State of S3 – Your Laptop is no Laptop anymore – a personal Rant
Laptop owners are increasingly frustrated that newer Windows machines no longer support the traditional S3 “sleep” state and instead use Microsoft’s “Modern Standby” (S0ix), which often drains batteries, kicks on fans, or even overheats devices in bags. Commenters compare experiences across Windows, Linux and macOS, noting that hibernation or full shutdown are becoming the only reliable options, while Apple laptops are frequently cited as handling sleep and wake far better. Many see the shift as driven by Microsoft’s desire for always‑on connectivity and background updates, with unclear benefits for users and no easy way to opt back into the older, low‑power sleep behavior.
Overview of S3 vs S0ix / “Modern Standby”
- S3 (“suspend to RAM”) used to power almost everything off except RAM; machines could sleep for days with minimal drain.
- Many new laptops only support S0ix/s2idle (“Modern Standby”), where the system is mostly on with the screen off.
- Users report S0ix routinely drains batteries overnight, runs fans, makes laptops hot, and sometimes causes crashes or “unexpected shutdowns.”
User Experience Problems
- Common pattern: close lid → put laptop in bag → later find it dead and/or very hot.
- Windows often wakes devices in “sleep” for updates, networking, or mysterious activity; sometimes gets stuck at BitLocker prompts or login screens.
- Some OEMs reportedly advise fully shutting down before putting laptops in bags.
- A few users say S0ix works fine on specific business models (e.g., some ThinkPads/EliteBooks), but this seems inconsistent.
Hibernation and SSD Wear
- Many switch to hibernate (S4) as a safer “real off” alternative.
- Debate over SSD wear: rough calculations show even frequent hibernation over years typically uses a modest fraction of modern SSD endurance.
- Some still dislike spending a large chunk of TBW budget just on sleep; others argue the machine will be replaced first.
Platform Comparisons
- macOS laptops are widely praised for reliable, instant-feeling sleep and low drain, especially Apple Silicon, though some report:
- Apps (Teams, Parallels, IntelliJ, Chrome/WebRTC) preventing sleep or waking dGPU.
- Occasional overheating or battery loss during “Power Nap.”
- Linux: when S3 is available (“Linux sleep” in some BIOSes), suspend works very well on certain ThinkPads and similar; S0ix on Linux can still drain, but often less chaotically than Windows.
- Some users fall back to always shutting down or configuring fast boot/hibernation.
Blame, Motives, and Design Critique
- Many blame Microsoft for:
- Rebranding S3 as “legacy”/“Linux sleep” and pushing S0ix as “modern.”
- Prioritizing background updates, notifications, telemetry, and enterprise needs over predictable sleep.
- Others emphasize OEM and firmware quality: ACPI tables, drivers, and hardware design are often fragile, poorly tested, and tuned only for Windows’ expectations.
- A minority argue S0ix is fine in principle and policy (what runs in sleep) should be fixed at the OS level, not by resurrecting S3.