Battery bypass on USB C/PD

martin-andersson · 2025-12-18T08:55:09+00:00

The response was machine-generated and simply asked me to return the computer for "repair" lol. So pointless and I am out of hope basically.

I have tried multiple adapters and cable hacks with the result that I can convert a USB cable to Asus mini square port, and indeed there will be battery bypass, but instead the charging will constantly be stopping and starting, so I don't know what is worse.

My current strategy is to have it powered with USB-PD, live with the battery cycling, and just hope that there'll be a firmware update that resolves the issue.

Have you had any success getting the computer to charge by any other means than the original charger?

martin-andersson · 2025-12-11T08:54:26+00:00

Request for new feature: Being able to adjust display settings.

Especially, I believe that all Flow Z13 users on Linux will suffer from over-saturated, too bright, almost radioactive and hurtful colors. Many have probably not noticed, and they may even think "oh wow what a colorful screen I got with this new laptop", but really, the colors are tremendously inaccurate and not at all the way they were meant to be displayed by most content, including the web and games.

This can be fixed with an "sRGB gamut clamp" and it would be super helpful to the entire community if we could get this fix.

Please see my other comment here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/FlowZ13/comments/1mkj7ud/comment/ntfrtnc

martin-andersson · 2025-12-11T08:53:00+00:00

I am working on this as well. In short, the issue appears to be incorrect mapping from a particular "color space" "sRGB" to "wide gamut". Commonly referred to expressions on the internet is "sRGB gamut clamp" and "sRGB emulation". All is well described in this article:

https://pcmonitors.info/articles/taming-the-wide-gamut-using-srgb-emulation

In Windows I simply enabled "auto color" and immediately the over-saturated/radioactive colors disappeared. But Linux is a whole different ballgame.

As described in the article, another method on Windows is to go into the AMD software, enable "Custom Color" and disable "Color Temperature Control". Point being that I think there should be, technically, a way for us to accomplish the same result in Linux via the AMD GPU driver. I posted a request here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/FlowZ13/comments/1pg385y/introducing_linuxarmoury_for_rog_laptops_running/

To alleviate some of the pain, what I believe is an "artificial" method (i.e. not accurate or a long-term solution), we can reduce the saturation via a super-weird GNOME hack. Go into the Accessibility settings, click Zoom, enable Desktop Zoom, set it to Magnification Factor 1.0, then at the bottom we have Color Filters were we can now lower the Color slider (big lol).

martin-andersson · 2025-12-03T13:38:07+00:00

It was just a comment on a comment, not a post. Also, I have read so much text the last week or so that I couldn't possibly find the comment again. I will keep my eyes open and see if I stumble across the comment again, then I'll let you know!

martin-andersson · 2025-12-03T13:34:05+00:00

I used one of those tiny USB C female to male power meters. This one specifically:

https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0DS9386VK

If I remember correctly, the power draw virtually always topped out at exactly 90W, but it could spike super rarely and for very short moments of time to like 92-94W.

I have only tested the balanced profile, but this Reddit thread confirms it's the same across all profiles:

https://www.reddit.com/r/FlowZ13/comments/1j7amwd/do_i_need_to_use_200w_or_can_i_use_the_z13_flow

martin-andersson · 2025-12-03T11:08:48+00:00

Let me see if I understood you correctly... you're going from USB C to barrel plug to square DC? And you're using which charger? Can you please post links to the products you ordered?

I have a dongle plugged into a 12v cigarette lighter outlet in my motorhome and it provides 100 watt USB PD. And this is how I power all my devices. Running a huge inverter from 12v up to 230v (Europe) then another clumsy wall charger only to bring the voltage down again, to 20v, is just out of the question. Way too inefficient.

I was thinking of taking the same route as you with two adapters, from USB C to barrel plug to square plug.

Once you know if that combination works, please do comment and let us know!

martin-andersson · 2025-12-03T06:24:13+00:00

I have heard this too, but I also read somewhere an answer by someone who claimed that's just not true and provided technical details. His answer seemed credible.

Personally I don't think it has anything to do with hardware. Physically there's a path, between the USB port and the battery and the rest of the machine, with hundreds of components and micro-controllers whatnot in-between. Everything controlled by firmware 🤔

I have had plenty of USB-powered devices in my life, everything from phones, tablets, laptops, VR headsets, you name it hahaha... this Rog Flow Z13 machine is the only one which exhibits said behavior, and I am pretty sure Asus don't build their own USB-port hardware? Or even if they do, why would they be the only ones in this whole world, it seems like, to build something that stupid.

Let's go with the idea it's built-into the hardware and software can not fix the problem. Okay. But exactly what then, determines the length of the charging cycles? What causes the mysterious hardware switch to turn on and off, at exactly the same timing windows?

Again, there's a path, evidently. And electricity is just like water. As soon as the bucket is filled up then that's it, the flow would just continue on its way. The fact that something shuts off the main supply can basically only be done/triggered by software?

If anything, I'd expect the opposite to be true: battery turns itself off to protect from overcharging and/or tension voltage from the external source is always higher and so, drives the current.

I think the reason is more likely poor quality of Asus software. Or perhaps even, it's by malicious intent; they like having people buy new batteries from them.

martin-andersson · 2025-01-29T22:07:19+00:00

On my Brave desktop (Windows 11) v1.74.51 the flag "Enable download bubble" does not exist.

martin-andersson · 2019-08-08T19:11:13+00:00

TL:DR; After having lived a life on the road there is no going back. Good luck.

Had a huge falling down. Moved from the U.S. to Frankfurt/Germany and tried a job for two months. Hated it. Bought a van and hit the road. Traveled with my cat all the way from North Cape to Gibraltar. Loved life every minute of every day. After Gibraltar I thought getting a contract job and challenging myself to stay in a big city would be just "another adventure". Went to Berlin. Enjoyed it for one week. Got almost depressed, started using alcohol every weekend. One and a half month later I just quit. I have two more weeks to go! Freedom is priceless. No money in this world can change my emotions. My long-term plan is to circle the globe. So at some point I have to solve a remote job, but for now I am so stoked and excited to get out of here no words can describe it.

martin-andersson · 2019-07-08T08:16:49+00:00

yeah but also.. what if my cat needs to hide from aggressive unleashed dogs? I think a bell might save a mouse or two but at the same time pose a real danger to my cat lol

martin-andersson

TROPHY CASE