select a display, it just came up on the TV. So, problem solved. I doubt if switching cable ends had any affect since the 11s worked with ends reversed.

Thanks, Jim

 

The Yellow issue seems to be vastly improved in those screen shots; is it being compared to an iPad? Either way the screen shots are very helpful, thanks!

 

It was bound to happen, but the first victim from improper yellow patching ;-) Was running the software to flash the EEPROM and one of my other programs running in the background crashed during patch after which the computer froze. After reboot, dreaded black screen. Only thing that still works is attaching a monitor via the HDMI port (and weirdly enough also the touchscreen even if the screen is black). Tried running the patch again, but gives a 'chip ID: 00' message and closes. I basically just converted my laptop into a desktop

Pretty sure it's time to send of the laptop to asus, but before I do so, any suggestions?

 

Contact them, they may have a deep flash program that can write over the entire contents of the chip in an emergency.

Also if you are forced to flash in windows, close everything else first

 

I think it could be useful to share with you my little bad experience with the UX303LN.
On Sunday evening, I let the laptop into sleep mode and just before going to bed, I open the laptop, and it just doesn't turn on...
Nothing happens, when I plug the charger the notification led remains off, there's nothing I could do.
And that happened just before moving for 2 months to Iceland, in the middle of nowhere, where I REALLY need to have a computer.

I didn't have the proper screwdriver but managed to find one.

The key was to remove the battery (just unplug it, no need to physically take it off), to disconnect the BIOS pile (it's actually very simple and next to the hard drive), then to press for about 30 seconds the power button, reconnect everything, and the laptop was on fire again.

Apparently this issue can happen sometimes when the BIOS goes mad, I don't know why, and it's absolutely not related to ASUS.

But if it ever happens to you, you'll know what to do !
Better invest in a screwdriver just in case (Torx 5), because it's a bit pointless to send it to the ASUS repair center when it can be fixed in about 10 minutes, unless you're afraid to do something wrong.

 

The Broadwell version of the UX303LN with i7 5500U, 8GB RAM, GT 840M, Full HD 1080p touch and 256GB SSD will be coming to my region in about a weeks time. I will be buying one of these so I'll post up some benchmark and battery life numbers then to compare how big of a improvement the Broadwell version really is compared to the Haswell.

 

Getting my hands on a UX303LN soon and reading all this is concerning!

Is there a specific post here with the latest yellow-color patch/fix + other suggested fix items? Perhaps a sticky for found solutions?

 

Nvidia have taken away the option of overclocking in their latest drivers. The UX303LN 840M overclocks with ease so this is not good news.

Sign the petition here: https://www.change.org/p/nvidia-re-...geforce-equipped-notebooks?recruiter=20925400

 

hahah it should not concern you that much man
every laptop has a few flaws...
If you dont mind the colors on 303LN, go for it
If you think the colors are terrible, apply the patch
If you dont want to risk it (like me), get the ux303LA with the 1080p screen

its the best ultrabook out there in my opinion, with upgradable ram and ssd

 

It doesn't give me the option to force VLC player to use the NVidia driver, especially when running HD or 4K HD videos the battery drain becomes alarming. Would like to be able to have the graphics card handle the display from the video players, does anyone know how to make it happen?

 

Like tomdot allready said, go to the nvidia panel and add the vlc executable to run on the nvidia card.
1. Right click on the desktop, choose Nvidia Control Panel
2. Choose 3D Settings
3. Add the vlc executable to the list and choose nvidia processor

 

I dig the form and the power -- but the yellows are definitely very... Mustard.

Which patch? And is there a patch to go back to the original settings to undo it in case of failure? What does the patch do, exactly?

 

heres the post about the patch:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...03-nvidia-gt-840m.746873/page-80#post-9856614

Dont think there is a way to undo it. Apparently it makes the yellows more yellow, fixes the color problem by about 80%

 

did someone downgrade to win8.1 to windows7 ? I see that support website have all the drivers. Since I don't have touch I wonder if is all wokring fine in win7 . Laptop have two primary partitions from factory . Can I install win7 on the second one and keep both OS ?

 

Personally, I would not go back to windows 7. Just use something like classicshell (free), start8, etc for the start menu and run in desktop mode all the time. You can set it to boot to desktop mode and you will not hardly know the difference between 7 and 8. I never hardly use the windows tile menu at all. Windows 8 is more stable, faster, and boots much quicker. Unless you need Windows 7 for a particular software, I don't see a benefit. Windows 10 will bring the start menu back and is a free upgrade to 8.

