Netbook, Ultrabook, and Macbook Air Alternatives Continued

I've been looking further at some of the models mentioned in my previous post and it seems they are not without their idiosyncracies/foibles. The HP DM1 has a number of problems which may be potential deal breakers for those who are more technically inclined. These include:
- they use an Insyde BIOS which also uses a device whitelist which means that you may be limited with regards to hardware upgrades/swaps/replacements
- the wireless module on the system I examined was a Broadcom BCM4313 which may work under Linux but isn't the best solution out there. In fact, under Linux you may simply be better off using an USB based wireless module (use blacklist.conf/rfkill or even remove the wireless module to block/disable it). Swapping it out isn't an option though because of the whitelist issue! (more on this later) This is the error message if you're interested.
####Start Quote####
Wireless module not supported

The system has detected a Wireless module installed in the system is not supported. System halted. Please remove device and restart.

WLAN Module ID (702)

For more information visit: http://www.hp.com/go/techcenter/startup
####End Quote####
- we've mentioned the BIOS previously but I must mention it here again. Normally, there is an 'Advanced Mode' with many BIOS's or there are more options that are available in the open but I'm not sure what has happened  here. In the past, F12+A would allow you to access the 'Advanced Mode' but things have changed and you're left with an extremely stripped down version of what you would normally want (no options to turn on/off various capabilities (USB ports, wireless/BT, etc...), no choices with regards to SATA/ACHI mode, etc...)

Obvious ways around the BIOS/whitelist problem include:
- altering serials/ID's of devices, modifying the BIOS/whitelist, physically altering devices itself so that certain identifying information can't be gathered (create a secondary switch to make the device 'visible' again. If the machine doesn't support it obviously this could result in a smoky mess. You have been warned...) and so on but clearly these may impinge upon your warranty
- extracting BIOS/whitelist and finding compatible hardware so that you can work within whatever space is left
- creating an internally accessible (seen this mod with an Eee PC. Basically tap the internal USB bus, hook a hub to it, and plug a wireless card into that) USB wireless card. Some space in there but not much and there is already substandard thermal venting (the entire bottom side includes aluminium sheeting on the inside face, the frame uses some metal, and there are only two vents on the side. It should be noted that the machine can get extremely hot under maximum exertion) so not sure how it would go
- using a different/older BIOS. HP's utility doesn't seem to support downgrading though based on what I've seen. Hacks include using a different flashing utility or fiddling around with the extracted firmware/executables. Past experience with other manufacturers indicate that they often only make the most minor of efforts to obfuscate their work and reverse engineering may be realistic/possible
- modifying the BIOS itself, http://www.bios-mods.com/forum/archive/index.php?thread-4191.html

Having a locked down BIOS is understandable from a security, quality control, and other standpoints but this is seriously dumb for a device that is likely to be used in the consumer space. What's worse is that clearly not enough testing/research has been done with regards to providing a platform that will work across most operating systems...

For me these issues aren't really problematic. The real deal breaker here is the fact that the entire keyboard/moouse freezes from time to time. There have been numerous accounts of these problems and numerous supposed answers which include:
- build up of static
- faulty hardware
- incompatiblity with Linux (virtual machines are actually are realistic option on this particular machine but I often require raw access to the underlying hardware and I often use non-persistent/Live Operating Systems for testing)
- heat dissipation problems

Based on what I've seen it feels like there is a strong correlation with heat increases and keyboard/mouse freezes (everything else works except the keyboard/mouse. You can even plug in an external keyboard/mouse and everything works). I ran it with the following extra kernel boot parameter ("thermal.off=1") which offloads thermal management from the OS to the BIOS and it seemed to work. Then, I ran a simulation by running multiple instances of dd running pseudo random number generation and outputting them to stdout.
dd if=/dev/urandom of=/dev/stdout
This allowed me to increase system temperature without requiring significant user interaction. Thereafter, it was a case of watching whether or not the system would keel over. One night of testing and I thought that I had may have overcome the problem but after doing some intense network based wireless transfers it seemed clear that I had not. Moreover, attempting to cool it via air-conditioning seemed to have no effect. If I had more time this would be a non-issue since I could work away at the problem until it's fixed but the fact of the matter is I'm busy at the moment....

