13.3" Samsung NP900X3C with Ivy Bridge CPU

Buy Samsung Series 9 900X3C-A03 - 13.3 inch notebook PC, Intel Core i5 processor, sleek design, HDMI - Microsoft Store Online

Also the 15":
Buy Samsung Series 9 900X4C-A04 - 15 inch notebook PC, Intel Core i5 processor, sleek design, HDMI - Microsoft Store Online

Makes me wish I had waited longer for mine, thought I got a good deal when I price-matched it at $1000!

 

Yea, that's what I figured. OUT-OF-STOCK.

 

I think they had that for about 2 hours two months ago and they sold out instantly. Now I am hoping they at least bring back the $200 gift card for Cyber Monday. I don't really care that it's second gen i5, it is still quite a deal at $799.

 

Hi there!

I'm new to the forum... I've got a NP900X3C... it came with Windows 7.... but I've just upgraded it to Windows 8. Maybe I shouldn't have...!

It's all working reasonably well now, I installed Start 8 to put the start button back in though, after a few weeks playing about I can't be dealing with Metro!

After install I had a list of software/drivers etc that were not compatible. However the only drivers/utilities that I could not find new Windows 8 versions for were the Samsung "Easy Settings", "Easy Software Manager" and "Easy Support Centre". I don't really care about the last 2, but I believe Easy Settings is the one I need to get all my function keys up and running again?

Currently F1,2,3,4,5,8,10,11,12 do not work. So among other things I can't easily adjust the brightness. Also the keyboard backlighting no longer seems to work and can't be adjusted, which I presume is also related to the Easy Settings not functioning.

I've looked on the Samsung website at the drivers/firmware for Easy Settings on both the NP900X3C (which I have) and the newer NP900X3D (which actually comes with Win8 installed). The Version for Easy Settings for the X3D is 1.1.1.6 (but does say it's for Windows 7... despite the X3D coming with Windows 8), whereas I had 1.1.1.4. However, when I download it and go to install it says Easy Settings is not compatible?!

Is anyone able to assist and tell me where I can find the version to work with Windows 8?

Many thanks in advance!

 

See this thread about running Windows 8 on the Series 9. The key to unlocking your problems is to download and install SW Update (the successor to Easy Software Manager). There's a link to it on this page (different model Series 9 but should be the same software).

John

 

Nice, they just added the $200 gift card back and I guess I'll get one and see how it is with the 2nd gen i5.

Amazon.com: Introducing Intel-Powered Ultrabooks.

 

Hi there, and thanks for the quick response!

I downloaded the SW Updater from the link you gave and ran the software. It found a number of utilities/firmware that apparently needed updating (i.e. LAN settings, trackpad, sound driver, display, settings etc...). This also included the BIOS...

Whether I should have or not I selected the whole lot and said update! Only once it had started I questioned updating everything since this SW Update was for the 900X4D, not X3D (which I would have selected if I could have found it as I have a X3C). Should I really have selected everything to update, especially the BIOS??! I'm worried I may have damaged some settings that I haven't realised yet. Is it the same BIOS for both versions? And did is it the same SW update software for all versions of the series 9, such that the scan results are unique depending on your machine configuration?

Also I've got the keyboard lights back which is great. But, out of all the updates that ran the only one that didn't was "Settings"! This was the one I really wanted to work as it would hopefully have got all the function keys working again. Have you any idea why this would fail?! It has an error message (but I'm away from home atm and can't remember it). Where /how can I get this to run and update?

Many thanks for your help.

 

I have a x3d coming tomorrow. Even though I specified 5-8 day free shipping, Amazon sent it out 1 day (maybe because it's Cyber Monday). Anyway when I get let me know which drivers you are concerned with and I will tell you what they have installed as it comes with windows 8 and I would hope everything is working. It is a second gen i5 and not third but that shouldn't effect the problems you seem to be having.

 

I believe there is only one SW update program which checks the model of your computer and then looks up what is available. I can't explain why Settings didn't want to install. Give it another try or two. Sometimes the server gets overloaded and sometimes the computer may need a reboot between software updates.

