Official Sony S11/S12/S13 (2010) Owners Thread

Hi all,

I am about to buy a Vaio S and would like to know if anyone has that laptop running Intel i7 CPU? If yes, does the laptop's fan sounds too much? How is with noise? Thanks.

 

Is there another CNET review in addition to this one:
Sony VAIO S Series VPC-S111FM/S Laptop reviews - CNET Reviews
which mentions the DVD burner several times?

The exterior of the lid is mostly metal. The upper surfaces of the base are plastic. I don't know if it's painted plastic or self-coloured plastic, or a mix. Some report a coating wearing off to a light coloured substrate, and there is one picture on the thread purporting to show this on a trackpad button. Perhaps I'll invite controversy by saying this, but I'm still at the "I'll believe it when I see it" stage.

Gracy123 did us the courtesy of providing illustrations of metal and plastic locations. The Sony crew are very clever at disguising plastic. Had me fooled in a couple of places

By the way, the CNET review says the base of the S is plastic. I'll bet money the review is wrong.

This must be keeping Sony awake at night:
Toshiba Portégé® R700 Laptop Computers

.

 

This is a quite interesting product indeed!! It looks quite nice and is very similar to the S features-wise.

I looked it up here in Europe though and found the hook - it costs more - the i5 520M sub-model which includes no dedicated Video GPU as well as no backlight keyboard starts from 1400 euros....

Other differences - 320GB HDD instead of 500 but 7200RPM instead of 5400RPM
SATA-port which is quite nice.

Apart from that, Toshiba has lower Customer satisfaction than Sony. It is not really considered a premium brand.

But still a nice alternative! Worth considering, especially if the S is not available with a good configuration as in the US.

 

Sounds good on paper, but so did the Toshiba laptop I currently own. However, I have never been very happy with it. Weighs a tonne, feels cheap, (can hardly touch it without it creaking!), gets hot... I could go on for ages... My previous laptop was also a Toshiba and frankly, it was sh¡te. I didn't really want another Toshiba, but in the end I got one because everyone seemed to be recommending me Toshibas and I guessed they must have improved. However I now wished I'd gone with my instinct which was to steer clear of them. For me Toshiba is now a definate no no, My next laptop will almost definately be a Vaio S. You pay for what you get - I generally find this to be very true, normally it's worth spending a little extra on a product that won't make you wish you hadn't bought it!

 

Hi guys,

I recently got a VPC-Z (the new style Z series) and I *hated* the keyboard, it was made out of a rubbery material so picked up every bit of oil. I sent the laptop back because of this.

Can anyone advise whether the VPC-S has the same style keyboard, or whether it's more plasticy like the previous Z series (VGN-Z). This previous one didn't have such a problem.

Also, I've noticed some of you mentioning heat issues on the S. Is it better (I'm not really a gamer, but I do watch a lot of HD movies) to get the integrated or nvidia GPU?

Thanks for any advice.

 

The backlit keyboard of the S is exactly as you describe the one of the Z - rubbery and picking up oily fingers. However if that bothers you, you can look for a model with no back-light keyboard - the keys are then made out of rough plastic. It is just that in order for the keys to be backlit and the letters to illuminate, they need to be manufactured differently.

I personally like how the rubbery keys feel.

Heat problems? None at all!! The coolest notebook I've ever used!

If you don't play any games or work with video/photo editing software... I'd advise you to buy one with integrated graphics - it will definitely run even more cool and silent. It is the NVIDIA that generates most of the heat in my machine, but as I said - absolutely no issues there.

 

Ah thank you very much.

Such a shame about the keyboard, this will probably stop me getting it

EDIT: I don't know if there's a way to customise it without this keyboard... I cannot see such an option.

 

There should be. S is also offered with a normal, non-backlit keyboard.

 

Ah yep, I just emailed SonyStyle though to see if the non-backlit is available in black otherwise I'm going to have to get the Silver (but black would be my preference).

