Official 2012 Sony S Series Owners Thread

Hi. I would like some advice. I bought a 15" Sony S in July. Short: One of my SSDs appears to be failing/have failed. I'm considering next steps.

Starting last month, it began having trouble starting up consistently. An Intel Rapid Storage Technology screen would come up after the initial Vaio splash screen. It would show that one of the two SSDs failed. Proceeding from that point would generally lead to an "Operating System Not Found" message. But sometimes the system would start normally.

I hadn't gotten fancy like many of you guys here =) and just took the stock SSDs from Sony instead of installing my own. So they are:
Serial #: S0T5NY0C208712
Model: SAMSUNG MZRPC256HADR-000SO
Firmware: CXM0551Q

In Windows, the Intel utility would claim that the SSDs were both fine. Using CrystalDiskInfo also showed both SSDs to be operating normally and at 92% and 94% health.

Infrequently, the computer would crash, sometimes with BSOD. I couldn't find a consistent pattern for the cause of either the crashes or the start up difficulties. The only thing I can think of that I had done that could have caused these types of problems was to attempt to install Ubuntu 12.04 using the Wubi installer (to dual boot Win 7 and Ubuntu, which my older Sony S can do fine). It didn't work and I uninstalled it. I began to pursue a more sophisticated way to get Ubuntu running, but didn't actually make any system changes because I wanted to resolve these other problems first. My symptoms didn't occur immediately at that time, and I may have had a failure or two earlier. [Note: I have the standard BIOS -- I haven't used the BIOS modification for the video card.]

I tried various solutions such as a Windows system restore with no effect. At one point only, while in Windows, the Intel RST reported (on its own, through a notification message) a problem with one of the SSDs. I tried system repair tools from my Windows Recovery CDs and they seemed to find and fix some issues, but the problems continued. I tried Vaio Care Recovery's (through the "Assist" button) diagnostics and it ambiguously reported problems with the hard disk that it couldn't solve. I used Boot-Repair through Linux, which claimed to find and fix some problems and then Vaio Care Recovery gave me a thumbs up.

But the boot-up troubles and crashes persisted and seemed to be becoming more frequent. I finally resorted to a system recovery through Vaio Care Recovery. The SSD failure occurred during one of the restarts during this process and at another point the system blue screened. And now the failure rate is 100%, with one of the SSDs appearing absent. (Apparently the SSD with recovery partition is not the bad one.)

I emailed Sony Support and they think I have a defective SSD and told me to contact their phone support to resolve. Since the system is still under warranty, they suggest I can get a replacement SSD.

My questions are:
1. Is there anything else I should try on my own at this point? One option that occurs to me is that I can disable RAID through the Intel RST and then seeing what happens if I complete the Windows installation with the functional SSD. I could also boot into Ubuntu through a USB drive and try other diagnostics, but I'm not sure what else to try, especially since the utilities I have used showed no problems.
2. Is there any chance that my attempt to install Ubuntu dual-boot could have led to this problem or does this definitely sound like a hardware issue?
3. Could this failure have damaged (or been caused by) other components of my system, or should replacing the faulty SSD resolve the problem?
4. Assuming I need a new SSD, would there be any reason to consider anything besides replacing with the same model as the failed one?
5. Has anyone had any experience with Sony Support for a case such as this? What should I expect in terms of turnaround time and helpfulness?

Thanks for reading!

 

Yesterday I took the sheet battery off my S13P and discovered the main battery couldn't power my laptop for more than a few minutes, ie. it will shut down and couldn't power up unless I attach the power adapter or sheet battery. Don't think it's a connection issue as I still can charge it to 100%. I re-attached the sheet battery and it worked until the sheet battery is depleted. Does this mean my main battery is faulty? BTW I did the BIOS/GPU mod, replaced the HDD with SSD and moved the HDD to Optical disk. Is there anything I should check before bringing it to Sony center which means I must flash back to original BIOS and replace the original drives! Any comments appreciated.

 

hey guys,

I'm new to the forum, sorry if I'm posting this in the wrong place.

I'm having a huge dilemma between buying the Vaio S15 and ASUS N56VZ.
They both look great and I've came across a lot of positive feedback on both models.
Both laptops go for the same price of around $1200.

