The Ultimate AMD Trinity Notebook List

Trinity is such a failure, it's almost depressing. Still no decent 13,3- 14" laptop with ONLY a A10-4600M on board. Other Trinity processors are lame. And above all, Trinity is very expensive. Shame on u OEMs

 

Check my post edit. I was able to get it detected. Required me to enter the BIOS and exit. It was detected in BIOS, although I did nothing else except enter the BIOS and exit, then it was detected in Windows 8.

 

SATAIII mSATA? Glad to hear, at least Lenovo didn't skimp on this. Told you it wasn't dead. So if it was detected by the BIOS, then that means it can boot from the mSATA drive?

Unfortunately my E425 doesn't detect my Samsung 470 SSD in the caddy from within the BIOS, Lenovo y u no release updated BIOS and give me this basic function?!

One such failure I can see right now is in the latest ad from Micro Center we just received at my house (actually its like this just about everywhere you look). On the front page, there are 26 laptops, and only 3 are AMD-based! The rest are Intel-based, ranging anywhere from $299.99 all the way up to $1099.99. And were not talking about top-of-the-line Trinity here either. No sir, they've got listed:

$249.99 - 15.6" Compaq CQ57-489WM, AMD E-300, 2GB DDR3, 320GB HDD Windows 7
$259.99 - 15.6" Asus R503U-MH21, AMD E2-1800, 2GB DDR3, 320GB HDD, Windows 8
$399.99 - 15.6" HP Pavilion dv6-7013cl, AMD A6-4400M, 6GB DDR3, 640GB HDD, Windows 7

Whats the best Trinity model in the entire ad? A $749.99 17.3" Toshiba Satellite S875D-S7350, AMD A10-4600M, 6GB DDR3, 750GB HDD, Windows 8 or a $629.99 15.6" Lenovo IdeaPad Z585, AMD A10-4600M, 6GB DDR3, 1TB HDD, Windows 8 (with a typo that says its got an A6).

While the (front page AMD offering) prices are low and these are more than capable for many consumers and their needs, its simply just a sad reality. The Intel-based laptops range from 13.3"-17.3" but not the AMD ones. This is the first thing people see when they're interested to see what their local Micro Center has to offer (Intel or AMD based products). It paints a picture and its not a good one at all. Is it any wonder?

 

We need a 13-14" machine with a 4600M and at least a 45W model for the likes of the GX60 and they would have the products to really attract people.

 

And regarding RAM, if CPU-z is right this RAM is running 1333 at CAS 5. I don't think you'd be able to run any faster. The JEDEC table calls for CAS 9 at 1333 but it's CAS 5.

Spoiler

 

Hm, seems quite good for single RAM, though I'm still looking forward to seeing what the A8 can do with the dual channel. I added your first 3DMark11 score to the OP, but will update once we have more data. Here's mine for comparison.

Dual
DIMM #1
SMBus address0x50
Memory typeDDR3
Module formatSO-DIMM
Manufacturer (ID)Corsair (7F7F9E0000000000)
Size4096 MBytes
Max bandwidthPC3-12800H (800 MHz)
Part numberCMSX4GX3M1A1600C9
Number of banks8
Nominal Voltage1.50 Volts
EPPno
XMPyes
XMP revision1.3
AMPno
JEDEC timings tableCL-tRCD-tRP-tRAS-tRC @ frequency
JEDEC #16.0-6-6-16-26 @ 533 MHz
JEDEC #27.0-7-7-19-30 @ 622 MHz
JEDEC #38.0-8-8-22-35 @ 711 MHz
JEDEC #49.0-9-9-24-39 @ 800 MHz

 

Seriously the RAM is running CL5 near 1333MHz? Can you verify by HWinfo64 screenshot?

That is great if mSata is available in this little budget ultrathin, than hopefully the premium asus model will include too . Yeah, is possible to boot from mSata?

 

100% agreed.

just found this laptop and love it already.

have been tempted by the series 9 and the lenovo yoga, but want more gpu muscle.

four cores and 384 shaders is me sold.

 

Don't know if it will boot, just don't have time backing up all the data on my msata at the moment to try it out. Maybe later, but it should work.

Here's HWInfo64 with Ram showing it to be CAS 5. Wow. Too bad it isn't dual channel.



And here's some more images:

CPU (APU):

Spoiler

Heatsink:

Spoiler

Bottom of mobo (sorry, too many cables to undo to flip it over, and didn't have time to fuss):

Spoiler

FCH (Fusion Controller Hub):

Spoiler

 

That is a very shocking memory timing, could be a great performance thin laptop with Dual-Channel... I would actually consider to buy this type of Memory instead the very expensive 1866MHz RAMs, which are probably cannot do CL5 near 1333MHz. + Thanks for the APU picture, have not seen before an ULV APU!

