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

My ssd works slower when I am in Battery Safe mode?

And where can I find Beta Drives for the 8870m?

Edit: What do you guys think about UniFL 13.9 Beta? Is it worth to try?

 

This might be affected by the link state power management setting in a advanced power settings. Try a setting with less power saving and see if it makes a difference.

John

 

I currently have EasySettings 2.0.0.63 installed and the issue already happened before it was installed as well. Tried to sleep/restart directly after installing Windows 7 without anything extra installed yet (not even network or wifi drivers). But I also had the problem when Windows 8 with UEFI/GPT and another HDD was still installed in this laptop, so that's why I though it could be the same issue as what Brunchy was mentioning.

But I tried to reset all BIOS settings to default and afterwards changing the secure boot + CMS OS mode but it sadly enough didn't help me, but if this fixes it for him, then I think it could be something related my BIOS setup somehow. But I know I installed my BIOS update though SW Update, but I can't find the installer anymore in it. Is there also a possibility to reinstall the BIOS update, or go back to an older version?

And at some point a GRUB boot loader was installed, and I think I uninstalled it, but is there an easy way to check if there are any boot loaders or anything special installed on the PC?

 

Hello people, after reading hundreds of posts here on this forum, on this specific topic, and also because I am owning the Chronos 7 NP770Z7E, I thought it's time to share my observations with you.

I have freshly installed Windows 8.1 via ISO format on DVD. I have run SW Update and installed all updates listed there. "Recovery won't install" most probably of my new SSD, and also the Intel Graphics driver I have downloaded via SW Update tells me that my system does not fullfill the requirements. Not a problem, Windows Update is offering my a driver, also the Intel website. After installing all drivers, also the AMD (8870M) from Samsung, everything seems to be working correctly.

Well that opinion vanished as soon as I have tried to play only 2 games, namely Left 4 Dead 2 and Garry's Mod...
Somehow, the FPS are capped at 53 fps, even with VSYNC disabled. Do I load a map in GMOD, the fps are only about 30-40 fps, and that is seriously bad. Same for L4D2. But the moment I start Fraps, NOT minimized, the games run normally again, at 60 constant fps. The moment I minimize Fraps, the games are capped at 53/30-40 fps again. Also turning VSYNC off when fraps is NOT minimized, works perfectly fine. I have tried Beta driver 13.11 Beta 8, no changes. Also modified ones have the same ending. Older drivers like 13.5 beta 3 simply leave me with a black flickering screen.

Seriously, what is that? Why do games run normally when Fraps is enabled? Anything else like power management, brightness etc. is working absolutely brilliant...

 

Hi guys! I have also upgraded my Samsung np870z5e to win 8.1 and I can say I do not have any issues with adaptive brightness, keyboard backlit or power management. Even both graphics work flawlessly. I can play battlefield 4 on mostly high settings in FHD. I have installed all drivers from sw update version 2.1.21 and I have also installed catalyst 13.11 beta. The only problem I am experiencing is blurry text in many applications. It is probably due to dpi scaling. It is very annoying to force each app to disable dpi scaling. Via control panel it is also possible to solve issue but surprisingly games run much worse after doing that. Is it Windows 8.1 issue or display driver of Intel hd 4000 may cause trouble?(version 10.18.10.3304) Thank you very much for advices.

 

Samsung Recovery Solution won't install unless it can find the recovery partition and the only way you can get that set up on the new SSD is to use SRS to either make a bootable flash drive or clone the original HDD.

There's an option to disable Display Scaling for all applications using a particular display. See here for more details.

John

 

If you didn't install ANY drivers after Windows Setup, it is not unexpected to have power management issues, particularly with Win7, which doesn't have built-in drivers for all the devices in your laptop. You want to install the basic hardware drivers, particularly chipset. I would let SW Update install the ones listed in the install guide: It's faster, installs them in the right order, and saves a lot of rebooting.

But as I understand, the hibernation problem is still there even after installing all drivers, and even when you were running factory Win8. So admittedly, this sounds more and more like it's not an installation issue -- as you and Brunchy were discussing all along.

Maybe the best approach here is to use the factory Win8 (NOT 8.1) to resolve this issue, including bugging Samsung support if needed. Once you got everything working with the factory installation, you can make another stab at Win7.

If you ran the DISKPART CLEAN command, there should be no traces left of Grub, so I wouldn't worry about that.

