I've been really enjoying Linux on my PC, but I'm starting to wonder if it's suitable for laptops. I have a Legion Slim 5 with an AMD Ryzen 7 and RTX 4060, and I've tried several distributions with different desktop environments. Unfortunately, I'm seeing an idle power consumption of about 20-25 watts, which seems excessive when nothing is running. I've messed with power profiles, TLP, and auto CPU frequency settings, but nothing seems to help. Any suggestions?
5 Answers
For more tips, check out the migration page on the wiki. It could offer some insight on transitioning smoothly. Just be careful with root access and third-party repos, and always verify your ISO checksums after downloading!
What's your ideal idle power consumption? I see Windows usually keeps it around 9-12 watts. 12-15 watts seems like a reasonable target for Linux as well!
Which distributions have you tried so far? And what Nvidia drivers were you using? That info can help others suggest something more tailored to your needs.
I've tried Pop OS, Fedora, Bazzite, Arch, Cachy, and Mint. I used the pre-installed drivers or the 570 one, but my dGPU's drawing only 1 watt at idle.
I hear you! Honestly, Nvidia's driver support for Linux can be pretty shaky; it's often to blame for high power usage. You might want to focus on getting the right drivers sorted out first. Switching to a distribution that has solid community support can also help you troubleshoot the power issues better. Just remember, if you keep hopping between distros without getting to the root of your setup, you might not find a solution that satisfies you.
But when I checked, the dGPU was only using 1 watt at idle!
You might want to try Gnome 48; it has some nice updates that could help with power consumption. Additionally, check if there are any scripts out there that can help you configure your Nvidia settings better.
I'll definitely give that a go!
I was hoping to match that, around 12-15 watts.