Official 2012 Sony S Series Owners Thread

I know, the battery life is disappointing. Right now on the US education site, the pre-built Core i5 S15 is $100 off ($900), and as you saw the slice is free. But it also adds another ~1.4lbs. THAT'S a big issue for me (and a bit ironic): the other machine I'm looking at is the Samsung 15" NP700Z5C, which...guess what?...weighs 5.3lbs and gets considerably better battery life. Not sure that bulking the Sony up to 5.8lbs to get what...6-7 hours?...is a good solution.

-Matt

 

I simply cloned my C:\ to an external HDD and am now copying it to the SSD, using instructions detailed here: How to clone HDD to SSD with Windows 7′s own software.

I have heard about that sector alignment issue, and have found some instructions on how to correct it. However, I didn't know that working with a bad sector alignment could actually compromise my SSD, I thought it would just slow it down. I'll get to work on repairing the alignments first thing as I finish the install.

Thanks for the quick response, +rep.

 

Good luck. BTW, that guide you are using was very informative, especially the comments section:

 

Thanks for pointing that out. I checked my disk partitioning with the AS SSD tool and additionally through command prompt, and it appears that everything is OK and aligned correctly. I'm now typing this with my super-fast and quiet S15. : ) The 320gb HDD I removed made a constant squeaking sound and it also heated up the right side of my palmrest.

 

Today I finally tried the S13 at my local store and I noticed something weird: I couldn't use the 4-fingers gesture to switch between applications or bring the desktop.
There was no option in the Synaptic configuration while in the Vaio T next to it the gesture worked and there was the option for it in the Synaptic panel!

Anyone?

 

You went back again?

 

Ah, this is HUGE!!! Left side = ice cold. Right side = toasty. I've been wondering if an SSD would improve the right side. Would you say it's as cool as the left now, or just better than before?

-Matt

 

Yes. I'm stuck in a loop. It's like Groundhog Day here.

No, seriously, it's a matter of seconds: can't you owners of the new S line with updated Synaptic drivers check if the Three-fingers swipe option is enabled?

 

There's 3-finger swipe left and right to move back and forward on your web browser or image viewer. No 4-finger swipes, though. I might try to download the SVT touchpad driver and see if I can get that functionality

 

Thanks, you made me LOL.

I can tell you on the S15 that:

- it's the Synaptics pad/driver/utility
- there's an option for "Three Finger Flick" ('tis a pity there's no "Three Finger Death Punch")
- while web browsing, left = "back" and right = "forward" (at least in Firefox and Chrome)

Works great.

EDIT: what ^ he said. There isn't an option for four fingers.

-Matt

 

I'm looking into these S15 laptops to replace my old Vaio E series, (the E series range has now gone really downhill!)

On NoteBookCheck benchmarks the 2Gig LE version of the card comes up slower than the 1 Gig plain 640M, is that just down to the clock speed being slower on the LE version? And that gets fixed with the overlock tweaks here anyway? Does the overclock have to be done via BIOS or is there a software version to get the same effect?

Does the S15 come with the same small sized power brick as the S13? It looks fairly decent and compact with the 90° exit angle for the cord too.

As it's where I live I might buy the Korean version (SVS15115FKB) but have to check the BIOS tweaks and other items posted here will work, I'm wary of the differing product codes, but the hardware looks to be the same. Any international users here able to comment on that (Not that we aren't all 'International' ) Korean version also comes out 25% cheaper than from the UK for a better spec so would be handy if it all matches up!

My EB Vaio has a terrible problem where the PCB whistles when the mains adapter isn't plugged in, huge EB problem, apart from the orange screen no massive design flaws from Sony this time?

What would people say the main competitor to the S15 is?

Many many thanks

 

Thanks everybody for the feedback.

Nice, waiting for the result

Anyway, that's really weird 'cause the Vaio T touchpad gets that functionality!

 

Ugh, I've modded my sig to encourage searching instead of the same Orangate, heat, battery life, video bios mods, ssd, etc... questions. I recommend others do the same!

 

Aw man, and I was JUST ABOUT to ask you how/why the SSD registry mod works! Darn.

-Matt

 

I think it has to do with the Intel SATA Link Power Management. The reg file (which I cribbed from somewhere on the 'net) disables the Intel LPM stuff.

 

so i did a fresh reinstall in legacy mode and that seems to have fixed the problem of samsung magician not being able to optimize...however my boot times are still only around 20 seconds from pushing the power button to a completely settled windows.

for the people who are getting 9-10 seconds boot times: did you guys do any tweaking to get that fast, or just the basic out-of-the-box software optimization stuff?

....im wondering why mine isnt as fast...

 

No tweaks on my part.

On a fresh install of Win7 without any drivers to slow things down I was botting to a desktop in 5 seconds.