Looking at the specs of the S, is there really that much difference between the Z and S (except the price tag?). I know there's no switchable discreet graphics, but for the rest, I can't see anything dramatic?? I personally prefer the style of the S after actually having the Z it was a big let down.

 

Sorry to post again. Just to go back to the keyboard issue, I looked at the gallery of the S (I cannot copy the image link directly, but it's VAIO - Product Gallery and the 3rd one, it's a closeup of the keyboard).

Is this how the backlit one looks like? If so, that's not like the Z 'rubbery' one -- or is that what the non-backlit one is like?

Thanks again, I just want to make 100% sure this time I'm not going to end up in the same situation as the Z.

 

This is exactly the non-backlit variant that is shown there! I can take a close-up pic of mine (backlit) a bit later or tomorrow and post it so you can see.

As for other differences - I never had the Z, but the S is heavier (1,9kg) but IMO more robust. Z has a better screen (higher resolution). You certainly should go to a store and have a look at one before you buy.

 

Here you are
That's the backlit keyboard.

Click to enlarge.

 

Ah yes thank you. That is exactly like the Z.

Hopefully Sony style will let me have the black without the backlit.

Thanks again for posting the pics... much appreciated.

 

I should maybe also have gone to a store before ordering my S but Sony Center ,here in Sweden, did not have anyone in the shop. I just ordered the laptop today from UK since it is almost 1000 pounds cheaper than here in Sweden. The customized laptop specs:

Processor: Intel® CoreTM i7-620M, 2.66GHz
Operating system: Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium
Hard drive: 500 GB Serial ATA (5400 rpm)
Memory: 8 GB 1066MHz DDR3-SDRAM
Optical Drive: DVD disc drive
Display: 33.8 cm LCD, 1366x768 + webcam
Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® 310M 512MB
Keyboard: EN - Backlit Keyboard

Please let me know if I should maybe change anything since I can still call Sony. I wasnt so sure whether to go for i5 540 or i7 620 since I've read somewhere that the i7 consumes more battery power than i5. Is that correct? Well, thanks for any information since this is the first Vaio I've ever bought.

 

marsamb welcome to the vaio club!

If it were me I would opt for a 7200rpm hard drive and as you can see the backlit keyboard is a real oil magnet, I had the same issue with my previous laptop hence checking about the S.

To the people here who have the S would you mind letting me know of any negatives about the laptop that disappointed you or that you dislike?

Thanks.

 

It is basically what the 160 pages of this thread are about ---> likes/dislikes

If I were you I would invest the half or one hour to take a quick scan at them... I think it is worthy doing that before spending 1000+ bucks.

As posted numerous times before, here is another thread with likes/dislikes.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/475297-my-two-months-vaio-s-review.html

About the configuration - it is like me asking you whether I should add something to a car I am about to buy and if it the "right" car with the "right" motor Now go and specify "right"!?

It is up to you guys. Depending on how much you want to spend and whether you need or want to compromise something! I personally was going for i7 initially but realized that it is much wiser investing in RAM or faster HDD as in an i7, which also consumes more power. Read the thread - there was a nice discussion about CPUs and CPU efficiency somewhere about 100 pages back.

The keyboard - I love the soft, rubbery keys! They feel great to me. A disadvantage is that they don't really like oily fingers A good motivation to be more hygienic I would never compromise the backlit feature for other keys! This was one of the reason I went for a S at first place.

 

DanielUK:
Can anyone advise whether the VPC-S has the same style keyboard, or whether it's more plasticy like the previous Z series (VGN-Z). This previous one didn't have such a problem.

Gracy123:
The back-light keyboard of the S is exactly as you describe the one of the Z - rubbery and picking up oily fingers.

DanielUK:
Such a shame about the keyboard, this will probably stop me getting it.


Whoa!!

