Series 7 Chronos - Day 1 Problems

Hi there

Just got my Chronos today (S02UK) and I absolutely love it, it's extremely quick, very nice looking and (to my unspoilt eyes at least) the screen is very sharp and enjoyable to use.

That said, I'm having a couple of fairly serious (and possibly related) issues which I'm hoping someone knows a solution to.

The primary problem is, as with most people, graphics. I tried to load up a very basic game (Worms 2 on Steam) and after about 1 or 2 minutes every time the entire system freezes and crashes, and the only option is a hard shut down. I don't really know what could be causing this, I've tried assigning the ATI card to Worms but this didn't improve anything.

Anyway, the other problem is that the software update thing is informing me that there's a BIOS update, but it fails every time with no explanation. Now, I've heard vaguely that I need to disable my BIOS password in order to load this update, but I have no idea how to do that.

I really hope someone can shed some light on these issues because as much as I love this laptop, I'm really concerned if it's going to crash under light use as described above!

Thanks so much.

 

I'm sure a lot of people are interested in this laptop just now so I might as well give my thoughts on other commonly mentioned issues.

The screen - A lot of people are criticising this but for me it's great. If you are used to really high quality premium screens then I can understand that it may not be up there, but for me coming from standard flatscreen monitors of similar resolutions, this is the clearest and sharpest screen I have ever used.

Heat - The laptop stays cool and quiet if it's on a hard surface. On your lap it can get a bit warmer (but nothing major) and the fan cranks up a bit during gaming but it's all completely bearable and the fan is not even remotely whirry.

Keyboard - Very nice action, easy to type on. I dont have the spacebar problem which has been mentioned here and there.

Wifi signal - This is a big gripe for a lot of people, but I have to say compared to previous comps I've connected to this exact same router I am getting an INCREDIBLY good signal. My download speed on speedchecker.net is 14.5 mbps, compared to the 8 mbps I get on my old PC (bought last year). So, definitely not bad as far as I'm concerned.

I personally just hope Samsung get into gear with their driver support and basically allow us to switch off the Intel graphics altogether and just use the AMD for everything. I know it'll hit battery life but for me that's not a big issue, I just want the option.

Incidentally, my worms issue seems to have resolved itself. I'm not sure what I did but I think giving steam AMD access rather than just the worms client did the trick.

I would still like to know how to update the BIOS though if anyone knows.

Cheers.

 

Efficated - what exact model did you get? I read on this forum that different models (in different countries) have different wifi cards. My NP700Z5A-S03US has the broadcom while my XE700T1A-A03US has the Intel 6230.

 

I've just asked Speccy and I have the "Broadcom 802.11n Network Adapter"

 

Do you have the Z5 or Z3 chronos?

 

He has the Z5 if I'm not wrong. NP700Z3A-S02UK does not seem to exist.

 

Yep, Z5. Specifically, this one: Buy Samsung NP700Z5A CHRONOS Laptop, Intel Core i5, 2.4GHz, 8GB RAM, 750GB with 15.6" Display, Silver online at JohnLewis.com

 

Okay, I've just done a bit of research on Worms and the laptop and can now tell that this is the same OpenGL issue as everyone has been complaining to Samsung about. In a way I'm heartened that this being caused by single issue, and a pretty major one at that, because it seems likely that a fix will be issued at some point, but it's still pretty frustrating.

I do find it hilarious (in a sense...) that I can play Fallout: New Vegas on ULTRA settings at like 30-40 fps, whereas relatively basic games such as Worms and Minecraft crash or run extremely choppily, as a result of using OpenGL.

Still hoping that someone can chip in about this BIOS update though, if anyone has any ideas of solutions, or how I can remove the BIOS password, please chip in! I want to make sure this thing is as up to date as it possibly can be.

 

The BIOS should not have password protection unless you have set it. Can you press F2 at the BIOS screen and go into the BIOS setup wihtout entering a a pssword?

Another possible cause of the BIOS update not working is if you are running Windows without the full administrator rights. UAC is there to reduce the changes of Windows getting messed up, but it can be a nuisance at times.

John

 

Try running the executable directly
http://forum.notebookreview.com/samsung/631273-series-7-chronos-firmware-10fd.html

 

I'm gonna post this here just for the reference of anyone else who falls into the same problem, because I know how frustrating it can be!

yknyong1 - I followed your advice and downloaded the .exe for the bios update, and it COMPLETELY screwed up my comp. I.e. windows would not boot for anything, even with the recovery CD in. Don't worry, I'm not mad, these things happen! (especially now that I've fixed it).

Anyway, for anyone who finds themselves in the same situation, you need to start the automatic recovery manager for windows. I did this initially and thought it wasn't working because it took like 10 minutes to run with apparently no progress, but eventually a more user friendly screen will appear which says it's trying to resolve the issue. For me this failed, but after having done so it gave me the choice to look at advanced options, in here I did some form of memory/ram diagnostic (can't remember exactly what it was called) and was amazed to find out that my comp then restarted and has been fine since!

Happy days! I was sooooooo worried. Never shall I tinker so intimately again, especially for such an irrelevant update. XD

 

Something, somewhere, isn't behaving itself. BIOS updates should be painless and, with the various issues with the Series 7 Chronos, more will be needed to give you a properly functioning machine.

John