-The Vaio S15 I'm looking at is the customized 2012 SVS151190X version packing i7-3612QM quad-core 2.1GHz processor, 12GB of RAM, and NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M LE (2GB)
-On the other hand, the ASUS N56VZ-DS71 has 2.3 GHz Core i7-3610QM processor with 8GB of RAM, and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 2GB of memory.

I've done a lot of research on the internet, but it turned out that both laptops have many pros (and less cons), and I would really like a first-hand advice, hopefully from someone who had an opportunity to test both models.

As far as the purpose of buying a laptop is concerned, I am an architecture student, so I would need a lot of CPU power for 3D rendering. The reason I'm aiming at these two models is primarily the FullHD screen (and nice design, let's be honest . SONY is in a little advantage here, thanks to the IPS panel, as the orange reproduction problem doesn't bother me that much. I'm planning to do very little gaming (mostly DOTA 2 and Diablo 3, maybe a little bit of battlefield), so I would say that the gt650m or possibly overclocked (if needed) gt640mLE would do the job.

I haven't had the opportunity to see neither of them in person, so I'm forced to judge the build quality of both laptops by video reviews. It seems to me that SONY is in a slight adventage again, but frankly I'm not sure why, probably because it looks more compact with the whole casing (including the bottom) made out of metal. Still, I like the easy access that ASUS provides for the HDD and optical drive removal, as I plan to invest in an SSD drive soon, and replace the CDrom with it. Also the sound is undoubtedly better on the N56, as many people state it as one of the best on the market as opposed to the VAIO which sounds "worse than many cell phones".

For me, the two biggest differences are:
1/ portability which is pretty much a clear win for the VAIO, being one third lighter than the ASUS, and being thinner and more compact (?), along with a longer battery life and possibility of adding the sheet battery;

2/ warranty which is pretty much a clear win for the N56, lasting for 2 years as opposed to 1 year warranty offered by SONY. Also, I've came across many bad comments about SONY service providers and customer service. Also, as I'm not from the US, the place where I leave (Serbia) offers pretty good warranty conditions for ASUS laptops bought in the US, and the official VAIO service is going to be opened until the end of the year (but they assure me that the warranty from the USA is going to be valid, although it's still only one year).

All in all, because of the warranty issue it may seem that the N56 is the obvious choice, but I would still like to hear your opinions as I am not sure how often these things arrive with a defect or get broken.

Is it worth gambling with the warranty for the screen, build and portability advantages VAIO is offering?
Is there anyone who doesn't have any dilemma between these two models?

PS, I've seen that the user Supranium has (or had) both laptops, so I would really like to hear from him, but I'm still unable to send personal messages as this is my first post on this forum.

Thanks,
Stefan

 

Hey st_st. The s15 is a great option and trust me, the extra weight of the Asus will wear on you over time. Plus the detachable extra battery on the vaio is so nice. Add it when u need it, and remove it when you don't.
Usually hardware breaks within the first month. If you are so worried about a 2 year warranty than buy the Sony with a credit card that extends manufacturer warranties by a year.

Nuff said

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

 

i generally believe the build quality of asus to be better. but obviously i chose the vaio. pretty much for the same reasons. the portability is by far the most important aspect of the vaio. and it is able to cope well with current games but the overclock is a must (and honestly not a big deal. if it were to be actually pushing the card past its limits i would worry but the card is designed to handle the over clock speeds, also the cooling system... for me at least. handles the extra heat very very well. so overclock is really stretching it) the one other factor for me was the sheet battery. it offers a little more flexibility as far as weight and battery life goes. i wouldnt blow it out of proportion it is not a HUGE deal but for me it is icing on a cupcake. it doesnt really need it but lets be honest it does haha

 

