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StarBook 14-inch

starlabs.systems

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Re: StarBook 14-inch

#181

Post by oefrha »

dmitriid wrote: post #165
chrismorgan wrote: post #144

Ah, those silly number animations where you animate from zero to the desired value. Combine that with a careless form of server-side rendering (though I am glad that all of the rest of the page is correctly server-side rendered with only one or two other minor issues), and this is the JavaScript-free experience: > Intel® Core® 0 th generation processors > Ryzen™ 0 processor > Up to 0 GB 3200MHz memory > Up to 0 hrs b…

Everyone wants to do Apple-like product pages, and no one knows how to do Apple-like product pages. (And in fairness, Apple has forgotten how to do a proper product page, too).

A little more than a decade ago when parallax scrolling was new and seen only on a few websites like apple.com, there was a wow effect. Nowadays apple.com and clones are among the most obnoxious and tiring ad-free websites out there.

Do not hijack scrolling. Use CSS scroll snap if you feel like it, but don't do anything beyond that.

(To be clear, this comment is a tangent — TFA doesn't hijack scrolling. I see the same hilarious 0s everywhere effect though.)

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#183

Post by Beltalowda »

tromp wrote: post #166
Beltalowda wrote: post #148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'm sure like usual when this comes up, some people will come reply with "you can't make out the difference anyway", which is just not true. It is true for those people. No doubt that's not true for you , but you're not everyone. With fairly small screens (14" is small compared to a 24" desktop monitor) I genuinely don't notice the difference. I'm sure if you would put two screens next to each other I'd be able to…

I can live with the lower resolution, as my eyesight is getting worse, but not with the 16x9 aspect ratio. 16x10 (1920x1200) feels so much more productive.

My main monitor is actually 16×10 1920×1200, and at 24" I find it's kind of too low of a resolution: I wish it was more. But it was fairly cheap (second-hand/refurbished from a reseller) and the intersection of "16×10", "not too large" (I don't want a 32" behemoth), and ">1080p" is basically zero, so I had to compromise somewhere, and given the low price point and that I couldn't be arsed to figure out all the display tech and whatnot for the new screens it was an easy choice.

But 16×10 seems to be making a bit of a come-back, at least for laptops.

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#184

Post by mysterypie »

dharmab wrote: post #175
mysterypie wrote: post #171

You can choose between American Megatrends and coreboot. They have a FAQ with the pros and cons[1]. But I have a hard time seeing why anyone would choose the proprietary American Megatrends firmware, especially since the laptop is targeted towards Linux users. Are they offering the choice for their older customers who are used to the American Megatrends UI? Or maybe to not anger the supplier (American Megatrends) tha…

The AM firmware updates are signed and Coreboot is not.

I don't think I'd make that security tradeoff. From best to worst, I'd rank the options is this order:

(1) signed open source

(2) unsigned open source

(3) signed proprietary

(4) unsigned proprietary

In some cases I might rank #3 as the worst option if it prevents me from editing the firmware binary (to fix a security bug myself or to remove tracking info like a serial number), reverse engineering the firmware to verify it (because signed code is often encrypted as well), or installing alternate firmware that might be more secure.

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#185

Post by oynqr »

fmajid wrote: post #24
throwaway81523 wrote: post #4

Looks interesting, starts at $930 which is not too steep vs other products in the same space, price of upgrades is not stated which is a bit scary. Several Linux distros tested including Ubuntu, but Debian is not in the list. Appears to have a non-removable battery with nothing said about replacing it. And of course the CPU (whether you pick Intel or AMD) is full of blobs, management engine, etc. I didn't notice a me…

> And of course the CPU (whether you pick Intel or AMD) is full of blobs, management engine, etc. ARM is no better. You’d have to get RISC-V for that.

Last time I checked RISC-V boards were still chock full of blobs.

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#186

Post by uuyi »

ChuckNorris89 wrote: post #131
yzmtf2008 wrote: post #113

Tangantially related, I remember reading the Asahi Linux wiki [0], and was shocked by this statement about Apple Silicon machines. It's fascinating that Apple has a reputation for being anti-libre, yet the hardware they built is arguably very libre-friendly. > This puts them somewhere between x86 PCs and a libre-first system like the Talos II in terms of freedom to replace firmware and boot components; while a number…

>yet the hardware they built is arguably very libre-friendly Well they're already in legal trouble for abusing their iOS market dominance with the new EU proposed legislation, they know the tides are turning against big tech, so they didn't lock down the MacBooks preemptively to brace themselves for what's coming, not because Apple has somehow now become a FOSS supporter. Before you applaud Apple for being too libre…

Err the monitor has a user replaceable power cord. I have one and removed it fine. It’s different because an IEC lead won’t fit in the design envelope. Even the stand can be replaced.