John

 

A new bios came out today through Samsung software P05AAC
Don't flash if you have a Crucial M4 mSata with firmware 010G, I tried it and the system froze (had to rest the battery) and the SSD was not recognized after that !!
I had to do the procedure described at crucial forums: How I fixed my M4 that wouldn't detect in the BIOS - Crucial Community to get back my SSD

I tried it twice and got the same result!!
I was finally able to flash my NP900X3C using an old ocz Nocti mSata drive that i had lying around

 

Thanks for this warning. I see that P05AAC is also released for the X4C.

John

 

Come to think of it, My mSATA refused to update to 010G while in my np900x3c!
I had to take it out and install it in a lenovo X220 and do the update
So the trouble i had might be specific to my mSATA unit
just be sure you have an mSATA to SATA converter ready as you'll need it to "power cycle" the M4 back to life

 

Many thanks John! Perseverance paid off... finally got easy setting installed and all the function keys are up and running!

But I've done something really stupid...

In easy settings there is a tab for the trackpad. The only option there is to turn it off, I was just testing all the settings so I tried it, but now I cannot get it back on!!! Keystrokes, tab, space, escape etc do not work in easy setting so I have not a clue how I am ever going to turn it back on?! I cannot believe the setting us there to enable you to do that with no way back?! Or that I pressed it...!

Any help much appreciated!

Cheers

 

1. What does Fn+F5 do? That should toggle the pad.
2. Is the pad disabled in Device Manager? If so, re-enable it there.
3. If the pad is not listed in Device Manager then Easy Settings must have disabled it in the BIOS. Use F2 at the BIOS screen to go into the setup and see if there is an entry to enable the pad.

John

 

Am trying to connect to my companies wireless network and need LEAP in order to do this. I know the Intel ProSet drivers are installed but LEAP is not a option. Also I am on Windows 8 so not sure it this is the place for the question or not. any ideas?

 

John, you are incredibly helpful! Got it back on via the BIOS. Many thanks.

Everything seems to be working perfectly well now which is great.

The only exception is WiDi, I'm not sure which driver I should download from Intel? I've looked it up here, but can't find a definitive answer. My machine is the 900X3C-A02UK.

Promise not to ask any more questions after this...!

And thanks again

 

Would it be ok to run the BIOS if you have a SanDisk SSD as I do?!

 

Newbie First Post Alert!

Well wow, what a read! Just done the whole damn thread, on and off its taken 3 days Lots to take in and no doubt I will be coming back to refer to it once I have my X3C to tweak settings and check little niggles some of you have had against my own S9. This thread on its own must be the best resource on the net for all things series 9, hands down

I have had the series 9 in my sights since the X3A to replace my very well used and frankly worn out Dell 15" of around 5 or 6 years vintage. Currently held together with self tappers though the case and liberal use of sellotape. Anything is going to an upgrade from this even with the recently installed Intel SSD which now makes it boot in a lightening fast 26 seconds, but due to the sata I interface it clocks a 5.9 index score, yep still worse than the Sandisk!

I had many options on my list like a Zenbook, S5 and S7, Envy Spectre and Xps 13, but the Series 9 was always top of the list as a complete package. Anyway I'm pretty sure I have a X3C (as I have taken delivery of it, but I'm not allowed to open it till December the 25th). Its going to be the i5 128GB of some description. Which should be plenty for me seeing as what I'm coming from: 3GB, 2ghz Centrino, Vista. My plans will be to stick with Win 7 as I like pre installed start menu and there seems to be a few driver issues still to iron out with 8 on the S9 judging by a quick skim of the Windows 8 thread. I'm 99% sure it will have the U100 so I will keep an eye on things and when something becomes apparent look for an upgrade that will hopefully work with the newly released bios.

Ultimately I plan on keeping this for quite a while. As you can see for how long I held on to my last computer I don't change them that often. I may even consider whipping the soldering iron out later down the line when a 8GB ram that fits becomes available and my warranty has well expired.

Also with the battery, I know its not "user replaceable" but does it plug in or is it soldered in like the ram? If its available to buy, I think I would rather get the full available power from it then just replace it when the time comes I think.

Anyway sorry for the long welcome post, but I would like to thank everyone that has contributed to this thread as its a real eye opener in knowing what to expect once I get my hands on it :thumbsup:

 

Welcome.

I suspect that swapping the DDP RAM package will need more specialist equipment than a normal soldering iron.