 

HT, have you tried OC'ing the IGP yet? It is possible on the latest drivers. I'd love to see where the ULV IGP's can be pushed.

 

None of the mobile trinity chips are 45W.

What do you mean by that?

 

I wouldn't call it a failure, I'd call it poor execution, in that it's not being utilized in a form factor that really lets its benefits come through.

Yes, the sub $400 segment is covered well by the A6, but that's about it, really.

 

That APU is a lot bigger than I'd expect from a 19W part!

 

1.3b transistors fabricated at 32nm, vs ~1.1b transistors fabbed at 22nm for an ivy-bridge dual core.

it will be a big chip.

 

1080p Asus Ultrabook with AMD.

Asus 13.3-inch U38N Windows 8 VivoBook clears FCC packing AMD A8 Trinity internals -- Engadget

Sorry if this was already covered.

 

I think it was... but then there's always this:

" but there's no indication if or when US AMD lovers may be able to grab one."

 

More S405 stuff:

3dmark vantage:

Spoiler

 

NOW I'M EVEN MORE ANGRY AT LENOVO!!!

I'm able to overclock the GPU, so far to 900MHz! It's stable with Kombustor, well, I get some artifacting, but have to run it below 850MHz to be 3DMark11 stable. The thing is that it doesn't result in much performance difference in 3DMark 11. I'll do some more benchmarks though and see if it makes an FPS difference in games.

 

I wonder if the MSI GX60 will fare well. Looks like a great package, and I'm glad to see a Trinity chip in a higher end system.

Trinity-powered MSI GX60 Gaming Notebook Now Available | Maximum PC

 

Engadget
MSI ships GX60 gaming laptop to the US, gives us high-end AMD gaming for $1,300

Its fine, we covered it a couple pages back. The Asus U500/UX51 thread got up to like 200 pages before the thing was even released (it was just recently released and still a highly sought-after laptop.

But anyways, I liked some of the comments in the Engadget U38N article. A lot of it has already been said in this forum but its good/bad to see it on another major website. The public voicing their opinions on some of these circumstances regarding certain AMD/OEM products is great. Whether it changes anything or not, these companies (AMD Intel OEMs, contractors, etc.) should listen.

It BETTER come to the USA! Otherwise that would be a bad move on Asus' part. Sheesh!

That is great news! I was wondering if U/LV Trinity could be overclocked (igpu or cpu part) and this confirms this. AMD should also allow the use of RAM with 1600 JDEC speeds too. Maybe that sort of thing will be part of Trinity 2.0?


Its a shame Lenovo didn't try harder with the S405. It could have been a very popular model. Those considering buying it have to accept these design "flaws." In my opinion its half-done. Oh well, their loss.

I recommend you return it. If you don't mind single channel or otherwise need dual channel, don't mind the chassis, a glossy TN display, and the short battery life then sure it will still be fine for a lot of things. But if any of these things bother you and you're not satisfied, I say send it back. The Samsung U4C was/is better but the price went back up. However, I expect a sale during the whole black friday craze. That'd probably be the "next best" time to buy anything.

EDIT1: What happened to Sony? did they make a departure and not say anything?

EDIT2: @HTWingNut - Can you post your S405's Windows 8/7 WEI?

 

Those CAS 5 timings on the S405 are interesting, most likely it is not a regular DDR3 but a more costly LPDDR3 to save power, and the cost might be the reason why Lenovo didn't add a second DIMM for dual channel, though still not a smart move.

 

I can't return it. After opening it up, it voids the warranty. I'll post WEI in a bit.

I just think my whole judgement is clouded by the fact that they didn't offer a dual channel option. So I just have to get over that and evaluate it for what it has to offer. Also, the CPU rarely ever seems to boost to 2.4GHz, it runs at 1.7GHz most of the time, and with Prime95 they will alternate 2 cores 2.4GHz, back to 1.7GHz then the other 2 cores do the same. Likely because each 2 cores share an FPU.

edit: WEI (note that I installed my Intel X25-M 120GB SSD)

Yeah, seems odd though. JEDEC table for the chip shows typical CAS9 for 1333, yet it runs at 5? Unless there is something like an XMP profile for chips that's automatic because there's nothing in the BIOS to control that. The RAM shows 1.5V too.

