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

is the F4 feature locked to the specific default drive or something ?

 

Excellent question! No, any drive can work with F4. It requires that the Recovery partitions are there (or course) AND it relies on a Samsung specific F4 link which I believe is hidden in the partition table. Samsung's own tools are able to copy or re-create Recovery partitions on new disks while maintaining this F4 link, but 3rd party tools are not. That's really the only reason for all this trickery.

Edit: OTOH, this just came in.

 

770Z5E = Samsung 'Chronos' - Silver aluminium construction
870Z5E = Samsung 'Ativ Book 8' - Black aluminium construction

As far as we know, those are the only differences, essentially, the mechanics/components are otherwise identical.
Bear in mind that there are also model variants of both - by that I mean, for example, US 770Z5E-S01UB has AMD 8770 graphics, whereas UK version 770Z5E-S01UK has 8870 graphics and there are various touch/non-touchscreen (880Z5E/780Z5E) versions of both, with the same basic model numbers, there's also slight differences in total memory capacity, depending where you buy from. (US/UK versions just used as examples, there are loads of country variants of these now, all with slight differences).

 

Backup all your data just in case it's gone beyond the point of no return! (But hopefully the keyboard was able to block all the beer from reaching the components) And if the keyboard loses any kind of functionality (backlight is damaged, keys feel weird being pressed down, keys no longer work, etc.) then your friend owes you a new keyboard part!

How about your speakers and touchpad? Are they both ok?

 

Will do that, thanks.
Speakers and touchpad work perfectly fine. Key response and backlight haven't changed .

 

The thing is when I backed up the system in win 8, I still kept all the partitions used in win 8 in tact with my backup software. Is that enough to perform a successful recover from win 7? Or is the MBR/ UEFI discrepancy too problematic?

 

If all partitions are intact from originally, that means your disk must still be GPT and you must be still in UEFI mode. In that case I would assume you can just boot F4 and Restore to Factory. That will overwrite Win7 and restore the original Win8. There are several Restore options in Recovery, including some that wipe everything in the process and some that preserve your data. I would backup data before you restore, regardless of which option you choose.

Edit: This is page 112 of the manual (Recovery), which explains it fairly well, except you should enter Recovery from F4, not from inside Windows.

 

I remember that months ago someone ran a test on his SSD with recovered windows 8 (not clean install) and it came out that the OS was actually aligned with the SSD, so it's exactly the same from that point of view. Personally, I prefer a clean install rather than uninstalling the bloatware, but that's because I'm picky

Sent from HTC HD2 with Tapatalk

 

I just want to confirm if black is the only color for the ATIV 8?? I really wanted a light colored one but I couldn't wait, that's why I got the black one...

Thanks.

 

That anyone's seen, yes, the Ativ Book 8 is ONLY available in black. You might find the black is actually better. I have the Silver colour Chronos 7 and the keyboard keys are impossible to read under certain lighting conditions. With the black colour, the keys have more contrast and are readable under most lights.

 

Samsung 870Z5E : Intel i5 3230M 2.6GHz and AMD Mobility Radeon HD8850M 2GB GDDR3
Samsung 770Z5E :Intel i7 3635QM 2.4GHz and AMD Mobility Radeon HD8870M 2GB GDDR5

could anyone explain me graphics card differences and i7 or i5

im guessing 770z5e gets hotter while gaming


im between 2 of them

 

The 770 has a faster, quad core, CPU and the top (of this range) graphics. You can compare CPU performance using this list and GPU performance using this list. The i7 3635QM is rated at 45W while the i5 3230M is rated at 35W. There may be a similar difference in the GPU power consumption. There may not be a temperature difference but the fan may have to work harder in the more powerful version.

I would add that the 870Z5E is in the Ativ Book 8 range which usually comes in black while the 770Z5E is the previous Series 8 and has a metallic finish. One problem of the latter is that the backlit lettering on the keyboard is difficult to see against the silver background.

John

 

where are you guys buying the latest ativ book 8's? im looking into this or the ativ book 9

 

I would also add that, in the UK at least, the 770Z5E and presumably therefore the 870Z5E actually come with either processor (and graphics/memory configuration), it's not the numbering in the first part of the model numbering that denotes the processor, it's the S01, T01 etc that comes after the main model number (this is also true with the touch version (780Z5E)). From what I've seen on here, I believe this is also true in other countries.

 

It really is weird that a higher model number is lower spec'ed. I've got the NP780Z5E-S02CA (Canadian model) and it is silver, 16GB ram, 3635QM, and 8870 graphics.

 

Off topic, but how does "Rep Power" work on this forum? There are people with only 20 posts (not all that helpful posts too, I might add) and a Rep of 15, and other people with thousands of (often informative/helpful) posts, with a relatively very low Rep.

