System76 Launches Two Intel Laptops With "Open-Source Firmware" Coreboot

[wizard69]

Well then you probably know that Ryzen 3400G is not even using the same core (Zen+) as Ryzen 3600 (Zen 2)? While the differences are not as big as in the 10th gen Core there are still some - memory speed and compatibility, cache sizes, AVX2 implementation to name a few. Both are considered "3rd Gen AMD Ryzen™"

Which is why I implied that AMD is not as bad. I did not say they where a model of honesty.

im actually surprised no one has gone after Intel for deceptive or in some cases false advertising. They have certainly gone out of the way to make their product line confusing for the consumer.

[isantop]

Will we be able to install this Coreboot on the older Darter Pros? Looking at the specs of the new Darter Pro I can see it's very similar to the old one except for the newer CPU.

Right now the focus is on the new models and making sure everything is (and continues to) work with them. We're investigating the ability to bring our Open Firmware to previous models but it's unknown when or if that will become a reality. Should it become available in the future, we will update users to our Open Firmware using the firmware updater tools in Ubuntu and Pop_OS, which can also be installed on other distros (to ensure you can always update your firmware, no matter which distro you're running).

[eltomito]

It isn't even too outrageously expensive. If my old notebook dies on me, I might consider coming out as a fundamentalist eco-vegan-feminist-open-source-pro-masturbation terrorist and buying some of this fantastic System76 shit!

[stormcrow]

A good followup question to System76 would be if the Coreboot firmware they use includes the IME disabling they've been working on since the IME vulnerabilities were disclosed a couple years ago or so. If that's true, then with the prices they're being offered at, that's a considerable step up in layers of security boot and firmware security versus anything else out there. Now ... if only they offered an AMD system...

[tildearrow]

It isn't even too outrageously expensive. If my old notebook dies on me, I might consider coming out as a fundamentalist eco-vegan-feminist-open-source-pro-masturbation terrorist and buying some of this fantastic System76 shit!

Are you saying that the open-source movement is bad?

[ThoreauHD]

Very cool.

[jacob]

This is why I would prefer an AMD solution. Binary blobs don’t concern me as much as Intel’s marketing. I’m not saying AMD is perfect either but they don’t go out of the way to confuse people with their naming conventions.

by the way there are other reasons to prefer AMD but the fact is Intel makes used car salesman look honest.

I don't care about marketing lies, the clarification is always just one Google query away. What does worry me is their microcoded backdoors and Intel, AMD and ARM are all equally bad there. The only way to steer clear of those shenanigans is currently POWER but unfortunately that's a non-starter for a laptop.

[madscientist159]

Thanks Michael for clarifying the blob situation in the article from the beginning. The title on articles from other sites was quite misleading in my opinion, so the clarification was well placed in your article to educate the reader. That's all I ask for, education / honesty, my personal concerns with this hardware aside.

[nranger]

Well then you probably know that Ryzen 3400G is not even using the same core (Zen+) as Ryzen 3600 (Zen 2)? While the differences are not as big as in the 10th gen Core there are still some - memory speed and compatibility, cache sizes, AVX2 implementation to name a few. Both are considered "3rd Gen AMD Ryzen™"

I don't think you're reading that page correctly -- it just lists all current Ryzen desktop processors. While I'll grant that Zen+ APUs in the Ryzen 3000 family with Zen2 CPUs might be a bit confusing, I don't think AMD is misleading anybody. It clearly states on the front of the 3200G and 3400G box "2ND GEN" (which it is, both Zen+ and the 2nd gen of APUs since 1000 series APUs weren't a thing). Also the listings for Ryzen 3000 APUs on sites like Newegg state "2nd Gen" in the product details.

[Girolamo_Cavazzoni]

stormcrow The technical details on System76' website state that ME is disabled on these devices.