Samsung 9 Series laptop (ZX310 / 900X3A) unveiled

So I have the opportunity to return mine to Costco this weekend. Should I do it, or does Samsung's wifi fix actually work?

 

No, someone reported back that they had received their's back from servicing and there was no improvement.

As per various discussions with Samsung, I haven't heard that anyone has been told there is a fix in place yet (and it's not fixed in new models -- as far I know).

So it's up to you to decide if you can live with it until Samsung does a fix... You have 3 years.

 

I'm in the same boat, although a return wouldn't be so convenient for me since I would need to ship it back to the US.

In the end, I decided to keep the S9. Other than the wifi (which for me has been an issue only in "testing" scenarios, never on a practical basis) and the power plug problem that now seems resolved, I would have to say its the best laptop I have ever owned, so perhaps visiting this site and its hyper-critical reviewers has influenced me in a negative way.

As a trial, I tried working on my old laptop to see if I could use it as a bridge until the new Vaio Z is available, but this ultimately made me realize how addictive the S9 is despite its minor flaws.

So my current plan is to keep the S9, wait a couple of months to read some solid reviews of the Z and get some "hands on" at the Sony Centre next door, then possibly buy the Z and give the S9 to the wifey so she can offload her new MacBook Air that we both despise....or I will just keep the S9, I should be happy either way.

 

Success!

Got my Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6230 (in two days, no less. Provantage is sick!) Installation was easy enough, and although getting the WiFi, Bluetooth, and WiDi to all work together was a few hours of agonizing trial and error, eventually it all worked. If I could suggest a sequence that worked for me (Intel's recommended sequence did NOT):

1. Intel Chipset update
2. Intel PROSet/Wireless Software and Drivers for Windows 7 64-Bit
- It's important to download the ICS_s64.exe file because it has the drivers AND the Intel PROSet/Wireless WiFi Connection Utility (which has the My WiFi Technology you'll need for the WiDi to function correctly)
3. Bluetooth
4. WiDi
5. Intel Driver Update Utility (to make sure everything's up to date)

I wasn't able to update the graphics drivers, but everything seems to be working without the update. I use the D-Link Mainstage for my WiDi, and it's pretty much flawless. So far I'm able to play internet video up to 1080p, DVDs with full 5.1 Dolby sound through my receiver and TV. For some reason the copy protection on DVDs won't let me play them through WMP 11, but VLC works perfectly. Haven't tried the Blu-ray yet (need to get an external for the laptop), but I can't see how that won't work as well.

The range is decent - I can keep the laptop in one room and have it connect to the Mainstage in the next room with little signal loss. And as far as the WiFi goes, I'm definitely getting a stronger signal with the Intel chip than I ever did with the Broadcom.

I want to thank Kalahari, Series 9 Guy and phil1980 for their thorough and insightful posts. As annoyed as I was when I found out my factory Broadcom card couldn't do WiDi, this board and $30 at Provantage solved everything. Now my Series 9 is unstoppable!

 

But remember there is NO guarantee there ever will be a fix. So you will have to get a USB dongle if it really effects you. I returned mine and just waiting. ATM I am thinking of picking up a cheap notebook then waiting a couple months more as there will be other new laptops coming out for the holiday and in Sept for back to school.

 

Good to hear that it worked out so well for you. There's obviously some small things that you're working on.

I've just installed an ASUS Black Diamond wireless router and that thing is amazing! I used to need to have two access points in my house but now I get a strong signal from anywhere (and I have wireless-n available too). Have to see how my new Sammy A05 behaves when it arrives on Tuesday. It's supposed to have the Intel 6230 but, if it doesn't, I will install the one that I have. Have to do various testing with that now that I have wireless-n, 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz available to me.

 

Oh, I know there's no guarantee. As I said before, I have 45 days in which I can return it. Also, I already have good USB dongle which I'll travel with and use as needed (in hotels, etc.).

I used AmEx for purchase so they actually added another year to my warranty

 

Have you guys seen this yet?

