2013 Series 7 chronos / Ativ Book 8 15" owner's lounge (NP770Z5E / NP780Z5E / NP870Z5E / NP880Z5E)

I finally rolled back from Win10 to Win8.1 last year on my NP700Z3A (even older than these AB8). I managed to get everything working just fine with Win10, including AMD graphics (using Leshcat drivers) and ExpressCache (using an updated Lenovo version with my Samsung LMF file).

But I got tired of Win10 always being too busy with Microsoft's business and not having enough time for my business. That was even on Win10Pro with system updates under control (using Group Policy).

To me Win8.1 with Classic Shell is a great sweet spot: It's like a faster, leaner Win7, without the heavy visual ornamentation. It will continue to receive security updates until 2023, but no more feature updates. In other words, Microsoft keeps it safe, but they don't otherwise mess with it. Just what I want

 

Thank you so much for your responses!

I installed AMD graphics using Leshcat driver, but it started to appear weird bugs. There was black screens appearing and my brightness turned to low only. And I tried to install Express Cache using Lenovo version but it did not work on my system...

I reinstalled the original drivers so at least everything is back to normal except for being able to use the AMD Radeon graphic card.

I don't feel like going back to Windows 8 at this moment, I might just keep it this way unfortunately... But thank you for your time, at least I don't feel alone in this!

It's frustrating to see how Samsung is'nt reliable to the products they sold couple years ago.

 

I apologize, I should have been clearer: The point of my post was merely to support @surfict's case for rolling back from Win10 to Win8.1 -- not to suggest that you use the same driver fixes on your AB8 as I used on my NP700Z3A, which is an (even) older generation.

First off, AB8 doesn't have ExpressCache, so installing that would never work. And second, my AMD graphics switching is a generation older (PowerXpress vs Enduro) which is why I have to use Leshcat drivers. Win10 does have PowerXpress drivers, but they forgot to test them, so they come with bad side effects.

Others in this thread (and the Samsung Win10 thread) have managed to get Win10 working on older laptops. But since Samsung published certified Win8/8.1 drivers, it also makes sense to stick with those versions. Particularly since there are other things to dislike about Win10 as well. In my opinion

 

Hi to all, since I bought an AERO 15 Oled i9 I've been out of this forum, but fortunately I remembered to check. As I've said in the past I have more than 10 of this laptops of their variants in my family (NP670 / NP770 / NP870), all of them on windows 10, so maybe I can help

@N0W3 : Are you willing to format your PC in order to have the radeon work? I have a proven solution for that problems, "IF" it has a solution
The NP770 doesn't have expresscache
The brightness problem you had is known to windows 7, 8 and 10. The solution is to install the patch with samsung update, and also to check regedit, as I've posted before:




----------------------------------------------------
Wanted to post the solution provided on the link John Ratsey provided
Quote:
"I was struggling with the same problem with my Samsung 770Z5E for many many long monthes,
and none of the possible solutions indicated so far worked for me. Until today, when I found a solution on another similar thread:
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...ics-4000/64c255eb-517f-44d7-8af3-b5cfd7c4b79d
In my case the problem was solved by setting the value of
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Class\{4d36e968-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318}\0001] "FeatureTestControl"
to "f008". I'm using the latest Intel drivers."
In my case I have an external VGA, so I didn't had any luck wich 0000. In 0001 the wasn't any "FeatureTestControl" option,
but in 0002 I had luck. As written above, many thanks to John for keeping us updated with solutions to our problems in so many years.
Great notebook by the way.



--------------------------------------
You need to install samsung settings for the hoy keys to function


@surfict : You are right this laptop is amazing, It the equivalent of an I5 9300H, just much much cheaper

@Dannemand : the drivers that will work on windows 10 are
win10-64bit-radeon-software-adrenalin-edition-18.5.1-may23
win64_15.33.46.4885

I have an image of windows 10 that can be installed with macrium reflect that will always work, as long as your graphics card isn't bad. It "only" weights 26 GB. That will delete your hard drive, but you will get a 100% proven windows 10 installation with all the drivers.

 

Hi all! Please help me....

I am in the middle of my exams and ofc my trusted ativ book 8 broke...

It stopped charging and I didn't noticed and shuts down. Then it won't charge at all or turn on. It only blinks then sometimes turn blue on the left light and power off again.

I have tried disconnecting the battery but nothing happens. Same story. Any tips? The charger outputs 18/19v.

Hope for tips! All my data is on that fkking laptop...

 

Hi, any issues before the failure? Maybe the dedicated Radeon VGA was faulty?

 

Well, yes and no.

I had issues with it not charging at random times but when plugging and unplugging it usually started charging again. Also the cable to the screen was starting to get glitchy so the screen only worked in certain positions... but don’t see how this should affect it not charging or powering on.

