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Best Laptops With Full Hardware Support and Acceleration

jacob019

By jacob019,
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roccoo
roccoo
Posted
Posted
My friend bought Acer Travelmater 2423 few weeks ago, and it works like a charm. Everything from graphics (Intel GMA 900 & 1280*800 14.1") to WiFi (Atheros). Only downside of it is that it has Celeron 1.5Ghz CPU... But the price is nice... only 550 euro :wacko: And it is quite well made, and it only weighs 2.3kg.

please how you did it work?

i have same graphics same wifi card and same cpu (same weight)

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battle_clown
battle_clown
Posted
Posted (edited)

i have an acer travelmate 2428.. it has super specs for a low price ( around 600 euro )

 

i installed both the JAS 10.4.6 and 10.4.8 DVDs, but on 10.4.8 the ACPICPUThrottle does not work ( the 8.8.1 kernel is not supported (yet)), so i stuck with the 4.6.

 

pentium m 1.7 ghz ( sse2 only, trying to find a solution for itunes 7 )

gma900 works with a patch ( but the ones from the installer dvds are useless, go get diabolik gma900 fixer pkg ), CI and QE working, full widescreen resolution, built a vga dongle from a clip and a serial 9pin housing - it's ok and doesn't show much

wired ethernet works

modem doesn't ( who cares )

pcmcia ( ete 1410 ) does not work, or better, no driver yet. bad but tolerable.

intel 2200 wifi, there is a driver but in a primitive phase... ordered zytel usb stick, had one with realtek rtl8187 chip but the driver was lousy AND buggy. some day there will be a 2200 driver :)

audio works wonderfully

Hardware keys for controlling volume and brightness working

patched powermanagement.bundle works ( if the battery indicator should go away, just recopy the patched bundle again )

the dvd burner works

 

standby works first time, but when sent to sleep a second time it won't go into standby and hangs...

if you close the lid it goes to standby, so i will find either a solution for the standby or one to disable the sleep on lid close.

 

battery lasts around 3.15 hours with the ACPICPUThrottle, it's quite ok... still trying to figure out how to set him to 1,2 ghz permanently ( on windows he goes down until 700 mhz, ubergreat battery time.. )

 

resolving the intel 2200 issue is a matter of time, the standby issue a matter of google :P everything else just rocks.

now my mac mini has a nice buddy :P

 

ah touchpad works out of the box too

Edited by carterj
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SampAcc
SampAcc
Posted
Posted

Lenovo 3000 c200 working fairly well with tweaks.

 

Originally came with Celeron M, installed Maxxus 10.4.3 fine,

Upped to Core 2 Duo M 1.6, installed both 10.4.3 and 10.4.8 Semthex

945GM (Quartz 'n' Core flawless)

ICH7

Realtek 8139 eth (needs medium level tweak)

Realtek HDAudio (862 - anybody else run into this one?)

Broadcom 4311 wireless (needs simple tweak)

Ricoh 832 flash media port (not tried)

Broadcom bluetooth (not tried)

 

Honestly, 10.4.3 seemed to work better and smoother, but to take fuller advantage of Apple Pro Apps, I have to run 10.4.4 or better. The hardest tweak on this laptop is the audio. Got M-Audio MobilePreUSB working with M-Audio Intel driver, but really choppy. The paperclip thing works on install, but I just used an ext monitor to install and then I can reboot into XGA screen no prob.

 

lenovo.jpg

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kpe
kpe
Posted
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anyone an idea on support for the HP nc8430 ???

 

Thanks in advance

 

Currently trying to get JAs10.4.8 installed on a lenovo x60 ( no luck so far )

 

 

X60 was working with Jas10.4.8 sound and wireless no go , rest worked like a charm

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  • 3 weeks later...
skyfox
skyfox
Posted
Posted

Just bought an Acer Aspire 3680-2022 for $399 after $50 rebate at Micro Center. Amazingly, it runs Jas Mac OS 10.4.8 very well. In fact, the only thing that doesn't work is the built in speakers (but headphones work fine).

