TukangUsapEmenq

In a nutshell, I've got myself a treat (and my old ThinkPad 11e just can't cope with my workload now) by getting a secondhand ThinkPad L390 Yoga, which does have USB-C ports to charge. And, welp.... Sometimes, using the included power bricks are... Simply, impractical. (Heck, I typed this while charging this laptop using my 20W PD phone charger lol, and yes surprisingly it does charge)

Now, looking on so many people 'sort this' by getting a multi-port charger, I sort-of plan to get a multi-port PD charger, with either 65W or 100W, with various choice of brands like Anker/Aukey/Baseus/Ugreen/etc, and maybe could be getting the 'desktop' variant ones, or... Just get an extension cord if I get the 'normal' charger shape lol. Devices that I could charge on the same time is my Galaxy A34 (max 25W PD PPS) and the laptop itself (65W max I guess from Lenovo psref), and maybe sometimes my power bank, wireless earphone/smartwatch, so I'll need at least 3 or more ports total with one USB-A port.

What I want to know is, and yes you can write as long and as detailed as you want lol:

1. Welp, does it really increasing the level of practically by investing to an additional charger?
2. Does it effective to charge your devices reliably (welp, I saw a lot of threads on Reddit saying some of them are simply unreliable) and.. Still going "fast'? I mean, if you're getting 65W charger for the phone and the laptop, at least the laptop could've 45W (which is enough for my basic use anyway), yet needs the phone to at least fast charge that can be nearly full for at least an hour.
3. In the end, does it worth the money you spend to just get a little practically?
4. And, finally, which one charger/brand are your recommendation?

Thanks in advance.

Seeing this video kind-of inspired me of posting about this.

In a nutshell, I want to get a secondhand ThinkPad (either T480/T480s/L380/T490/etc) simply because I need more performance when I'm working outside of my living place (current laptop is a smol ThinkPad 11e with M-5Y10c + 4GB RAM). And, as of other ThinkPads, they mostly have Thunderbolt 3, and I sort-of want to utilize this by using the external GPU, in which I'll retire my PC (and taking both the PSU + GPU + storages only), specs as below on my signature, because I actually live on boarding houses for work, far from home, and with nearly 2 years of having a PC kind-of hassles me of carrying PC case everywhere I move. And... By my little research, my PC with E3-1225 v2 actually lose a little bit in performance with the i5-8250U. Dang, how technology evolves.

Yes, I am well aware of the bottleneck of using this kind-of implementation. I know my GTX 1650 wouldn't fully perform on this setup, but it'll run on 1080p or even external 1366x768 60Hz monitor anyway, and tbh I don't game by that much (maybe some Asetto Corza/Dota 2) nowadays. What I need basically is portability for now, and simplicity of plug one USB-C (which will charge and connect to my monitor + mouse + keyboard + perhaps Gigabit ethernet) and I'll get my battle station ready. And I plan to make custom enclosure just for the sake of not 'hanging the GPU + PSU way too open'.

But... I just want to know on how your experience of using this kind of setup. Please enlighten me about this, like does this setup will worth the effort?

Thanks in advance.

In a nutshell, I wanna upgrade from my ThinkPad 11e 2nd Gen (M-5Y10c, 4GB RAM, 256GB SSD) onto something more 'sensible' for heavier workloads. To be fair, this laptop is serving me enough in really basic use of browsing and basic document processing (and love the IPS screen despite it's an entry level laptop on the lineup), but of course (expected this) it'll struggle when I gave it an heavier Excel worksheet and, while it's perform 'enough' for CAD, it'd struggle on heavier project documents, while working from home (I don't have a corporate laptop as I use PC on office and simply remote it).

I don't need too fancy thing, an 8th gen i5 laptop will do. The picks are between secondhand X280, X280 Yoga, T480, or T480s. Might be considering to X290/T490 series either if it's worth the additional price. I would do few CADs (AutoCAD, Solidworks, maybe a little Revit), maybe some coding, while (on the worst case) opening loads of Chromium-based browser and documents on the background.