I Just Bought the Sony Vaio s15.5 Laptop and had it custom made and about the Red shows Orange is totally incorrect o.o show's pure red for me unless Sony changed there Screens i'm wondering why is this? this is what i ordered
Product: US-SVS151190X-LBOM-3
Component: 12GB (4GB fixed onboard + 8GB removable) DDR3-1333MHz
Component: CD/DVD player / burner
Component: Internal lithium polymer battery (4400mAh)
Component: Kaspersky® Internet Security (30-day trial)
Component: Silver
Component: 640GB (7200rpm) hard drive
Component: 3rd gen Intel® Core™ i7-3612QM quad-core processor (2.10GHz / 3.10GHz with Turbo Boost)
Component: NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 640M LE (2GB) hybrid graphics with Intel® Wireless Display technology
Component: No engraving
Component: Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Component: Microsoft® Office 2010 Starter
Component: No Fresh Start
Component: 15.5" LED backlit Full HD display (1920 x 1080)
Quantity: 1
Description: VAIO 15.5" S Series Custom Laptop
Date shipped: 09/25/2012

also got it on a good deal there was a customization deal going on, actually only posted here because i followed this thread before i purchased my laptop and i was a little concerned about the orange gate problem happy i see red though

Hey Stefan I've been playing a few games with my Vaio and did a "Can You Run It Test" and every game i checked the Vaio s 15.5 runs recommended settings on every game i'm also able to play Diablo without any problems on Speed. and i have the exact same computer your looking at quad core 12gbs of ram and 2gbs Nvidia graphics

 

Did you compare it to any other display with proper reds or do you just feel it's pure red? Could you take a picture with a camera/your smartphone and upload it here with MS Paint opened and a 255/0/0 red all over the place?

If Sony has replaced the orangegate-infected screen, they could make a lot of people happy...

 

Well Stefan, the most significant difference would surely be the weight. The 2.7kg of the Asus versus the 2.0kg of the S15 is very much substantial. Some may even consider them to be in different weight classes entirely. Personally, for a laptop weighing 2.7kg, I would expect it to be compensated by a longer battery life. Unfortunately, the Asus, as you mentioned, does not do any better in this area.

Though, one perk of the Asus that has probably not been mentioned yet is that both RAM modules are removable. I may be paranoid, but having a soldered memory module fail on you can't be much fun.

Regarding the warranty, from my experience, if a laptop does not fail in the first year, I am not going to be expecting any catastrophic irregularities in the second.

 

Thanks a lot, indeed the price is steep right now and I could not find any cheaper alternative.

 

Does anyone else find that the touchpad is really erratic/choppy in ubuntu? And I found that to be the case when I installed my own copy of Windows too, until I got the driver for it off the sony website. Anyone know if there's a similar driver that will make the touchpad work better in linux?

 

That's almost GUARANTEED to be a dead/dying SSD...it happens. Don't let it spook you. You're the first documented case of SSD probs with the OEM drives that I know of on this thread. It's a one off that's all.

The only thing in the other hardware that would be likely to cause an SSD failure would be if the fan failed and the lappy totally overheated...like almost hot enough to burn you! As long as you can hear your fan running I wouldn't worry about this failure being caused by something else in the system.

Call them and set up the RMA....they will send you packing materials if you need them....you return it to their service center via prepaid overnight and they send it back overnight a few days later. My experience with this kind of clear cut failure has been very good. Whole process took about 5 days when I did it several years ago.

And the Sony OEM SSD's are proprietary...can't be replaced with anything else unless you buy a different connector cable! The two SSD's are even physically on the same circuit board!

 

Thanks for the helpful reply!
The packing materials are on their way... =)

 

I'm planning on upgrading my RAM in my VPCSE13FX, and everything I find says the laptop as a 8GB limit. Why is that? I was going to throw 16GB in this bad boy, but is that not possible?

 

That's what we're here for!

 

thanks octanion, chaotic and teslas, your comments are really helpful. think I'm definitely leaning towards the vaio. the mobility it provides is really amazing.
hope everything will work out of the box, I won't be in a good position to return it as it will arrive straight from USA to my country.

if anyone else has an opinion, I'd be more than thankful if you share it

I really like the forum, glad I found it.

cheers

 

Just an update on my S13.

Installed my m4 ssd and 4gb ram upgrade. Fresh WP7 Pro install using the instructions found on OP's first post and oc'd the gpu to 1000/1000.

The results were very good: os loads 10~ sec, gw2 on auto-detect runs @ 30fps and sc2 at High setting runs @ 35fps. Love how its very easy to upgrade parts.