 

The application is already there in the list but the drop down button to select the nvidia processor is disabled and does not let me select it. The only option is Integrated Graphics.

 

Mayank22> I have same as you . No option for Nvidia too

Ishman> I have two programs that run better in win7 . One of them is crashing in win8, other is working but a little more slowly .

 

That makes sense. Have you tried compatibility mode?

 

Whats with all these hinge failures? There's at least 5 on Amazon reviews.

http://www.amazon.com/Zenbook-UX303...Number=1&filterByKeyword=hinge#R18UGXNHE6405F

Also there's 1 hinge failure for the UX303LA. Getting me a bit worried since I'm getting mine in a couple of days.

 

Ishman> even my Vaio Pro13 runs win7 and when I work on that i feel as being home )

EVGAFTW> you realize that those screen fails are 5 of over 10.000+ pcs sold ? And with this forum , amazon review and few others where people can write own comments these UX303 are almost as matching macbook air build quality .

Until now I can say:
- I like UX303LN size and weight
- I like non glossy display
- I like resolution but for me perfect is 1600x900 (but als FHD nontouch is great)
- I like keyboard
- I lke touch
- I like that I can play some games in HD (I'm not a gamer but CS1.6 or NFS MW or Warcraft III runs 100% normal and looking great on this small 13" machine)
- I like the look of aluminium case vs magnesium , carbon or plastic as I had in other machines (usually carbon-plastic ones when carrying in backpack from time to time I press display to the keyboard by mistake and after few months I can see the keys shadow on the display because of dust+pressing

- I don't like battery that last from 4 1/2 hours until mam 6 hours
- I like 1.1-1.2kg more than 1.5kg (pro advantage, vaio Z2 advantage but looking at performance => is ok also with 1.5kg )


These are my thoughts about this laptop .

 

I really do hope you are right.

 

New Intel ME Firmwareupdate:
http://station-drivers.com/index.php/outils/Drivers/Intel/Management-Engine-Interface-(MEI)/Firmwares/Serie-9.x/Serie-9.5.x/Intel-ME-Firmware-Version-9.5.45.1922-(1.5Mo)/

Usage:
All commands are executed in a command shell (cmd) stared with admin rights!
1. Download and extract the files, change into the new directory
2, make a backup of your current firmware with "FWUpdLcl.exe -save backup.bin"
3, update the firmware with "FWUpdLcl.exe -F ME9.5_1.5M_Production.BIN"
Reboot

Tested and working.

Changelog:
New functions or enhancements
- Removed SSL 3.0 support from Intel ME firmware.

Problem fixes
- Fixed the following issues:
- Intel AMT might work only in S0 state when configuring network without
providing link policy in AMT_EthernetPortSettings.
- KVM session disconnected in pre-OS environment during a system reset
initiated by the Intel ME over wireless network connection.
- Intel ME firmware reported to BIOS a CPU replacement occurred after
globalreset.
- Some NV data could still be read after the NV index has been deleted.
- TPM clock might be set to an older clock.
- TPM was in failure mode on certain devices.

 

Could anyone who's technically-minded offer a suggestion here?
I need huge storage for my job, but 2TB drives are 9.5mm deep - I'm pretty sure 7mm is the maximum in the Zenbook,
So how about replacing the SSD with a 1TB HDD (you can get these in 7mm depth)
....and installing the OS onto a half-size 480GB MSATA drive which fits in the spare slot.
Anyone could offer any thoughts on whether this would work. Otherwise I'll be sticking with my trusty old Vaio.
Cheers,
Dan

 

The mSATA slot is only half size, so I don't think you can get a 480gb there. But why use an HDD - you can get a 1tb 7mm SSD as the main drive and still add an mSATA along with it for OS/boot/programs.

 

Yes you're right, it seems 128GB max is for half size mSATA.
I realised I can also put 128GB in the SDRAM slot.
I could put a 1TB SSD in there, but its 6 x more expensive, and I don't need the speed, HDD is fine.

But I still don't know if all this is going to work until I can be sure the mSATA is bootable.

 

According to this you should be able to (see repy from ZeusGamer):
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2323716/create-ssd-boot-programs-hdd-storage.html