 

As for the Asus U38N, IMO this is the ultrathin that we've been waiting for. This is as good as it gets on Trinity notebooks. Pending the reviews of the product I think that anyone here that was hoping for a Trinity ultrathin or wants to recommend one to friends should recommend this notebook.
The specs are amazing, even if the SSD isn't top-notch it's still a SSD so for the common user it will be a better choice than an HDD based ultrathin like the Samsung Series 5.
The APU has a stronger GPU than the Intel ultrabooks and supposedly he CPU performance will be close or on par with an i3 - enough for this kind of devices.
We just have to see if it will benefit of dual channel memory but for most people it can be the perfect ultrabook/ultrathin. If people here really want AMD ullrathins then it's time to vote with your wallets and recommend this device to everyone looking for a ultrathin.

 

That AMD should release a 45W trinity part to unleash cpu power a bit. Cause the A10 is bottlenecking the 7970M in the MSI.

Tired to wait, i think i will buy the asus S56CM, it's 15" but it's thin and cute. The screen is average but it does have a core i7 3517U that turbo boosts at 2.8ghz on two cores and a 635M GT. Crazy low power consumption <10W idle ,max 60W at full load...And MOST IMPORTANT POINT : It does have a good cooling system ! cpu and gpu max at 85°C in furmak + Prime. It's very silent and the i7 can aparently run at full turbo without throttling. Which is very rare without throtllestop. So very few bottleneck for the 635M GT.

 

I do agree with you. AMD should release a Trinity extreme with a stronger GPU and higher wattage for more powerful notebooks.
But more important than that AMD NEEDS to strongly improve its driver support for mobile GPUs. Better support for Crossfire is crucial for APUs to really take off and for AMD to regain marketshare in the mobile GPU market.

 

Yep crossfire for mobile amd apu is kind of a useless marketing gadget atm. It's sad cause the idea is good in theory.

I'm really pissed by all these turbo stories. Even when i find a lap with A10-4600M, i read a review to learn that it will throttle at some point. Either the cpu or gpu turbos. yeah right now even gpus have turbo and A10 gpu does too. Really bad days to be sure that what you buy will actually run at 100% of its potential. Not only u have to find a lap with the A10 or whatever component you want, but also be sure it has a decent cooling system to be able to turbo forever.

 

At first glance, I was all set to to refute your point, as, in my opinion, it's not the purpose of trinity to be a graphics beast by pairing with a discrete card, but to stand alone without the need for a discrete card. But, the more that I think about it, an 'Extreme' edition, so to speak, would be a great marketing tool to pair with a 79XXM, even if it doesn't scale linearly, a boost is a boost, and, to your point, making sure the cpu isn't a bottleneck. I still don't expect it to compete with an i7 in cpu tasks, or even an i5, as is the case in most benchmarks and reviews, but should definitely not be a bottleneck when gaming is concerned.

I may have to see if I can get my hands on a U38N in store to see if I can live with the 4655 over the 4600.

 

I'm sorry to disappoint you but the U38N does not come with A10-4655M but has A8-4555M, but still its a quad core with Radeon 7600G graphics which is slightly slower than the 7620G on the A10.

 

Actually there's model numbers for U38N with A6, A8, and A10. Which APU(s) will make it to the USA is not known. I suppose if one wanted, you could buy a motherboard online with the A10 APU later in time and swap out the A8 motherboard. But by then, the A10 will have likely been surpassed by the next generation of ULV APUs. Still the A8 and 7600G should provide plenty of ULV grunt right now. I wonder if anyone has one by now?

EDIT1:
Looks like the U38N is getting real close to its USA release!

Asus VivoBook U38N passes the FCC on way to US launch

Here is the FCC information showing everything about the U38N, User Manuals, and photos of the inside and out:
Samsung NP535U4C with A6-4455M+7550M. It also lists an anti-glare display, and 4GB RAM (2GB on board, 2GB on RAM module) max 10GB. At least we get dual channel.

http://www.hardwareschotte.de/preisvergleich/Asus-VivoBook-U38DT-R3001H-p21680701
http://www.amazon.de/U38DT-R3001H-Notebook-4555M-500GB-Radeon/dp/B009PKZ06A


I'm pretty excited to see a proper review of the U38N. I want one for myself because its as good as Trinity is going to get for now. I applaud Asus for trying a lot harder than some of the other OEMs but there's still room for improvement. Other OEMs need to step it up!

EDIT3:
$399.98 (Canadian) for an HP ENVY Sleekbook with A10-4655M, wow! Sorry but this offer expired and no one found out until now. Great deal that was.