20 ain't bad at all though. Do not forget to turn off Rapid Wake, it is pretty much useless with an SSD.

 

I have a question that may not have been answered already...I custom built my laptop with a DVD drive...however, is it possible in the future to order the matching Blu-Ray drive that can be configured with the s series and put it in myself?

 

yeah i guess i cant complain too much as 20 seconds is pretty good......but seeing as there are people with the exact same ssd getting boot speeds twice as fast as mine, id like to know whats going on...

 

Cool, thanks. You don't happen to have the antidote for reversing the registry changes? It's only a few so I can look -- not sure if they add new entries or modify old ones.

-Matt

 

It modifies exisitng entries from 1 to 0.

 

Lol, and the Sony site claims 14 hours with the slice. I'm guessing that's if you view it on 0 brightness and just leave it at the desktop lol.


Stupid Sony, gimping on the battery.

EDIT: That Samsung looks very nice, but it will cost more than the Sony with the configuration I have. And the Express Cache isn't good at all. And I've read that replacing the HDD with an SSD is very error prone when installing windows because of the Express Cache. A shame really. Which are you leaning towards?

And does anyone have 13.3 recommendations other than the 13.3P from Sony?

 

It's not as cool as the left side, but in my opinion it's a lot cooler than before. The warming up is hardly noticeable anymore.

 

Why are people complaining about battery life? I got just over 5 hours and 30 minutes at work with moderate usage. Display at 40%, constantly listening to music, browsing the web, uploading and downloading things with dropbox,
and watching a couple YouTube videos.

I also had my Razer mouse connected since I use the programmable buttons often.

Sent from my GT-I9100

 

I can't speak to the S13 but I think in that scenario the S15 would be 4.5 tops. Of course I could go whole-hog and tune the power settings, turn off bluetooth, diable the DVD, etc.

-Matt

 

It's THAT easy??? Wow, I'll just do it by hand. Or maybe for fun I'll tweak your reg file and change the 0's to 1's.

At least the Sony battery is easily accessed. Yeah, 14 hours would never happen. FWIW the Samsung Core i7 I bought was $1100 and dropped to $1050 for a bit. I have a feeling it will go to $999 for back to school. If I try to build a Core i7 S15 I think I'd have trouble matching the price (esp. cuz you're forced into the 2GB 640m LE)...ah, but Sony has been offering various promotions...

I have to say: learning that putting an SSD in the Sony cools the palmrest definitely gives it a few more points in my score book. I'll try that this weekend and see. I was also reasoning: OK, most of the time I'm plugged in, and with the battery sheet it's extra weight but at least on those rare occasions I have the 6-7 hours if I need it. Too bad I want the silver body, and the sheet is black.

-Matt

 

Thanks, can someone owning a S1311/S13P without WWAN-card confirm the above? And still no info about using the mini PCIe as mSATA (it works like that in the latest thinkpads too).

I'd like an answer to that question too.

 

4.5 is still better than similarly specced computers isnt it? I am planning to buy the Vaio S 15 soon and am trying to justify the extra cost haha.

 

Just wondering if anyone has had experience flying coach with the s15 yet. Some 15 inchers are usable in coach (Samsung series 7), but most are not. Also, how big heavy/big is the power brick?

 

I know where you're coming from -- I'm starting to apply the same whammy techniques to myself! I guess...I thought with Kepler and IB that 6 hours for a 15" wasn't asking a lot.

-Matt

 

Going to upload a video soon with benchmarks of BF3, Diablo 3, and Skyrim at various settings.

And I guess LoL but even 5 year old iGP's can run it at 60 FPS

 

My research says:
VGP-AC19V32 - 13 Premium"
VGP-AC19V42 - 13" & 15"

Google should bring weight and dimensions. Odd the premium gets a different version, it's requirements should be the same for both 13" models I'd of thought.

That info was taken from Sony Korea site, it's possible the numbers might relate to plug types rather than just output current?

I don't get the negativity from posters like Deaks2, if you can help help, if you can't then no worries. It's a simple process for a friendly forum like this.

 

my S13p is using the VGP-AC19V60

input: 100-240v ~ 1.5A 50-60Hz
output: 19.5v === 4.7A

 

the only model in a similar class I've come across so far is the Gigabyte u2442 range which is only just being released. It's 14" but has the nvidia 640m.

Woo my s13p has been factory dispatched! Now to wait for the couriers...

 

I've that Samsung SSD myself (256GB).
I also did a clean install (but are using UEFI, but this shouldn't make difference in booting time).
Apart from that I only installed all the drivers and required software.
No tweaking, special BIOS setting or whatever.
My booting is a split-second BIOS boot-logo and in the login page always before 10 seconds.
I do however have added 8GB memory module myself (so having now 12GB) and so have disabled the pagefile. But also this shouldn't explain the big difference you notice.

