Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

theverge.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–120 of 201 posts

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#111

Post by ChuckNorris89 »

ZuLuuuuuu wrote: post #76

For people interested in ultrabooks with Ryzen 4800U processors, there is also another model, which for some reason doesn't get mentioned much, which is Lenovo S540 13ARE. It has a 13.3", QHD, 16:10 screen. I bought this laptop after buying a Lenovo Ideapad/Yoga Slim 7 and returning it (because of some QA issues and 14" was a bit too big for me after using XPS 13 for a long time). I made a small review of the laptop…

Unfortunately the machine is not available in Europe outside of the Netherlands for some reason.

I tried calling a Dutch retailer to ask if they ship to Austria but couldn't even get pass the "Do you speak English please?" phase :(

Like WTF, the EU single market is a thing since how many decades now?! So why the hell do we still have region specific SKUs of the same product with different parts and availability between EU member states?! Imagine the laptop would be available for sale in California but not in Utah and in California you can only get it with a 512 Samsung SSD and a 300nit display and in New York only with a slower 1TB SKHynix SSD and a 400 nit display! /rantover

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#112

Post by 3np »

mushufasa wrote: post #92

How does it work with linux? My colleague got last year's x395 with the AMD 3000 series. It only lasts 3.5 hours battery with web browsing and moderate coding, whereas it's supposed to last ~7 hours real-world on windows.

I can’t speak for the new series, but I have a couple of Ryzen 3400G and I’m not sure if I got the iGPU working and being utilized 100% properly yet.

The drivers are a huge mess of confusion (what goes into user space vs kernel? What do you really need? What even goes into host OS vs containers if you run Docker? What if anything can you actually get out of it without installing the proprietary non-free closed-source amdgpupro?), AGESA updates are needed to not have kernel modules crashes, oh and these updates are left up to mobo vendors, some of which are great, some of which will make you feel like you bought a lemon. And then there’s the whole mess with mesa that I think is just now resolved (20.1) and haven’t yet made it to LTS distros.

I’m def not an Intel fan but man, 100% working intel drivers are an apt install away and I had both forgotten just what a PITA ATI was with Linux and couldn’t imagine AMD hasn’t stepped up the game at all.

Unless anyone has anecdotal evidence otherwise, make sure you set aside a couple of working days to hunt down and compile the right kernel modules and make sure the vendor provides recent enough firmware and/or hav patience.

In short, I wouldn’t hesitate having a new Ryzen for a headless server, or a desktop rig with a dGPU. For a smaller desktop, laptop, or anything else requiring use of the iGPU I would wait a year. Unless you’re one of the few people either already up to speed on all this or finding some absurd pleasure in learning about it, in which case I really do hope you post your process in a blog or forum where other users will find it through web searches.

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#113

Post by pianoben »

ford_o wrote: post #77
greggyb wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And a similarly specced Thinkpad will be perfectly usable if purchased in 2-3 years as they cycle out of enterprise fleets, and for a better price than the notebook in the article. Not a satisfying option for everyone, but a great one in my book.

Where can you buy such thinkpad?

There's a subreddit for that: https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpadsforsale/

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#114

Post by novok »

notacoward wrote: post #109
novok wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Screens that can go brighter are probably better for us, because it means we can use it in sunnier / brighter environments properly, with all the health benefits that sunlight can give us.

That's more of an argument for reflective/transflective screens. Trying to overcome both sunlight and reflections with a transmissive screen doesn't work very well, and only exacerbates the eye-health problem. Not great for battery life either. That's a lot of problems to be solved before there's even a chance that people would use their computers more outdoors, and even then the odds are slim. Maybe people should ge…

That's like saying that we shouldn't read books on the beach. You have to meet people where they are.

A secondary reflective screen on the outside of a laptop might be the better solution, but from what I remember reflective screens usually don't have good colors. The last TFT reflective screen I remember has been hard to find an outdoor picture of although.

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#115

Post by ZuLuuuuuu »

sandGorgon wrote: post #110
ZuLuuuuuu wrote: post #76

For people interested in ultrabooks with Ryzen 4800U processors, there is also another model, which for some reason doesn't get mentioned much, which is Lenovo S540 13ARE. It has a 13.3", QHD, 16:10 screen. I bought this laptop after buying a Lenovo Ideapad/Yoga Slim 7 and returning it (because of some QA issues and 14" was a bit too big for me after using XPS 13 for a long time). I made a small review of the laptop…

Oh brilliant. Thanks for this. This is coming soon to India. Do you run Linux on this ? How's the performance. Would love it if you can test with a liveusb of fedora

I might try it, I'll let you know if I do under this topic.