Get the fully-loaded HP ENVY Sleekbook with A10, backlit kb, BT, and 500GB HDD for $686.39 shipped using code NB3521 ($75 off)! Valid in the USA right now.

 

At 399.98 I would have bought that - if only to see how it would have responded to 16GB RAM, Win8x64PRO and a Sandisk Extreme 240GB SSD.

This might have replaced my current 'digital notebook', my U30Jc. Does anyone know what kind of battery life to expect? Being a 15.6" system I'm guessing/hoping for over 8 Hrs?

Had to smile though that the first Costco user 'review' I saw was a 'con' of 'could be a little bit faster'.

See:
Costco - HP Envy6-1083CA, Bilingual Laptop, AMD A10-4655M, 15.6-in LED-LCD customer reviews - product reviews - read top consumer ratings


Any actual reviews of these A10 powered systems?

 

At that price? definitely. It's no longer available on the costco site.

A pretty dismal review of the A6 version on engadget, but that doesn't help.
HP Envy Sleekbook 6z review: an inexpensive thin-and-light with AMD innards -- Engadget

 

How do you know that the U38N has versions with A10-4655M and i think those are just for the U38D model which will more likely be heavier to carry a bigger battery, thus justifying the use of a more powerful power adapter (65W vs 45W for U38N) and with no touchscreen and a discrete GPU this might actually be the cheaper version.

 

Hi everyone, I have been lurking for a few days but figured I would thank everyone for helping me avoid the Lenovo S405. I too am shocked that it would only have single channel RAM. I actually called and canceled my order when I saw that.

Now I am looking at a Lenovo Ideapad Z585. Definitely a bit bulkier, but seems quite powerful for the money ($550 at tigerdirect). Although I might prefer something a bit sleeker, i don't see anything at the $500-600 pricepoint with dual channel memory that is actually in stock anywhere. Has anyone else seen anything?

 

I also think it will be cheaper.

If anything, the recent sale at Costco gave us a glimse into profit margins of these things, because you know they didn't sell them at a loss. Thank you Costco.

 

For the most part, that's true. When a product reaches a point in its life cycle where it's not selling at profitable prices, the manufacturers will subsidize retail sales at below-cost prices in order to minimize losses on extra stock. I wouldn't think the Envy 6 would have reached that point already, but it's possible. It's also possible that Costco priced it crazy low for some other reason, such as an attempt to bundle warranties and peripherals and make an overall profit while taking a loss on the laptop itself.

It's also possible that the build cost is that low, but considering the Windows licenses, processor costs, and other parts that don't exactly go for pennies on the dollar when purchased in bulk, it's somewhat doubtful.

 

Maybe, but I'd wager they're getting those 1366x768 screens dirt cheap. The A8-4555M isn't the premium CPU either, $30-40 per? $400 covers the bases.

 

Certainly possible, I was just positing a different theory. Don't forget they're also paying for hard drives, RAM, motherboards, chassis manufacturing, power supplies and batteries, assembly, shipping, domestic distribution, and (hopefully, don't know much business law) import tariffs because they're manufacturing overseas, and then you're assuming there's enough overhead for Costco to take their cut of the sales price and for HP to still make a profit. It's not impossible, but they've got to be cutting it very tight if $400 from a third-party retailer to be a profitable price for a machine that typically sells for quite a bit more than that.

 

Yes but I don't believe it's all that expensive. There are $200 netbooks in my neighbourhood store that are arguably the same thing, similar parts and construction, with Windows and a power adapter too. If they're able to profit at a similar level of complexity then it seems reasonable that doubling the price for a similar item would represent a healthly lead.

 

That low-level additional GPU is nonsense, they should have to put an mSata port instead and a 2nd real memory slot. And one of the two models should use A10-4655M. With all these correction it could be a killer laptop, without I'm not getting excited... Are you?

 

Hi!
I am the owner of 1.4kg 11.6" Acer 1810T. Its quite old and broken, and i want to replace it.
I want be able to play Starcraft 2 on my new notebook, but it is impossible on Intel integrated graphics.
Thats why im looking for AMD-powered laptop with some Radeon on chip.

Is there something 11.6-12.5" and below 1.3kg on market with Trinity ? I just cant find anything. Why??

Any suggestions on (11.6-12.5", <=1.3kg) laptop to play Starcraft2? Should i wait for something?

 

This is the best approximation of a Trinity 'ultrabook' so far by a huge margin. The fact is that affordable 13" thin-and-lights with 1080p IPS screens are pretty uncommon regardless of chipset/CPU manufacturer. While there are still shortcomings (mSata, 2x user-replaceable RAM, A10 to a lesser extent), this is a huge step in the right direction.