 

i have an np770z5e laptop, does anyone have any experience with drive cloning,

im trying to set windows 8 the way i want it on this laptop which includes favorite apps etc, i also have a key to make it pro edition.

i own a copy of true image 2013 which supposedly supports backup and recovery of partitions on windows 8, but im not having much luck, as soon as it scans the partition layout it seems to reboot the machine,

dave

 

Anyone tried the new AMD Catalyst 13.11 BETA 9.2 driver to see if these ones actually work with switching graphics compared to the old beta?

 

oh thank God, this dpi scaling issue has been driving me nuts! ive been viewing websites in super zoomed in mode since i upgraded. thanks guys!

 

There is a drive cloning option in Samsung Recovery Solution 6 which, among other things, is able to handle the recovery partitions.

John

 

Why do you guys think about UniFl or is there anything better?

Are there any beta drives for 8870m?

Edit: Everytime I boot and Login, i get a Blackscreen for 1 seconds, while it is log in. Is there a fix?

 

Hello Guys!

I'm thinking about buying the book 8 here. Would you say is a good idea?

Also if i do, I'd like to be able to upgrade the ram and also the HD to a SSD. but I'm not sure Which should I buy or where to get it. what did you use to update yours?

thanks!

 

BUY IT!!. I have the exact model, IT does EVERYTHING I need it to. Im a computer programming and computer engineer major and it has no problems getting through my software. I also game on it. Plays Batman Arkham City/ Asylum on the extreme presets at 48 FPS average. I also play Blacklight Retribution on the maximum preset at 50 FPS (1080p for most of my games, there is more im not listing). There really is no difference between the 8770M and 8870M besides clock speed and VRAM, 1gb is more than enough. Unless you are pushing more than 4k then that model is more than perfect. Also, if you want an SSd, buy Newegg.com - SAMSUNG 840 EVO MZ-7TE1T0BW 2.5" 1TB SATA III TLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) . Yes it is expensive, but you would have no problem mirroring your drive over to it (you can go smaller, but stick to Samsung SSDs for reliability reasons). also you would never have to purchase another drive and you would future proof yourself. Battery life is also great, i get 8 hours of wifi usage, havent done a video test though. Screen is absolutely STUNNING. The 8gb gb of ram is plenty, Just make sure you uninstall intellimemory.

 

I use 13.11 Beta 1, anything after gets rid of switchable graphics. I also get that black screen for 1 sec.

 

I use AMD's 13.11 Beta 1 drivers. My games run great on 1080p and 45+ Fps on high and i keep switchable graphics, anything after beta 1 and switchable graphics are gone

 

When I try to play a game at a lower resolution than 1080p it does not cover the full screen. I get black borders all around. Does any of you have that problem too? I can fix it by lowering and match the desktop resolution with the ingame one. But it's annoying. Is there any more convenient way to fix it? Thanks

 

No chance, Catalyst 13.11 beta 9.2 doesn't include Switchable Graphics, as everyone else said, 13.11 Beta 1 seems to be working correctly, everything above doesn't anymore. Quite a shame...

 

Real shame, hope this isn't a sign going forward

 

Hey guys,

I currently own the NP780Z5E, and I'm having trouble downloading updates through SW Update. Everytime I hit update, the updates never actually download and it just says that the updates failed. I have not updated to Windows 8.1 yet since I was planning on downloading the updates before upgrading. Is that the problem?

Thanks

 

Can you send me a link with a Download? I cant finy any which works for my Samsung..

 

My NP770z5e-S02SE with win 8 pro has been freezing/crashing while playing games. Everything is stock and it's been doing this ever since I got the computer a few months ago. It's really strange as it doesn't seem to have to do with temps (GPU temps stay under 70°C and CPU temps are particularly at max 80°C). When it freezes it doesn't respond to anything and plays a mashed static sound so I have to restart it every time (thank heaven for the SSD, at least). All games I've tried (League of Legends, Hitman: Blood Money) show this behavior; even at lowest quality, but it seems it occurs more frequently with higher quality. One time I got a BSOD with PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA error - but that was once out of like maybe 50 now.

Anyone had anything similar happen or have any ideas what could be causing it/workarounds?

What I've tried to do to fix it:

• Updating all drivers
• Installing non-stock ATI drivers
• Increasing power for the 8870m in MSI afterburner (this seems to reduce it but it's still pretty random)
• Only starting the game(s) for possible incompatibilities.
• Checking windows event log - nothing there is at the same times as the crashes.
• TODO: Run memtest. Do you know of any test of graphics memory?