Problem is, when I'll pick the ultrabook variants of the ThinkPads, most of the RAM will be soldered. I already made a 'mistake' when I bought this 11e, with 4GB soldered RAM, thinking 'the 4GB could serve me good enough' and.... Nah, It's not good enough. I already have a PC with 16GB of RAM and it sometimes touches 10 GB with my use above (even it'll touch near 14-15 GB while I'm using Photoshop, or middling around on Starfield's world), and my PC on office is using 12GB of RAM, and it even never touches 8GB even while I opened loads of things. This is what made me confused, as the jump between 8 to 16GB is good enough amount of money that I could spare for something else.

So... Welp, 8GB, or just YOLO onto 16GB?

And lastly, since I actually never use a laptop that's below 1.5 kg (lol even my 11e are simply got the same weight with my past E5-475G), do the X280/T480s 300gr - 500gr difference with T480 really makes that difference on the backpack? Since I usually travel on the weekends using backpack while I'm window-shopping lol

Thanks in advance

On 10/28/2023 at 4:50 PM, Somerandomtechyboi said:

All of these for 110$/1.6jt rp or something? If so thats pretty decent deal

 

If not then throw the rgb rams out since you can buy a 2x8 kit with oem samsung/hynix bare pcbs for 350-380rb ish and lazy overclock to 3200, not completely random ones ofc so decent stuff like m378a1g43eb1/db0 (samsung 4gbit e/d die), hma41gu6afr8n (hynix 4gbit afr), or hma81gu6djr8n (hynix 8gbit djr)

 

Ryzen 3100 would also be a better cpu due to the better singlecore, should also be able to run the rams at 3800 ish, and can overclock to 4.3-4.5g

Welp, no luck on me seemingly, he already sold it to another one lucky boi.

Since my E3-1225 v2 seemingly already struggling to do things comfortably for me nowadays and damn it's kinda confusing to go for parts selections either, so... Check ur pm.

A friend of mine potentially want to sell his PC components as he got something better from another friend of mine. 

Current system (bolds are to change):

Intel Xeon E3-1225 v2

ASRock B75M Motherboard
Hynix 2x8 GB DDR3 1600 MHz RAM

Cooler Master T20 CPU Cooler

MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Gaming X 4G

480 GB Pioneer APS-SL3 SATA SSD

1 TB Seagate 2.5" HDD

be quiet! System Power 9 500 W PSU

Potential system upgrade:

AMD Ryzen 5 2600

AsRock B450M-A Pro

Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL 16GB 3200 MHz

Cooler Master T20 CPU Cooler (would reuse it if it's enough cooling), or my friend use the OEM AMD Stealth cooler already

MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Gaming X 4G

480 GB Pioneer APS-SL3 SATA SSD

1 TB Seagate 2.5" HDD

be quiet! System Power 9 500 W PSU

PC is using 1366x768 monitor.

For the use of me learning on basic use, few gaming occasions, Revit/SolidWorks, and more performance on my AutoCAD and my games, obviously.

Case got 2x120 + 2x80 front side fans, with one 80 fan as back exhaust and another 80 fan as an exhaust (mounted it on the side panel) to the left side. Like the illustration.

Welp, few questions:

1. For around US$110, secondhand of course, is it worth the upgrade? Or... Just pick the newer i3-12100/newer gen Ryzen and call it the day?
2. Does my current cooler would handle the R5 2600 fine when I overclock it? It handled my E3-1225 v2 miraculously damn fine that it never reach 70 C even on stress test. I sort-of want my CPU not to reach 80 deg, so... Could I get a better cooler like CM Hyper 212/similar?
3. For the sake of few apps that actually needs SSD nowadays (staring at you, Starfield), do the upgrade from SATA to NVME SSD for boot drive worth it?
4. Since I'm using an old-school style case (the PSU is topside, with the PSU intake pointing below and sucking air from CPU/GPU heat), does it really necessary to me to change the case?
5. With my fan setup as the drawing above, does the new upgrade would be a problem with airflow or temp?

Thanks in advance.

On 8/8/2023 at 6:50 PM, Needfuldoer said:

Can you stick a cheapo gig switch between your computers and your wireless bridge?

On 8/9/2023 at 9:15 AM, UeeVii wireless bridge said:

Should be a more stable solution to run ethernet cable since it is not a long distance!

That's actually the main point of the upgrade, for speed, even listed on one of the marketplace lists above.

Yet. I've got myself an used Tenda AC9 router. Which.... Came from China Telecom/things. Yet it works: I do have Gigabit LAN and 5Ghz now.