Still, I honestly believe the DM1 is a strong offering (screen, keyboard, battery life, and so on) in spite of these problems. If HP are willing to make the necessary modifications (and offer better/stronger support for their product) they clearly would have one of the strongest options in this particular market sector/price point.

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1986925
http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Hardware-Upgrades-Replacements/excess-heating-and-stopping-work-of-keyboard-and-touchpad/td-p/1347457
http://askubuntu.com/questions/182730/keyboard-freezes-with-wireless-use-on-hp-pavillion-dm1
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/1026697
http://www.bios-mods.com/forum/Thread-REMOVED-DV6-3071tx-Whitelist-Removal
http://www.bios-mods.com/forum/Thread-Test-sp55495-WIFI-Unlock-HP-Pavilion-DM1-4000
http://forums.fedoraforum.org/archive/index.php/t-276283.html
http://joshuawise.com/wireless-whitelist
http://web.archive.org/web/20090310024936/http://www.srcf.ucam.org/~mjg59/thinkpad/bios.html
http://web.archive.org/web/20090204194109/http://www.paul.sladen.org/thinkpad-r31/wifi-card-pci-ids.html
http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Operating-Systems-e-g-Windows-8-and-Software/screen-says-www-hp-com-go-techcenter-startup/td-p/1100475/page/17
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareCategory?cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en&product=5215434&
http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Hardware-e-g-Windows-8/HP-DM1-4108AU-Solid-Sate-Drive-SSD/td-p/1437603
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/product?cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en&product=5215434
http://www.bios-mods.com/forum/Thread-Test-sp54026-Whitelist-Removal-Request-HP-DM1-3248CA-F-12-or-F-13
http://www.bios-mods.com/forum/archive/index.php?thread-8126.html
ftp://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp54001-54500/sp54026.exe
http://www.bios-mods.com/forum/archive/index.php?forum-143.html
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1989051
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1878300
http://forums.fedoraforum.org/archive/index.php/t-276214.html
http://forums.fedoraforum.org/archive/index.php/t-276283.html
http://blog.tomw.net.au/2012/12/installing-linux-on-hp-pavilion-dm1.html
http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Lockups-Freezes-Hangs/Cursor-freezes-pavilion-dm1/td-p/1705561
http://www.laptopmag.com/review/laptops/hp-pavilion-dm1-4010us-late-2011.aspx
http://gingernfree.blogspot.com.au/2012/09/hp-dm1-series-laptops-with-ubuntu-1204.html
http://www.linuxfordevices.com/c/a/News/HP-Pavilion-dm1z-review/
http://techlogg.blogspot.com.au/2008/02/unstick-those-stuck-pixels.html
http://h10010.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en&docname=c00288895
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defective_pixel#Partial_sub-pixel_defects
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1804786
http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=75795
http://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/linux-hardware-18/amd-e450-radeon-6320-stability-issues-924838/

A utility to allow for more better temperature control/battery life on your laptop
http://scottiestech.info/2010/02/05/how-to-increase-your-laptops-battery-life-a-lot-with-crystalcpuid/

http://www.consumerlaw.gov.au/content/the_acl/downloads/consumer_guarantees_guide.rtf

Work with enough audio equipment and you'll eventually get crackling at some point. Often you think it's the speakers or the cable themselves but they're often the connections. Replacement parts are available from local electronic stores.