 

Specs:

Celeron M 1.73 GHz 1mb cache (65nm Yonah based with SSE3) - Mac OS thinks its a Core Duo

GMA 950 graphics - QE/CI and 1200x800 fully supported

Atheros 5005G Wi-Fi - works great after switching out the kext with one from 10.4.5

Synaptics touchpad - no scrolling, but tapping works fine

Realtek ALC883 Hi-def audio - headphone jack works fine, but internal speakers don't

Marvell Yukon ethernet - don't know if it works because I haven't tried it

TSST combo drive - plays dvds and burns cds like its supposed to

Hitachi SATA hard drive - was supposed to come with an 80gb unit, but got 120gb instead!

 

Overall a very sturdy, and fairly lightweight machine. Definitely worth 4 Ben Franklins!!

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skyfox
skyfox
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Is the Radeon 9600 really the only working graphics chip? I mean the GMA950 is great for the home user, but I want OSX for pretty much one reason: Final Cut Pro. I want a Core Duo chip, but it seems ALL the core duo laptops that work are GMA950.

 

Unless there has been a breakthrough that I'm unaware of, Radeon 9600 is not fully supported. You can get QE/CI but only with "mouse artifacts" and other garbage appearing on the screen. Resolution changing is not supported either, although you can get standard resolutions by editing the kernel boot file (as you would with VESA).

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quasar_x
quasar_x
Posted
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Just bought an Acer Aspire 3680-2022 for $399 after $50 rebate at Micro Center. Amazingly, it runs Jas Mac OS 10.4.8 very well. In fact, the only thing that doesn't work is the built in speakers (but headphones work fine).

 

Have you already managed to resolve the audio issue? Did you already try the HDA/ALC883Audio.mpkg patches?

Most budget models of Acer (also Travelmate 2482/2483/2492/2493) seem to use the ALC883. Generally they look very interesting as a cheap Hackintosh laptop.

I am just interested to know if anyone has already managed to get the internal speakers working with the patches that have been released recently.

 

Regarding the paperclip method, I was under the impression that it is only required for the GMA900 and not the GMA950 - am I wrong? I would also disagree with the statement that the Radeon 9600 is the "only" properly working gfx chip. From what I read, the GMA950 is usually even less hassle to get working, sometimes not requiring *any* editing/patching.

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naplo
naplo
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Posted
Lenovo 3000 c200 working fairly well with tweaks.

 

Originally came with Celeron M, installed Maxxus 10.4.3 fine,

Upped to Core 2 Duo M 1.6, installed both 10.4.3 and 10.4.8 Semthex

945GM (Quartz 'n' Core flawless)

ICH7

Realtek 8139 eth (needs medium level tweak)

Realtek HDAudio (862 - anybody else run into this one?)

Broadcom 4311 wireless (needs simple tweak)

Ricoh 832 flash media port (not tried)

Broadcom bluetooth (not tried)

 

Honestly, 10.4.3 seemed to work better and smoother, but to take fuller advantage of Apple Pro Apps, I have to run 10.4.4 or better. The hardest tweak on this laptop is the audio. Got M-Audio MobilePreUSB working with M-Audio Intel driver, but really choppy. The paperclip thing works on install, but I just used an ext monitor to install and then I can reboot into XGA screen no prob.

 

lenovo.jpg

 

Oh cool! I have a Lenovo 3000 N100 and I will try to install OSX on it today. If it works on the C200, the chances are good that it will work on the N100 too!

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Mathieu
Mathieu
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These laptops can run OS X, but they still have many issues when compared to a real Mac.

 

For instance, my T60p (I am not sure why the T60 made it in your list, and what are the differences with the T60p) works pretty well: see list in my sig. However, it doesn't recover from sleep (actually it doesn't sleep, it hibernates), network works but I have to plug the cable after boot, wifi doesn't work yet and my external wifi doesn't seem to handle WPA correctly (so I have to switch my configs to use WEP).

