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Need New Lap Top due to USB 3.0 Trouble

Rodd

By Rodd
in Discussions - Software

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Rodd

Rodd

Posted
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Hello all-my USB 3.0 will not work on my Lenova Yoga 900.  Which means my planetary cameras will not function as designed.  Since no-one has been able to trouble shoot this issue (Celestron/Imaging source, Geek Squad, Lenovo), I must get a new lap top.  I am a Windows man (by happenstance probably--never used a MAC).  Anybody have any suggestions?  The Lenovo was a powerful little computer  16GB RAM, SSD harddrive (only 256gig though).  Trying to decide if SSD is better for astrophotography.  The other option is a terrabyte non SSD hard drive--a terrabyte which would be much better for planetary/Lunar/solar.  

I am dead in the water until I get this resolved.

Thanks--Rodd

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Rodd

Rodd

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19 minutes ago, roblegion said:

Rodd, what o/s you running?

I have not added a hub port--it would be limited to the USB I plug it into.  The USB 3.0 work as USB 2.0--so I can power my mount and other cameras.  However, when I try to use a USB 3.0 planetary/lunar cameras--they are recognized but won't work--even at USB 2.0 speeds.  I need to use my charge port for them (USB 2.0).  That limits my time due to power consumption.

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mikeskor

mikeskor

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I would go the terrabyte route. I use a computer with a 256 GB SSD and I am constantly running out of storage space. I also am in the market for a new computer which is astrophotography friendly and would welcome any suggestions.

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roblegion

roblegion

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Most of the problems with USB 3 come from current/voltage issues, as soon as you try drawing a little more than the port THINKS  you should have it goes into hysterics. I would seriously try borrowing a POWERED USB 3 hub and try that, also the solution here might help.

http://www.perivision.net/wordpress/2014/09/how-to-fix-a-slow-usb-3-port-on-the-yoga-13-ideapad-or-thinkpad-t430/ as the problem doesn't seem to be machine specific. But the hub would be my first try.

Good Luck.

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Psychobilly

Psychobilly

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I had all sorts of issues with a Skyris camera  and ASUS N55 laptop with USB3.0... Ended up having to flash the firmware in the ASIMedia  USB Root hubs  on the laptops  MB if I remember rightly... plus all sorts of other things...

Peter...

 

 

 

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Psychobilly

Psychobilly

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11 minutes ago, Rodd said:

Peter--don't knoiw what any of that really means--I just want things to work.  A new lap top sounds easier.

That's the problem things which you would reasonably expect to work together sometimes have a habit of not wanting to play nicely at least early on in the "products" life...

I had the Skyris on test fairly soon after launch and was trying various drivers etc things might have settled down a bit by now or maybe not :(

The USB3.0 ports were working fine on Memory sticks, HDD's and SSD's

IIRC we had no problems with USB3.0 ports on a Toshiba satellite pro... but this is several years ago

Peter...

 

 

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Rodd

Rodd

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12 minutes ago, roblegion said:

C'mon Rodd, admit it, you're trying to justify a new lappy to yourself and soh.:happy6:

No--I really liked the Lenova.  But I can't do planetary with it.  I am extremely frustrated.  I feel like a dog chasing my tail.  Now I have to re-setup everything on a new laptop--Ascom Drivers, planetarium, capture, Pixinsight (license Numbers), etc...etc...etc.    I would be more than happy to keep the Lenovo with a cracked screen (I dropped it).  I don't use touch screen anyway.  I just need my USB 3.0s!!!

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GrahamNW

GrahamNW

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Apologies for butting in on this thread but I was about to start similar thread seeking  advice.

Current laptop just died and the fixit man says he can't,  so it new laptop time.  I don't do astrophotography yet, (apart from a bit of basic DSLR stuff) but obviously it make sense to invest in machine that will do it when I do decide to smuggle a camera past her indoors. 

I'm wondering what sort of spec I need? Storage capacity shouldn't be a problem as I already have a couple of 2TB external hard drives. What sort of RAM do I need to capture and edit properly?  Any advice on Processor type and speed also welcomed.

Thanks!

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MCinAZ

MCinAZ

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On 03/03/2016 at 07:29, Rodd said:

No--I really liked the Lenova.  But I can't do planetary with it.  I am extremely frustrated.  I feel like a dog chasing my tail.  Now I have to re-setup everything on a new laptop--Ascom Drivers, planetarium, capture, Pixinsight (license Numbers), etc...etc...etc.    I would be more than happy to keep the Lenovo with a cracked screen (I dropped it).  I don't use touch screen anyway.  I just need my USB 3.0s!!!

Does your present computer have an ExpressCard slot? If so, you can buy a USB-3.0 ExpressCard module for a lot less than a replacement computer will cost. I bought a StarTech dual port module last year for less than $25 and it seems to work as well as  a built-in port. ExpressCards come in two two widths, 38 and 54 mm. If your computer has a slot, I would recommend a card of the same width. You can only use 38 mm cards in 38 mm slots, obviously, however you can also use 38 mm cards in 54 mm slots. It's much easier to dislodge a narrow card in the wider slot, so much better to get wider cards if your computer can accommodate them.

The alternative I've chosen, which works quite well for me, is a docking station. Mine has USB 3.0 along with USB 2.0 ports built-in (even though the computer itself has only USB 2.0 ports), so not only do I get the faster ports but more significantly, I don't have to mess with cables at all in the observatory. Probably not a good option if you don't have a fixed installation and it does require a machine with a docking port, but perhaps something to consider.

If you decide to replace the computer, you might look into used business class machines. There are a lot of lease returns available for a fraction of their original cost, and business class hardware (from Dell anyway) tends to hold up pretty well.

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Physopto

Physopto

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Before you go buying a new laptop try to run the camera on another computer. See if problem is still present. Also try a USB3 powered hub. Laptops are expensive bits of kit. I would try every avenue before spending on a new laptop. It could even be a WIN10 issue only.

Derek

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ArmyAirForce

ArmyAirForce

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Not sure about a replacement laptop suggestion, but when my DVD drive failed, I replaced it with the original 500GB hard drive in a suitable tray, and fitted a 500GB SSD as the main hard drive for the operating system and working files. I now capture all my planetary videos to the SSD and process them there, before moving the completed images for storage on the old hard drive. The 500BG SSD I considered affordable compared to anything larger in SSD, and 500GB is large enough for most of my sessions. The laptop is dual core 2.2 Ghz processors and only 4GB RAM, and only USB 2, but it handles the video files much faster now I'm recording to the SSD, and can push the USB transfer rate almost up to 100% for the full 1280x960 sensor size.

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