 

hey, thanks for the reply.

i didnt have a password enabled, but once i do it takes about 13-14 seconds to the login page from power on.

otherwise it takes just under 20 seconds..i really have no idea why.

do you think i should go for another clean install in UEFI mode?

well i did some tweaking in msconfig to see if o cuold improve the times..no change

and now that ive restored the normal setting, boot time is gone up to 28-29 seconds....

edit: did a fresh install in UEFI mode. boot time immiedietely afterwards (no drivers whatsoever) is around 18 seconds.....this should be much fast i think?

is it time to call up the retailer?

 

In the SE15 the SIM card connector was on a small daughterboard connected to the rest of assembly with a ribbon cable. So you'll need that piece too. Moreover that ribbon was not connecting to the WWAN card directly but to motherboard. In short, I would not hold my breath.

So long as BD is slim and slot-loading, it will fit just fine - the dimensions and connectors are standard.

 

This blu ray drive appears to be compatible: Newegg.com - Sony Optiarc Black 4.8X BD-ROM 8X DVD-ROM 24X CD-ROM SATA Slim Internal 12.7mm Slot Blu-ray Combo Model BC-5650H-01

 

Hey guys, another quick question
When I right click on my desktop there is slight lag before I see the options but when I right click anywhere else, such as chrome, i see the options immediately
Any idea why that is?

 

Stop complaining and enjoy your notebook! really, 18 seconds boot is perfectly fine! My desktop (i5 dual core, 6GB ram, SSD) boots in 23 seconds and that is already fast.

Anyways, I'm about to order a custom built Sony S15 .

Edit: I'm not about to order a custom built S15...Sony has just removed that option in Europe, yesterday it was still possible and now it is gone!! You can only buy pre-built machines now

 

Just a quick question,

Once I swap my SSD for my HDD, what do I do next? Should I insert my Win7 discs and turn on the laptop?

Then I start installing all the drivers?

Also, what is this UEFI and Legacy I keep hearing about?

PS: Should I install Win7 from my DVDs or should I download Win7 and place in external hard drive?

 

This seems like a dumb question but I'm asking it anyway. When I open the lid on my s13 the dvd drive makes a loud whirring sound for 1-2 seconds, I guess because it's spinning awake. What options do I have to turn it off when I know I won't be using for a while and then turn it back on when I do need it? I'm hoping for something more simple than going into device manager and disabling it and enabling it manually. It's a silly complaint, I know, but I'd just rather not have to hear that every time I raise the lid.

 

yeah, I just noticed that and the Z has disappeared completely. Maybe the website is in a state of change and normal service will be resumed shortly. Thankfully I got my order in on Sunday

VAIO Z Series : VAIO & computing : Sony

 

hehe, yeah i know. 18 seconds is nothing to look down on

thing is its not that im complaining. Its just that people with the identical settup are pparently getting speeds twice as fast as mine...coupled with the sudden jump in boot speeds to almost 30 seconds for seemingly no reason has me worried there's either something wrong with my ssd, or my settup. thats all im trying to figure out

 

Just trying to get some answers for my question: "Just a quick question,

Once I swap my SSD for my HDD, what do I do next? Should I insert my Win7 discs and turn on the laptop?

Then I start installing all the drivers?

Also, what is this UEFI and Legacy I keep hearing about?

PS: Should I install Win7 from my DVDs or should I download Win7 and place in external hard drive?"

 

I just called Sony (I had to ask them something anyway) and I also asked them about the custom building option. The employee said they are not taking custom build orders in Europe anymore, he couldn't tell me if this option returns.

 

Matt you're in the US are you not? I'm in Canada and the i7 is 1299.99. I don't actually need an i7, and my local stores don't have the i5 at all.

And I've always planned to turn bluetooth off, dvd player etc. I never use any of those anyway. I was mainly looking for non-DvD player laptops cuz of the lighter weight.

And no promo's for us Canadians last I checked (yesterday). There was literally nothing. No discounts from the site, no free Sheet Battery etc.

And yeah too bad there's no white sheet battery.

Yes, you will want to install Win 7 from either your CD or a USB. Just make sure you're booting from Disc or USB. It should happen automatically since it should detect your drive is empty and go next on the list which should be your Disc. Better to confirm with someone's who's done this before.

I can't help with the UEFI or Legacy thing. But I think UEFI is the Bios.

 

so does that mean in the UK the only 15 inch S series you can buy now is the one listed on the website as per below? no i7, no SSD?

SVS1511S9E


3rd generation Intel® Core™ i5 processor
Genuine Windows® 7 Professional (64-bit)
Silver
39.5 cm / 15.5" (1920x1080)
640 GB
4GB Memory

 

Yes, customizing your notebook is disabled in Europe. The support desk doesn't know if this customization option comes back, only that it is gone.

 

bumping my question, thanks for the help!