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

Yeah that would be very helpful indeed if you could shed some light into that .

Btw i did install 14.4 and infact i did get switchable graphics working, so tahts something. Im thinking if updating hd graphics via windwos update to newest. Coz sometimes if it is at newest switchable wont work.

 

Hi guys,

i installed old 13.10 beta drivers from first post, disabled OC (set Enable UIPS back to 1) and now i have stable fps back Maybe it is possible also with new drivers but i am happy right now and i don`t want to risk it again.

 

Hi folks - which model has the latest version of the Settings app? Dan posted earlier that there was a version 2.3.x and the newest I can find is the 2.2.05. Thanks!

 

You can find Settings version 2.3.0.11 under model NP930X5J-K02UK. Just verifying it now, SW Update updated itself on my Sammy, and is now automatically offering me version 2.3.0.17 (which I haven't tried yet). Note that SW Update will ONLY offer these new updates if you already have a new version of Settings installed (I had 2.3.0.11 installed, but 2.2.x and 2.1.x should trigger those offers as well). If you have the earlier versions 2.0.x installed (such as 2.0.0.55 which is my favorite), you will not receive those offers.

 

Thanks Dan - I'm perhaps erroneously presuming that newer is better, and that the Settings applications are universally compatible for at least fairly recent notebooks.

 

As many point out 14.4 works out of the box but it has the same bug that every driver since 13.10 had, where you need to unplug the laptop for a few seconds to make it work at its full potential.

 

i have latest from windows update and switchable works, but it says R9 in device manager

 

The reason I prefer 2.0.0.55 is because it's the latest version to still have tabs controlling Battery Life Extender and ExpressCache. NP770/780 still has BLE, but not EC, and NP870/880 has neither. So the new Settings versions should be OK for these models -- and it's more compatible with Win8.1.

Whenever Settings is re-installed or updated, there is a risk of slow startup times (lag before Fn-keys and backlight is kick in). That's another reason to avoid updates if the current version works.

I just now installed 2.3.0.17. So far so good, but only time will tell.

Edit: After updating or re-installing Settings, make sure to redo any power settings and Adaptive Brightness tweaks, as described in the [Easy] Settings thread. In particular will the Wireless Adapter Settings be reset to Max Power Saving (on Battery) which can cause disconnects and weak WiFi performance. I set this one to Low Power Saving (or even Max Performance) as described in the WiFi Remedies thread. And Adaptive Brightness will be re-enabled, overriding manual brightness settings and reducing the maximum brightness available; disable it as described in the posts here and here. These tweaks must be done both in normal mode and Silent Mode, since Windows stores them independently for the Samsung Optimized and Power Saver profiles.

These are classic gotchas with Samsung laptops which have been discussed ad nauseam in this and other threads. I mention them here for any new owners who may not be aware of them.

 

Yeah same here, and btw the driver works, but fps is not better than with 9.3. I really dont wanna reinstall windows to get this working, but seems like the only way.

Hm whats OC (overclock?) and UIPS?, would like to try that

 

My fan seems to be running all the time now. My machine used to be quieter. I've taken the bios update(s) and the windows updates as they're made available. I'm not sure, but I think the running fan corresponds to taking the windows 8.1 update. I'm using the video drivers provided with the windows updates.

I'm running with Silent Mode off and have always run that way.

I no longer trust the "power consumption" numbers from the "settings" window. With my machine plugged in, it reports 8-10 watts of power consumption. When I unplug the computer, the power consumption is more like 16-18 watts.
The "Settings" window seems

Anyone else see this?

Thanks.

 

ok so i found something strange, when i am on high performance, i have better fps with laptop unplugged then with pluged in, try it, i wonder why that is, is something wrong with powering?

after all i get best stead fps with 13.10 drivers, i had problems when i had compatibilty set to windows 7, but now that i removed that its ok

 

OC is overlock and watch for How to Overclock in first post. But right now with overclock registry settings UIPS on 0 i have unstable FPS and without it is OK for me.

 

In the end the 14.4 drivers stopped working pretty quickly and went down to the 20 fps ingame that im used to from all the other drivers, yeah switchable worked, but tahts about it, so i reverted back to 9.3 until something new arises that i can try.
I would love to try 13.10 but somehow gives me a lot of errors when im installing, i downloaded from link in first page.
Yeah in the end i dont think ill try overlcocking, seems to me like if everything would be working fine, this card does not need to be overlcocked to give stable fps at max settings in a game such as D3 ROS.