DanielUK, get thee to a Sony centre and suss out the UK spec backlit keyboard of the S. My backlit keys are hard, smooth plastic. No oil stains here (though I will admit to a bit of dinner on the page down key – yeah, so I’m a slob). Back in the thread there was another UK bloke who didn’t like the lack of “grip” on his S keyboard compared to his Z, so I think this is standard.

Different markets have different keyboards, and the pics on the Sony UK website don’t look like my example. For instance, I have a full height enter key. Gracy123 is in Germany, and she has a QWERTZ keyboard. That’s either a continental thing or more keys have been falling off and she’s forgotten where they go.

I think you’ll find there’s none of that strange dressing up in oily rubber shenanigans going on with our clean and proper British keyboards. Stiff upper Num Lk and all that jolly good stuff, what, what.


BTW, no heat issues here. Core i5 520m and the chassis only gets mildly warm when I’m making the unit work with 3D rendering.

.

 

Re. the silver. I just got my girlfriend a silver Y series (which has a very similar form factor / design), and I must say it's a very nice loooking machine! In fact, I'm kinda on the opposite pole to you, if the silver model had a backlit keyboard I'd almost certainly get that one, but will probably end up getting the black one for the keyboard...

Re difference in specs between the Z and the S. I guess the main ones are the reduced size and weight of the Z, no quad raid SSDs in the S, and the higher screen resolution of the Z.

Oooh and good news for me, Sonystyle Spain has just (sometime between yesterday afternoon and now) knocked 110 euros off the base price of the CTO S series!!! NICE!

 

Nice! That's exactly the specs I'm going for. Rather than the 7200 rpm, I would change HDD for a (good) SSD. I'll be swapping the HDD for and 2nd gen intel X25.

 

False alarm - sorry! The base model is now lower spec than before (has integrated graphics and a smaller HDD. So once you configure your model it's no cheaper. DAMN!

 

You are wrong All backlit keyboards (of the S) are made absolutely the same way!! it does not matter if it is the german QWERTZ version or the american, that has a different form Enter key and different arrangement! The technology used is absolutely the same and it makes sense that all keys, no matter of the language and letters, come from the same factory and product line! In fact - you keep on referring to my broken key, but what I did is get one from a UK keyboard and I ensure you it is absolutely the same (look at the pictures I posted - you can see my keys there, including the new UK one and compare them to yours)

The only way one can get rid of the rubbery keys (if they bother you) is to get a non-backlit keyboard which is made of homogeneous black plastic!

The backlit keys are made of transparent/white plastic covered with black rubber leaving the letter uncovered in order to illuminate.

Another thing is that the rubbery surface gets worn off a bit after a few months of usage and the keys become slightly more glossy themselves, so oily spots aren't as visible as in the beginning.

But again - I do like the backlit keys and how the rubbery surface feels and if you wash your hands after eating fish&chips it's not an issue...

 

I was wondering if anyone have ever heard if it is possible to get some kind of refund since I will not use Windows which comes with my S laptop I just ordered?

 

A few years ago, I sold the Windows XP that came with my previous laptop and it was absolutely legal to do that (got 50-60 euros). Now... I have no idea how one can do that, as there is no CD/DVD ..... Maybe you can sell the license key but I'm not sure how exactly this should work.

 

The best thing is for DanielUK to personally inspect a UK backlit S model and see if the keyboard is acceptable to him. This way ambiguities such as subjective definitions of "rubbery" can be neutralised; and tactile assessments based on pictures can be avoided. It would be unwise to dismiss the backlit keyboard without being sure.

The keys on my backlit S are hard, not soft. They do not pick up oily finger marks. I noticed these aspects in the Sony store when I purchased my display unit. They are unlike soft-touch keys I've examined elsewhere, which I would describe as "rubbery".

Since I haven't visited every country where the S is on sale, and haven't audited the manufacturing and supply processes throughout the production history of the model, I pefer to avoid making absolutist statements about key construction that I cannot verify.