 

That sounds like an electrical problem.
Also the screen glitchy could have made a short circuit.
I would try a different ac adapter, but if that doesn't solve the problem, then you only can try to remove some hardware. In this laptop that means

Remove second memory
remove wifi card
remove hard drive

Also try an external monitor.

 

I've been trawling through various sites to see whether my series 7 chronos will drive a 4k monitor at 3840x2160 resolution but have become completely confused about it all. The samsung site wasn't very helpful and the AMD site just confused me even more!

Can anyone help?

Cheers

 

See this post

2013 Series 7 chronos / Ativ Book 8 15" owner's lounge (NP770Z5E / NP780Z5E / NP870Z5E / NP880Z5E)

Seems to work on a NP780, but at a really low frame rate, so the user decided to go to 2560x1440 on the next post

2013 Series 7 chronos / Ativ Book 8 15" owner's lounge (NP770Z5E / NP780Z5E / NP870Z5E / NP880Z5E)

 

That's great, at least I know it will work, either at lower frame rate or slightly lower resolution. I don't use this laptop for gaming or heavy video stuff so a lower frame rate would probably be ok for me.

My son has a fairly new gaming laptop which is one reason for buying a bigger 4k screen but I didn't want to get one and find my chronos won't work at all.

 

Hi, I went to my fathers house to see if it would work plug and play. On a np770z5e with a faulty radeon vga (and special flashed bios without that dedicated vga) I wasnt able to use a 4k display. On a np670z5e with aca i5 and working radeon vga 8850m I also wasnt able to run 4k. With a gigabyte aero 15 oled I was able to use 4k.

Im guessing maybe the laptop can work on 4k if you moddify the driver to tell the vga to support that frecuency

 

Anybody know where i can purchase a new "genuine" Samsung battery for my NP780. There's plenty of places that say they supply genuine OEM Samsung batteries but all the pictures on their websites don't say Samsung anywhere!

I've tried a "non-branded" battery a few months ago but it just failed last week with no warning. Just stopped working!!

 

I looked at Samsungparts.com, which is our go-to reference for parts, but I did not see any batteries for NP780/870Z5E models. I think we have to assume that they are not being produced by (or for) Samsung anymore, given the age of these models.

Maybe others have suggestions or firsthand experience buying replacement batteries for these laptops.

 

Thanks Dannemand. If it's no longer listed as a Samsung part then I will just have to trust my luck to another un-branded battery.

I'd still welcome anyone else's feedback on batteries or suppliers they've had success with in the past.

 

To my understanding the only posibility to get an original battery would be to go to a certified repair shop from Samsung, I really doubt Samsung will sell the spare battery just like they don't sell the batteries for smartphones.

Also, since this is a 7 year old laptop, I doubt there are any original batteries remaining in the world. In this case, since my family owns like a docen of this laptops, when one of them gets broken I purchase an entire faulty laptop and replace the parts that I need.

 

I just knew I shouldn't have messed, but hey, I'm that type of person!!!!

Enticed by the Intel Driver Update program I let it update my HD 4000 driver to the latest version (Jan 2020 15.33 etc). Bad move! I now have a very dim screen with no brightness control, resolution all looks wrong (even though it is set correctly) with very small icons and text that's decidedly fuzzy.

So, I figure, no problem just go to Device Manager and roll back to the previous driver. No chance, the option is greyed out. Now what do I do?

All advice appreciated (except the bit where you berate me for being so stupid!!)

 

Every time you update the drivers for the Intel or Radeon adapter you might get this problem. Solution is to install the brightness patch from samsung update or do the following:


-------------------------------------------------

Wanted to post the solution provided on the link John Ratsey provided
Quote:
"I was struggling with the same problem with my Samsung 770Z5E for many many long monthes,
and none of the possible solutions indicated so far worked for me. Until today, when I found a solution on another similar thread:
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...ics-4000/64c255eb-517f-44d7-8af3-b5cfd7c4b79d
In my case the problem was solved by setting the value of
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Class\{4d36e968-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318}\0001] "FeatureTestControl"
to "f008". I'm using the latest Intel drivers."
In my case I have an external VGA, so I didn't had any luck wich 0000. In 0001 the wasn't any "FeatureTestControl" option,
but in 0002 I had luck. As written above, many thanks to John for keeping us updated with solutions to our problems in so many years.
Great notebook by the way.


-------------------------------------


Or both things

 

Ok, I'll give that a go. Will it solve my fuzzy text issue too, or just the brightness?

 

That has to be scale problem

https://www.windowscentral.com/how-set-custom-display-scaling-setting-windows-10

 

Great, the registry hack for the brightness worked a treat. Thanks

I've also managed to re-install the older Intel HD 4000 drivers so everything now works as it was. Phew!

Another question on graphics, sort of related to my previous one about a 4k monitor - I can go into custom resolutions on the HD graphics but when I try to use a 4k resolution, even at 24/25Hz i get an error message that it's outside the maximum allowable, even though I thought it should be able to drive 4k at a lower refresh rate. Does anyone have a set of width/height/refresh which works?

