New Samsung Series 7 NP700Z7C-S01US Laptop i7 3615QM 650m Review!

You are right and it is interesting that we are only getting wind of this after about 100 pages but I bet a lot of people don't notice an issue because a lot of people use their laptops not far from their wireless router. I would love to know if this is a hardware issue or a software issue. So far I think people are pretty sure its a hardware limitation because of the aluminum because other laptops with the same card dont seem to have the same issues. I think it is still possible that the firmware is not behaving nicely with this specific set up, would not be the first time I have seen this. Had anybody tried to switch out the card inside to see if a different card works better?

 

Yes already tried different cards (another intel card and an atheros card).

And drumroll....... the wifi performance was if possible even worse, indicating that the intel 6235 is actually an very good card, crippled by poor design by samsung.

 

At first I thought there was no issue with WiFi and that you guys are all nutso. Well, I was wrong. Sorry.
I am in the same room as the router and when I ping it I get "host unreachable", then it conects, then "host unreachable", then connects again. So, I went to the Device Manager and opened the Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235. Went to Advanced tab and changed "802.11n Channel Width for band 2.4" from "20 MHz Only" to Auto. Bingo, it pings every time now.
My router is a Netgear Rangemax Dualband WNDR3700.
I still love this laptop and I came from a Macbook Pro 15.

 

I guess I am one of the lucky ones...no wifi issues, 2nd floor of my house no problems with router in the basement, at work on 8th floor hitting the router on the first floor.

 

Are those routers Wireless G or N?

 

Home is N, work I believe is N also.

 

Not that I don't believe you, but have you tired pinging the router to see what you latency is?

 

Nah, it's good you did! Work is NOT N. Will ping home router tonight.

 

So I guess this problem only persists on the N frequency? How does this laptop compare with other laptops working on the G frequency?

 

I wonder if there would be issues on my netgear wireless B frequency router lol. 20-40 ft away, anyone?

 

Like I said, I didn't think I had a problem either... until I started doing ping tests. That's when I saw my issue.
Yes, it seems to be only on the N standard. A, B, or G should be fine. And even the N can be resolved. Please don't let the WiFi issue keep you from this beautiful lappy.

 

Except you are paying a lot of money for this beautiful lappy.. with a serious issue (for a laptop).

Sure you can disable Wireless N to workaround the issue, but that's not a good solution for the long term.

 

FWIW - This might be purely coincidence, but I just completed a clean Win7 install using a Samsung 830 SSD and for reasons I can't explain - I'm seeing much faster ping times - I'm now averaging 3~5ms on the SS7. (802.11N)

While perplexing, this is mostly irrelevant to me as I don't do any gaming on this box and the connection so far has been rock steady.

 

Code:

ping 192.168.1.1 -t

Needs to average ~ 1ms or less

Code:

ping 192.168.1.1 -t -l 65500

Should average ~20-40 ms (under 100ms is acceptable)

Also, the signal degradation is dependent on distance, direction, and walls between you and the router.

 

4 Laptops in this house - none of them ping <3ms average so perhaps I have a router problem. The 65500 pings time out on all boxes tried yet all connect and perform fine. The tests have been from the same location and laptop orientation (on desk, 2 walls, ~40' from router.)

Not sure of the source of the issue, but so far, I'm really enjoying the SS7.

 

It's interesting that I had the same experience with the timeouts. 2 laptops connecting just fine though.

Otherwise standard ping test I ranged 3ms and saw spikes up to 83ms, again from bedroom upstairs and router in my basement, 2 floors down.

Curious about the timeouts though....

 

The Samsung...

 

HP Envy 17:

 

envy 17 is much more noisy than the samsung

why didnt you buy a micro usb chip ? your problem would have disappered instantly... you cant make a noisy fan disappear

 

Turn off "Fan Always On" in the BIOS, and set "System cooling policy" to "Passive" if you really care about a little fan noise.

In my experience, the fan only ramps up significantly when gaming anyway.