Even better, the Wi-Fi 5 works as expected for me to at least dramatically increase my wireless bandwidth.

In a nutshell, I've just got myself an used Tenda AC9 router as an upgrade to gigabit LAN for my local network and to Wi-Fi 5 speeds.

I turned off the 2.4GHz Wi-FI (as I already got a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi on another router (TP-Link TL-WR840N) running WISP mode repeater, this Tenda AC9 that I just got unfortunately got issues with WISP). I tuned around the manual settings of channels and using 80MHz channel (there's no any 5GHz around me at all, yay!)

Yet. I set it to Channel 149-161 (whichever is available), I got Speedtest as-per below. This speed is for both of my phone and my laptop. Nearly the same result.

And below here is when I'm using my 2.4GHz Wi-Fi on my laptop.

And yes, I tried to change it to channel 36-48, still on 80MHz bandwidth. It kinda solved the problem but... My laptop (Thinkpad 11e Yoga with Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265 adapter) doesn't seem to detect it at all. My phone (Samsung Galaxy A34) does the job fine and the test is on the spoiler below.

Since I wanna use 5GHz on both device, welp, how can I at-least solve it on the router, or on my laptop? 

**** EDIT AND ADDITIONAL INFO ****

I tumbled around Device Manager and advanced settings on my adapter settings. Changed 'preferred band' to 5GHz, and seemingly it can detect it. And also I tested the speed, runs exactly as the A34 speed above.

Problem is, when I disconnected from it, it's gone, again. And what I did to let my laptop reconnect is to tumbling around Device Manager again, and it works again.

Welp... It's not fun for keep opening Device Manager everytime I wanna browse on my laptop.. So still need the help here.

Thanks in advance.

6 hours ago, Falcon1986 said:

The WRT320N had good reviews in its day. But, as you said, you can only use either the 2.4GHz or the 5GHz band, not both at the same time. The wireless performance is average, but 5GHz performance might be less than what you're expecting. If LAN-to-WAN and WAN-to-LAN speeds are important to you, you're not going to get over 165Mbps for either, even with gigabit ethernet ports.

Welp, won't be adding additional 2.4G Wi-Fi anymore, the boarding house already have all of the non-overlapping channel (1, 6, 11) since they're using three APs. Hence why I'm getting 5GHz.

Perhaps the biggest data that I would stream via Wi-Fi is when I watch something on my local Jellyfin, and my collection consists between 720p - 1080p videos. I wouldn't mind about LAN-to-WAN speeds too much (yet still matters for better streaming performance via Jellyfin at least) as I won't transfer huge data via LAN-to-WAN anyway, I've got spare Cat 5e for that.

Yet. I found this with only around $2 additional price lol

https://www.tokopedia.com/dibawahlangit/router-tenda-ac9-dualband-gigabit-ethernet-bekas

In a nutshell, I've got a small network that includes a server using an old laptop (Acer Aspire 4253). My whole connection only relies on a TP-Link TL-WR840N running on WISP, which took internet from my boarding home network that's using CPE AP, and all of which runs darn great on my use case so far (CasOS, Jellyfin for 1 user, Home Assistant, etc)......

Until if I downloaded something darn huge on my server (after I remote my server to download things remotely on my laptop that runs 24/7) and I have to move things between my PC and my server. To be fair, my current router is indeed darn good to do it's job, heck, kept it saturated with near-max of 100 Mbps.

But of course, we wouldn't like that much on both the router and my sanity.

In a nutshell of required and potential upgrades:

• 100 Mbps to 1000 Mbps, required, of course.
• My TP-Link router actually runs on the same channel with the CPE AP: which sometimes causing little-to-some issues that I have to disconnect-reconnect internet of my phone.
• It's 2.4 GHz, so sometimes my Wi-Fi actually got some issues when I turn on my Bluetooth on my soundbar (welp, my phone just like disconnects and have some hard time to reconnect). Idk why, but I suspect the Wi-Fi interferes with Bluetooth. Optional, but preferable if I could get 5 GHz off the Linksys router below, if it's worth it.
• Lately, I would have 4-6 IoT devices (ESP8266s/ESP32 using ESPHome, with Home Assistant), one of them is constantly feeding data every 10 sec. Idk if this could crowd my current 2.4 GHz network that much that it'll disturb my phone/laptop while I'm using it.