Alternatively, should i be using the AMD graphics and, if so, how?

Thanks

 

This was my experience

 

John pointed me to previous posts (#5944 to #5946) which showed that forum member "Brink" was running NP780 at 4k. Brink hasn't been on here since 2018 so i can't ask him how he did it, hence my post about what do i input as a custom resolution.

I accept the limitation of a lower refresh rate (due to bandwidth on HDMI 1.4) but both Intel HD 4000 and AMD Radeon 8800 should be able to display 4k resolution according to their specs. I just want to be able to do that.

 

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000005540/graphics.html

I would try to both lower resolution and reduce color depth

 

Hello,
I apologize, I don't know much English so I use google's help.
Recently, I bought a Samsung from the local market with the following motherboard: Samsung BA92-14180 Ativ Book 8 870Z. Apart from the battery, it is complete. The problem is that it doesn't start, meaning it stays frozen on the Samsung lgo. If I press f2 etc, "please wait" appears in the right corner and it stays that way no matter how long I wait. I disassembled everything, I replaced the RAM, HDD, etc., it still doesn't work. Besides the fact that the battery is missing, I noticed that one of the slots is not occupied by anything. Can anyone help me find out what was connected there?
Thank you !

The place on the motherboard I was talking about :

https://ibb.co/VQfPYsY

 

Sorry, double post !


And if I was still wrong with the double post, complete here.
I tried everything I found on the internet, I never managed to get into the bios, I couldn't get past the samsung logo. I disassembled absolutely everything, I started it without certain components, in vain.
The only weird thing is that free slot in which I didn't find anything when I disassembled it.
Be careful, it's not the one on the battery.
I think it's a motherboard problem or corrupt bios.

 

You can see a posible solution here
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/samsung-accumulated-unbricking-solutions.775777/

Maybe emergency flash of bios though USB?

 

Did you solve it?

 

No.
I will send it to service. Will see.

 

So I decided to Reset my PC the other day without making a backup or Restore point (feeling like a complete idiot right now) and now I've lost the ability to adjust the brightness on my laptop. This issue has plagued me at various times throughout the years of owning this laptop and I (also stupidly) never wrote down how to fix the problem.

Previously I had both the Intel and AMD drivers working with brightness control.

At the moment the only way I can control the brightness is by disabling the 8700M driver and using the Microsoft Basic Display Adapter instead of the Intel HD 4000.

I've modified the entry in the FeatureTestControl entry in the Registry as per other threads advice and tried uninstalling and reinstalling various versions of both drivers to no avail.

Does anyone have a solution to get both graphics drivers working on Windows 10? I'm at my wits end.

 

Did you also install de brigthness fix from samsung update, besides changing featuretestcontrol?

 

I had installed the brightness fix from Samsung. With a little more fiddling I've managed to get it working again. This time I've create a restore point and hopefully have learned my lesson!

 

So I'm doing some work to refresh my 880Z laptop. I purchased a keyboard/upper bezel assembly and a no-name battery to try and squeeze a little more life out of this thing. I have a few little issues with mine; namely that the touchscreen is broken and I have a selectively unresponsive keyboard. Also, as typical the battery dies in about 45 mins to an hour of light web use.

I'm currently running on Windows 8.1 with stable drivers and working brightness. I would like to be able to update to Win10 for software compatibility, but have had the typical issues with that update in the past.

What is the state of the union of Windows 10 with switchable AMD graphics on these machines? Is it worth futzing with all of the hacked drivers and what-not or should I just stick with Win8.1?

 

NP770Z5E: I am running Win10 21H1 plus latest Leshat drivers (from 2016) plus Samsung brightness control patch plus registry fix f008. Everything is working (including switcheable graphics). I will definitely not use W8!

However, I will be unable to upgrade to W11 (without disabling TPM checks etc.) because the Laptop features only TPM 1.2. Moreover, I am unable to turn on the modern security feature core isolation because the old Intel/AMD (being part of the Leshcat package) are not compatible.

In the meantime, I have bought several other laptops (including Dell XPS 13 and Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XD). But this good old Samsung laptop is just incredible. One of the greatest. I love it!!

 

Thank you for this post. Great info relating to Win11.

The fact that we are stuck with Leshcat AMD drivers is THE problem. It really is disgraceful that neither Samsung, Microsoft nor AMD provided updated support for switchable graphics on these laptops.

I personally use Win8.1 with Classic Start Menu on my old Samsung NP700Z3A (two generations older than yours). But I WAS able to get everything working with Win10 (including the infamous ExpressCache, which you don't have to deal with). I still have it on a second bootable partition. I just found Win8.1 to be faster and smoother than Win10 because it does less background work.

My main computer is a much newer HP desktop, and on that one I use Win10. Win8.1 support ends January 23, and newer PCs only support UEFI anyway.