But ill keep trying out stuff to see what helps, let ya know

 

idk if this helps you or not, but i managed to get 13.10 installed after removin absolutely everything from adm from my computer, that means that device manager must show you ? fo graphich adapter, and turn off automatic driver instalation. Then when everything is clean restart laptop and install 13.10. If that doesnt work try rerolling intel drivers, for some strange rason newest intell driver does not like 13.10

 

When you plug it back in after unplugging it, doesn't it go higher again?

 

well no, that is the funny part, it is better for a minute or two, but there is sudden drop of fps when i plugin again. Lets say i have 30 on plugged in, then i unplug and it says 55, then i plugin again and it gets back to 50 or 40. This is all on high performance, on samsung power plan its different

 

Very strange. On which drivers?

 

as far as i know on every one. Even on 13.10 if i deisable vertical sync i get more fps when unplugged

 

if anybody manages to solve the problem with 13.10 or any other than default driver correct installation - please share your solution. I posted several times that no matter how carefully I uninstall the AMD components and perform the recommended drivers install - it fails to work after installation. Only system restore works in this case as I am not even able to install the updated AMD drivers from SW Update

 

try playing around with intell4000 drivers, somehow i figured out they are connected to installement of amd drivers

 

i tested again, league of legends, driver 13.10 with plugged in power i get barerly 60 fps without vertical sync, with unplugged i get 90, this is very strange- Someone else please test this

ps: aftwer few minutes of play on unplugged fps drops to 30, then when i plugin and unplug again, its again 90 fps, so i went to amd center and reversed settings for plugged and unplugged, and i got better performance when i set optimized power saving on pluged lol, this is so messed up

 

I would love to, but in my SW update the latest version for Intel driver is the same as came as stock with this computer (NP870Z5E-X01RU) - 9.17.10.2963 dated 16.01.2013. I tried installing the latest driver from Intel website - Iris, but it failed installing giving me incompatible PC message. Where are you guys getting the updated Intel drivers?

 

from site or from windows update

 

Sorry for the noob question guys, but how do you check your fps rate while playing a game?

 

neither option works for me - site driver says my PC is incompatible or smth, while SW has only a very old driver. Did anybody tried any driver update software?

 

well in league of legends there is auto fps shown, in others you need some sort of programs

 

Does anyone got an update from Samsung about a new bios flash to solve the issue of the missing 8GB of extra memory?

 

Try fraps: it's great and works for all games: FRAPS game capture video recorder fps viewer






Graphics section updated.

 

If Intel's own drivers won't install, try using DDU - Display Driver Uninstaller Download version 12.7.1.0 - to uninstall the ones you have.

That worked for me.

 

Hi guy's
I'm happy owner of Ativ 8, this is great thread.
Lot's of good information already helped me to get some disturbing things right.
But I have question, how thick ssd/hdd can we put in?
I'm looking to WD BLACK2, witch seems very interesting drive, but it is not 9mm but 9.5 thick, so I'm wondering if it fit?

 

Recently, my laptop has this, 98% plugged in and not charging. so i ran the laptop off the battery, and not off the wall to about 90% and when i plugged it in, it started to charge again.

 

What is the model number and thickness of your current HDD? 9.5mm, not 9mm is a standard thickness (and the next standard thickness is 7mm) but I recall some reports about 9.5mm thick drives being a tight squeeze in one of these models.

That is normal. If the computer is left plugged in the battery stops charging once it reaches 100% and will not do another top-up charge until either (i) the mains power is disconnected (the computer doesn't differentiate between a one second interruption and proper battery operation) or (ii) the charge drops by several percent (I don't know how much but it is more than 2%).

The rationale behind the battery charging rules is to reduce the battery wear caused by frequent top-up charges.

John

 

Mine shows the same as well... R9 M270X... XD

The following is my AutoHotkey script.

