u1f or vaio tz

Should I wait for Vaio TZ or should I just get u1f?? any comments from u1f users??thanks

 

The TX or the TZ? I haven't heard of the latter, so I assume its the TX? Unless the TZ is another Sony ultraportable.

Here's a good comparison of the U1f and T: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=116194&highlight=u1f+sony+tz

 

Yep cori.. TZ will be the successor of TX... Both are low voltage core duos, thou the tz have the 64bit u7500s than the u1f's u2400...
Designwise, no comments coz there are no pictures of the TZ yet..

 

Actually, the TZ looks very similar to the U1. They are overall, quite similar, but the TZ will have an integrated optical drive, plus the 64 bit processor. I would wait for the TZ for that reason alone.

A pic of the U1F to compare to the Sony TZ pic below:

 

Any link to the pictures? Would luv to see it...

 

The TZ is the sucessor to the TX, we only have a bit of news leaked from Europe, it'll come out there in July, will have Core 2 Duo ULV chips and the return of the webcam since the TR. Looks a lot like the TX, really nice.

By the time it comes out, the U1F will most likely also be updated to Core 2 Duo ULV but I'd get the TZ anyways because its a little bit thicker but with the optical drive built in.

 

i wonder how much that tz will cost when it comes out....$2500??? any ideas??

 

It should be pretty comparable to the pricing of the current TX, so think $2200 roughly. Coincidentally, thats also the same price of the U1F.

 

Asus killed the U1F concept by not including a built-in optical drive. Sony proves that it can be done. I'm going to get a TZ myself too.

 

Well to be honest, I rather have an option to not have a OD on my notebooks, as I've only used it less then a dozen times since I bought my laptop(almost 2 years now). Wish they provided more modular bays!

 

I'd pick the TZ, its only slightly thicker than the U1F but has the optical drive built in, very impressive. And it will get much better battery life than the U1F as well, the T series has been known for their excellent battery life. I don't use the optical drive much myself but still, I'd take it if the notebook's only a bit thicker.

Can't wait for the TZ, I just wonder if it will have the same GMA 950 graphics or newer GMA X3000 graphics? Anyone know?

 

I have bought U1F. I am very happy

The optical drive isn't important for me. Like Coriolis said "I've only used it less then a dozen times"
Battery life on Asus U1F is good, for me. With 6 cells: 4-6hours and with 3 cells: 2-3h. (Battery life Dvix- Battery life Word,excel..)

 

erwann67, do you mind me asking how much you paid?? I am leaning towards the u1f...I can't wait til July....

 

I am french, I paid 1730€ (2360$). In France, Vaio TX it's from 2000€ (2721$) with TX5MN to 2600€ (3537$) with TX5VN

Asus is cheaper I have optical drive, 2 years garanty, 3 cells and 6 cells battery and only 1go ram.

 

so $2099 is the cheapest here in US??anyone seen lower for u1f??

 

Sure, its $2049 at ExcaliberPC and $2042.56 on Lagoom.com search for U1F-1P016E on Froogle.com

 

thanks, but excaliberpc.com and lagoom.com are located in california...paying 165 for tax is not good...and lagoom doesn't ahve u1f anymore...

I am ready to pull the trigger but just can't find one with decent price...

 

anyone heard of www.sevenbuy.com??? they have u1f for $1717.00
it sounds too good to be true...

 

Can I ask how you found that link? Google?

 

it only shows up with yahoo.com shopping.

 

I rather not trust them... it shows 1800euros but 1700+usd... weird
If you really wanna get from them, then check them out b4 u buy...

SevenBuy Inc.
3901 Bonita Rd
Bonita
CA - 91902
USA
Phone: 619-422-3098
Fax : 619-422-3098

 

I've seen the U1, and in real life it looks amazing! MAde me look to see how far the shops door was away and even though about how far I'd get till they caught me if i were to zap it - conclusion - not far...

but damn, it one truly beautiful piece of work!


insane

 

If they update it to U7500.. i ll get one now.. i really mean now...

 

Core 2 Duo sounds great, but do you really need 64 bit in this notebook and besides, the voltage and amount of power it'll draw will be slightly higher so it will probably have a bit less battery life. I don't see the need for C2D ULVs.
But I am waiting for the Santa Rosa L7300 or L7500 to get into the S6Fm.

 

I totally agree,i will get U1 instead of Sony for this reason.

 

TZ, totally. If Sony can do anything right it's ultraportable. Asus kinda went off the deep end with the u1

 

Hands down U1f , I just bought a U1F and it looks simply superb, Look at my review here http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=117466&page=8&highlight=u1f.

The reason why not TZ, the screen is very flimsy looking at pictures and also the key board is macbook style , which is not so good in my opinion.Its just my perception.SO anyhow Am really happy that I bought asus u1f

 

The Sony TZ is so far ahead of the U1 in terms of technology, SSD drive, superb keyboard, carbon fiber, and as one reviewer says, the LED-backlit screen is the best he's ever seen, plus it beats the pants off the U1 in the looks department.

Sorry, but I'm leaving the ASUS camp for it.

 

Sony has terrible terrible customer service.
Since U1F and TZ will be pretty much the same I'm leaning towards U1F

 

I think the TZ is better personally. Should have a better LED screen since Sony was the first to use it and they have plenty of experience with it, its only a smidgen heavier and thicker than the U1F but has a built in optical drive or a 2.5" hard drive if you choose so in Japan, doesn't look to be available outside Japan. Also has the instant on AV mode functionality and 1.2ghz Core 2 Duo processor vs 1.06ghz Core Duo in the U1F.