And, yes, all of my devices supports gigabit or 5GHz wifi.

Here's three picks for the upgrade so far. And yes, they all are secondhand, as the title suggest.

https://www.tokopedia.com/yogyatronik/d-link-dgs-1005c-switch-hub-gigabit-5-port-10-100-1000-mbps

Welp, good-ol' 5 port gigabit switch.

Yet, if I just add 1-2 bucks to it, I could've get either of these:

https://www.tokopedia.com/empat6/router-gpon-ont-dasan-h660gw-f660-gigabit-broadband-access-like-f609

https://www.tokopedia.com/aryaputrateknik/cisco-wrt320n-dualband-wireless-n-gigabit-router

And with little shematics that I made.

The Dasan are actually seems interesting, but I don't know if the ex-GPON router could've do switching if I use it as a AP. Could simply set it to an unused local AP and let it do it's job, yet idk if the router supports it. Yet, only 2.4 GHz. I tbh kinda want that 5GHz, yet..... Below.

The Linksys seems interesting because of dual-band. Yet, I can only use one of the band, and plus, it's a router that came from 2008-2009-ish, which the router could've an early implementers of WI-Fi 4. Saw the reviews of the router, speed wasn't that good for today's standards perhaps.

So... Which one? Welp, any answers is appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Just got myself a really nice bargain of a barely-touched (it only have 12 hours of active time in HDD Sentinel lol) 1 TB 2.5" HDD off a friend. I plan to use it as an additional storage for my PC, but... Welp, I have to use additional 2.5 to 3.5 converter which I have to get online.

Also, my first 1 TB external drive's kinda on the brink of out of space. So... For the sake of meeting the both needs of I need to use the HDD as something to play games on and as an external drive that I can carry everywhere..

Can I use an external HDD enclosure that uses USB 3.0 as the route to meet both demands?

I do actually did some tests beforehand on few devices/laptops, playing some games off my existing 1 TB external drive. But I don't know if it would be fine/good on long-term use, like plugging it nearly 24/7 onto my USB 3.0 slot.

And obviously, I'll get a quality HDD enclosure, like Orico brand (which, is a reputable brand on my country at least)? I used it since like 3-4 years ago and the only problem it had is a dead cable. I don't want my HDD dead all of the sudden.

7 hours ago, RollyShed said:

It does have a SATA bay. It is one of those with near a dozen screws to get the bottom off. Then the hard disk is easily accessible. If the OP is going to do it simply look at a YouTube of how to get the bottom off or simply unscrew all the screws and prise the bottom off. The case looks to be the same as a few other Acers I've fitted SSDs to.

 

The main thing is to replace the hard disk with an SSD for speed.

Technically, it does have two SATA bays, if I repurpose the DVD drive bay with caddy and put the storage on it.

Wouldn't bother to use the DVD bay though as I don't plan to use it as a NAS.

7 hours ago, Needfuldoer said:

And like I said earlier, if the laptop just has a SATA bay and it's not running a NAS OS, it's better to use a large traditional SSD instead. 

 

I haven't seen new 16 gig SATA (or ATA) SSDs in ages.

8 hours ago, Needfuldoer said:

Modern SSDs that small are usually Intel Optane M.2 drives designed for use as a gigantic drive cache. They've got nearly enterprise-grade write endurance and cost basically nothing, so they're great "set it and forget it" boot drives in home servers.

9 hours ago, RollyShed said:

Where can you get a 16GB SSDs? A small one here would be 120GB and the smallest I'd buy would be 250GB, probably about $15US.

Acer Aspire, that one is quite low specs but it should run OK. About the bottom end of those I've installed a complete system on.

Funnily I actually found secondhand ones on some local market place website on my country. I bet these are something that came from old servers that companies scrap.

https://tokopedia.link/f9jlHcwdfBb

Yes. I know it doesn't really worth to take, that's why I asked here first if 16/32GB drive for a server could work/not. 

Heck, I even found 16 GB Optane drives for like $1.5. Yet, unfortunately the laptop doesn't support NVME yet.

Welp, got an old laptop (which surprisingly is still alive), specs as below:

Acer Aspire 4253

AMD E-350 1.6 GHz 2C/2T

3 GB DDR3 RAM

Which, I want to install Linux server on it and perhaps install CasaOS for my little home lab. Yes, I do well aware if it's a really mediocre thing to use as a server, but I figured I just simply wanna do tinkering a little bit with HomeAssistant and else. Heck, it did some purpose as a media file server for movies back then.