Samsung refreshes 13-inch Series 9 laptop, adds two 11-inchers to the mix -- Engadget

 

Can somebody point me in the right direction on how to wipe this SSD drive back to factory settings? I just bought this last week and I'm going to return it because the new refreshes came out and hopefully they resolved the wifi issue.

 

What were the insightful posts you relied on for the install? I haven't been able to find a new wireless chipset install guide with some google searching of this thread.

 

Bought my Series 9 on June 19th at a COMPUSA. Took a day to install software, make a system image, re-partition to recover the recovery drive space, and transfer/install all of my software...all the pain in the butt stuff you do with a new system. Now happy that I have this new baby like I want it, I take it into my bedroom where I use it most of the time and it drops wifi connection. Unlike many others, this was not a throughput issue, it won't connect at all. Three other laptops get 4-5 bars (good to excellent) in the same spot. S9 gets poor/one bar and won't connect at all. Samsung service takes me through this saga..first call...re-install the drivers. Doesn't work. Second call...adjust some parameters on the driver. Doesn't work. Third call...do a recovery to re-install the entire operating system. This was total BS but I did it anyway...still not help. Forth call... send it in for service but we can't give you a shipping label...for this model it has to come direct to you from the repair depot. Two days later I get an email with the shipping label and drop it off at UPS. It arrives at the repair center in Texas on Monday, June 25th in the morning. No status updates for 2 days, then status updated to an expected repair date of June 30. No status update as of July 1, so I email the repair depot and get the following: "We thank you for your patience, your computer is waiting on a WLAN from Samsung, estimated delivery date to Samsung is July 2nd, then it takes a couple of days to get to us. With Monday being a holiday, it should arrive by Wednesday." No estimate to get it back to me. I bought the thing two weeks ago, haven't been able to use it and will likely not have possession of it until two months after paying for it, and in the mean time they announce new models. I am not a happy person. I am sorry that I bought it.

 

@greendp. Unfortunately, the "weak WiFi" is a known issue and Samsung tech support told me just this week that they have still not figured out a fix.

Hope you get it back soon. It'll probably have the Intel Centrino 6230 adapter installed. That should perform a little better. Let us know.

I ordered another S9 and I'm more prepared with an excellent ASUS Black Diamond wireless router. I'm going to see if the S9 WiFi range is going to work as well as my other WiFi devices are doing.

 

I wouldn't mind getting another router, installing a repeater, etc. if it were only a matter of access in my home. I often work on a college campus and frequently have to access the wireless network from classrooms, conference rooms, etc. I don't need blazing speed but I do need to be able to pick up a signal where an average laptop would. Spending this much money to buy a computer that is thin, light, and elegant and then having to use a USB wireless adapter is just plain stupid.

I made a mistake sending it in for service. They are keeping it so long that I can no longer return it to the store where I bought it, which I should have done immediately.

 

B01--Intel Core i5 2467M 1.6 GHz--4GB RAM--128GB SSD--Win Prem
B02--Intel Core i5 2467M 1.6 GHz--4GB RAM--256GB SSD--Win Prem

The B0x series seem to have weaker cpu???

From intel it seem like its not intel HD 3000, no VT-d, no TXT ?
Maybe that's why its cheaper?

Intel Core i5 Mobile Processor

Compare to A02-A03 (i5-2537M)
Intel® Core? i5-2537M Processor (3M Cache, 1.40 GHz)with SPEC Code(s)SR03W

(i5 2467M)
Intel® Core? i5-2467M Processor (3M Cache, 1.60 GHz)with SPEC Code(s)SR0D6

 

Yes, it does sound the S9, with it's WiFi limitations, will be problematical for you. I will use mine mainly at home, hotels, airports, etc. where it will not be a hassle to use my USB wireless adapter occasionally.

I recommend that you keep pushing Samsung to fix the problem if it's still an issue when it comes back. I haven't heard of anyone getting Samsung to refund a purchase but it might be worth trying if it comes to that. Actually, you might consider looking at a different Samsung model entirely and see if Samsung will consider giving you that instead?