<-- AutoHotkey script start -->
#NoTrayIcon
#NoEnv
#SingleInstance force

NumLock::
{
SetNumlockState, On
RunWait, powercfg.exe /setactive a1841308-3541-4fab-bc81-f71556f20b4a, , Hide
RunWait, powercfg.exe /setactive 381b4222-f694-41f0-9685-ff5bb260df2e, , Hide
}
<-- AutoHotkey script ends -->

The first RunWait command toggles the Power Saving profile. The next toggles back the Balanced Power profile which I use daily.

So somehow this has gotten into my habit of hitting the Num Lock key randomly just for fun, also just to make extra extra.x2 extra.x3 sure the game is using the AMD GPU... Haha... XD

 

I don't think so. i'm currently using the Intel drivers provided by Windows Update, but installed AMD 14.4 official drivers.

 

Hi everyone! I have a bit of a problem with the BIOS update:
I've run SW Update and it told me there was a BIOS update, so I closed every running program and started it (with laptop plugged to the PSU).
After a quick download, it warned me to close everything and not to interrupt power, I gave OK and it rebooted.
After the reboot I got the following window:



The problem is that it's been on that window for 2 hours now, even though it doesn't seem to be stuck (if I look at Task Manager it doesn't say it's not responding).
Is it normal? What should I do?

 

Hi alfling, good to see you're still around

After 2 hours it's either finished (but not displaying the status) or it failed. Either way, the only thing you can do is cancel it and hope the best. Then see if the update succeeded.

In case you have to run the update again (and for anyone running BIOS updates) make sure to download the BIOS Update tool and run it outside SW Update. Then let it check for updates and save the new BIOS (if one is found). Then run that new BIOS update standalone. This is in addition to minimizing other tasks before flashing it (as you already did). It's all about reducing the risk of interference.

Let us know. Keep my fingers crossed for you. Happy thoughts

 

Hi, I just wanted to share how I managed to get stable FPS all the time in games. No longer need to replug the power cord and alt tab works great too.

Before you try reinstalling drivers, skip ahead the wall of text and read the last important part maybe it’s the only thing you need.

Background:
Recovered the laptop to factory default and updated all Windows and Samsung SW updates all the way to Windows 8.1. Lastly updated every single driver to their respective counterparts latest official driver. Just making a note, probably not necessary for you.

Latest official Intel and AMD drivers:
AMD: Mobile
Intel: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?DwnldID=23714

At first you probably won’t be able to install the official Intel driver because the installer prompts something about the system not being supported. To bypass that you first have to uninstall the currently installed Samsung Intel driver and reboot..

Uninstall the remaining Intel driver from the Device manager and remember to check the box “Delete the driver software for this device” then scan for new hardware and let windows install a default driver.

Install the official Intel driver and reboot.

Now you won't be able to change the brightness using the fn keys. This can easily be fixed by a change in the registry. Search and change the registry key “FeatureTestControl” to “FFFF” original value “0xF000 (61440)”. Make sure you change the Intel key, there is another one for the AMD card leave it as it is. Reboot for effect.
Source: http://forum.notebookreview.com/samsung/734915-windows-8-1-update-issues-discussion.html#post9417258

Install the latest official AMD driver over the old Samsung AMD driver and reboot.

Most important part!!!

Change the AMD graphics settings under Switchable Graphics Global Settings by unchecking “Allow additional power-savings.” and set both the “Battery” and “Plugged-in” option to “Optimized performance” or “Maximize performance”. I recommend using Optimized because some applications like Spotify had graphic glitches when forced to the AMD card, at least with older drivers.

In the power profile settings change the pci express link state power management when plugged in to off. You can keep the Battery option to maximize battery life.

Hope this helps everyone still struggling with FPS issues out there. I’m still amazed I finally got this working after days and months of searching for a fix without finding one, If this doesn’t work for you I’m sorry I wasted your time…

 

Hi Dannemand! Yes I have been super busy in the last few months but now I'm back. I'm glad to see that you are always here saving people like me from their problems, thank you for that!
Since it was still on the same window (after 7 hours) I closed it. I downloaded the standalone BIOS update tool and it tells me that the latest BIOS version is P04ADH, which is the same it detects as currently installed BIOS version. SW Update doesn't find any other available updates, too. Thus, I rebooted the laptop and entered the BIOS through F2, and it says my BIOS version is P04ADH. Everything seems to work fine, so I'm quite confident that the update was successful. Thank you very much for your advice!