The only concern is the capacity of boot SSD that I would want to pick. I stumbled upon a few secondhand SSDs like capacities of 16 GB and 32 GB for cheap. Welp, I could get the new 120GB one and call it a day, but somehow it would be some wasted space (and wasted money lol) that won't be utilized by that much...

The question is... Will a Ubuntu server (or other Linux-based server) with CasaOS and few docker containers that I would use (yet Idk still what) fit with at-least 16/32 GB of storage?

I'm using Windows 11 Ghost Spectre on both of my PC (Xeon E3-1225 v2, basically a i5-3470) and my laptop (Core M-5Y10c), certainly both are supposed to not supported by Windows 11. The laptop only got 4 GB of RAM (and unfortunately no way to upgrade it), and Ghost Spectre actually made that laptop feels kinda alive again, even better than stock Windows 10 that previously installed on there.

If your mom are actually got used by Windows, I don't think adding 'additional learning curve' by using Linux would've worth it, especially when she got used by Microsoft Office. That i7-6500U and 12 GB RAM actually would've still got some really good power for daily use on Windows. Although, I agree with @Inception9269 with Linux Mint if you prefer to use Linux.

The second one is indeed cheaper with 12 GB of RAM, so I'd pick on it. All 3060 even on different OEMs should've perform the same anyway.

Edit: I didn't realize if there's a 3060 Ti there. Get that instead.

If your motherboard supports M.2 with NVME (yet please provide with the model for the motherboard (ex. MSI B75M) so we can provide an accurate answer), then it should supports it albeit with reduced performance. 

https://nvmexpress.org/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-nvme-2-0-specifications-and-new-technical-proposals/

37 minutes ago, LapsedMemory said:

For a really lightweight installation that works well for general use, my typical fallback is Linux Mint.  On something with this specs, I would try Mint XFCE edition and see how it handles.  It should run circles around any of the Windows light weight versions.  

I tried Linux Mint before, it's indeed good but if it's Linux, I could want something with better UI for touchscreen.

Just stumbling around Fedora 36/38 Workstation, seems interesting tbh, any experience of using it?

39 minutes ago, Aaron_T said:

I've not personally done a ChromeOS flex install on an old device, but this would be my first choice due to the large eco system of supported apps that are available and the generally light weight that a webOS provides, as well as being built for good touchscreen support by default.

My concern of using web-based OS like ChromeOS is actually when it kinda always needs to connect on internet, and, somehow, I do want to do lightweight gaming like RimWorld/else, which I don't know if ChromeOS supports. 

In a nutshell, I've got myself a 2-in-1, just for casual use like watch Linus dropping things, Netflix, browsing, learning things outside of my room and such. It's a ThinkPad 11e, a 2nd Generation ones sporting as below:

Intel M-5Y10c, details as here. (I ordered the N4100 ones but it came with this one model sadly lol)

4 GB of RAM, soldered unfortunately, no way to upgrade.

128 GB of SSD. Upgradeable, and would go for 256GB if it's indeed necessary.

Windows 10  Pro out of the seller.

Surprisingly, this little machine runs rather well while I do things on it (not much obviously), despite the CPU and RAM kinda struggles to keep on it and it shutters/lags here and there. Yes, I do know exactly the risk of buying such devices.  Yes, I know, it's stupid, but I do want 2-in-1 as my secondary device and this is the one that I could get cheap (and inside my budget without killing my wallet), and, hey, it's a ThinkPad. New tablets like Samsung's A8 on the price close enough would have nearly the same performance anyway.

Welp, we know how 'heavy' Windows 10 for such device, I'm thinking of going for 'more lighter' OS. I do see Tiny11, Ghost Spectre, Windows Superlight, and else. Heck, even ChromeOS Flex and it's forks is indeed interesting, or maybe some kind of Linux distro that's good for the one that won't do much 'hardcore' settings with CMD and good interface for touchscreen.

Yet, before choosing one of them, any recommendations that I could get?

Thanks in advance.

Update 06/11/23: Installed Windows 11 Ghost Spectre and upgraded it to a 240GB SATA SSD, and it's been the smoothest experience that I've had on that laptop.