The biggest problem is that the U38's are probably going to end up as niche products because the unwashed masses will want Intel at this price point, even if they're shooting themselves in the foot by sacrificing graphics performance and getting a low-res screen for the same money. AMD has done a horrendous job of getting the word out about APUs to the general public. The average consumer sees "Intel Inside" and knows the machine will be fast. He sees an AMD sticker and sees a second rate machine. Thus, although a huge portion of laptop users would benefit from the lower prices and/or better on-die graphics of an AMD APU versus an Intel CPU, in their minds AMD is just an inferior product. All that to say that in the end ASUS and other manufacturers will probably find less-than-ample motivation to continue exploring the AMD 'superbook' segment. I certainly hope I'm wrong, but the laptop market is driven by income far more than innovation, and if enough people don't 'vote with their wallets' on machines like the ASUS U38 line, they'll find that option taken off the ballot next year.

 

I was going to say the same thing. These machines are netbook components in a larger chassis for whatever reason.

I think people underestimate the power of bulk purchase and cheap, nearly free, labor. These solid state components are very cheap to manufacture, they use common parts, and even Windows at an OEM level is not that expensive because it's supported by the OEM and not Microsoft. The Envy has a little bit better quality than most, but they're still using cheap components. If I had to guess, the cost to manufacture would be on the order of $200 for something like that Envy. Of course there's shipping and middle man costs, packaging, etc that will eat into that some. I'm sure CostCo isn't making much but like someone else stated, perhaps the warranties also help offset some of that lackluster profit.

 

the short answer is no.
there should be, but there is not. the closest you'll find, and its dirt cheap, is the 14" pavilion described here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/not...a6-4400m-7520g-apu-processor-bestbuy-com.html

 

Asus with the U38-X models has certainly made not a step, a quantum leap towards the right direction. If the price is right I'm VERY highly tempted to get either the N or the D model (depends on which is cheaper). I hope they both have the IPS screen, but I think it's pretty settled now that the difference screen-wise between the two might only be the touch-sensitivity which is indifferent to me. Probably the first Trinity notebook that's worth spending money on.

 

I know a friend playing Diablo 3 on a 14/15" samsung notebook with just AMD E450. It isn't trinity though.

I am also looking for something similar because I dropped my acer ferrari one a couple of times recently. If I have to buy today, I will pick Thinkpad Edge E135, but I am hoping Acer will release something more exciting under the ferrari brand soon -- especially if Alonso wins this year...

 

Because it seems that the OEMs are boicoting Trinity. The notebook that comes closer to your use case is the Asus U38 that will be released in the next weeks. It's 13'' though.
Otherwise pick a Samsung Series 5 13''. But that only comes with an A6-APU. You should check benchmarks of how it runs SC2.

 

I played starcraft 2 all the way to the end on my 11.6 ind HP dm1 AMD E-350 laptop, at medium settings AA off, Vsync off at a resolution of 12XX x 720 I think, without any problems at all. Even at the final battle at some times it might drop a couple of frames, but in general I was enjoying 28+ FPS. I guess should you wait for the Asus U38 you might enjoy SC2 at FullHD and medium or 1378 x 768 and high settings. All in IPS panel color glory of course . If I get that much performance from the E-350 I think my previous guess about the U38 might even be a bit conservative...

 

Wow, I always thought that games would be the most taxing on notebooks, yet an E-350 managed to keep you happy while gaming?

When I cleaned up and optimized a business system for a client that was based on an E-350 - it barely managed to do 'business' use in a timely manner and that was with 8GB RAM helping it immensely.

I guess there are different levels of gaming out there, huh?

 

I was surprised myself about that, but believe me, even at the last level, although at times dropping frames, it was perfectly playable. At medium texture settings (and I forgot to mention NO shadows they seem to be CPU intensive). The E-350 might be a slow processor but the built in graphics card delivers quite some punch... I was shocked to have this much performance from practically a 'netbook', so I'm looking forward to what the quad core A8 in Asus U38 might deliver. Of course if you want to max out details, that's a different story, but I would gladly sacrifice details for a bit more portability, run time and less weight.

And concerning todays' games performance I was able to run super smoothly (definitely more than 30-40 FPS) Dishonored on a 3 year old ATI 4650 at 1378 x 7688 and medium details.... I think we have reached a point that we have truly capable hardware that even mid range GPUs can keep us gaming happy (even with 'basic' details) for many years .

Now I just can't wait for the Asus U38...