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Lenovo IdeaCentre B520 VBT1-VGE (All-In-One-PC)
Author(s)
Joachim
Introduction
The Lenovo IdeaCentre B520 is a All-In-One-PC. So although it's not really a laptop there are some things that you might like to know before risking to install Linux. (See notes below.)
I've testet OpenSuse 12.1.
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Specifications
| Name | Lenovo IdeaCentre B520 VBT1-VGE (All-In-One-PC) |
| Processor | Intel® Core™ i5-2320 (3,0 GHz) |
| Screen | 23 “, 1920 x 1080 |
| RAM | 8 GB |
| HDD | 2 TB |
| Optical Drive | Blu-ray (read only) / DVD (read/write) |
| Graphics | Nvidia Geforce GT 555M |
| Network | Ethernet, Wireless, Bluetooth |
Linux Compatibility
| Device | Compatibility | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | Yes | |
| Screen | Yes | Even touchscreen works |
| HDD | Yes | |
| Optical Drive | Reading works, writing not tested | |
| Graphics | Yes | even with Nouveau drivers |
| Sound | Yes | but I'm not sure which (Intel or Nvidia?) |
| Ethernet | Yes | |
| Wireless | Not Tested | |
| Bluetooth | No | No drivers? |
| 56K Modem | No | not available |
| USB | Yes | |
| Firewire | No | not available |
| Card Reader | Not Tested | |
| ExpressCard Slot | No | not available |
| Camera | Yes | works in Skype 2.2 beta |
| Mouse | Yes, except for the wheel and advanced features | Bluetooth, see below |
| Keyboard | Yes, but not during installation and only after the online update | Bluetooth |
| TV-Card | No | No drivers? |
| Suspend to RAM | Yes | |
| Suspend to disk | No | display stayed dark on restart |
The mouse has several extra buttons and a gyroscope which don't work yet. In Windows you can use the mouse in the air, but not yet in Linux. Also it goes to a battery saving state if not used and takes like 3 seconds to wake up.
The keyboard has several function keys: Suspend, Speakers on/off, Volume controls work.
Notes
Very important before you start an installation:
- If you still need your Windows installation create restoration disks before trying to install! (I needed 3 writable DVDs although the instructions said 4.)
- To make space for Linux on the harddisk I first made the Windows partition smaller (via Windows).
- The mouse and keyboard in the package are wireless, connected via Bluetooth. The keyboard won't work during the installation and before rebooting after the first online update via Yast! So you'll need another keyboard with either USB or PS2 connector while installing Linux.
- You might want to change the boot device order in your BIOS temporarily (enter setup with F12 at the start): Put the CD/DVD-drive first. Just in case your Bluetooth keyboard won't be recognized later.
- Installing the bootloader Grub failed (probably due to the huge hard disk of 2 TB). This resulted in an unbootable system. So disable bootloader installation. Instead you can later add a Windows-Bootmenu that contains a “Linux” section (e.g. via EasyBCD from NeoSmart). (To repair the unbootable system “No system partition” you would need a Windows 7 installation disk, which is not in the package. So you might have to restore your system from your restoration disks and loose all your changes.)
- Rebooting didn't work correctly until after the online update. The system froze at startup. Only completely turning the system off and on again allowed me to restart.
Power Consumption
| On but idle | ca. 80 W (60-90 W depending on screen brightness) |
| On but working | ca. 100 - 160 W (depending on task) |
| On but screen off | 40 W |
| Sleep via suspend to RAM | 4,2 W |
In suspend-to-RAM mode the B520 will not be completely quiet because there is still a fan (?) active. (But this is not Linux-specific.)
