From owner-freebsd-mobile@FreeBSD.ORG Sun Dec 2 22:16:01 2012 Return-Path: Delivered-To: mobile@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [69.147.83.52]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id BE831DEC for ; Sun, 2 Dec 2012 22:16:01 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from wblock@wonkity.com) Received: from wonkity.com (wonkity.com [67.158.26.137]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 552CB8FC14 for ; Sun, 2 Dec 2012 22:16:01 +0000 (UTC) Received: from wonkity.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by wonkity.com (8.14.5/8.14.5) with ESMTP id qB2MFx9t095000; Sun, 2 Dec 2012 15:15:59 -0700 (MST) (envelope-from wblock@wonkity.com) Received: from localhost (wblock@localhost) by wonkity.com (8.14.5/8.14.5/Submit) with ESMTP id qB2MFwp6094997; Sun, 2 Dec 2012 15:15:58 -0700 (MST) (envelope-from wblock@wonkity.com) Date: Sun, 2 Dec 2012 15:15:58 -0700 (MST) From: Warren Block To: Kevin Oberman Subject: Re: IdeaPad Y580 Laptop - 59359513 - Dawn Gray In-Reply-To: Message-ID: References: User-Agent: Alpine 2.00 (BSF 1167 2008-08-23) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed X-Greylist: Sender IP whitelisted, not delayed by milter-greylist-4.2.7 (wonkity.com [127.0.0.1]); Sun, 02 Dec 2012 15:15:59 -0700 (MST) Cc: Eitan Adler , mobile@freebsd.org X-BeenThere: freebsd-mobile@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.14 Precedence: list List-Id: Mobile computing with FreeBSD List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Sun, 02 Dec 2012 22:16:01 -0000 On Sun, 2 Dec 2012, Kevin Oberman wrote: > On Sun, Dec 2, 2012 at 11:35 AM, Eitan Adler wrote: >> On 2 December 2012 14:31, Warren Block wrote: >>> X will only work if the dual-graphics mode can be disabled. >> >> And this is a BIOS feature which isn't guaranteed to exist? > > It is not, but as far as I know, it is available on all prior ThinkPads. Definitely the kind of thing a person wants to check before buying. > The problem is that the nVidia chip used is a supported one, but it > lacks a frame buffer. Instead it uses the frame buffer on the Intel > graphics part of the CPU. On Windows, it also only uses the nVidia GPU > for some operations and the Intel for more basic ones where its > integration into the CPU will result in optimum performance. The > result is no support on anything but Windows for the nVidia.You can > find more on this at: > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nvidia_Optimus/ > > The other big issue with the graphics is the lack of the ability to > switch back to console mode. Once X is started, you have no ability to > get a vty screen. This is especially annoying when something in the > graphics (probably the KMS) glitches and the display goes bad. the > only recovery is a re-boot. I keep hoping that console mode support > will be written at some point, but it has not happened to this point > and kib (who wrote the KMS code) has stated that he has no plans to > write it. I thought that was all that was left to be done to finish the Intel KMS support, and was part of the plan. > Lenovo does white-list wireless cards and the cards on it all have > Lenovo specific PCI IDs. I bought a standard Intel 2200/BGN card and > it would not work. I had to buy a Levovo branded card at four times > the price. (My T520 came with a RealTek card.) Some people have patched the BIOS, replacing one of the allowed card IDs with that of the new card. On the older Thinkpads with mini-PCI slots, it was possible to tape over one of the fingers, and the card would work but with some disadvantages (power management, AFAIR).