Btw, in these months I had to do a lot of video encoding and scientific data analysis on this laptop and I'm super satisfied with it! Best purchase ever!

 

^ Nothing like good news, happy members and disasters averted

 

Anyone else updated their Intel 4000 drivers to the latest ones on the intel site for their notebook. Wondering what is the best way to go about it, whenever I try to update it says they are not supported on mine

 

Hey everyone, I haven't seen any mention of the image persistence problem lately so I'd like to ask what happened to those that have had their laptops for a year or so? I have the NP780Z5E-S01UB (US chronos model) and after around 10 months I started seeing the problem very clearly, especially on gray backgrounds. It wasn't like that when I first got the laptop so it definitely got worse.

I am currently in Germany but I sent the laptop to warranty here and after more than two months (!) I finally got the laptop back with a new screen... This time I did some "stress tests" and, even though the screen is indeed new (it's nowhere near as bad as it was before), it still has image retention. So I don't know what to do, I really need the laptop right now but if I don't send it back then my warranty might expire, but anyway what's the point if they keep installing faulty panels.

If anyone wants to check for the problem in their units, I'd recommend setting your Windows background color to gray so that the lockscreen background is completely gray and then just locking your laptop every now and then. In my case the problem is very clear when I do this, I can see the start button (Windows 8.1) and many other white silhouettes over the gray color.

 

I try these drivers and they work excellent with amd 14.4

Sent from my SM-N900 using Tapatalk

 

I have the same problem with the np880z5e-x01nl, what i do is set everyting to black and i removed the start button on win 8.1 because of this problem, i read a lot of people have te same problem thats why i dont want it to sent it for warrenty, samsung just have put verry bad panels in a 1600 euro laptop!

 

I would even go as far as saying that it's probably the fault of the manufacturer (AU Optronics), I've read of a couple (literally) of users who experience something similar in other laptops and other kind of displays but made by the same manufacturer.

EDIT: what about those with a matte screen? Are those problem-free?

 

Hi,

I have an NP880Z5E-X01PL second hand laptop. HDD was changed via previous owner, i would like to restore recovery partition and install legal windows 8.

Question is that is there any way to figure out what was the original OS? If so, where can i dowload original installer?

Do u need to create a samsung bootable recovery pen drive?

Please advise,

thanks

 

Guys my model is a 770Z5E and it shows 8.1 update notification. Is it now safe to upgrade? What procedure should I follow to update it? Just install it then run swupdate to update from Samsung?

 

See the updated advice in the first post of this thread.

John

 

I've had my laptop (NP880, US ativ 8) for about 9 months now, and the image persistence has become very noticeable over the last couple months. Originally it was perfectly fine, and I thought I just lucked out and got a good panel, but clearly that's not the case

Image persistence is so bad I can still see the colors of the icons on my task bar if I look closely enough when I'm on the start screen, and that's on a blue background too, not even a neutral gray. Furthermore, lowering the brightness doesn't seem to help either, as it still occurs just as badly with only two or three notches above minimum brightness.

I'm considering sending the laptop in for warranty replacement after I finish this quarter of college, but I don't know if it's worth all the time and effort to probably end up with the same problem.

P.S. In the time it took me to write this post, I can now see lines from the NBR forums on my start screen. Great choice of panel Samsung....

 

No. My matte screen was replaced. The replacement is much better although if you go looking for it I can still see very faint persistence on a grey background. My replacement screen also came with one stuck pixel (my original screen also had a stuck pixel). The stuck pixel on the replacement screen is not such a big deal for me... I only see it on a black background, it's tiny and mostly out of the way.

 

Hehe you should've seen mine before I sent it. Actually, take a look, I'll upload a picture I took (sorry for bad quality). What you see on the left is a Word menu almost entirely clear against a grey background. Aren't there class action lawsuits for these problems?

After some further reading it appears to be a somewhat common problem among devices with IPS panels and their clones/variants. Almost every report I've read speaks or shows how it's most clear on gray backgrounds. I had thought of struggling with warranty support until getting a decent solution and maybe buying a new laptop, but if all the "good-looking" panels have this problem, what's the point, I think I'll just use my laptop while I can. In the meantime maybe some new models with improved panel technology will come up.

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