 

Absolutely right. I helped as much as I could It is up to him to decide

Nevertheless, I can also confirm that the "G" key coming from a backlit QWERTY UK keyboard of a S12 is absolutely the same as the one from a german QWERTZ (S11). But maybe the rest from the UK keys are more plastic-ish... the "G" could be an exception... who knows.

 

Looking to buy a sony s series - Any recommendations where i can buy it online for less ? & that ships worldwide ?
Many thanks !

 

Just finished reading the entire thread, I like doing some research before I spend over $1000 on something. I’m searching for my first notebook and I really like the S model. Thinking of buying one soon but living in the US, more specifically PR, the only available model is the one offered in Best Buy.

I went to the store and played around with the notebook for a while. The mayor cons I could find are:
 No i5-520 processor available.
 Only 4gb of ram (would like 6gb)
 No fingerprint scanner.
 Only silver available.

Even though it’s been said that the S model will be available through the Sony website in the fall, that doesn’t help since I like the full warranty Best Buy provides, a must in my opinion for a product over $1000.

I would prefer the Z, but imo it’s too expensive, especially when in a few years it will be obsolete. After some months of research the S seems like the “perfect” notebook for me. Since I have little to no experience in notebooks I was wondering if anyone could tell me, what are the chances of Best Buy offering different specs for the S once it goes on sale in the Sony website?

Thanks in general for all the discussions in the thread, even though it was a really long read, I really appreciate the effort some of the members have put in describing the pros and cons of the S.

 

It was present on both the S11 and the Y11 models. When I reported this issue (it seems that the keyboard it's too short and the presence of the gap depends on how the palm rest and the keyboard are assembled) you minimized like the problem was me instead.

I don't think so, there are many with the loose connector and some other with a much less loose connector, I'd say it's rather a matter of production quality.

 

Since s11 doesn't come with in 7 disc -
How will i'm gonna perform a clean install of win 7 ? huh ?

Is it possible to create a partion without clean install ?

 

Using Recovery Disks you can create or the Recovery Partition already available.

 

I haven't done that before though..
Hmm.. could you elaborate ? Please
I know only performing a clean install via bootable disk but S isn't coming with a Win 7 cd then i'm stuck badly

 

Neither had I before I bought the S. There is a small booklet in the package that explains how to create the recovery DVDs (bootable), etc. The rest is pretty self-explaining.

 

Thanks
Hmm..Could you tell me if Thisconfiguration is worth it for 1,214.96 USD
It would be great if you could guide me thanks !
Any site to look for ?

 

Compared to the prices and configurations in Europe - definitely not worthy - way too expensive for that poor configuration. But if you have no other choice and the other brands have high prices over there as well...

I don't know any site here that would ship to india and besides that you will then have to pay VAT + high transportation costs + the very high risk of damage.

 

Well I need vaio only
Just looking for some site who ships worldwide !

Dhl is safe though

 

I was in best buy recently and I was comparing the screen quality of the S and the 13 inch Macbook pro and the MBP seemed to look MUCH better. I am trying to figure out why this is. They both have LED technology, S actually has a higher resolution, so can anyone tell me why the picture on the MBP looks so much better. Also would the Z series screen quality look similar to the MBP.

 

It seemed to look better because it did look better. It looked better because it was better. The Mac uses a higher quality TN panel than the S series (and most other notebooks). It has better viewing angles and wider colour range.

It's just a question of where the manufacturers choose to spend their budget. Consumer pressure for cheap + shiny doesn't affect Apple so much because their customers typically pay above average. Sony customers also frequently spend more, and in my opinion, Sony will lose market share in the mid to premium sector (where the S is positioned, especially in Europe) if they continue offering products with the same screen quality as the budget sector.

Apple are also smart about how they present their products, at least they are here in the UK. They pay the stores (typically PC World, Currys, etc) extra to keep their items in special areas and showing their own choice of promotional material. Sony have their stuff spread out amongst all the others showing the same store promotional material. They don't look special.