EDIT: Another option that might work is go back to the seller and say that Samsung tried to repair but could not. They might accept your return; you will even have a case # with details. My first S9, that I returned (instead of servicing) was over the 30 days but they made an exception and gave me a refund.

I personally have contacted Samsung Tech Support multiple times, spoken to Customer Support, contacted them on multiple Twitter and Facebook accounts, etc. So they definitely know about the problem and hopefully it's getting escalated.

 

The 6230 WiFi adapter will not help. My A04 has it and it frankly sucks. 2 bars in the kitchen and no bars in the bedroom.

 

Have been so excited about the new Series 9 laptop since I first saw the reviews....ran out and bought an A03 two weeks ago at Best Buy.

Oops! Wifi was horrible. Couldn't stray more than 20-30 ft. from the Netgear 3700 router without a major dropoff. Took it back to Best Buy and ordered a new A05 from Costco, which arrived yesterday....hoping they'd fixed the WiFi issues.....nope.

Spent the last two days trying out the new laptop.....I love everything about it, except the huge problem of WiFi dropoff if you stray away from the router.

In my office, the Series 9 downloads (according to Speedtest.net) at over 30 Mbps....walk one room away and it drops to approx. 15 Mbps.....walk upstairs and it drops further to about 3 Mbps.....go into the master bedroom and it drops again to 0.30...into the master bathroom and it won't connect at all!

I'm just sick.....I love this laptop....I want it to work...I've tried to rationalize the WiFi issue, but why should I look the other way for $2,000??? Is there any solution on the horizon? I really would love to keep it, but I'm thinking nope.

Any thoughts on a fix? Anything from Samsung?

Arrrrggghhhh!!!

 

thanks pops404 for your post about installing the 6230 but I am a little confused on item 3 "bluetooth" I thought the proset included the drivers for bluetooth and why the Item1 chipset update. as that from Intel jimjoh

 

One adapter (Intel Centrino 6230). Two drivers. One for wireless and one for bluetooth.

Just like Broadcom.

And the Chipset update, that was just something that I (or others have too) found. I would not say it is necessary but I was trying to find the latest drivers for ALL components to see if they would help the WiFi. I think the Chipset upgrade increased the Windows Experience Score slightly.

 

Idea...

I cannot test for a solution as I no longer have a system BUT if someone has a new 6240? with 3 antenna leads, try and route the third (if not all 3 leads) under the keyboard. My thoughts are that this is not duraluminum and may not even be metal (not sure as I dont have my system any more) but, in any case, if it is not duraluminum, there may be much better reception.

Has anyone tried this?

 

Did you mean the 6300 (which does not support bluetooth). I'm not aware of a 6240.

If my new one arrives with a 6230 (2 antenna), I'll have to figure out what the antenna leads are and maybe I can re-route those. I know that you and others have posted pics but I don't what antenna leads look like.

Here's a pic of the one that I sent back:

 

Anyone here know if the recovery disc restore, the deleted hidden recovery partition?
Or i have to back up the partition with Acronis True Image?

 

My bad...and yes I mean any with 3 leads, one that can be routed under the keyboard for testing.

 

I know that Samsung is replacing the adapter as mine is being held for the part. You would think if rerouting a antenna would help I assume{I am naive} they would also do that. I know if mine does not have a better wireless range back it goes. It blows my mind that they would keep manufacturing units with a faulty wireless. we will see jimjoh

 

I'm currently using your method to free up my hidden recovery partition on mine.. But I don't quite understand what to do on the 5. Extend volume C to take over the Recovery Volume.. What command do I type in there? It seems like the volume C isn't automatically taking over the deleted recovery partition.
Thanks in advance

-Edited: Oh nvm. I figured it out.

 

I've recently had a problem with child windows within one of my programs suddenly becoming unresponsive, and had to use Task Manager to close the program.

Twice after this happened I attempted to restart the computer, but the computer itself then locked up - I get the usual exit screen, then the screen goes black, but the notebook keeps running.

Has anyone else encountered this sort of behavior?

 

You might have covered this. The one you sent in had the Broadcom adapter? So are they likely replacing it with the Intel Centrino 6230? Unfortunately, that will still not make it comparable with other laptops...