14 hours ago, Katarn said:

From what I see in stores, they're about the same price. Would you recommend Anker over Samsung if the difference in price is marginal?

If the price's nearly the same then it's your pick whether you want OEM or third-party. But in my friend's experience of using an Anker fast charger, it still reliably works after 5 years on his S10. Really doesn't too matter actually, as the A13 would only charge on 15W anyway.

The point is, don't get cheap on things you use daily, especially with electronics like charger. The hazard of 'saving' by using cheap charger really outweighs the risk of another medical bill.

14 hours ago, Katarn said:

That is only "in theory." You spend two out of those four years with a lagging system that is barely usable by the end.

I've had my A13 for about five months, and, other than lacking basic Android functions available to non-Samsung phones, it is already beginning to lag on DuoLingo and Discord.

Samsung relies mostly on its reputation these days. Their quality has gone down.

Agreed with @BiotechBen. You can't really expect a device will run smoothly if the hardware itself sucks, even with good OS. Samsung lower-range segment isn't something you would compare against another brands unfortunately, and phones at the price point would've only 'usable' for 2-3 years anyway.

It's comparison between Galaxy A13 vs Redmi Note 11, which priced close enough for me to compare, and technically (from their synthetic benchmark) it's nearly twice the performance. 

https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=11402&idPhone2=11336

Unfortunately, you don't get Samsung for their lower-end products, they're darn sucks. But for their middle-end to flagship segment, it's indeed a consideration.

14 hours ago, Katarn said:

Very cute profile picture, btw.

Thanks lol

The microSD in question is as both below:

https://www.tokopedia.com/sandisk-official/sandisk-ultra-microsd-128gb-100mb-s-no-adapter (Class 10, non-UHS)

https://www.tokopedia.com/sandisk-official/sandisk-ultra-microsd-128gb-a1-microsdxc-uhs-i-micro-sd-no-adapter (UHS-1, A1 rated)

The phone is Samsung Galaxy A34, which I don't even know if it supports apps-on-external memory thing (which is why I consider the A1-rated if app-on-external memory is supported), and I usually only use it to store musics, take photos and 1080p60 fps video from my phone (I barely use 4k30fps), and that's it. Yet, when I wanna do 4k30fps, do the non-UHS version supports that?

Also, whether who knows if Samsung phone (especially Galaxy A34) actually supports apps-on-external memory thingy, please let me know. And yes, I've done my research already and didn't give me any reliable results yet. Welp, it's $4 difference, but in my country, that amount is considered money for whole day meal lol

Thanks in advance.

It's totally fine if you want to use 3rd party charger and cable, as long as it's the reputable brand ones and it does have quality, especially with fast chargers above 5V 2A.

I killed an iPhone 6s because of a (way too) cheap 5V 2A charger brick. It gave me two lessons: don't go way too affordable, and don't f*ck with way too cheapo electronics.

I use Aukey's charger as my 3rd party option since 2019, Anker would've my choice too as I saw my relatives using it and it's indeed darn reliable too. For 3rd party brand, it's rather expensive in my opinion (because there's quality on it), but it's still way cheaper than Samsung's own brick.

6 hours ago, Katarn said:

It's not like Samsung products last very long anyway, but that's mostly a software issue *cough* bloatware *cough*

I specifically picked Samsung A34 instead of Redmi Note 12 Pro (near-same specs, even the Redmi have better camera) because of the software, even the A34 is indeed more expensive.

Samsung's One UI are actually the one top-notch 'manufacturer stock' Android that I would enjoy use for daily drive nowadays tbh.

 Well, I live in a boarding house, which is a former industrial mess complex that's only have one plug that I connected everything on my room (PCs, electrical stove, fan, router, etc.) using an extension cable (high-quality ones). Room's still using fluorescent lamp using ballast.

In (a lot) of cases, every time I turn on/off the lamps on my room, my PC peripherals' LED (it's a keyboard and mouse with RGB) would've turn on by itself, even if the PC is turned off. My assumptions the lamp's ballast causing the PC to act weirdly like so to turn on the power on the USB ports.

To be fair, my extension doesn't include the ground wiring, as it's only a (still, a good quality) 2x1.5mm cable. I would want to get the 3x1.5 ones but... I have to get it online as my country electrical shops barely sells any wires with 3 cores. I am well aware of the hazard of this, and yes I plan to change the cable to 3x1.5mm later on.