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#116

Post by Skunkleton »

MrGilbert wrote: post #49
chrismorgan wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s hard to change the brightness of desktop monitors. Bafflingly, Windows and macOS don’t support adjusting their brightness the way they do for laptops, despite the existence of DDC/CI to do just that, so you’re left using third-party software if you know about it, or interacting with the awful OSD/buttons on the screen, which you’ll hardly want to do all the time. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24316728 is…

For Windows users, I can recommend ClickMonitorDDC[1]. While the UI is a bit cluttered, it has a neat feature: You can display the current brightness in the notification area, hover over it with your mouse, and use the scroll-wheel to adjust it. I really like it. [1]: https://clickmonitorddc.bplaced.net/

Yep, that is very helpful. Thanks!

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#117

Post by ZuLuuuuuu »

ChuckNorris89 wrote: post #111
ZuLuuuuuu wrote: post #76

For people interested in ultrabooks with Ryzen 4800U processors, there is also another model, which for some reason doesn't get mentioned much, which is Lenovo S540 13ARE. It has a 13.3", QHD, 16:10 screen. I bought this laptop after buying a Lenovo Ideapad/Yoga Slim 7 and returning it (because of some QA issues and 14" was a bit too big for me after using XPS 13 for a long time). I made a small review of the laptop…

Unfortunately the machine is not available in Europe outside of the Netherlands for some reason. I tried calling a Dutch retailer to ask if they ship to Austria but couldn't even get pass the "Do you speak English please?" phase :( Like WTF, the EU single market is a thing since how many decades now?! So why the hell do we still have region specific SKUs of the same product with different parts and availability betwe…

That sucks, one advantage of getting a laptop from Netherlands is that they use ANSI US keyboard, which I prefer over a localized keyboard.

Usually Dutch people speak English very well, maybe you can call another store.

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#118

Post by bserge »

chrismorgan wrote: post #21
formerly_proven wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you're staring at a 500nit screen at full brightness all day, you're probably not doing your eyes any good. I'm kinda surprised how many people set their screens to 100 % brightness (300-400 nits for most screens) on their desktop. I find that blinding and very uncomfortable. That also seems to be a reason why people complain so much about IPS bleed and glow; using the screen near full brightness in a dark room…

It’s hard to change the brightness of desktop monitors. Bafflingly, Windows and macOS don’t support adjusting their brightness the way they do for laptops, despite the existence of DDC/CI to do just that, so you’re left using third-party software if you know about it, or interacting with the awful OSD/buttons on the screen, which you’ll hardly want to do all the time. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24316728 is…

I haven't had a monitor in ~5 years, but the ones I owned had physical buttons for adjusting brightness/contrast/gamma/etc... Do new monitors come with no in-built controls?

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#119

Post by ezconnect »

scns wrote: post #87
formerly_proven wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you're staring at a 500nit screen at full brightness all day, you're probably not doing your eyes any good. I'm kinda surprised how many people set their screens to 100 % brightness (300-400 nits for most screens) on their desktop. I find that blinding and very uncomfortable. That also seems to be a reason why people complain so much about IPS bleed and glow; using the screen near full brightness in a dark room…

Do you have blue eyes?. I do, and in summer i can't look at the ground without being blinded. Read somewhere that the lack of pigments lets more light through. Comes with the upside of seeing better when it is dark. I use redshift on all computers plus switch to a different colourprofile on my monitor at night. On mobile i use the nightmode all day.

I don't have blue eyes but when I was younger I can read in the dark and hate high brightness monitors. Now that my eyes are old I lost the ability to focus my eyes and need glasses and sometimes need the monitor to be brighter to help focusing.

Re: Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 7 is a showcase for AMD’s exceptional new processor

#120

Post by bserge »

formerly_proven wrote: post #18
notacoward wrote: post #12

I have one. The US version "only" has a 4800U, but it was still an absolute steal at US$800. It's a nice size, feels solid, and lasts all day easily . I've used it all day more than once and not seen the battery go below 50% yet. Then again, I haven't really pushed it that hard. I'm sure if I played some games it would "only" last five or six hours. And no, I haven't had any issues with the screen. In fact I turn it…

> If you're staring at a 500nit screen at full brightness all day, you're probably not doing your eyes any good. I'm kinda surprised how many people set their screens to 100 % brightness (300-400 nits for most screens) on their desktop. I find that blinding and very uncomfortable. That also seems to be a reason why people complain so much about IPS bleed and glow; using the screen near full brightness in a dark room…

I don't think I ever used 100% brightness on LED backlit displays. They're just too bright. Mine are currently sitting at 75%, and I had AOC monitors (with LG panels heh) that were too bright at even 50%.

Sadly, anything below 50-60% and I notice the PWM, sort of flickering, and it's really tiring - I know I'm not buying the most expensive stuff but I'd like them to use better backlight controllers.

Post reply on HN