This post is more than 5 years old
4 Posts
0
28459
XPS 13 9350 - SSD on USB C 3.1 - very unstable/unusable
A few weeks ago I got an XPS 13 laptops. And it's a great machine.
Except for an issue.
I have a PNY 128GB SSD connected to a Startech USB 3.1 interface with a type C USB connector.
When I plug it in, the system keeps recognizing it and then unrecognized it, ad infinitude. Windows chimes each time. The drive is unusable. Note that going via USB 3, it works fine.
I have installed all of the drivers an BIOS (1.4.3) updates and the latest Windows 10 updates. Note that I installed Dell's Serial IO driver, but every time I return to see if there are more drivers to update, the Serial IO driver needs updating again. It never seems to take.
Note that before the windows 10 updates, it was more stable.
Also if I boot to safe more is seems much better.
I have very little installed on the system. Only Microsoft stuff (office 365, OneDrive). It is a fresh install.
Derek
acvyse
18 Posts
4
June 21st, 2016 21:00
I had a problem similar to this with my Dell USB-C to HDMI/VGA/Ethernet/USB3.1 mini adapter. I called Dell and after 2 hours, they were able to fix it. Apparently (don't ask me why) the USB-C and WiFi adapter are somewhat related hardware and voltage wise. If you go into the advance options of the WiFi adapter and change the WiFi output to 75%, it fixes a lot of the problems with the connecting and disconnecting USB-C issues. Lowering the output to 75% does not affect your connectivity on wireless networks. Apparently Intel is aware of this issue and will institute a fix in their next driver update for the XPS13 which is supposed to arrive by the end of the summer.
I hope this works for you.
The Serial I/O driver update that never seems to quit is also another issue I have noticed. I wouldn't worry about it. I have it as well and the Serial I/O driver version is the newest driver. It is as if there is a bug when it scans the computer for driver updates.
Derek Botfield
4 Posts
0
June 21st, 2016 12:00
Is anyone using an external drive connected through the USB type C interface?
Was anything special required to get it to work?
Derek Botfield
4 Posts
0
June 22nd, 2016 18:00
ACVYSE - Thanks for the suggestion and the observation.
I will give it a shot!
Derek Botfield
4 Posts
0
June 23rd, 2016 18:00
ACVYSE:
It worked! Thanks. My USB-C SSD seems very stable.
What a strange solution!
Hopefully Intel will be able to fix it but for the tie being this will do the trick.
Thanks again,
Derek
sparksdls
44 Posts
0
June 24th, 2016 10:00
I had a similar problem with the Dell USB-C to HDMI/VGA/Ethernet/USB3.1 mini adapter - HDMI worked great but the USB port was unusable as it continually connected/disconnected. I tried the WiFi power setting change and voila! now it's fine. Thanks for the fix.
That WiFi card is really problematic. I found that if Bluetooth is turned on that my WiFi signal is terrible; turn it off and I have reliable 80mbs download (Comcast).
Peter Langford
4 Posts
0
June 27th, 2016 18:00
I've had multiple and ongoing issues with the usb-c port and mini adapter with my xps-13. The first set of problems (couldn't get hdmi output to monitors) was solved with a driver update a couple of months ago. And (so far today at least) this solution of lowering wifi power output appears to solve the final set of problems (my internet connection would keep flicking between ethernet and wifi, and the usb port on the mini adapter would often not work). Thanks for sharing! I'll get back to you if I discover the problems have resurfaced.
enoor
1 Message
1
August 25th, 2016 21:00
Hate to revive a dead post, but after we applied this change, LAN problems and screen disconnects stopped happening, but we still see issues with USB keyboards and mice disconnecting, disappearing from device manager as if they were unplugged, and needing to unplug and replug. Did you see this behavior?
jgeldmann
1 Message
0
October 31st, 2016 03:00
This seems very helpful - except how do you set the wifi output to 75%? I have tried accessing the wifi driver through the device manager, but I can find no information on how to change this setting anywhere.
sparksdls
44 Posts
0
October 31st, 2016 07:00
In device manager, double click on the wireless device and then go to Advanced tab. Scroll down in there, there should be a Transmit Power setting. For my Intel 8260, the settings are Highest - Medium High, etc. (I set it to Medium High). On my old 1820A card, I recall the settings being in percentages.
Peter Langford
4 Posts
2
October 31st, 2016 16:00
To add to sparksdls's response below, on my XPS 13 I go to Control Panel, Device Manager, select Network Adaptors, right click on your wifi device, select Properties, go to Advanced tab, then in the Property list scroll down to Power Output and you get the option to select percentages to the right of the Property list
sparksdls
44 Posts
1
November 19th, 2016 06:00
I lowered the power on my XPS 13 9350 with the Intel 8260 card and haven't seen any impact on my WiFi or Bluetooth.
mujjuman
11 Posts
0
November 19th, 2016 06:00
Hi, so I was having USB C problems with HDMI. I found this post thru google search. I turned wifi off and viola everything worked... reconnected and everything still working. However, I'm concerned about the bluetooth and wifi connectivity and signal strength if I end up lowering the power to 75%. Can someone confirm how bad the connectivity gets? Thanks.