Official Sony SB/SA/SC/SD Series Owners' Thread

This is the owners' thread for SA/SB/SC Sony series laptop and owners and prosepective owners. The SB series has now started shipping in several countries.
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Helpful posts and links

Partition delete step-by-step
http://forum.notebookreview.com/7433577-post1536.html

Sony HDD Replacement Instruction

http://www.docs.sony.com/release/989202617_VPCSB_series_HDD_CRU.pdf

Sony ODD Replacement Instruction
http://www.docs.sony.com/release/989202618_VPCSB_series_ODD_CRU.pdf

Upgrading Your Wifi Card:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/7442650-post1620.html

Installing A New Hard Drive:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/7442684-post1621.html

StormBlade83's Spyder3 Elite SA 1600x900 calibration pack
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/584506-review-sony-vaio-sa-51.html#post7656502

Replacing Optical with HD/SSD in SA/SB/SC/SD series
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/587951-replacing-optical-hd-ssd-sa-sb-sc-sd-series.html

Conicse guide-Replacing Optical with HD/SSD in SA/SB/SC/SD series -
http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...tical-drive-hard-drive-guide-sa-sb-sc-sd.html

Activate Dolby Digital 'Audio Enhancer':
(This will make your internal speakers sound much better)
http://forum.notebookreview.com/7442737-post1622.html

Upgrading your RAM:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/7442779-post1623.html

Sony VAIO SA idle temp is around 52C. Is this normal?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/595984-sony-vaio-sa-idle-temp-around-52c-normal.html
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Clean install
Sony eSupport - VPCSB1AGX - Software Updates & Drivers

For others, you need:
- Sony shared library
- SFEP Driver
- Setting Utility Series
- Vaio Event Service
-radeon registery patch from the support page
-Intel GMA HD drivers from the intel site
-AMD Radeon™ HD 6470M / 6630M and Mobile Intel® HD Graphics

I just have big dl-problems from the sony ftp. Really slow and it stops sometimes. The Vaio Updater doesn´t show me any updates or such..

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-Noted down my OEM key and downloaded retail Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit iso from Digital River.
-Downloaded & installed RT Se7en Lite - Beta (build 2.6.0) for windows 7 x64. Then slipstreamed windows 7 SP1 into the retail iso.
-After creating recovery media, I secure erased the SDD in VAIO (VPCSB1S1E/S-Later added 120 GB Intel G2 SSD and 4GB of ram) then installed the OS.
-After further updating the OS. I began installing device drivers:


First installed the following:

AMD Radeon (TM) HD 6470M 6630M and Mobile Intel HD Graphics
Bluetooth Driver

Ethernet Driver

Graphics Driver Registry Patch

Intel Chipset Driver

Intel Mobile Express Chipset SATA AHCI SATA RAID Controller

Intel SATA Driver Registry Patch

Intel Wireless Display

Intel Wireless LAN Driver

Intel® Management Engine Interface

Realtek High Definition Audio Driver

Realtek PCIE CardReader

Renesas Electronics USB 3.0 Host Controller

Sony Firmware Extension Parser Device

Touchpad Driver

There are three critical applications that need to be installed in some order for the hotkeys work properly, I've gathered all drivers & applications & information from Sony support page except an application named "VAIO Hardware Diagnostics":

1) Sony Notebook Utilities

-Must install all drivers
-Must install Sony Shared Library

2) VAIO Smart Network

-Install All drivers
-Install Sony Shared Library
-Install Sony Notebook Utilities

3) VAIO Care




[post moved from another thread by Rachel; have deleted irrelevant rant as it's not much of a way to start the owner's thread! Truthfully I don't care where it's made as long as it works fine, just not happy that I received lies in answer to a direct question. Having spent my money, the point is now moot.]

 

They told me it was made in japan twice as well, in the end it doesn't matter. A high tech facility in china will be better than a sweatshop in japan .

 

A: The internet knows more about these products than Sony will tell you including the design teams and the innards. FCC reports and engineering reports are shared on on the internet with the FCC ID after such reports are released. None of the information is ever secret. The VAIO SB in question is ODM's at either Quanta or Wistron.

