R50 SXGA+ LCD question

[boris_thpf]

Does anybody know how the 15" SXGA+ LCD of the R50 compares to the R50p LCD in terms of brightness and color reproduction? Does it also have flexview?

I want to do image processing and I'd also like to use it outdoors.

[ajkula66]

First of all, welcome to the forum!

What's the model number of R50 that we're discussing here? Has it been customized? Normally, R50 wouldn't have a FlexView LCD.

That being said, nothing compares to a FlexView IMHO, and you may consider getting a R50p, especially since the prices have gone down quite a bit.

[boris_thpf]

Hello ajkula,

I've seen several offers for the R50 model with a 15" 1400 x 1050 display. I don't know the corresponding model numbers.

I've also considered getting a R50p. However, the FireGL graphics card in the R50p has been reported to produce a lot of heat even when idle, which can cause the fan to run all the time. Also, it is more difficult to get a FireGL card working with *unix and Xorg. That's the reason why I'm looking for an alternative.

[ajkula66]

Well, I'd beg to differ...the fan will not run all the time on R50p, unless you're pushing it to the very max with some severe gaming, and it is by far the coolest machine with FireGl T2 card-take it from someone who has owned all of them, and in a variety of configurations, running XP as well as various Linux distros.

Your only viable alternative if you want to stay with a FlexView screen would be a T42 in 15" SXGA+ format, running on 64Mb ATi 9600 video card. Will that suffice for video processing, I wouldn't be able to say, since I have no experience in that field.

R50/51/52 with integrated video will leave a lot to be desired IMHO for any type of serious video application.

R52 with ATi X300 will be as hot as R50p on a bad day to begin with.

So, if you want a FlexView, your options are somewhat limited...

[boris_thpf]

So you had Linux on a R50p with no problems? No fan noise when browsing the web? That would be convincing.

[ajkula66]

I know I'm going to miss a distro or two, here's what I remember off the top of my head:

Linspire 5.0/Freespire 2.0

PC Linux OS 2006

Kubuntu 7.10

SuSE 9.2 retail version

Fedora Core 7

Bear in mind that I've sold 30+ of these machines worldwide over the last year...not all of these have been tested on the same example, but generally, I haven't had overheating issues whatsoever.

Best match, in my opinion, has been Kubuntu, but to each his own.

Good luck.

[mediasponge]

Using "another brand" of laptop with Suse Linux, I noticed that the fan ran all the time. When booted into Windoze, it did not do this. I found that if I selected the "Acoustic" mode in the Linux power options, the machine would behave as one would normally expect where it gets quiet after activity dies down. I used the AMD Power Monitor to debug, as this was an Athlon 64X2. Choosing "Maximum Performance" or whatever sounds similar will make the machine burn power all the time in Linux.

[underclocker]

Does anybody know how the 15" SXGA+ LCD of the R50 compares to the R50p LCD in terms of brightness and color reproduction? Does it also have flexview?

The R50 and R51 15" SXGA+ LCD's are FlexView IPS. They are beautiful screens and compare favorably to the R50p or T42p Flexview's. They are just not UXGA resolution.

[boris_thpf]

The R50 and R51 15" SXGA+ LCD's are FlexView IPS. They are beautiful screens and compare favorably to the R50p or T42p Flexview's. They are just not UXGA resolution.

That's an interesting information. SXGA+ is what I have right now, I find it absolutely adequate for a 15" display.