The SSD is also a misnomer. The influencers couldn’t put a normal SSD in a mac and make it boot. But they don’t understand that there is integration with the crypto at hardware level. And there’s no reason to suspect that apple won’t provide SSD replacements on the open market as part of their self repair program.

This is the power of crappy influencer bloggers. Distributing misinformation which everyone parrots verbatim. They are a cancer on the planet and so are the followers.

Realistically these are absolutely trivial issues in the scale of things blown way out of proportion by people looking for problems rather than actually using the hardware.

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#187

Post by zhte415 »

chrismorgan wrote: post #144

Ah, those silly number animations where you animate from zero to the desired value. Combine that with a careless form of server-side rendering (though I am glad that all of the rest of the page is correctly server-side rendered with only one or two other minor issues), and this is the JavaScript-free experience: > Intel® Core® 0 th generation processors > Ryzen™ 0 processor > Up to 0 GB 3200MHz memory > Up to 0 hrs b…

Was the page changed?

While the hamburger menu doesn't work (it should, these can be done in CSS with no need for JS) there appear to be no number animations for me, just the correct numbers.

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#188

Post by spuz »

PeterisP wrote: post #101
kragen wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On the plus side it does have three USB A ports, and it has a barrel charging port instead of one of those shitty USB-C ports for power. And you can plug USB-C-charging things into a USB A port with just an adaptor cable.

Having a barrel charging port is a serious flaw. I have many devices, but I expect to carry a single charger for all of them; if my laptop has a non-USB-C charger than I need a separate charger for the headphones/phone/Kindle/etc which is extra weight to carry around, extra mess and e-waste. The world has moved to a single standard for charging for all devices, we're just waiting for the "transition period" to run ou…

This laptop also has USB-C charging.

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#189

Post by ChuckNorris89 »

bzzzt wrote: post #180
ChuckNorris89 wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>yet the hardware they built is arguably very libre-friendly Well they're already in legal trouble for abusing their iOS market dominance with the new EU proposed legislation, they know the tides are turning against big tech, so they didn't lock down the MacBooks preemptively to brace themselves for what's coming, not because Apple has somehow now become a FOSS supporter. Before you applaud Apple for being too libre…

> Before you applaud Apple for being too libre and think the company has changed direction, keep in mind this is the same company that ships recently launched monitors without user replaceable power cords and locks out in firmware the possibility to upgrade the SSDs on the very expensive Mac Studio despite teardowns showing that it's phisically possible by end users. I don't get all those accusations that are constan…

>A non-removable power cord has a big advantage: it's hard to lose it.

How could you possibly loose a monitor power cord? It's not a portable device that you travel with. But in a home or office setting I can certainly see the cord getting crimped under the weight of the feet of desks or chairs.

>so is it really that damning you should go to a repair shop for something like that?

Yes, going with your equipment to an Apple Store enquires down time and extra costs that wouldn't be a problem if you could swap the cable yourself in two minutes.

Heck, they already do that with the excellent removable mag-safe power cable on the Studio display. Come on! Seriously. They proved they can do it but choose not to because fck the consumers and the environment.

>Also, Apple never advertised removable SSD modules. I don't care what they put in that box as long as it works as advertised.*

That's the problem. It's not about you, it's about the environment and the e-waste that these company's products generate because while they could be more user upgradable and repairable like the old Macs were that people still upgrade and use today, Apple now spends resources to make sure their new products are not upgradable or repairable, in order to have you buy more of their stuff instead of keep using their old products for longer.

Re: StarBook 14-inch

#190

Post by gadgetoid »

zhte415 wrote: post #187
chrismorgan wrote: post #144

Ah, those silly number animations where you animate from zero to the desired value. Combine that with a careless form of server-side rendering (though I am glad that all of the rest of the page is correctly server-side rendered with only one or two other minor issues), and this is the JavaScript-free experience: > Intel® Core® 0 th generation processors > Ryzen™ 0 processor > Up to 0 GB 3200MHz memory > Up to 0 hrs b…

Was the page changed? While the hamburger menu doesn't work (it should, these can be done in CSS with no need for JS) there appear to be no number animations for me, just the correct numbers.

Yes, I sent them a heads up- they nuked it from orbit.
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