I've spent way too much looking into this problem -- as I receive my new one today. I think that the only decent (still not great) solution is for the Intel Centrino 6300 (which has 3 antenna) to be installed. It does mean that one has to give up bluetooth but I have figured out I can live without that if I have to. I will have about $200 spent on bluetooth mouse and headset that I can't use though

WiFi is the new mouse connection method now. I'm very interested in the new HP WiFi mouse -- although we need to see more attractive models.

 

Yes. When I did a Samsung Update on the display, I had the same problem. I had to reload my drive image and start all over.

Don't know if it was bad luck, a bad install of that update, or there is something fragile about the SSD.

 

I must admit, getting the Bluetooth to function consistently has been a struggle. I once had the Bluetooth, WiFi, and WiDi working in perfect harmony, but sometimes, without any rhyme or reason, I'll fire up the computer and Bluetooth is just gone - no traces of it anywhere. No radio button toggles, nothing in Device Manager. Wish I knew how to correct this, but I've given up caring and switched to the more consistent wireless USB mouse.

Also, I ran a test to play Blu-Rays using the WiDi - no luck. Apparently the graphics chip won't allow it. And trying to tinker with updating the drivers for the graphic chip was a frustrating dead end. Guess we'll have to wait for Samsung to put out an update.

 

I previously had A03 with Broadcom. Replaced the wireless/bluetooth adapter with Intel 6230. Wireless was still way too weak compared to my Dell E6400 and iPhone 4 to make it acceptable. Tried all possible driver upgrades. Returned the A03.

****** Update on my new NP900X3A-A05US Jun 2011 build ******

I received my A05 today and have done a lot of wireless comparison testing to Dell E6400 and to iPhone 4.

I have not done any upgrades (hardware such as RAM) or any of the multiple drivers yet. Based on my testing, Samsung have definitely done something to improve wireless in this model. It does have the Intel 6230 but I had tried that in the A03 so that alone is not the solution.

Results of my initial tests:
1. Close to router:
....S9 no problem connecting. S9 slightly faster SpeedTest.net than Dell and iPhone (which were the same).
2. Medium distance to router:
....(My previous A03 could not even connect at this distance.).
....S9 no problem connecting. S9 slightly faster SpeedTest.net result than Dell and iPhone (which were the same).
3. Quite far from router:
....iPhone could connect. Dell connected but weak signal. S9 would not connect but after resetting WiFi, got connection but not as good as Dell.
4. Distant from router:
....None of three could connect.

So my conclusions so far are:
1. S9 has improved wireless in new model. Maybe it's antenna placement?
2. S9 consistently gets slightly better SpeedTest.net scores than Dell or iPhone when not too far from router
3. Dell and iPhone connect easier and get better connection "quite far" from router. Those connections appear to be more reliable. I have not installed any driver upgrades on the S9 so the S9 may improve "at distance".

I hope this info gives hope to those with Series 9's and to those considering new purchases. I have not opened up my A05 model yet and am hesitant to do that until I am sure that I am keeping this one. I'll let you know if I find any negative in this model but everything looks very good so far. It feels like a Rev. 2 and looks like a "keeper".

If anyone has anyone questions or would like me to try specific tests or benchmarks, please let me know.

Props to phil1980 for his help

I know that my username is "kalahari", but feel free to call me "Brian"

EDIT: FYI. I heard a fan noise when I lift it up. Hotter too. Didn't use to have that with A03 model. Going to have to monitor. EDIT2: Fan is off and not bottom not hot any more -- has been in continuous use.

 

That's great to hear! I just returned mine... I suppose I may buy another!

 

After returning my 900x3a, I'd like to buy a newer one (of the same model, but working wifi). I got it for 1450 at Costco, but nobody seems to have it anymore. Am I out of luck?

EDIT: If I order from Amazon, am I guaranteed a newer build?