The battery is held in by some screws. It does not need a soldering iron to replace it. if you don't need to use the full capacity of the battery then enable the Battery Life Extender option which limits the charge to 80%. It seems to reduce the wear.

John

 

How much would you suggest using with the loctite?

 

I guess its OK, As i was only able to do the update when I switched my ssd to something other than crucial's M4

 

Samsung SW Update should offer a WiDi driver / software. It's not something I've tried so I don't know if it can be persuaded to work.

I presume you mean the BIOS update. You shouldn't have a problem with the Sandisk SSD. There seems to be some power cycling issue with the Crucial m4.

When I said a hint I meant very little. All you are trying to do is to stop the screw from turning in the hole so just put very little on the threads of the screw towards the end. The Loctite will then get spread along the screw as you put it into the hole. Putting too much will make it more difficult to undo next time.

John

 

I have just run the BIOS update on my X4C with m4 SSD (firmware 01MG) and had no problems.

However, and this may be significant, I ran the update by downloading the update file and then running it within Windows (it usefully shows the progress in a DOS command window). Once the update had completed it then restarted the computer from within Windows. I know it worked because I had to re-enable the Battery Life Extender.

So, to those who have had problems, did you run the update from within the BIOS updater program or download the update program and run it within Windows?

John

PS: And the problem may not just be with the m4: This X4C owner had a BIOS update problem with the U100.

PPS: I use the BIOS update program on the downloads site, not SW update (which doesn't appear to offer the download option).

PPPS: I have started a specific thread for BIOS update problems. Please contribute.

 

Would you guys say the I5 Ivy Bridge with the Sandisk SSD is sufficient for developing in Visual Studio with a local DB server and IIS running simultaneously?

It seems Samsung do not think us Norwegians need i7 processors or the faster ADATA SSD :-/

I'm torn between the NP900X3C/D, the Dell XPS 12, the upcoming Asus Transformer i7 and the Asus UX31, the alternatives feature better hardware (and some are hybrids) but at higher weight and increased thickness.

 

We Brits are stuck with the same lack of choice. I would be less worried about the CPU speed issue and more worried about the 4GB RAM and the U100 SSD. The U100 chokes if given multiple concurrent reads/ writes (basically it lacks, by design, a substantial cache) and with only 4GB RAM it's likely that the virtual memory will be called into use to add to the disk access from other programs. However, read this thread for the cure. Currently the Crucial mSATA m4 offers best value for money and if not available locally you can buy direct from Crucial.

I would also point out that the display of the 13" Series 9 is one of the best in term of quality.

John

 

For those of you who bought a NP900X3C with Windows 8 pre-installed, do you have something called "Fast Start", i.e. Intel Rapid Start Technology enabled? That's the special hibernation feature that lets your laptop wake as fast as it would from sleep mode. The Samsung Canada page seems to indicate that's the case, but I'm not sure if that's left over from when they shipped Windows 7:
NP900X3C - FEATURES | SAMSUNG

The reason I ask is because I've spent hours trying to get Intel Rapid Start to work on my NP900X3C-A01CA after doing a Windows 8 clean install. The Samsung SWUpdate which I downloaded to get all the Windows 8 drivers doesn't include Fast Start or Intel Rapid Start.

For those whose laptop came with Windows 8 pre-installed, do you have this hibernation mode available, and if so, does your SWUpdate include any references to Fast Start or Rapid Start? Do you have this option in Settings?

 

Yeah I normally hog up between 3-5 GB of memory when developing. I'm wondering if the UX31A would be better if I need to upgrade the SSD on the S9... with the ASUS it's a 50% gamble on getting an ADATA atleast, and it comes with I7.
Although at ~150 grams added weight... and then there's the UX31A touch just 1 month away... argh.

 

I think you are asking too much of the X3C with the 4GB RAM limit. If you are comfortable with the screen size then the Asus may be the better choice. in my case I found that the RAM and SSD constraints of my X3B were a limitation so I got the bigger X4C and then realised that I had been sitting very close to the X3B's screen due to the smaller pixels.

John

 

UX31A touch is 1920x1080, which on a 13" display requires using Windows font scaling (John is already complaining about 100% scaling with 1680x1050 and I find it barely acceptable). Have you tried using font scaling? It sucks. Lots of apps are broken and most stuff just doesn't look right. I'm sure this 1080p display will look great with Metro apps, but those are designed for tablets. The UX31A is not a tablet, you can't fold back the screen like on the ThinkPad Yoga. If you're planning on using it mostly for desktop stuff, 1080p is a liability not an asset. If you want to use the metro stuff, hold off for a tablet like the Yoga.