 

Rep Power is your "Power to give" reputation to others by clicking the little star icon. It grows over time and with your number of posts. It doesn't take into account the quality of your posts or how helpful they have been. It's only time and post count.

Your Reputation itself is represented by the little green bars, and is the sum of all reputation points given to you by others. That one should reflect the quality and helpfulness of your posts, but certainly there are members here who deserve more Reputation because many users are not aware of this feature. Rep begging is against forum rules. Enough said.

You can read more about it in the thread linked below:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sit...5516-reputation-points-power-user-titles.html

And I can tell you it took me a while to figure it out as well; and also awhile before I even discovered the Site Suggestions, Help and Announcements section where that thread is located

Edit: One more (very subjective) comment I wanted to add: I've been frustrated at times with having low Rep Power (because I've only been here since last summer and not made as many posts yet) so I couldn't give a meaningful amount of points to members who truly deserved it. Eventually I stopped worrying about it: If somebody makes a particularly helpful or informative post, I'll give them the nod, even if it's just a few points, so they know their effort is appreciated. It all works out in the end!

 

I think the formula might have changed recently, so long-standing members tend to have accumulated more rep power than recent joiners. Furthermore, the introduction of the "Like" button has diverted attention from the reputation icon (how many people even know it's there?).

John

 

Yes, age definitely matters. This quote is from that post I linked. That's 2006, maybe they changed it to weigh age even higher.

And I agree, Like is much more visible -- and easier to understand. One feature I miss from my time on AndroidCentral is a Thanks button next to the Like button. Often I want to merely acknowledge a post, even if that post was never meant to be particularly profound. As it is, I have to either post a "Thanks" reply (which clutters the thread) or Like the post (which dilutes the value of Like).

OK, this really IS getting Off Topic. And it wasn't your fault, damouk

 

Anyone have the Samsung Sidesync that comes with some of these Ativ laptops?

Sent from Samsung Galaxy Note III

 

cheers, if it isn't hardware locked it should work from my experience with other pcs and notebooks.

I'll test it out and maybe put up a guide for such.. All i intend to do is clone the default 1TB drive to another drive and image and use the copy. Later when Crucial M500 960GB SSD is available will switch to that

 

Hi. I just installed 13.5 beta 3 drivers as seen on the first page of this thread on my 770 which I just bought yesterday. My brightness keys are working, but only after maybe 5-10min that the laptop is turned on. Is it supposed to be like this? I am not sure if it has been like this even on stock drivers.

Also, I am trying to copy the recovery to a USB thumb drive for my SSD upgrade later, but I am getting an error whenever I check the "Create Boot Disk" part. Am I still able to reinstall and boot from USB if it is deselected? I am able to copy the files if I do so, but I want to make sure I do it properly, as I don't think I have the heart to open this laptop's bottom twice, lol.

This is my first Samsung laptop, I am used to playing with HPs so I am feeling my way around this nice piece of hardware.

 

It's definitely not like that with the stock drivers. Until I see benchmarks that show that the stock drivers that come from Samsung are actually inferior performance wise to either 13.5 or 13.6, I am sticking with them. I tried beta AMD mobility drivers on this notebook and never had a trouble-free experience (either features stopping working or stability being comprimised on the desktop). I just hope that Samsung stays on top of driver releases for these graphics switching notebooks.

 

I went back to stock drivers now, thanks for sharing. My brightness can now be adjusted immediately.

 

Hey guys I have a very odd problem with my Samsung series 7 Chronos. It happens in both Windows 8 and Windows 7 and only in this particular machine and not in any other device in my entire house. Whenever I search for something in google, the browser tries to load the search, but it then shows I have a redirect loop. I`m on the Intel wireless drivers provided in SWupdate but this problem also occurs when I connected via ethernet. I have tried cleaning google chrome cache, cookies, history everything but it still doesnt work. Other websites load extremely slowly too. Can someone help? This problem makes my chronos useless!

 

Hi everyone, I've had this laptop for about two weeks now and I'm pretty happy with it. It does get hot when I'm playing games with it although I don't actually have specific temperatures to report as I haven't really been monitoring them. Can anyone just please tell me what's the "norm"? or at least safe operating temperatures when surfing/gaming? Also I do use this on the go as it is a laptop but more often than not I like to keep it plugged in for a better performance and I really can't find the BLE (battery life extender) which charges only up to 80%. Now I don't know how big a difference it will make in the long run but i'd like to use it. Can't find it using the function key with f1 or control panel or even in the BIOS. Thanks in advance for any replies really appreciate any help and sorry if this has been asked before but haven't had the time to go through all the pages here although i have browsed the thread a little.