 

Also I tried connecting the laptop to an external projector for a presentation and that didn't work (the boot screen goes to the projector, but there is no more image when the video card driver initializes). The touchpad doesn't do two-finger scrolling (although it can with the synaptics driver but then it's so fast that it becomes unusable for anything else that two-finger scrolling).

 

Last, I didn't dare yet upgrading to 10.4.9 as I just managed to get the ATI FireGL 5200 to work.

 

Mathieu.

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Detosx
Detosx
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I went for a HP DV6205us, $660 from Fry's. I got sound, ethernet and wireless working, but not the built in card reader. Sleep doesn't work. If you update to 10.4.9 via Jas' update - and I would hold off until you know roughly what you are doing - don't forget to adjust the fsb to 133 and to follow his and other's instructions carefully.

 

Keep in mind that with all of the above you're going to have to edit some kexts. Not great if you are an impatient newbie. When some people post on these boards they expect you to have some background knowledge in editing. To avoid repetition, look for Rammjet's and others excellent posts in the forum's Genius Bar. Frustration, determination and, quite often, joy!

 

I was going to get a Macbook but that screen is too small (for my needs) and the keyboard is tiring if you use it for long projects; plus with Leopard and ilife 7 due out within the next four to six months and new screen technology promising six to eight hours, the timing was all wrong. Still a very cool little laptop and Apple people are very helpful indeed.

 

If you do get this laptop and intend to dual boot with Vista you should upgrade the memory to at least 1gig (it has two slots; you'll need a matching pair). Why HP put Vista on this laptop is beyond me, beyond commerical considerations; 512mb is NOT enough memory for Vista (even Vista Basic), it runs like a slug that ate concrete, the problem made much worse by HP having installed all kinds of software that starts at boot up. Way to put people off Vista! The poor hard drive is being almost constanly written to as virtual memory. I found by comparrison that OS X runs on 512mb very comfortably, very fast, albeit you can expect better with 1gig. Upgrading the memory to 2gigs (I went with the Crucial brand) took me two minutes in the bathroom (any carpet-less room is okay; equally avoid static inducing clothing! Yes, I'm stating the obvious but static is a sod). Vista then sped up massively, though I rarely use it. MS deserve credit for backwards compiblity and there are things to like about it. Morally you do have to factor in the price of buying Tiger OS X (which then sits on a shelf unopened...) but it's not expensive and Apple absolutely deserve the money.

 

If you want an easy life, which is to say if you don't want to edit kexts, change the fsb, re-partitioning the hard drive and so on, just buy the Macbook. It comes with OS X and ilife 06 out-of-the-box! Battery life is WAY better than any Hackintosh, even if you do later buy the nine cell HP battery. On the other hand... if you are not averse to risk taking and need a laptop right now rather buying the existing MacBook or waiting on the new one...

 

Interesting. I went to Fry's site and find that they have upped the spec. The DV6205us now comes with 1gig as standard and they have upped the hard drive from 80gigs to 120gigs. Price $749. That's quite a jump but on the other hand, the 80gig hard drive is pushing it - the HP rescue partition takes up about 6 gigs of that, leaving only 74 to share between Vista and OS X. If you're like me you want an additional data partition.

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quasar_x
quasar_x
Posted
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The HP DV6205 certainly looks interesting. Only the glossy screen "BrightView" puts me off a bit (only personal taste I guess).

 

I am currently looking at the Acer Travelmate 2480 and 2490 series (2482/2483 and 2492/2493) which have very similar specs like your HP. They are one of the cheapest laptops that are available here in Europe and have a Celeron M 420/430 (Yonah, SSE3) with GMA950.

Most components seem to be working more from I gathered and WLAN could always be swapped anyway.

 

I am only still a bit unsure about the audio, since people here seem to have had mixed results. The audio chipset is a ALC883 (Intel HDA).