Personally I'd love to be able to fold back the screen of my NP900X3C and use it as a PDF reader, but after some hands-on with the Yoga I can see that it involves a size/thickness tradeoff at the moment. I think it'll probably take a year or two until someone can make a super-thin ultrabook like the series 9 AND give it a folding screen. I'm pretty sure my next ultrabook will have that form factor but there's nothing on the market yet that hits all the marks.

 

Hey guys, I know this may have been covered already but I would like to go through this again as I'm not really bright with all the computing stuff. So basically my SW update recommended me to update my BIOS to P05AAC from P04AAC. While in the middle of the upgrade, roughly around the 60% mark of the DOS window progress bar thing, my computer froze. I can't do anything to it now since it's an ultrabook so there's no battery I can pull out without unscrewing the back. I hold the power button for long but that doesn't help either.

What should I do now? I called up Samsung Care they told me to take it to the nearest service centre.

Is there anything else I can do at home and get around it?

My samsung ultrabook details are:
Samsung Series 9 [900X3C] 13"
128GB SSD w/ 4GB RAM
Windows 8 Pro x64 (Upgraded from Windows 7 via the $14.99 offer)

I have a desktop PC that I am using atm with Windows 7 x64 - and I will use this to keep in contact with this post.

Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated

Cheers,


Sahir
Sydney, Australia

 

Alright okay just a quick update on my situation (refer to my first post for those of you who just jumped in)

I used a pin to push the 'battery reset' button underneath the laptop, held it for like 5 seconds and laptop turned itself off. Plugged in the charger again and turned it on, had some strange flashing LED status on my battery life LED and the power LED but then I saw the Windows 8 Logon screen.

Logged myself in, the SW agent tells me the BIOS update failed. I guess everything is back to normal (or I hope so)

Best,

Sahir.

 

See this thread and try the method there which uses the separate BIOSupdate.exe program.

John

 

apologies if this has already been answered, but;

i am looking to use a separate partition to use as a storage partition.

how many partitions are there on the standard win7 install, how big are they, and which can be sacrificed without inhibiting the 'normal' functionality of the laptop?

kind regards

REMF

i am about to hit buy on something and i am teetering between a £750 upgraded macbook air 11 or a £750 (after selling the samsung UK promotion tablet for £100) samsung NP900X3C.........

 

I think it comes with four primary partitions:
1.System partition
2. Windows / user partition (C
3. Recovery partition
4. Hibernation partition (used by the Intel Rapid Start technology).

Probably your best strategy is to make an image of the SSD onto an external drive and then, after making a drivers / software backup using Samsung Recovery Solution) delete the recovery partition. It uses 20GB which many people don't want to spare. Alternatively, you can create a logical, not primary, partition from some of the spare space.

John

 

I was wondering how bad of an idea it is to play somewhat graphically intensive games on this pc. I wanted to see if I can run some games, so I started playing bioshock 1, and it ran perfectly on the highest settings. The only problem is it got reaaally hot, and I wasnt really paying attention bc I had headphones in, but the fans were also going crazy. I think the temperatures hit around 175F/80C. Thankfully, I only played for like 20 min. I'm assuming I prob shouldnt try playing anything like that again, right?

 

80C is not exceptionally hot. I could get the CPU in my Lenovo T420s up to 95C (at which point it automatically started to throttle). I think the Intel CPU is designed to shut down at 100C but the throttling means that it shouldn't get there unless there's a fault in the cooling system. The more important test is whether the outside of the X3C became uncomfortably hot. There's not much space between the CPU and the exterior.

John

 

All hardware these days is designed to be protected from CPU-intensive software. The CPU will throttle down if it gets too hot and the fans will kick in. You can be 100% sure the PC will shut itself down before it lets someone kill it with CPU intensive software.

 

The bottom got ridiculously hot, I'm worried that since everything is so close to each other in the x3c, that other things could get damaged from the heat. Surprisingly, the rest of the pc was warm at the most, it was mostly just around the middle of the bottom that had gotten extremely hot. And I'm not really sure where the cpu temperature peaked, I didn't get a look at it till I closed the game and opened hwinfo to see. It didnt get hot enough where it started throttling the cpu though.