Downsides: poor audio (headset ftw), charging while gaming takes awhile (5% in 15min), fan is a bit loud while gaming(no biggy), optical disc is a bit loud (no biggy) and power supply is bulky

 

I want to replace the optical drive in my SVS1511R9ES trough an Blue Ray ROM/DVD-RW Combi. What drive does fit. What drive uses Sony originally?

 

Is it normal for laptops to have loud fans while playing games? My old laptop had a really loud fan and would overheat when playing games like sims3 and minecraft. This laptop I have now won't get as hot, but it is still fairly loud although not as loud. I can't even play games like minecraft in public because of this.

 

^ yes, it's normal. the heat should be expelled from the case, otherwise the hardware will fail.

 

If it is not that hot, try setting it to balanced instead of priority to ventilation.
Play around with the CPU limitation if that helps to reduce some more heat, so that you can play in balanced mode without throttling.
In balanced mode, it will throttle down if the GPU goes above 7x(can't remember the exact number) celsius.

 

Hey everyone, after using my S13P for about 2 months now, I have noticed that my screen has vertical bands with patches of light blackness in certain parts of the screen on the lower sides....

I have read a post in this thread but can't find it anymore as I don't know the real word for this issue. Also is this an very common issue and should I just ignore it? Does anyone else have this issue?

I know that my SA3 also had this issue....

Thanks in advance!

 

I do play on balanced mode and it will still have a loud fan.

Would this happen if playing on a mac or a high end gaming pc (something from msi for example)?

 

My buddy has a Mac 13 in and when he plays mine craft his laptop gets very very hot like 90+ c that's not good. Idk how apple fan works he has a manual control app. When he turns it up to 11 it gets as loud as mine on balanced.

It may not be as bad as you think. I played bl2 full res and all high on my s15 during Chem and the people around me said they couldn't really hear. But to me it was pretty loud.

Sent from my SGH-I777 using Tapatalk 2

 

In a noisy room its not going to noticed as much, but i bring my laptop to classes and I want to play games during my 2hour breaks in between classes. Sadly I can't because of the fan noise.

 

That maybe true for you. Idk if you picked up on it. Chem =chemistry class. I played during class and had no issues. Try playing a game or even run fan diagnostics and stand anywhere but in front of the screen and tell me if it is still t
Way too loud. I think you'll find it to be quieter than you'd expect

Sent from my SGH-I777 using Tapatalk 2

 

Does Sony will refresh new hardware for VAIO S after Microsoft release Windows 8 ?

 

Not sure how much of the hardware will be refreshed but the machines are currently disappearing off of the floors of the stores.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

 

When I first turned on my S15 I had to fill in some Sony stuff, was that when I "registered" my laptop? If not, how should I go about registering?

 

Hi, does anyone on here have any idea how to soft mod the Nvidia GeForce 640M LE (2 GB) graphics card to function as a quadro counterpart? I am trying to run a CAD software from Siemens called NX 7.5, but the GeForce GPU is obv meant for gaming, which I do not do.

PLEASE HELP!

 

So I formatted my main partition in Legacy mode but found out I still can't install windows due to the GUID Partition Table. Temporarily I installed an Ubuntu partition, and so I could use gparted. Anyways I tried to go back and install Win7 via USB in UEFI mode, but it just doesn't work. Also my recovery partition is either not working, or I don't know how to correctly use it.

Basically I am unable to get Windows 8 working in either Legacy or UEFI mode. Kind of freaking out because I'm hoping I didn't brick the system...

I was thinking about erasing all of the OEM and Recovery partitions to just start fresh, but I'm not sure if that is a wise idea... I really need help.

 

To choose Legacy or UEFI mode you must partition and format the entire drive at the beginning of the process. This determines the type of partition table for the drive. You CAN'T change the mode only for one partition.

The whole Sony Restore process is based on UEFI mode. It won't work in Legacy....it just stops with an error message.

So if you want to use Legacy mode you MUST clean install Windows. The OP has info on how to do this. As part of that process (if you use Legacy) you will use the CLEAN command from DISKPART to wipe ALL the partitions (including the RESTORE partition) from your drive. Previous post of mine give details on this process....BE WARNED: the CLEAN command is very powerful and not for the novice user....it can wipe an entire drive full of data in the blink of an eye!! Also create the Sony Restore media (either DVD or USB drive) BEFORE wiping the drive! If you don't you can't go back to the Sony install.