 

I have tweaked the settings of the wireless-n and the situation has improved substantially. No more connection drops for 2 days. The speed is perfectly acceptible:

 

narech, stop teasing us and post your tweaks ;p

Edit: just realised you were from sweden, im watching Forbrydelsen atm, i know its from your denmark neighbour but its super good

 

Sure In the order the settings are listed in "Intel (R) Centrino(R) Advanced-N 6235 Properties" page:

802.11n Channel Width for band 2.4 = Auto
802.11n Channel Width for band 2.4 = Auto
802.11n Mode = Enabled
Ad Hoc Channel 802.11b/g = 7
Ad Hoc QoS Mode = WMM Enabled
Bluetooth(R) AMP = Disabled
Fat Channel Intolerant = Disabled
Mixed Mode Protection = CTS-to-self Enabled
Preferred Band = 1. No Preference
Roaming Aggressiveness = 3. Medium
Transmit Power = 5. Highest
Wireless Mode = 6. 802.11a/b/g

Driver version 15.1.1.1 (dated 2012-03-12).

These are the settings I'm using and they seem to work fine without any disconnects or high ping latency. Since I had problems I changed "Ad Hoc Channel 802.11b/g" and "Wireless Mode" parameters if I remember it right. I had experimented alot in the beginning and don't remember the defaults of the driver. Anyways these settings work fine for *me* with dir-655, they may not work for others. Hope this helps!

 

thanks alot narechk

@Machater, thanks for the information, I didnt have it but after looking again at ive just realised you were talking about the HP Envy 17-3270NR and I had seen the review from this one http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-HP-Envy-17-1190eg-Notebook.49612.0.html

Im gonna check out your laptop, it looks good if it can be quiet

 

just why

 

Based on empirical testing My router is configured as follows:

802.11 Mode : Mixed 802.11n and 802.11g
Channel Width : 40MHz
Channel : 12
Secondary Channel : 8
WISH : Active
Wi-Fi Protected Setup : Enabled/Configured

There are around 10+ wireless routers in building where we live that I can see so it is a noisy environment. The settings I've posted seem to work well, how and why no idea

 

I'm sure someone has said it at least once in this monster of a thread, but...

Has anyone tried a 120W power supply with this to boost the performance of the parts a bit given that it's underpowered currently? If so, which one did you try?

 

ive read a review on amazon about someone talking about it but no reference was mentionned

 

Mine was this by default save the channel being 8. I just tested my ping with 32 bytes, ~1ms outdoors roughly 25 yards away from the router inside the house. The 64000 value would time out however.

Either way, wifi hasn't been a problem for me. So many variables at play for each individual as well.

 

Yes I did ( Universal Laptop Notebook Charger Adapter 4 Toshiba Sony Samsung HP Fujitsu 120W | eBay ).

Changes: Adapter doesn't get as scorching hot as original adapter. Original adapter pulled up to 93W from the wall at max load. 120W adapter pulls up to 113W. So yes, the computer tries to pull more than original adapter can deliver.

But in practical use there really is no difference. Didn't change throttlig as far as I can see. The only difference is that with original adapter it will drain the battery when using more than 90W, with 120W adapter it never drains the battery since the adapter can deliver all the power it needs.
As long as you do not use the computer at max load for so long that battery power runs out you shouldn't notice much of a difference. Not tried to see what happens if battery is empty and you try to pull max load.

So the 120W adapter I bought was wasted money, didn't really help performance and is almost 3x the size, but at least it runs cooler.

 

OC-Freak, you returned the laptop or you still have it? You seemed to have encountered every problems but happy overall

 

I just installed a Vertex 4 in my new Samsung. Not sure what this business is about needing to remove the entire bottom. Remove one screw to remove the panel cover which gives you access to the memory and both HDD's and two screws to remove the HDD itself. Done.

Also both models have two drive bays.

 

what samsung model do you have exactly and where did you buy it? this thread is 144 pages and we have every information about the laptop so i think you may be on the wrong thread :<

 

Ah my bad, I'm off by a letter. This thread is about the Z, I have the G. Sorry.

 

I returned the last one to an samsung repair centre to see if they could do anything, not sure if they have received it yet.

The only real issue is the wifi. The other flaws are minor ones.

Overall the computer is awesome, so if you sit close to the router and won't be bothered by poor wifi range/quality, go for it! I've also had the Asus N56VZ, and it doesn't come close to the samung overall, and has more minor issues/annoyances than the samsung.

 

yeah i think i'm gonna buy it, every laptop have flaws anyway. Why don't you buy a micro usb wifi chip ? there are some who are really small

 

Yeah, I really love this thing. I can't say the wifi bug bothers me. I don't seem to have it when I'm using 5ghz (which I use at home), and 99.999% of the time when I'm gaming I reach for an ethernet plug anyway to reduce latency.