 

Well, obviously can't guarantee that your WiFi will be better. We've still heard anything from Samsung (except that they are aware of this WiFi issue).
I got my A05 from Buy.com. You can find cheaper but Buy.com have 45 day return without restocking. I tend to stick to Amazon, Buy.com or Newegg. I've considered Costco but it's more expensive with tax and shipping. I'm not keen on the merchants that sell on Amazon -- some of their return policies are not great.
As far as "Jun 2011" builds are concerned, the seller will not be able to tell you that. I checked the box very closely and there's nothing there. You can only get the build date by looking at the back of the notebook itself.

 

^
I wonder if they're going to start putting 6230s into the A03s. On a side note, I noticed that BestBuy pulled the Series 9 from their online store. Maybe they'll be stocking the B-series with improved wireless.

 

Just wanted to confirm that the 6230 wifi in the B01 works great. Strong clear wireless signal. Used it all around work today and had not a single issue.

I have an A03 waiting on a 6230 card and the wifi in that was pretty lackluster. Glad the 6230 is working like it should...love this little machine!

 

FYI. I tried a 6230 in an A03 Apr 2011 and it did not help (compared to the Broadcom). I think Samsung has done something to improve antenna placement in the newer builds -- but I'm just guessing...

 

I had 4 systems with 6230's and they all sucked. The best way to test is to make sure there would be an obvious decrease in signal or have two systems side by side and do a test with Speedtest.net - The Global Broadband Speed Test.

As much as I wish the best on your 6230, others (including myself) have fallen prey to same when others thought it was strong.

Like I stated... 4 Series 9's and all had 6230's.

 

Microsoft Store online is out of stock now. Seems like a lot of retailers are going OOS on the A03 models. Wonder if they're getting new and hopefully fixed builds.

 

Can someone tell me the best way to reset the lappy to factory settings?

 

How does it perform compared to other devices at a distance from a router?
I'd like to know if the B01 would be suitable for use on university campuses.

 

I've ordered two laptops in may. These are A01 with broadcom network card (may production date). I ordered one more in june, and that had the intel network card.

I've got Samsung Central Station 23" to go with the laptops as office docking. I'm very happy with both monitor and laptop, with a few exceptions:

- Weak WiFi (both Intel and Broadcom, not a big difference with either)
- I can't connect to the Central Station with UWB (without dongle)

Several articles I've read before purchasing states that the Series 9 does not need the dongle to connect because it can connect with UWB. I know this thread states otherwise, and in my experience that's correct.

I can live with the dongle, though, but I find it extremely hard to live with the fact that the dongle doesn't fit the Series 9. I've got the understanding from this thread that I can call Samsung support and get a new dongle that fits the series 9. I've done so, but Samsung Europe have no clue when I ask about UWB or a new dongle. They've said they will call me back, so we'll see.

All the information in this thread is much appriciated, and I'd like to thank you all for sharing your experiences. If I'll be able to sort out the dongle problem, I have to say that the combo of Series 9 and Central Station is awsome for business use!

 

I assume it's NP 900X3A-A05.

It sounds very promising. Congratulations!

Since now you also have a decent router, I would love to see your WLAN throughput results. You can disable wi-fi on your Dell laptop, connect it to the router with the LAN cable and share a directory on it in order to be able to access it over network. Then find a large file, preferably with compressed video, =>1Gb (I used 4,5 Gb file in my tests). Have it on both Dell and Sammy. Connect Sammy with Wi-Fi to your router. Try to copy this file from Dell to Sammy and vice versa. Windows will show you the speed while copying. You can test in the same 4 (or, actually, 3) locations to measure the speed. To get more comprehensive results you can connect Sammy with the cable and measure speed of your Dell's wi-fi. If you decide to go through these tests, please don't forget to measure speed on both 2.4Ghz & 5Ghz bands.
Of course, I'm sure a lot of people including me would really appreciate if you will post a picture of the insides

Thank you Brian for all your efforts!