 

Try posting the problem here: BSOD Crashes and Debugging - Windows 8 Forums

they analize the dump files from the bsod, i had a few , only drivers problems, give it a try.

 

I have an np7705ze laptop. Im wondering how easy it is to put windows 7 on. Do i just remove uefi etc from bios and boot cd as normal...ive put the windows 8.1 recovery onto a usb stick.

 

I've been searching the thread for a while about it but its so damn big now... I have problem running certain program, like gpu-z, some installation and recently Photoshoop cs6. wethever I try to open the program pretty much nothing happen. It seem to show up in task manager but no cpu usage nor memory usage... I've been fiddling with uninstalling/reinstalling intellimemory if it could help but seem like a fail. To be honest the system is a bit sloppy, I am suspecting the hdd and am considdering an sshd or ssd eventually... but for the moment idd like at least to be able to use my program for work.. can anybody help me? thanks.

 

AMD Catalyst 13.11 BETA1 (13.200.16.0 September 26) Download

 

You must choose a resolution that matches the native 16:9 aspect ratio , 1280x720, 1366x78, 1600x900, then 1920x1080

 

Do you have to change all the names of the *.exe files for Switchable Graphics to work? I get a lock sign next to most applications after the upgrade to Beta1 and have to change the name of the exe file for any of them to adhere to my preferences.

How exactly did you upgrade to Beta1? did you follow the instructions in the OP?

Been having a lot of trouble trying to upgrade my graphics drivers and would much appreciate the insight. Thank you.

 

I have Problems too installing it!

After install, my notebook restarts and after log-in, there is no AMD Controll Center installed.

 

Have you installed the Mobility version?

 

No I did not, I am a computer programming, computer engineering major so i normally follow my own instructions lol. This is what I did:

1. Uninstall AMD Drivers using control panel using the express option. Then restart.

2. When restarted, right click to make sure the catalyst control center options are gone, and check device manager, it should just say HD8600/HD8700M, that is how you know AMD's software is gone.

3. Next, I installed these drivers AMD Catalyst 13.11 BETA1 (13.200.16.0 September 26) Download

4. Once finished download, I chose the CUSTOM option to make sure the updated display driver will be installed, if you dont see display driver, dont install.

5. Finish installing it and restart, when you restart right click and you should have catalyst control center and switchable graphics.

6. If you still dont see switchable graphics, uninstall the HD4000 drivers (using device manager, check box to delete graphics software, AND uninstall AMD software using control panel express option. Once you restart you should have no graphics drivers, just generic pnp, Run windows update and it will find the HD4000 drivers, then when it finishes restart and install the AMD drivers.

This is EXACTLY, what I did, and have had no problems. I am on windows 8.1

 

Why not use the Mobility Radeon driver instead of the package for desktop cards?

 

I'm using all the drivers from SWUpdate and so far didn't have any issue. Did the same thing for 2 other Ativs and they are working fine so far. =)

 

Sad to say 13.11 Beta 1 didn't work out for 3 of my machines, they all had the same error in device management, "the device couldn't start as windows reported an error"... Using the drivers from SWUpdate fixes everything, graphics switching is working, games do not suffer from sudden drop of FPS during Alt+Tabbing.

So far I'm happy to just stick with the drivers from SWUpdate and spend less time fiddling with it and actually enjoy the machines. =)

 

I never had that problem at all, that is very weird. Maybe the way that I did it, is why I don't have that problem. As soon as I unboxed my laptop, i unstalled samsungs display drivers and used intels and AMD's maybe thats why its working for me.

 

Hey all! I've been searching for some time for my next perfect laptop, and after finding this laptop I am shocked how 'under the radar' it is. Full voltage mobile i7, discrete graphics, popped an SSD in, and 8+ hours on battery is insane. Only issue is that I'm a bit nervous to upgrade to 8.1. I know I want to get 8.1 installed asap, but a cursory examination of this topic makes it seem like there are some issues with the transition. For those who have successfully installed windows 8.1, would it be possible for kind of a step by step guide be posted to rectify any common errors that arise through the upgrade?

My normal approach is to update everything through the SW updater, upgrade windows to 8.1, then post 8.1 make sure to run SW update several times. Some manufacturers have a few mandatory and manual updates pre 8.1 to maintain functionality. Just wondering if anything like that is going on with this laptop. My exact model is the American NP880Z5E-X01UB. I have an upgraded Samsung 840 evo SSD installed.