I am impressed that the U1F has four USB ports. I don't like its glossy lid, glossy looks nice but whats the point if it gets all scratched and smudged up if you even look at it funny. The U1F has the advantage of having 512 megs of ram soldered on and one ram slot but the TZ only has one ram slot entirely, pretty limiting.

In Japan, you can customize the TZ to your liking, from four lid colors to choice of processor and hard drive and what have you.

 

The M6Ne also had 4 usb 2.0 ports... and I loved that.

Furthermore, the TZ will probably be a lot more expansive than the Asus model. A bit less processing power on the u1f but a bit more ram.

I'd say the TZ will be at least 400$U.S. more expansive.

I don't think that the glossy lid will bother me.

I mainly use external DVD burners because I'm always too scared to break the one that comes with the laptop anyways. So easy to find a good external DVD burner on AfterXmas sales ("Boxing days" here we call it)

 

The TZ can be customized with or without optical drive in Japan. Basically if you go the cheap route you get a 2.5" 160gb 5400 RPM hard drive with no optical drive. Other options are a range of 1.8" 4200 rpm drives with an optical drive, and of course the SSD with optical drive.

You should have no problem removing the optical drive from a model with it, or just go for the 2.5" drive.

 

Ordering from japan just to get a TZ ?

That's not for me.

 

I'm planning on getting the model with the 2.5" 160gb hard drive. I am really wondering if I could later on switch it with the optical drive when the part comes out, I know its not modular, hot swappable but it would be really useful for me to switch it once in a while. Most people say it won't be possible though, I'd like some confirmation. This option also won't have a 1.8" hard drive so could I add my own to it later on? Finally, I should be able to open up the 2.5" enclosure and put my own 2.5" hard drive in it later right? Thanks.

EDIT: It also looks like the 2.5" 160gb option is only available in Japan, am I right?

 

I'm just theorizing. Since there is a model with 32 SSD and a 2.5" 160gb drive, my guess is the circuitry for the optical drive is going to be in the same location as the 2.5" drive. I doubt they are making separate boards for different configurations--but you may be missing a ribbon cable.

I looked on the Japan site and couldn't find any information pertaining the construction of it otherwise. Thinking logically, it will probably require disassembly.

I don't keep up with the releases for the TZ outside of Japan so I wouldn't know. I'd imagine it has the same options when configured from Sony's site.

The base model they will be selling retail in Japan will have a Celeron 443, 80gb 1.8" drive and optical.

I won't buy the TZ until next month, prior to moving to Japan. Paying premium to order from Dynamism or doing an international order is not worth it for me at this time.

EDIT: I posted a message on a Japanese blog of someone who has a TZ regarding swapping the optical out for a hard drive. If I get a response, I will let you know.

 

Thanks very much!
I'd perfer if you could send it maybe by PM?

 

hi rahul ,

I just read two reviews of TZ one from trustedreviews.com and other from cnet.co.uk. Although they are rating tz ahead of u1f in terms of design, but peformance wise , I was a bit shocked to see its PCMark 05 benchark is way lower which is like 1300, where as u1f benchmark was somewhere around 2300.And in trustedreviews they gave a benchmark of 2100 , and still lower than u1f. I think u should consider all these . And also by the way if u wait one more month , toshiba has released toshiba r500 , laptop which is thinnest than sony tz and also it would weight 684 grams when its equipped with only 64gb ssd and will be available in july ,,,,,so wait for some more time.

I am happy with u1f as i will upgrade it to 64gb ssd soon in few more months.

vijay

 

There are US importers, its no different than ordering from any other online retailer.

I am more concerned with real world performances than benchmarks since they are synthetic and do not tell the whole story. I think these ultraportables should be looked at from different angles rather than just benchmark numbers just like when you purchase a car, you don't pick which one you're going to buy because it has 13 more horse power than the other or it can tow 5200 lbs rather than 5000 lbs.

Things like the overall design, asthetics, keyboard, trackpad, the feel, build quality, battery life, does it have features you're looking for, does it have features that are useless to you and such. Base your decisions on these factors and you will be able to make a more sound judgement and be happy with your purchase.

 

Toshiba's R500 looks very good on the paper..can't wait to see it in person.
I think R500 is the best value compares to U1F and TZ. no?

 

Same here, the Toshiba R500 looks really good on paper. I'm now hesitating between U1F and Toshiba R500. I can't wait for someone to post a review on the R500.

 

It may but there are already issues. That ultra-thin DVD drive will not burn double-layer DVDs. And it's very noisy according to reviews, not great for DVD watching. Plus that "all-day" battery lasts under four hours, so that's pure hype.

Furthermore, it's thicker at the back than in front, so "world's thinnest" should be taken with a grain of salt. Then there's that legacy PC Card slot...

 

Where did you get the info about the battery life ? If it's truly under 4 hours. Nothing else stands between U1F and me.

 

Post with all relevant links here:

http://www.my-lappy.com/2007/06/06/toshiba-portege-r500-reviews-in-verdict-mixed/

 

4 hours with 3 cell??? if so, that's not bad at all, no??

 

There's no larger battery available.

 

What are you talking about, there's a 3, 6 and 9 cell available.

 

I know U1F has 3,6, and 9 cell battery but I don't think R500 has them.

 

He was talking about the Toshiba R500.

 

There's a 6-cell battery for the r500 on the toshiba website.

 

so the 6 cell battery only last 4 hours...hmmm
that's not good...I was expecting about 6 hours with 6 cell.