In fact, Sony are so unsmart at this they are currently making an effort and paying extra to have many of their laptops displayed on an off-white piece of plastic bent at ninety degrees. This limits how far the lid can go back, so anyone in front of a laptop looks at a washed out screen. Unbelievable corporate stupidity.

Despite its poor vertical viewing angle (it actually prevents the whole screen being evenly illuminated at normal viewing distances) the screen on the S is capable of very good results if the user takes the time to explore settings. Watching movies goes from unnacceptable at default settings to superb after adjusting the Nvidia video controls.

 

Agree.

As I've said before, to me the screen of the S looks bad in the store mainly because it is not set optimally by default! Just enhance the vividness and you will see a very different screen in front of you! Just touch a few settings and the screen looks more than just fine.

 

Any site is alternative of expansys ? They don't have it it stock !

 

I agree. Sony has mastered the art of the out of the box poor display experience. They make up for it by quantity.

 

Sony Style UK is currently offering the i7-620M processor for "free" when using customise to order. In other words it's the same price as the i3-350M (or £100 cheaper than the i5-520M). Offer ends August 9th.

I still wouldn't have one, but for those who are interested it's a useful deal. At otherwise the same spec, it's £170 cheaper than the VPCS12V9E/B (and interestingly, if you order the exact same specification as the VPCS12V9E/B in CTO, you get it £70 cheaper than buying the actual model off the shelf - daft).


There was an update to the VAIO power management utility for the VPCS11V9E/B on the 15th of July. Fixes an occasional colour setting issue (which I'd never seen). My S still works ok after application.

.

 

Please help
One one is a better buy - Which model to buy
VPCS123FG : S Series : VAIO Laptop & Computer : Sony India
or
Sony VAIO Laptop VPCS11H7E/B.AE1 Windows 7 Professional (2.13GHz, 2GB, 320GB, 13.3") #VPCS11H7E/B.AE1 - eXpansys UK

 

Second one: CPU slightly slower (Core i3-330 vs Core i3-350), 2GB RAM (vs 4GB) but has Windows 7 Professionel and Fingerprint reader.
In France, Windows 7 Pro = 2 years warranty, Windows 7 Home = 1 year, I don't know if it's the same with India and expansys UK.
Which one is cheaper?

 

I just ordered one!!! Free upgrade to i7, I definitely wouldn't want to miss this. Before this I was waiting for asus u33jc but I really can't wait any longer. The date is being pushed back again to 24th Aug.
I'm new to the sony owners lounge and have not read many posts yet. Just curious, when it says 2-3 weeks to ship, would it really take so long?

 

Considering you're ordering something semi-bespoke that's probably going to get a lot more personal attention than any off the shelf unit; and that it's coming from the far east - I'd say that's fairly prompt.

Welcome to the lounge!

 

Hi there,
Thanks for the heads up
Hmm..does sony style uk ships worldwide or limited to uk ?
I7 upgrade offer is awesome
Thanks for the help man

 

I'm pretty sure when I ordered last night I saw a note somewhere that says "ship to UK only", something like this. But go and have a check anyway, you wouldn't want to miss such a good deal.
I also noticed that when you select a colour with non-backlit keyboard there is a 40 pounds drop from the original price. And adding 310m takes 40 pounds. So you could get i7-620m, 4GB ram, 320GB, GF 310m all these for 820 pounds, not bad at all. Well, many people may like the backlit keyboard, I'm just not one of them.

 

Thank you for your information. When you say coming from the far east, where exactly is it coming from? I thought it's manufactured in the UK but clearly I'm wrong.

 

Whaaaat?? Who manufactures ANYTHING in the UK or EU generally nowadays ))) Sony is a japanese brand! Vaio S is manufactured either in China (mine for example) or Taiwan, depending on the sub-model.

You will hardly find any notebook manufactured elsewhere!

 

ignore. wrong posting