My bedroom has crap wifi signal (I swear my fridge emits radio waves or something, and it sits right between the router and my bedroom...), but typically in there all I do is watch netflix, so I can't notice it whatsoever.

I've had this laptop for about a month, and, while I'm not too active in these forums, I'm extremely happy with it. So happy, in fact, that I invested in a 512GB Crucial M4 SSD to put in it. It's now used more then my tri-SLI 6 core i7 desktop.

 

I'm glad you said that. I'm sending my 15" S01US back on Monday for a replacement (misaligned trackpad) -- and it'll probably be a week between units. I can already feel my eye wandering (the HP 33% discount isn't helping either) and I've found a few cheaper alternatives. But I can tell my heart really belongs to the Samsung!

EDIT: Today I watched a few minutes of the 2002 Spiderman @720p with headphones, and it really reminded me why I like this machine so much.

-Matt

 

I have no idea what that silly Norton Antivirus software does but it was slowing my system down and my connection. Anyway, I still use 2 different usb wifi devices to get the connection that I want, a small micro usb( transmit power: 16dBm) and occasionally a large one with a 21dBm transmit power high gain antenna eliminating any latency issues. Both better than the 14dBm that I get from the installed wifi.

Links to the hardware below if you care about that sort of thing.
Micro usb: Sabrent USA
Large usb: Amped Wireless UA150C High Power Wireless N Compact USB Adapter - 802.11n, 150Mbps, USB 2.0 at TigerDirect.com

 

maybe try a more powerful micro usb chip?
this one seems powerful

Amazon.com: Belkin F7D2102 N300 Micro Wireless N USB Adapter: Electronics

 

I have had no problems with this laptop. I am thoroughly impressed with it.

I've never had a laptop work this flawlessly for me.

First Samsung, but I am now sold on it.

Got it at Best Buy.

 

As a side note it seems some users of the new XPS 15 are experiencing crappy wifi too... I've used my sister's macbook pro for a while and clearly it also suffers from a very sh!tty wifi. To me this looks like it might be a recurring problem with aluminum cases.

 

anyone has the name of the wifi card of the 700Z7C ? i'm browsing this thread as im sured i saw it mentionned but cant find it

edit: i think i found the wifi card name Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235

Anyone tried to put the Intel® Centrino® Ultimate-N 6300 in this laptop ? or a killer wifi card ? I know OC tried a 6320 or something like this but its not that better than the 6235

 

I'm glad this thread is still going! I've sold this laptop and bought the Lenovo Y580 and Bought the new Envy lol I need tech intervention!

I will say this about the Samsung Laptop it did get annoying to sit with it on my laptop playing Diablo 3 after about 30 minutes it would cook the boys

 

Hey Paul,

If you don't mind me asking, why did you sell the samsung? Also, would you mind giving us a good comparison review between the samsung, hp, and lenovo? In your video you seemed very excited about the samsung so I am surprised to see that you got rid of it.

 

yeah do that please! or if you dont have time for a video, a thread would be amazing

 

Thought you were gonna do some more testing with it, but then disappeared. A video or thread with comparisons would be great though.

 

The 6300 needs a 3rd antenna to give any benefit and you would lose the integrated Bluetooth of the 6235.

Did anyone look at the antenna installation on the Z7C? Is it in the display? I'm not happy with the WiFi on my NP900X4C. It also has the Intel 6235 and the antennae are along the back side of the chassis between the hinges (where the casing is plastic). It looks to be some metal sprayed onto plastic.



John

 

I have a question re the HDD/SSD swap, is it as much a pain as Paul's video and many other here make it seem ?

How high is the risk that I might break something by doing it, are the plastic bottom/tabs that crappy ? Still hesitating between this and Lenovo's Y580. I'm pretty bad at fiddling stuff (clumsy inside) so this thing really bugs me and although I kinda like the Samsung better I might go for the Lenovo just because of that :|

Also does anybody have feedback re both manufacturers' customer support ?

 

I had never cracked open a laptop case before much less replaced a HDD. I found it very simple to install the Samsung 830. Opening the case was easy - just take your time. IMO, the performance improvement with the SSD is well worth it.

I haven't had to contact Samsung support but 2 pre-purchase attempts to reach Samsung sales through their website went unreturned.

I'm really liking the SS7. The wireless has worked as well or better than my Dell. My only adjustment as been getting used to the keyboard (the number keys are throwing me off a bit.)