Some Details
lspci
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation 2nd Generation Core Processor Family DRAM Controller (rev 09)
00:01.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation Xeon E3-1200/2nd Generation Core Processor Family PCI Express Root Port (rev 09)
00:16.0 Communication controller: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family MEI Controller #1 (rev 04)
00:19.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation 82579V Gigabit Network Connection (rev 05)
00:1a.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family USB Enhanced Host Controller #2 (rev 05)
00:1b.0 Audio device: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family High Definition Audio Controller (rev 05)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 1 (rev b5)
00:1c.5 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 6 (rev b5)
00:1c.6 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 7 (rev b5)
00:1d.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family USB Enhanced Host Controller #1 (rev 05)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation H67 Express Chipset Family LPC Controller (rev 05)
00:1f.2 SATA controller: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family 6 port SATA AHCI Controller (rev 05)
00:1f.3 SMBus: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family SMBus Controller (rev 05)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation Device 0deb (rev a1)
01:00.1 Audio device: nVidia Corporation GF108 High Definition Audio Controller (rev a1)
02:00.0 Unassigned class [ff00]: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTS5116 PCI Express Card Reader (rev 01)
03:00.0 USB Controller: NEC Corporation uPD720200 USB 3.0 Host Controller (rev 04)
04:00.0 Network controller: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8188CE 802.11b/g/n WiFi Adapter (rev 01)
lsusb
ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
ID 8087:0024 Intel Corp. Integrated Rate Matching Hub
ID 8087:0024 Intel Corp. Integrated Rate Matching Hub
ID 0a5c:4500 Broadcom Corp. BCM2046B1 USB 2.0 Hub (part of BCM2046 Bluetooth)
ID 07ca:4336 AVerMedia Technologies, Inc. … A336 MiniCard Hybrid DVB-T
ID 222a:0001 … ILITEK Multi-Touch (Touchscreen)
ID 0ac8:c42d Z-Star Microelectronics Corp. … Lenovo USB 2.0 UVC Camera
ID 0955:7002 NVidia Corp. … NVIDIA stereo controller
ID 0a5c:4502 Broadcom Corp. Keyboard (Boot Interface Subclass)
ID 0a5c:4503 Broadcom Corp. Mouse (Boot Interface Subclass)
ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub
Summary
So far this looks good.
To be continued …
Discussion
Doctor Who is now considered a British Institute and has come a long way since it first aired on November 23rd 1963. The very first show saw the Doctor travel 100,00 years into the past to help some dim cavemen discover light. After 26 seasons and seven Doctors later the series came off our screens in 1989 much to the disappointment of the huge devoted fanbase. In 1996 an attempt was made to revive Doctor Who but it wasnt until June 2005 when it came back with a vengeance with Christopher Eccleston as the ninth Doctor that put the series back on the map as it were. It then went on for 5 years with David Tenant portraying the Doctor until 2010 when Matt Smith took over the role. Today it is still a great family show and has attracted many new fans.
If youre a new or old fan of the show there are Tours and museums you can go and see some of the locations and memorabilia of this classic show. The Doctor Who Tour of London will take you on over 15 locations from the show, some from the new series and some from old sites like the location of The Invasion and Resurrection of the Darleks. The tour also takes you to the TV museum in London where you will get to see some of the cosumes worn in the show and props used. Also you can buy gifts and memorabilia from the shop.
You will learn all about how the shows were made so the tour is also educational. If you want to take pictures of the locations thats not a problem. Remember the front door of 10 Downing Street in Aliens of London? Well you can get up and close to this and get your picture taken in front of the door. Rose Tyler fans will love the tour as you get to drop by her home in the show.
Why not go that extra mile and actually meet a Doctor Who star. Well this is possible with private or group tours. You will get the general tour but included will be a pre-arranged meeting or lunch with a celebrity from the show. This will obviously depend on availability of the celebrity and the cost will reflect the popularity of that celebrity.
There are tours in London and also Wales. The Wales tours take you to Cardiff where you will see lots of location which were featured in shows since 2005. You can leave from London or at Leigh Delamere services station on the M4. There is a Doctor Who exhibition in Cardiff which you get to see. At the end of the Doctor Who tour you get a souvenir group picture sent you by email which is a nice touch.
For seriously devoted Doctor Who fans there is a 3 day tour which takes you to all the locations in both London and Cardiff. You will see locations from the past 45 years as well as recent sites from the lasted Doctor Who series. Day one is based in London where you get to see 15 sites. Day two takes you to Cardiff where you get to mean the real life owner of the to see we have an Gothic property used as the location of the school in Human Nature. The final day is partly spent in Cardiff with a walking tour at Cardiff Bay, then you head back to London but a stop at Stonehenge to see the site of the Pandoica. Then its dinner at The Cloven Hoof pub in Devils End b efore you taken back to central London.
I'm using Ubuntu 12.04 with Unity. I've had little to no problem. The wireless keyboard didn't work for me for a long time. I was trying to troubleshoot it but didn't need to: its now working with no action taken by me. New drivers added to the linux kernel? Bug fix?
I'm using the B520 as a media center to watch DVDs, online video, and to play music. The Unity UI sucks for normal desktop activities but suits this usage pattern extremely well.
Is wifi. graphics and disk writing working with the ubuntu?