Too lazy to actually identify the parts and find out which one but it isn't hard to tell.

The VAIO Z may have been assembled in Japan in final assembly though. But country of manufacturer is always right on the back of the unit.

Telephone reps at Sony are just people who can respond to calls and do basic tasks. Never expect an answer to technical questions from them for anything more than it is listed on the basic SonyStyle website.

Sony has patents, Non disclosure agreements and does like to prolong their design style as long as possible but when the FCC reports hit, everything in the unit itself is on full display.

What counts is which laptop meets your needs as there is a lot of competition out there even if the ODM on all of them are the same because the manufacturers add a few of their own components, style designs and include different specifications. An ODM can produce multiple models and so each one is made to different specifications even if the ODM is the same.

Im not sure the total deal on the Vaio Z though and if it says made in Japan on the back because I was under the impression all VAIO's were ODM'ed by Quanta and Wistron. Not sure how it worked. You can't really say though oh I want a Quanta model or a Wistron model.

Lets say Sony and Apple used Quanta. MacBook Pro Air and Sony VAIO SB lets say. The models look nothing alike and aren't even in the same weight category and have distinct differences.

If Sony wanted to hide this information, why even bother including a Made in China sticker on the unit. In fact they didn't hide it. The sales reps should be told not to give out wrong information but the moral here is that any consumer can check the FCC ID of a product and find out where it is made. The information isn't hidden.

Sony engineers worked hard to make the units which is why they are very pricey in the labs and the truth is people today have become so dependent on technology without even knowing how to build their own computer taking for granted the work of others.

Just like I wanted to know if the Sony Store had them in stock (which they may or may not), if I asked the rep if it was made in Japan, she would likely tell me yes over the Chat forum which would be false.

Bad behaviors like these small things will never be undone by society. Would rather Sony work hard on the engineering and design issues than even looking into these minor issues. It isn't a function of lying though.

A lie in engineering is when someone cheapens the design or makes a product that has horrible consequences like safety issues or whatnot.

Humans are amazing at engineering and improving them to the best possible outcome resolving design flaws to make them better.

Anyways, from my super picky analysis of notebooks even without having tested any of them, the Sony SB is the most impressive that Ive seen to date that meets the segment of the market I am looking for product in but I have not seen it in person and tested it in real world usage.

 

ordered my SB on Saturday and says its supposed to ship tomorrow

* Items:
* 1

* Order Status:
* READY FOR SHIPMENT

* Estimated Ship Date:
* 03/22/2011

 

Thank you for moving the post Rachel - although I feel like a bit of a fraud starting the thread without the actual laptop! (I guess I am an owner, since I paid them the money)

Latest info from TNT is delivery tomorrow so providing they don't deliver it during a relatively small window when nobody will be here to sign for it, I will have first impressions/answers to questions from prospective purchasers & such for you all tomorrow evening UK time

 

I think the SA should be in a separate thread instead of with the SB since it'll be a relatively different product with a higher res screen and cf reinforced chassis. Another reason is that since the SA hasn't been officially announced yet, it would be good to keep the SA speculation in a separate thread from the already released SB.

 

its basically the same when sony launches signature series, they are all in the same thread no need for a new one.

 

It's going to be a different computer though due to the new chassis material/ construction.

 

didnt the signature editions offered different materials? from what we know its just a better screen and carbon fiber, nothing that major

 

The Sony SZ top end model came with a carbon fibre chassis and led backlit display. The low end model was made out of magnesium and it had a ccfl display and both models share the same owners' thread. The SB will also offer RAID drives and some models come with the 6630M graphics card.

I hope someone gets their laptop soon. I'm interested in finding out the measurements for the bezel. I want to compare it to my SZ. I think that this laptop bezel looks deceptively large because well there is very little camouflage.

 

I can't say about the vertical bezel height since I can't see where the vertical measurement ends, but here's my mathematical approximation of the width of the bezel:

Using the picture of the front of the S found on the Sony US site, assuming it is to scale(and why shouldn't it be?):

The width stated is 13.04" which is equal to a width of 279 pixels in the picture.

the bezel width in the picture is 14 pixels in width.