IMHO if you're gonna run Win8 you should be using UEFI mode. My research indicates that UEFI is on our machines to support Win8....that doesn't mean that you can't run it from Legacy but it will run BETTER from UEFI.

OK....to use your USB recovery media: Set BIOS to UEFI mode. Go to the BOOT section and set the USB device to FIRST in the boot order. Reboot system. Lappy should boot from the USB device as seen by the LED on the thumb drive flickering. You should then be able to reinstall the factory software package from Sony.

If the Lappy boots from the hard drive as shown by the LED on the front edge of the computer flickering during boot: either your USB drive is not bootable or the boot order is not set correctly.

Access to the Recovery Partition is usually done through VAIO care....which of course you don't have right now. There is also a hot key sequence that is supposed to boot from the RECOVERY partition while the INSYDE BIOS screen is up but I don't remember what it is....try holding each of the F keys while the BIOS screen is up and see if that does it. It MAY not work anyway since you've been messing with the partitions and boot process.

BOTTOM LINE: I doubt you are bricked. You need to get back to the original factory install somehow...either from the recovery partition or from your restore media. Then worry about getting Win8 to install.

If this doesn't work....repost and give us details of EXACTLY what you tried that didn't work so we can give specific help. A lot of the above is based on ASSUMPTIONS from your (rather sketchy) post.

WORST CASE SCENARIO: Sony should be able to SELL you recovery media for your machine which will get you up and running. Not cheap or desirable but they will do almost anything if you PAY them!

 

Ok I used diskpart, but I'm now having one hell of a time getting my Win7 USB to work in UEFI. I have gone through the process of setting it up multiple times, but I thinking the problems comes from me adding those files onto the USB as opposed to moving them on the image, and then writing the whole corrected image to the drive. UEFI basically is just telling me that there is no OS, and it won't identify the USB nor the CD drive as a boot device (I have a win7 install cd too)

I pretty much just gave up on trying to save the Sony Recovery partition because things get pretty screwed up by having a GPT drive with legacy partitions on it.

So Now I've just re installed windows in Legacy mode, but my machine won't even identify that its connected to the internet via Ethernet. I'd still like to have it all set up in UEFI, but I just need to know that my Laptop can be up and working.

I'm at my wits end... I've build my own desktop and have managed it for years. Now I get a laptop and everything goes to hell. :\

 

Just chill. I found that to be the case with mine too. Just download the WiFi and Ethernet drivers from a different PC onto a USB drive then install them. Then you can proceed to install the rest from the laptop.

I agree got and uefi is a whole new animal.... just takes getting used to.

As to the no os found problem. Make sure you are hitting the right f button. Only one does the trick. Also ensure that you spam the heck out of it. It took me 10 tries to get it then magically it worked every time after that.

Sent from my SGH-I777 using Tapatalk 2

 

Want to wait for a new version of Sony S15. I have made my mind for S15. Hopefully a new model will come with no orange gate issue. But if Sony cares.

 

Ok so, I'm still interested in getting Windows working in UEFI. How do I correctly go about setting up the GUID Partition Table. The only way I can seemingly get a boot disk or drive to work is in Legacy. From their I can format everything, but once I put it back into UEFI mode nothing loads. Perhaps its the USB drive isn't working, but it seems it has to do with me converting the disk to GPT in the Legacy mode.

 

I'm ASSUMING you didn't create restore media before all this started. If you did all you do is activate UEFI in BIOS and boot from restore media. Since you are still tearing your hair out in clumps (J/K) this must not be the case.

A bootable device (either USB or CD/DVD) must be appropriately formatted to be recognized under UEFI....a special boot loader is required. If you have a genuine Microsoft Win7 disk I THINK it will boot under EITHER LEGACY or UEFI. They put BOTH boot loaders on their disks. If it's some other form of bootable media it's likely formatted as a Master Boot Record (MBR) volume and won't be recognized by UEFI. I think this is where you are running into problems.