 

The Win 8.1 (don't) Upgrade thread in this forum is becoming less busy. I put a link in there somewhere to Samsung's recommended upgrade procedure.

I think it would be prudent to hold off until Samsung has issued a further round of updates. While there are work-arounds for many of the current problems (eg touchpad functionality) something that is currently unresolved is a substantial drop in the battery run time.

John

 

Hi guys! I need to buy a case for 2,5" HDDs to use as external storage, and I was looking to this (it's in Italian, but here's the equivalent page in english).
It seems to use UASP protocol for USB 3.0: I've read that it improves performances, but that it has some requirements...Do you know if it might be compatible with Ativ Book 8?
Besides, would I see any difference with 5200 rpm HDDs or will it be noticeable only with SSDs?

 

I have the NP880Z5e-X01AU (Australian model) and I have no problems with Windows 8.1. I was satisfied that the major problems were gone before I did the upgrade. It is important to do the Windows updates and SW updates BEFORE and AFTER the upgrade. I only ended with one small problem, already mentioned in this thread. The touchpad, changed settings wouldn't stay after a reboot. I removed the driver and reloaded the Win 8 driver. Having said that I see no compelling reason, other than to have the latest, to upgrade. It really is a service pack NOT a new Windows

 

That's interesting. My current USB 3.0 enclosures only reach about 150MB/s.

This Tom's Hardware article gives some useful info about UASP. I think the enclosure uses a UASP enabled controller chip which should give better throughput with the Book 8 and other recent Windows 8 notebooks. I'm sure it will also work with older notebooks but without the UASP speed boost.

If I'm buying a USB enclosure I would tend to pay the little extra cost for potential extra performance. However, you won't see the speed boost with a 2.5" HDD where the maximum read speed is less than 150MB/s (but the hybrid drives can be faster for the data in the cache (see the Tom's Hardware charts).

John

 

Same problems here anyone found solutions to this? Although I'm already using 8.1 really regretting it i don't know if it's because of 8.1 but 3 things that wouldn't update were:

1. Graphics Driver ver. 10.18..10.3304
2. Intel ME Interface Driver ver. 9.5.15.1730
3. Touchpad Driver ver. 11.7.18.2

I always used to check this forum before I made any changes unfortunately not of late and for some reason my screen is almost always dimmed, I have no control over it and it has nothing to do with the settings. I have read something about the intel me interface driver not existing on 8.1.

appreciate everyone's help

 

Hi John, thank you for the answer. I did find that article previously, but I didn't understand that in case the requirements for UASP were not satisfied the drive woud just work with the traditional USB 3.0, I thought that it wouldn't recognize the drive Well, if it works anyway, I'll definitely go for a UASP compatible one, just in case I'll ever use an externat SSD

 

I will be very surprised if my theory about backwards compatibility is wrong. The reviews on that Amazon link show results in the USB 3.0 range when using a 2.5" HDD. UASP is an enhancement to USB 3.0 that will be enabled if the various requirements are satisfied.

John

 

Me too. I'll see if I can find something else with better build quality (I've read some complains in the reviews), and if I end up buying a UASP-enabled one I'll share my experience.

Edit: I finally bought it, but since I don't have any SSD I'm limited by very old hard drives

 

Hello all. I've been searching for a solution to my problem throughout this huge thread and google.

For the 880Z5E, Windows 8, latest updates through SW Update, relatively clean of 3rd party programs. Also have uninstalled intellimemory and bluetooth.

When playing some games the system will lock and then black screen randomly could be 15 minutes or 2 hours. Hard boot is the only option. It does not seem to happen all the time, and I can't pinpoint it to anything specific. I've scoured the Windows Event Logs, setup Core Temp and seen it get to 80C max.

Any ideas, or pointers would be a great help. Thanks.

 

Which games?

 

For the touchpad drive, use 7zip or WinRar, and make it an archive, and launch Setup.exe from within the archive, do not extract. Try this with all if you like, but I use AMD's drivers, not samsungs.

 

Has happened in Minecraft, Payday 2, Dead Island.

Does not happen on others like Batman Arkham Origins, Bioshock Infinite, Tomb Raider.

 

Guys, every time I log into Windows 8, I get a blackscreen for 1-2 seconds...

Is there a fix

 

I get that also.