Gemibook XPro 14' All working on Linux!

Laptops
1

Hello! I bought a Gemibook Xpro 14" and wanted to install Linux on it. I noticed the lack of many instructions on this. I’ll list a series of issues I encountered and how I resolved them, hoping to be helpful to everyone, especially those using Ubuntu or Debian.

  1. Wi-Fi wasn’t working.
  2. Bluetooth wasn’t functioning.
  3. Hardware acceleration for videos wasn’t working at all (no video, no YouTube, no VLC).
  4. The screen on Debian Mate (my preferred desktop environment) is at 100% size. Ideally, it should be at 125% or 130% because on a 14-inch screen, everything is a bit too small.

The only issue I haven’t resolved is the last one, even though the solution is quite simple. For the rest, I’ll provide some brief suggestions:

  1. Wi-Fi works with a newer kernel using “iwlwifi.” So, you’ll need Debian Testing or a reasonably up-to-date version of Ubuntu with a kernel >= 6.5. After that, it should work smoothly by installing (if not already available) the iwlwifi firmware.
  2. Bluetooth is part of the previous firmware. However, it doesn’t work on either Ubuntu or Debian. The workaround is to run the following commands in the terminal:
    sudo cp /usr/lib/firmware/intel/ibt-0040-4150.sfi /usr/lib/firmware/intel/ibt-0040-1050.sfi
    and then
    sudo cp /usr/lib/firmware/intel/ibt-0040-4150.ddc /usr/lib/firmware/intel/ibt-0040-1050.ddc
  3. This is more complex: If video acceleration isn’t working, you need to compile and install the Alder Lake drivers. Below are the files and instructions:
    GitHub - intel/media-driver: Intel Graphics Media Driver to support hardware decode, encode and video processing.
    If you follow all the steps, compile the libraries first, then the drivers, install them, and restart, everything should work.
  4. Fractional Scaling works without consuming too many resources only with Wayland. Otherwise, on DEs based on Xorg, it’s a kind of workaround (even on distros like Linux Mint or similar). In practice, it zooms to 2x and then downscales to the desired size. This is quite resource-intensive, and I’ve noticed some slowdowns on the Gemibook Xpro with Debian Mate.
    I decided to stick with 100% and zoom individual applications. The alternatives are:
    • Downsizing to 2x and having a slower Gemibook.
    • Switching to a DE that supports Wayland well (like KDE), although many applications may not work perfectly, such as GIMP.
      The choice is yours (I’m very comfortable with 100% and zooming individual applications).

If you have any doubts, feel free to ask here.
Greetings.

2

Hi Miki, thanks for sharing your info, I bought this laptop and I run Ubuntu (6.6.1 kernel).
Wifi is working fine with this kernel, Bluetooth too thanks to your workaround. I do not know if hardware acceleration works, how do you detect this? I’m able to run 4k video on youtube.
What is your power consumption on battery? I’m iddling at 7watts, when I’m in windows it shows down to 4watts. I’m on 7-9watts while playing youtube (in ubuntu).
Also fan is nearly always on, even when laptop is iddling with nothing to do. How is yours?

3

Hi man!
probably hardware acceleration was a debian issue. btw you can try playing any full hd movie with vlc (youtube works without hardware acceleration). Or try to open kodi, or maybe play the wonderful Super Tux Kart.
if it doesnt work… you have to install the drivers.
What desktop environment are you on? I suggest you a lightweight one.
I’ll send you some additional data about my power consumption, but if you are worried much about it, maybe windows is better for you :slight_smile: My fan is not always on, but it turns on any time I use gimp or firefox for a youtube video (this is probably the same on windows) .

I’ll send you more specific info about this 2 points .
byeee

4

Hi,
I’m on Ubuntu/Wayland. I just tried to play 4k video in VLC and it runs fine.
I will try to tweak power consumption with TLP.
That laptop is for my kids, they will use it mostly to watch youtube/netflix and some school projects (libreoffice). I left there windows on multiboot just in case something will not work in Ubuntu, but kids are familiar with linux and I think it’s good for them to learn something different than windows (which they have in school).
Thanks for your info,
Ivan

Edit: I was able to go down to 4-5watt in iddle and 7-8watt watching youtube with TLP, which is fine.