If you really want to be in UEFI and didn't create restore media you're gonna have to do some research on how to create a bootable usb/cd from an ISO image of WIN7. I did this UNDER LEGACY mode for my clean install and it worked like a champ. Doing it under UEFI will be harder and I don't have the details on how it's done. You have lots of work to do to get this to work. Start with the first post in this thread. Then search the thread for refs to UEFI boot etc. Then do Google search for same terms...all the info is out there...I work strictly in Legacy (to avoid the hell you are in right now) so I don't have that knowledge without a lot of research. That's up to you...I even think most of it is on this thread in various places. Just don't remember exactly where.

As for your inability to connect to the internet after loading Win7 in Legacy mode...you have to load Sony drivers for things like the ethernet or WIFI cards to work. Again see first post.

Last thought: DISKPART has commands to create a volume (either GPT or MBR) from the command line and then to format it. BUT to load windows you will need a bootable media it will recognize under UEFI.

 

For EVERYBODY buying one of these lappys: FIRST THING when you unbox it PLEASE CREATE RESTORE MEDIA!! either DVD or USB stick from within VAIO Care. If you do not AND start monkeying with you partition(s) and/or boot mode (Legacy/UEFI) you may well lose access to all your SONY installed software and very possibly make your machine at least temporarily unable to boot! This state is called UEFI HELL!! and you may not be able to get out of it without paying Sony $$$ to re-image your drive. We'll try to help but if you have no restore media...well....you just don't want to go there! 'nuff said.

 

Thanks a ton Orionz. I think I'll stay in legacy for now, because it took way to long dl all those drivers and installing them via usb... but yeah I wish I made a restore disk. I never read anything that made it explicit that I needed one. I though as long as I had the recovery partition I was fine (which is now gone :\)

Anyways, I needed Ubuntu and apparently it doesn't work under UEFI until 12.10 comes out, so I guess I needed legacy mode in the mean time anyways... If the price is right I may try to get a recovery disc, but without some sturn steadfast bargaining.

 

I took out my battery for one week and basically ran my laptop plugged in the charger for a week straight with a laptop fan under it. Today I no longer needed the laptop running so after one week I unplugged the charger from the laptop and it immediately shut off. I then put back the battery, turned on my laptop and it doesn't work.... A black screen appears and says "operating system not found" my laptop is only less than 3 months old and I have an ssd.... It was working perfectly all week long. F8 keys and such dont work all it does is write a new kine saying "operating system not found" Please help! Is it broken?

EDIT: my laptop successfully turned on!!! what was the problem?

 

My S13P has this issue as well. With my screen, there seem to be faint dark vertical bands about 1-2 inches wide and extending perhaps 2 inches up from the bottom of the screen.

When I touch these "banded" areas, the screen is rather warm and when I move my fingers to areas where there are no bands, the screen is cool to the touch. The fan vents hot air out directly below and behind the screen where it is warmer and has the banding. I don't know if this issue is due to the hot air venting or from the internal lighting of the screen itself.

I suppose we all knew that the screen does have its issues and is not up to par with all the other S13P goodness. That faint screen banding phenomenon is hard to ignore. Sometimes you can tilt the screen to make it less prominent.

But I, like Runordie, would appreciate if anybody has found a settings fix for this. Thank you

David

 

Ubuntu does work with uefi. Grub seems to be the issue, but it can be easily fixed:
installation - Can't Dual Boot Ubuntu 12.04 and Windows 7 on Sony Vaio S 15 (2012) - Ask Ubuntu

However, since your installation seems to work now, i don't know wether using uefi is worth the effort to reinstall everything.

 

Lads I just purchased a new S15 with 12GB ram and i7 3612QM CPU, I knew about the new models coming out at the end of this month, the Sony shop staff was nice enough to let me know. I would have waited to see the new model in hope of a orange gate fix on the display but I was told there is no direct replacement coming for the S15, at least not to AUS and for sure no replacement with the i7 QM (Quad Core) CPU's and this was an issue for me as I do a fair bit of video encoding/muxing and run a number of VMs, due to this the difference between a dual core cpu and the quad cores is very important.

This is the reason why I purchased the S15 and didn't wait till the end of OCT. Just thought I would let others know, in case some people think there is going to be a direct replacement for the current S15 quad core, there is not. So if quad core is important to you, don't bother waiting for the new windows 8 line to come out. On top of that do you really want Win8 at launch with all the driver issues there may be etc and the terrible metro gui, I would much rather win7 pro and get the $14 upgrade option, then get Win8 pro after all the teething problems have been fixed 6-12 months down the road - as is the case for most brand new OS's.