P.S. My unit is the 870Z non-touch matte display (ash black)

 

Hi folks, I'm hoping you can help me out on the Windows Activation side.

The NP780Z5E laptop is great, I've had it for just under a week. However, I'm unable to Activate the Windows licence.

The first thing I did when I got the laptop was run Samsung sw update. Admittedly I perhaps did the wrong thing straightaway... It upgraded the BIOS to P04ABU.

However, from this point onwards I cannot Activate Windows 8....

1. The Metro "Activate Windows" facility says "Activation error description not found" and doesn't do anything when I click the "Activate" button...
2. So I installed Belarc Advisor to get my Windows 8 Product Key... Running "slui 3" as suggested elsewhere then allows me to enter it. The initial message says "Your Product Key Works, continue when ready!"... but then I get an error message: Code 0x8004E10E "The Software Licensing Service reported that a Token Store token descriptor is invalid".

I've googled these errors a few times but not yet found a Windows 8 related solution.... Has anyone else had this problem?

As you can imagine, I'm keen to activate the Windows 8 (OEM?) which I got pre-installed on the Laptop rather than have to fork out for a new license... Or do I need to call Samsung support ? PS. Having seen some nice looking screenshots of BIOS on the Series 7 Ultra, am I missing something when all I can get to is an old style "DOS" BIOS ? Have I somehow switched off the better looking BIOS's around, that may contain the license key, by doing the SW Update ?

Regards,

Rupert.

 

Just know that it doesn't work the same way on the Sammies as on other PCs: It's not that the Recovery is locked to particular hardware, but just that F4 depends on a link hidden on the disk (I believe in the partition table) in order to boot the Recovery. That's why 3rd party cloning and imaging tools generally don't work. (However, do note the link I added to my last response).

If you're just looking to clone your HDD onto an SSD before swapping them, there has got to a hundred posts in this thread already, discussing how to use Samsung Recovery to do that. There is even a guide in the Opening Post. SRS6 has features specifically designed for this.

 

What you describe definitely should work. What are the exact steps you are taking and the error you are seeing? Is your USB thumb drive 32GB or larger? If you take a pic of the error screen with your phone and post it, it may help us diagnose.

Just to make sure: Don't copy anything to the USB manually; the backup feature in Recovery (with the Create Boot Disk option enabled) should copy everything needed for you.

At least one user (in another thread) reported failures that seemed to stem from a defect or wonky USB stick. It is possible that Recovery is intolerant of any weakness or flaw in the USB stick's flash memory, even though it may work in regular use from within Windows. I'm speculating here

 

I would try and uninstall/re-install Chrome. When you re-install, don't log into your Chrome account right away (to prevent it from sync'ing). See if you can reproduce the problem with a pure, fresh Chrome installation.

 

What you are reporting about not having BLE appears to be a new phenomenon on the ATIV Book 8 models. We had some discussion when user Hawk7144 reported it recently in the thread linked below:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/samsung/723171-battery-life-extender-samsung-ativ-book-8-a.html

According to this article linked by him, it would seem that samsung has replaced BLE with something even more intelligent -- which cannot be controlled by the user. That was sarcasm

Oh, and welcome to the forum. Congrats on that nice machine!

Hi Rupert, welcome to the forum. And congrats to you as well on that nice new laptop.

That's definitely wrong. You absolutely should NOT have to buy another Windows license. I would personally call either Samsung or Microsoft right away to get it sorted out.

But first try and boot Recovery (F4) and restore to factory. With a little luck, that may solve it. And Samsung will probably ask you to do that anyway if you call them.

Or maybe others have less drastic suggestions that I didn't think of

 

I have a few questions about this. I am looking at the Ativ Book 8 model at bestbuy, so I am not sure any of the details are changed because of that.

First, if I remove the HDD to replace it with a SSD, does this void the warranty? I plan on having this for 4 years in college, and would feel more comfortable with my warranty in check. Also, is there a way to extend the warranty from the standard 1 year parts and labor?

Second, how long does it take to boot up? I'm just curious about this.

Third, how is the keyboard on the Ativ book 8? I have heard mixed results in different reviews.

Finally, for those of you who have had this laptop for a longer period of time, how durable does it seem to be? Has anything broken, or does it look beaten down?

Thank you, and sorry for the abundance of questions in one post.

 

I actually uninstalled the drivers and reinstalled the drivers but now for the life of me, I can't even connect my wireless internet! it just says connecting.... and then says unsuccessful!

 

As I know, 13.5 beta driver is not the one provided by samsung. if the drivers are not manufacturer's one, it might affect the other part, and couldn't maximize the performance. So installing manufacturer's (samsung) drivers is recommended.