- as usual thanks to all of the individuals and groups who purchase and use my goods and services
http://sites.google.com/site/dtbnguyen/
http://dtbnguyen.blogspot.com.au/

Netbook, Ultrabook, and Macbook Air Alternatives

With the end/widespread production of netbooks options have become limited for those who require similar functionality at a similar price point. I've recently been investigating some of the options that are still available and aren't quite willing to move towards far more expensive Ultrabooks and ultralight notebooks. An obvious option includes working with whatever netbooks that are still being manufactured. Some of the locally available options include Acer, Samsung, and Toshiba. Ironically, Asus netbooks (the original creators of this product category) aren't easily obtainable (One thing I've found interesting has been the evolution in the design of netbooks. Clearly, the original netbooks were highly limited but I noticed a gradual evolution of these devices over time such that many of the original flaws were ironed out (poor keyboard design, small/slow primary storage options, etc...). However, of late I've discovered significant flaws in the design of these devices that makes them difficult to justify even at their low price point.

http://liliputing.com/2012/05/netbook-shipments-down-34-percent-from-last-year.html

Among them are clear deficiencies in thermodynamic management (ventilation design and fan efficiency/noise), issues with hard drive choice (some drives are notorious for noise problems and yet they are still chosen for mass production), upgradeability (many of them quite simply aren't able to be easily upgraded (hard drive and somtimes RAM) without voiding the warranty (they often use locking mechanisms that that will break upon opening them), power consumption (reaching silly levels given the size of the devices), build quality (I think they've gotten progressively worse over time), weight (it used to be that the best netbooks were about 1.1KG but they're now approaching 1.5KG) and durability (plastic only works so well. Even some of the more expensive Toshiba R/M series based laptops suffer from issues because they haven't given enough through towards materials engineering).

Other alternative options include:

- used ultralight notebooks (premium options such as those from Lenovo, Toshiba, Sony, and others)
- cheaper ultrabooks (often expensive, come at the cost of build quality, battery life, and so on). Includes branded as well as generic options via various eCommerce websites
- tablets, so called tablet hybrids, and smartphones (often expensive, aren't as flexible (especially with regards to application support), and have poor battery life and keyboards or no keyboards at all)

However, of late there are seems to be a re-interpretation of the netbook class among some manufacturers. Price point and weight are a fraction higher than that of netbooks (though the same if you can get them on sale especially in light of the deployment of Windows 8), but so are screen sizes, keyboards (they still have some issues particularly with layout such as the sizing of the arrow keys, and often battery life. Each has their own idiosynchrocies but I've found the following to be worthwhile exploring:

- Asus 1225 series (enlarged 'Seashell' series)
- HP DM1 series (enlarged 'Mini' series)
- MSI Wind series (various designations/models but they seem to be similar in size/configuration to the 'Macbook Air' but aren't widely available locally).
- Acer A0725 series (enlarged 'AOD' series)

Since they are often enlarged netbook platforms, they still exhibit many of the same weaknesses of existing netbooks. Namely, the inability to upgrade (though you are often able to overcome the 2GB limit inherent to the standard netbook platform) without voiding your warranty, poor screens, performance (similar Intel/AMD chips are used) and thermodynamic design, and compatibility issues. 

If you do some digging you'll notice that the A0725 and DM1 series both have interesting bottom panel designs. They both have bottom panels that come apart in a single section. The A0725 seems to use a single screw while the DM1 uses an innovative latch (doubles as a means of holding the battery in place) system that allows for easy upgrades. Structural integrity and build quality issues seem to have been compromised to achieve this. Nonetheless, not a bad compromise for this price range. The 1225 series has many of the same flaws as 'the Seashell' series. Beauty, thermodynamic design, and the desire for higher margins comes at the price of ease of upgrade (look at the F-35/JSF program for a good guide on how to design/create easily upgradeable systems, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-35_Lightning_II) and other build compromises. The most annoying thing about many of the keyboards out there is that there is clearly more than enough room to create a good keyboard on many laptops provided some thought is put into it. I'd take a ergonomic/useable keyboard over an aesthetically pleasing design any time.