The Organe gate is not that bad unless you do plenty of photo editing, which i actually like to do so I have to use an external monitor for that, apart from that issue the full HD IPS display is beautiful.

 

This kind of problem is typically encountered on displays where the bezel around the screen applies uneven pressure to the edge of the screen. It also occurs in TV screens. Mine has some "flashlighting" in the lower left hand corner. At the BIOS and windows diamond screens there appears to be a much brighter light shining from the edge of the screen out for about an inch from the edge. The effect is not noticeable once the full screen has an image on it.

The only setting likely to affect this is BRIGHTNESS of the screen. These effects are most pronounced when the screen is dark (like a very dark scene in a movie...Batman Begins is full of them so it's my test movie) and the backlight brightness is at full. Reducing backlight brightness via FN+F5 will minimize the effect under conditions like this.

There have been some reports in the large screen TV threads that GENTLY "massaging" the bezel around the area affected may even the pressure out and reduce the presence of the banding or flashlighting. I have tried this technique on mine but no improvement. Thankfully it is really unnoticeable except during the boot process.

And yes some increase in screen temperature in the area of the effect is noticed with this problem. The screen on these lappys is clearly one of the places Sony chose to save some $$$. If it really bugs you it's possible you might get Sony to swap out your machine under warranty. However they (& other manufacturers too) are often very difficult about blown pixels and other minor screen defects like this.

 

Hi!

I've just received my Vaio S13 (Standard) - and got a quick question:

Is that constant fan noise (humming in low frequency) normal? It's pretty noticeable in a quiet, even semi-noisy enviroment, and seems to be coming from under the top right of the keyboard.

 

Flickster,

Are you saying that the s15 will no longer exist when win8 release? Or it will still be around for win 8 but they just won't have a new design replacing the old one.

Also what did they say about new machines especially for s13?

Thanks

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

 

In AUS they told me the s15 will not exist, there will be no direct replacement for it in the new models. I since saw someone say they found an advert for the new s15 in Japan only but with no quad core option, so maybe the s15 will only be in Japan but definitly no quad core from what I have seen and no s15 in AUS, not 100% sure regarding the rest of the world but keep that in mind if thinking of buying a s15.

Regarding the s13 line-up I was told there will be some minor spec changes but the main thing was the Windows 8 upgrade. All the new line will come with Win8. I could of got a complete new spec run-down e-mailed to me but didn't bother simply because I was only interested in the s15 and after being told there was no direct replacement for the current quad core model, I was not interested in the new line.

Would be awesome for new buyers , if they fix the orange-gate issue.

If they do fix it and there is a 15inch full HD option, I would end up asking for a replacement screen under warrenty so I could do my photo editing on my laptop. Apart from that I am very happy with this new laptop, the 800Mhz vBIOS mod turns the graphics card into basically a 650M, 3Dmark11 scores are almost on par with the 650 and temps only increase by 3c, if you want performance that is even better than the 650m the 950Mhz option will do that. I wanted a mod that kept temps very close to stock hence why I went for the 800mhz. Basically like getting a Mac Book Pro for almost half the price but with native windows as they still have a great design and finish.

 

I recently ordered an s13p due to arrive this week. Can you still get the specific changes?
I really need to know whether to keep it or send it back.

 

The only hardware refresh I could spot is that there is an option for the new i3 Ivy Bridge (released in August 2012) in the S13 and S15 (the latter will be still available, by the way):

S13 (Windows 8): Google Translate

S13P (Windows 8): Google Translate

S15 (Windows 8): Google Translate

 

Recently my sony vaio s13p has started to have the screen "fade" and turn off when I use the fn keys, and i have to move the mouse around to get the screen back. It stopped doing this when I rebooted but has started doing it again. Anyone know what the cause of this problem is and how to fix it?

 

I've recorded the fan noise and uploaded it here:

s13_fan.wav

It's the deep whirring sound of the rotating fan rather than the actual air flow that annoys me. Again: Is that normal?

Thanks!