 

Sounds like you got a bit of a messy driver situation there. Assuming it's just WiFi drivers (and everything else is alright) I suggest you use the steps in this post to roll back to Win8's built-in WiFi drivers. Hopefully that will at least let you connect -- although for some, these built-in drivers actually work better, whereas for others the latest Intel-provided drivers work better.

Otherwise check this post for other WiFi issues and fixes.

 

How well does Linux run on this machine without futzing around with it too much? I am required to run Linux for classes in the fall and I have very little experience with Linux, so I don't want to have to mess with too many settings to get everything working properly.

 

OK thanks for all your advice! I used the drivers u recommended and resetted my router and it finally connected! But the redirect loops still happen throughout all other web browsers too. I think I'll just reformat the whole system again and see if that works. I think this because when I boot onto safe mode all redirect loops problems disappear.

 

That's great, good job getting your WiFi back!

But before you start over, do try that suggestion to completely re-install Chrome (if you haven't already):

1) Uninstall Chrome, reboot

2) Reinstall Chrome

3) Do NOT log into your Chrome account (to prevent sync)

If it works with a clean Chrome installation, but not after logging into your Chrome account, it's probably some corrupted data or setting in your Chrome user account.

 

Thank you..got the hwinfo too for the battery (my wear is already at 0.8%) didn't know that ble had it's own thread..hope we get new drivers too for the 8870m

 

Samsung Series 7 Chronos review | PC Pro
it this it ?

 

As i know, this problem could be solved by installing the latest driver from SW Update. this problem is very common among win8 devices which has Intel Jackson Peak 6235 wireless card. check the latest wireless driver(v 15.8.0.5) and try to install it.

 

It is not windows 8 problem. Open drivers settings and disable N mode. Works like a charm.
I read this @ Intel forums.

 

The thing is it also happens to other browsers in different ways. IE just doesn't even want to load the search (no error message) and Firefox says that Google search is unsafe and won't let me access it lol. I know its weird! Yah I'll try reinstalling chrome when I get back from work.

 

Hi - thanks, doing a full F4 Factory restore as you suggested has fixed it and Windows is now activated, Phew!
As it was I'd tried all the Microsoft recovery back to image options, but I hadn't tried the F4 one specifically...

Excellent, I can now go about sorting out a backup (presume creating Recovery USB Stick of 32Gb is what I need), then I can get on with installing Visual Studio (for the third time) in the confidence that at least Windows is licenced this time.

Many thanks for your help!

A MUCH relieved user,

Rupert.

 

If you want performance, the newer drivers give you that. I recommend the newer driver to anyone that games. It works flawlessly. I went from 30 to 40 fps in bf3 at the same level with the same settings. Every game improved a ton!

Somehow the problem went away a month ago. I have no idea why.

 

OK, I got it. I agree, that doesn't sound like a Chrome issue then. I remember long time ago, we had reports that another Samsung bloat piece was causing browser rendering issues. I think it was Samsung Support Center. I wound try and strip out a lot of that bloat (if you haven't already). Anything not listed in this post isn't strictly necessary.

Oh, something else: With those browser redirect loops, I would check extra carefully for virus and malware!

 

I had Windows spontaneously deactivate on my after I installed my SSD. I wound up calling MS and going through the telephone activation (a robot assisted me). Gave the install ID and put in the activation code and everything has been fine since. Weird.

 

For those asking if the ATIV Book 8 is only available in Black I have another data point to add. I stopped into BestBuy (in the US) over the weekend to pick up a black ATIV Book 8 and all they had were Silver Book 8's. There were 3 Chronos 7s on display but no new units for sale best I could see. The two Book 8's for sale both said 'Bare Metal (Silver)' on the box. The BestBuy description says Mineral Ash Black but the boxes (and laptop inside) indicated silver. Even Samsung's page for the NP880Z5E-X01UB now says 'Bare Metal (Silver)'.

I am looking for a Black Book 8 but so far have not been able to find one.

 

@pranktank.

Maybe you are connecting to a Router based on a different norm than N.
I am using latest drivers available from Intel.

 

At least you guys found it in stores.
Here(in Romania) the ativ book 8 is nowhere to be found,and will likely never be available,or if it will,it's gonna be quite some time from now on.
The first Chronos model never hit the market here,and there are a few places(very) where you can find the old one(with 600M series GPU).
Whatever,I hope it will hit the market till 2014 in Romania,otherwise I'll get a series 9,or ativ book 9,however it's called now.
My 6 year old laptop is really sturggling to do everything(6fps Bioshock,the first one,720p,lowest settings) and it needs to get replaced.I'm wondering how it even lasted this long without any failure.
Is there any shop that ships these laptops to EU?