http://support.acer.com/acerpanam/netbook/2012/Acer/Aspire/AspireOneAO725/AspireOneAO725sp2.shtml
http://computers.toptenreviews.com/netbooks/acer/aod257-13685-review.html
http://lookatprioryearfiles.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/upgrade-hard-drive-of-your-samsung.html
http://uk.hardware.info/reviews/2700/cpu-shoot-out-intel-atom-d2700-vs-amd-e-450
http://forum.eeeuser.com/index.php?/topic/83131-1215n-hard-drive-swap-with-pics/
http://forum.eeeuser.com/index.php?/topic/89236-1215p-vs-1215b/
http://forum.eeeuser.com/index.php?/topic/82953-1215n-hard-drive-noise/
http://www.cnet.com.au/hp-pavilion-dm1-4108au-339333319.htm
http://www.insidemylaptop.com/how-to-disassemble-hp-pavilion-dm1-laptop/
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/2009901
http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-E-Series-E1-1200-Notebook-Processor.73569.0.html
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=AMD+E1-1200+APU
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1878300
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/netbooks/hp-pavilion-dm1-4125ea-review-50006730/
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=6018&review=hp+pavilion+dm1&p=4
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1799014
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1804786
http://thebottomline.as.ucsb.edu/2013/01/windows-7-vs-windows-8
http://www.officeworks.com.au/retail/products/Technology/Computers/Laptops/Everyday-Laptops/ACAOD27026
http://mail.myself-care.com/Acer-notebooks/acer-netbook-10.1/
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1510270
http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/computers/blogs/gadgets-on-the-go/googles-chromebook-pixel--an-oxymoron-priced-to-fail-20130222-2evse.html

Working with Office files on Android platform.
http://www.kingsoftstore.co.uk/kingsoft-office-android.html
http://www.free-power-point-templates.com/articles/view-and-edit-ms-office-files-on-android-for-free-with-kingsoft-office/
http://download.cnet.com/android/office-suites/3150-18483_4-0.html

Fanless designs becoming more commonplace. Should make for some extremely interesting and less compromised/more optimal designs in future. Obviously, not too many options in the marketplace though and where there are they are difficult to procure locally.
http://liliputing.com/2012/05/more-fanless-netbooks-could-be-on-the-way.html
http://www.netbooklaptopreviews.com/netbook-news/increase-in-fanless-netbooks/

Linux/Android on a few hybrid tablet/netbook class devices.
http://gdgt.com/toshiba/ac100/
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-20015201-64.html
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ARM/TEGRA/AC100
http://pole.su/Toshiba-AC100-Fedora-2.6.37-install-ENG.htm
http://nullr0ute.com/2012/11/a-long-overdue-status-update-of-fedora-on-arm/
http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/27975/how-to-dual-boot-ubuntu-on-asus-eee-pad-slider-sl101

Power consumption/performance comparison between low power/mobile solutions from Intel and AMD. Obvious issue is driver support when switching from Intel to AMD platform though. Have observed some anomalies myself while working with AMD platform. More investigation required but believe that even if AMD is just as solid as Intel option, driver/software support may be enough to make a difference in the marketplace for AMD.
http://liliputing.com/2011/02/low-power-chip-battle-amd-c-50-intel-atom-n550-power-consumption-compared.html
http://www.amdzone.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=52&t=138262&sid=81a5b86212664aa39bec6bfe5d0ff84e
http://www.cpu-world.com/
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/

I often use plastic packaging (thin enough to open a package but not thard enough to break it) of from other products to open sensitive equipment without damaging the casing but apparently a gap guage adjuster works just as well.
http://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/champion_sparkplugs.htm
http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/online-store/products/Stanley-Feeler-Gauge-Metric.aspx?pid=12571

For those of us who are simply interested in the Windows 8 interface but don't necessarily want to install/purchase it.
http://betanews.com/2012/12/11/disable-the-new-windows-8-interface-for-good-with-ex7forw8/#comments
http://forums.mydigitallife.info/threads/35189-Windows-7-explorer-for-Windows-8
http://www.nngroup.com/articles/windows-8-disappointing-usability/
http://www.informationweek.com/software/windows8/are-businesses-waiting-for-windows-9/240148533
http://www.iobit.com/iobit-winmetro.php
http://www.neowin.net/news/winmetro-bring-window-8-metro-ui-to-your-desktop
http://darktips.com/metro-windows-7/

- as usual thanks to all of the individuals and groups who purchase and use my goods and services
http://sites.google.com/site/dtbnguyen/
http://dtbnguyen.blogspot.com.au/