P.S. Don't you think that great results you've achieved might be due to a new fast router that you recently acquired? You didn't tested your 6230 upgraded A03 with it, did you? As I mentioned earlier, my A02&6300 works very good with Cisco E4200 at my place, but with other hotspots/routers it's not even satisfactory. We can find ourselves in the same tricky situation feeling speed improvements from 6300 (my case) or June revision of A05 (your case), while the credits should go to the best routers on the market - E4200 and RT-N56U correspondingly... Can you do some tests with other routers around?

 

I'll fix the typo on the model number in my previous post.

I'll do more testing, to determine WLAN results, later. I'll post those. Right now, my S9 claims to have a wireless 300 Mbps speed connection.

As far as the new fast router (RT-N56U) is concerned... No, I did not have that when I tested the A03 with Broadcom or Intel 6230 adapters. I understand where you're coming from but my point is that the S9 appears to now be comparable to both the Dell E6400 and the iPhone 4. In fact, this morning, I was able to stream YouTube video (after it took a while to load) in the kitchen on the S9 but could not a strong enough connection to do that on the iPhone.

I have done some limited testing using my 2Wire router (from AT&T) and not seen differences there. I have a LinkSys WRT54G too. I'll see if I can get testing done this weekend.

I did have two questions for you.
1. When I'm within reasonable range of my RT-N56U, why does 5GHz show 3-4 bars ("Good") while 2.4GHz still shows 5 bars ("Excellent")?
2. Sometimes, when my 2.4GHz connection drops to 3 bars ("Fair"), I still have the connection to router and can access shared directories on other PCs, but I cannot get an internet connection. That seems weird.

Let me add another weird thing. I have been "playing/configuring/testing" with this A05 for two days. There is not a single fingerprint or mark on the top or the inside (next to the touch pad)! The bottom has all the fingerprints that I saw on the previous model. Didn't the top and inside show marks just as badly as the bottom?

 

In general, 6230 is much stronger adapter than the one used in iPhone 4.

That's absolutely right. 2.4Ghz is slower, but has longer distance. 5Ghz has at least doubled throughput compared to 2.4, but doesn't deal with distances and obstacles as good as 2.4Ghz. The same with cordless phones: 900Mhz has the best distance while 2.4Ghz & 5Ghz models have better sound quality. Higher bandwidth - higher throughput, but lower distance.

If you have a fair data connection, it doesn't mater what it is: internet or local network. Something wrong with the setup...

 

^kalahari,

what is the serial number on your June build model ? I'm just trying to see if we can get that build date without opening up the box.

 

Thanks for quick responses!

6230 in my old A03 could not come close to competing with my iPhone.

Thanks for the 2.4GHz vs. 5GHz info. When I'm quite far from the router, i don't even see the 5GHz access point.

Yeah, don't know what's going on with losing the internet connection while the S9 is still showing 3 bars. Going to have to do more checking there. The S9, the Intel 6230 and these faster routers have so many options and combinations that can be set....

There are so many things that I'm finding out in my testing. I did some testing using my Alfa USB Wireless adapter when I had a weak signal. With the Alfa, I was able to see access points from many neighbors -- didn't try connecting to any. What was interesting to me was when I did the SpeedTest.net tests. The Alfa was only slightly better -- both were in the 5 to 6 Mbps download range. With the A03, after plugging in the Alfa, the increased wireless capabilities were significant...

 

can u see your neighbours wifis with the A05?

 

Yes, but only a couple when near windows. With the Alfa, I saw about 12 in the middle of the kitchen.

 

Anyone have any recommendation to format my samsung back to factory settings?

 

That's why I wrote "in general". It's a dedicated advanced wireless card with 2 separate long antennas versus the chip integrated in a tiny cell phone case.

There are just a few that do matter. Make sure you enabled wide bandwidth in both router and 6230 settings. It might be called "Auto 20Mhz/40Mhz" or "40 Mhz only", avoid "20Mhz only". Also, if you don't have "a", "b" and "g" clients in your home, set your router to "n" only. Finally, you can play with manual channels with the help of this utility inSSIDer | MetaGeek , but I would skip it for now.

That's a bad sign. If Samsung really improved the wireless in this revision you should be able see all neighbors networks on your Sammy in the same location where they are easily discoverable with an inexpensive external adapter...