I know Bioshock's pretty old, but I was pretty impressed. I even had it running off the batter for a little on high performance and maxed settings. It didnt get as hot though, I actually had it in my lap for a good 10 min. It wasnt until after I plugged it in. I'm assuming that the fps was a little lower on battery, but it wasn't too much for me to notice. That would prob kill the battery in like an hour though.

 

I figured this. I just dont think its really all that practical, with the bottom getting as hot as it did, and then the fans blaring too. And it doesnt add to wear and tear by pushing the system that hard all the time too?

 

A laptop cooler which blows cool air onto the base should help. You could also try other power options to see if there is one which gives acceptable performance with less heat. The silent model which locks the CPU down to 800MHz is probably a step too far.

John

 

Well it does add wear, but Samsung designs this thing to last a few years with occasional high CPU loads. If you play Bioshock 24/7 for a long time will probably hit the limit sooner.

Obviously not many people buy Ultrabooks to play high-end games on them. I'm sure playing it once in a while for a couple of hours won't hurt. If it does the warranty should take care of it, you're not doing anything wrong by running Windows software on it.

 

Alright, pulled the trigger on Crucial M4 msata 256 GB to replace the POS sandisk u100 in my 900x3c-a02.

Clonezilla sufficient to clone stock to new drive?

 

Hm, doesn't the x4d feature a subpar screen and build quality (the keyboard at least) ?

 

I pushed my x3c pretty hard the other day, and now my right fan has a faint rattle that can only be heard when I put my head up to the fan. Otherwise, the laptop runs just as quiet as ever. Is this something to be concerned with? And what could have caused this to happen? I already tried blowing compressed air in there in case there was a foreign object lodged in there, but that didnt seem to be the problem.

Also, when I lightly shake it, the right fan shakes but not the left fan. I think its a little loose. but if I open it, I void my warranty :/

 

You might find the answer in this thread. Does Clonezilla offer manual partition resizing control?

The 15" doesn't have the PLS panel so it is sub-par compared with the 13" but is better than most non-IPS displays with no issues such as the "screen-door" effect. In my experience the build and keyboard quality between the two sizes of Series 9 is identical and an advantage of the 15" keyboard is the extra row of dedicated navigation keys.

You only void your warranty if you damage something while removing the base. Samsung don't encourage people to go inside but they don't provide seals to show if the computer has been opened.

John

 

Hmm, it's not too bad right now. I do have a Microsoft Assure warranty on the thing, but I think I'll wait until it gets worse (if it does) to send it in. Even if I did open it, I wouldn't really know what to do. Is fixing a loose fan an easy fix?

 

It may not be an easy fix unless a poke with a finger sorts it out, but you may understand the problem better.

John

 

Hi there... me again! After my upgrade to W8 I’ve noticed something very strange...

Every now and then (maybe 5 times a day) I get this high pitched long electrical squeaking sound. I believe it is when W8 is trying to trigger a sound, due to an error, critical stop, windows start-up sound etc... it's coming from the speakers I believe. The sound is not the same everytime, so sounds like something malfunctioning.

I hadn't had the PC long before upgrading to W8, but never remember hearing this sound in W7. Does this sound like an operating system issue, or something wrong with the built-in speakers? I've also read that it could be something to do with teh kernel? But whenever the noise has occurred there has been nothing process heavy being conducted on the machine.

Note, I've just upgraded to the latest BIOS release that came out this week, I'm on a SanDisk SSD (so shouldn't experience the new issues reported this week). Not sure whether the new BIOS would have anything to do with correcting this weird noise issue, but I'll wait and see over the coming days.

Any thoughts much appreciated.

Many thanks!

 

Hi there! new to the forum. I have just done a clean install of windows 7 home premium on the NP900X3C, and was working through the issues with IRST, which brought me here. Thanks very much to John and the others for thier posts, which helped solve the IRST issue (it works a treat now).

My question today is around defrag settings for the SSD. From what I have read it should be turned off and windows 7 should do that automatically? What steps do i need to complete to esnure this is correctly configured? The drive is the Sandisk U100 128GB. I apologise if this has been covered in the previous (175) pages.

 

SSD's don't need to be defragged, ever.