Apparently some got audio working properly while others only get audio on line-out/headphones, but not on the internal speakers.

 

Some feedback from Travelmate 2480/2490 owners on this would be great, since this generally looks like a good OSX86-laptop at a bargain price!

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skyfox
skyfox
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Posted
Have you already managed to resolve the audio issue? Did you already try the HDA/ALC883Audio.mpkg patches?

Most budget models of Acer (also Travelmate 2482/2483/2492/2493) seem to use the ALC883. Generally they look very interesting as a cheap Hackintosh laptop.

I am just interested to know if anyone has already managed to get the internal speakers working with the patches that have been released recently.

 

Regarding the paperclip method, I was under the impression that it is only required for the GMA900 and not the GMA950 - am I wrong? I would also disagree with the statement that the Radeon 9600 is the "only" properly working gfx chip. From what I read, the GMA950 is usually even less hassle to get working, sometimes not requiring *any* editing/patching.

 

I did use the ALC883 package you mentioned above, and chose 3 port with digital. That got me headphones, but no speakers. I haven't tried anything else since then, as headphones are good enough for me.

 

I didn't have to do anything special to get GMA950 working perfectly. Simply chose it as an option in Jas' 10.4.8 installer. No paperclips were harmed during installation :thumbsup_anim:

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quasar_x
quasar_x
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I did use the ALC883 package you mentioned above, and chose 3 port with digital. That got me headphones, but no speakers. I haven't tried anything else since then, as headphones are good enough for me.

 

I just found a tutorial of "how to get audio working" from a Travelmate 2480 owner. LINK.

Funny though that he reports to have ALC882, not ALC883 like you. Maybe Acer used different chipsets in the Travelmate series and this is the reason for the mixed success with audio? Also note that he only uses 10.4.5.

 

Another interesting budget-laptop for OSX86 with Celeron M and GMA950 could be the HP/Compaq NX7400. Only problem is again... audio.

From what I read, nobody has yet managed to get the AD1981HD working on the NX7400.

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skyfox
skyfox
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I just found a tutorial of "how to get audio working" from a Travelmate 2480 owner. LINK.

Funny though that he reports to have ALC882, not ALC883 like you. Maybe Acer used different chipsets in the Travelmate series and this is the reason for the mixed success with audio? Also note that he only uses 10.4.5.

 

The main problem seems to be that "Internal Speakers" appears under the Inputs list, not Outputs where it belongs. I'll try that tutorial later, but since I have a different chip and 10.4.8, I'm not getting my hopes up.

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ciper
ciper
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My laptop isnt fully supported without modifications BUT the Geforce Go FX 5650 works with full accelleration and no modification when I installed the JAS 10.4.8 SSE2 dvd and included the NVidia drivers. Does that count for anything?

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Reptar
Reptar
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I have an Acer 3680 which I bought this past weekend. I have almost everything working including sound from speakers. The only thing not working for me is the Yukon Ethernet port. Using wiFi exclusively and may get a USB to ethernet adapter if I decide I need a hard wire for speed. Anyway, use SkippyRetards ALC883 package and select 6 ports. This gives 3 sets of speakers in sound preference panel. Select the 1st set and you should get sound from the speakers. Be sure to go in /Applications/Utilities/MidiSetup to set the volumes for sound I/O and defaults. Only thing with the speakers is A) tinny sound as expected and :thumbsup_anim: pretty low volume even with Volume turn all the way up. There may be a way increase the amp gain using the info plsit for AppleHDA, but i haven't played with that (yet).

 

BTW. Anyone have deep sleep working with this laptop?

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quasar_x
quasar_x
Posted
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For the Acer 3680 (and other Acer models with the ALC883) it could be interesting to have a look at the specific changes they did for getting ALSA to work under Linux.

Look here

From the changelog:

 

hda-codec - Fix for Acer laptops with ALC883 codec

 

So there must be a difference in ALC883 compared to other, non-Acer laptops.

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