Yet, back to topic. I don't know what's causing the LED to turn on, and I have to unplug the USB cable for the keyboard every time it happened, so... Can anyone enlighten me? Will changing my extension cable to include grounding will solve this as some power would've 'trapped' because there's no ground?

Update. I checked out the Galaxy A34 the same day I posted this, phone arrived on May 6th, and unfortunately have to get a new 25W charger either as I don't have any PD charger that's suitable for the phone.

And this indeed a solid phone to use so far, temps is good, never managed to get it hot as I game, camera is decent (although go for A54 instead for much better camera), and thank God it's a significant upgrade from my old phone (which I still use).

So, problem solved. Thanks for whether answered the questions.

On 4/16/2023 at 10:41 AM, mazinhahs said:

hye. I know this is an old post but if somehow you do see my reply, may I know from what video on youtube that you found the comment about using the nail clip and plier? or if you can describe to me how you actually do it yourself removing those screws using those 2 tools I would be very thankful for you.

It's in Indonesian, but I thought the visual would've explaining enough of what I did.

My Redmi Note 8, 4/64, starting to show it's age. Although it's still usable in normal cases, welp, it's no fun when you want to do things but can't do much multitasking as it always kill the background tasks.

Welp, the picks are between them mid-ranges. https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=12074&idPhone2=11955

Obviously, there's some pros and cons between those two, in a nutshell that I summarize below and the reasons.

1. A34 does have card slot, Note 12 Pro aren't. I plan to get the 8/256 GB version of either of these. I could live without card slot actually, but having one would've make things much more versatile as I got way more storage than the internal, and I do have FLACs on my card.
2. OS wise, Samsung promised 3 years (for A series) of major update. Plus, I feel One UI just simply 'less whacky' than MIUI, which probably you all know sometimes the bugs are... Duh, either small that's 'meh', onto the one that's really frustrating. This is the main concern between the pick of Samsung or Redmi actually, and I want to know from you guys the best comparisons between them if possible. As, I don't game, I just use the phone as an old man daily driver (lol), whose simply want to have a good experience of using the phone.
3. Welp, Redmi's charger are a beast tbh, but would've be pain in the ass to replace, as I know it's rather expensive to get the decent 3rd party (Anker/Aukey) if I lost it. Welp... Samsung doesn't ship with chargers but doesn't really bother me though (been using Aukey's charger + cable for nearly 4 years on my current driver, no complaints at all). I don't really care with charging speed though, I left my phone charging overnight (which, Samsung does have a good feature to limit it to 85%) anyway.
4. A34 doesn't have 3.5 jack but Redmi does.... Idk if this is a deal breaker but.. I do have a (cheapo, yet functional and works nicely) USB DAC anyway.
5. Other than those, it's nearly all the same. But, Xiaomi's price is cheaper, around $68 (IDR 1 mil) difference with the near-exact same specs.

So... Either of these, should I pick the more budget-friendly Redmi or, welp, kind-of expensive Samsung ?

Thanks in advance.

Welp, got a deal for a cheapo Asus X441U (I forgot if it's either i3 6100U or 7100U), 4 GB onboard RAM (upgradeable up to 12 GB), and no storage (planning to get a 256 GB SSD for it anyway). Welp, condition-wise, hinge's needs a treat that the body's cracked (which steel-filled epoxy glue will solve it later), yet performance wise seems no problem.

I plan only to use this laptop for (really) basic use as for few works that I do (Office, browsing, perhaps few AutoCAD session, and perhaps that's it), for working at home while I'm away. Welp, I have a main computer that can do the heavy work. So....

1. Do you think that 4 GB would still suffice for such work? I know, the bare minimum nowadays are 8 GB, but I plan to put Tiny11 (or else, even Chrome OS seems interesting) on it anyway, and I don't really want to waste additional budget for RAM for the device I won't use by that much. (Like, really, perhaps I'll only use it like once/twice per-month)
2. Welp... I know this would contradict what's above but just curious... Do 3D CAD (old versions of SolidWorks, Inventor, even Fusion360 or else) would still works on a 6 or 7th gen i3 with onboard graphics? In case I do need to work from anywhere of my office job. Won't be the 3D models that would kill the laptop itself, relax, I do know the limits.

Thanks in advance.