Therefore, 14 pixels * (13.04 inches/279 pixels) = 0.65434 inches. This is the width of the bezel on each side of the screen.

 

Did the SZ come with vPRO?

If I recall the SZ Retail for the top model was roughly what the SB top model is now going for in the USA. If/when SA comes out it will be very expensive and more of a "luxury" item.

 

^
No it didn't. The youngest models are now approaching about 3 years old. It might be better to look at the SR5/S1 series.

I know ssssssss was looking to compare the S series bezel with the SZ bezel also. Btw, the SZ7 bezel the lower part of the bezel is 1in, the top frame is 0.65in and the sides are 0.4 in.

 

Yup, this is the replacement for my SZ3, which is some big shoes for it to fill, since, although getting slightly long in the tooth, that was an amazing laptop (it was the all-singing all-dancing full-carbon-fibre James Bond job as mentioned above).

I've been looking at photos and I don't think the bezel will be that much bigger than the SZ. Probably just slightly thicker top & bottom cos it's 16:9 not 16:10. Unfortunately don't have the SZ any more (it was stolen), but will put some measurements of the SB up for you.

The TNT website informs me it's out for delivery from the local depot now, so hopefully my flatmate is awake!

 

Well, it's here, I've got it and it's booted up so I can post here...

Will post some first impressions in a bit once I've had a poke around. I will give the size of the screen bezel once I find some form of measuring implement!

Very first impressions though (I took it out the box about 25 minutes ago): I think I'm going to really like it. Fit & finish seem very nice.

 

@ssssssssss: glad you got your machine. Mine is still on preorder status.

Couple of questions I can't wait to answer for myself:

Does the ODD unit slide out (so it can be user-replaced with an SSD?)

Is there an open MiniPCIE slot inside anywhere that you can see (for sticking in a WWAN/GPS card)? This is a more involved question, since you might not want to start opening up the case on your new baby. I have a feeling the answer is going to be no, since Sony didn't offer a WWAN option on their site. But on the other hand Sony's specs were super giving mixed messages since in the manual it suggests there is a slot for a SIM card, which implies a WWAN slot somewhere.

Have fun with your new toy.

 

There is an WWAN option on the CTO site, well there was until the cto got taken down.

Can you give us pics and experience ? Especially how the keyboard feels, how the screen is and how hot it gets.

My sony has been sent but appearently still is somewhere they don't send me a track and trace of.

 

Top bezel - 19mm
Left/right bezel - 16mm
Bottom - hard to get my tape measure in the gap, but about 28mm

All measurements only in the same plane as the screen, ignoring the slight bevelled edge (most pronounced on the top where you open it)

So slightly bigger than the SZ, but not much? (I only converted your 17th century measurements in my head so may be slightly out). Subjectively it felt quite a lot bigger when I first booted it up, and in fact looked a bit strange, but I am already getting used to it.

 

Didn't we decide from that teardown pdf that the WWAN wasn't mini-PCI format? I can't swear to that though. And no, don't fancy taking it to bits just yet I'm afraid.

The screen is fairly decent - not amazing, but quite a bit better than the vast majority of laptop screens. Semi-matte probably a fair description.

Keyboard - I'm not a fan of chiclet keyboards at all but this is the nicest one I've used so far I think. Already up to a fairly decent speed. Certainly far, far superior to the year old 13" Macbook Pro I used the other week, which was the last chiclet keyboard I used.

Gets slightly warm in the same place as Macs but seems to be cooling itself down with the fans when it needs to. Hesitant to offer any real opinions until I've set up all the power options and things though.

@ nutral - does it just say 'Status - exception' on the TNT site? Mine said that before they cleared it out into TNT's shipping chain from the ship from the far east.

 

Could tell me how the travel is on the keyboard ? ive seen a review that said the travel is really short. How is the sheet battery btw ? Did you take it ?

I haven't even received the track and trace code yet, they said it was going out from japan (or wherever) yesterday and would be sent to me today so i would receive it tomorrow. That is the 4th time they didn't do what they said they would do.
If it takes any longer im going to demand a docking station (it would be a nice trade off if i say so myself )

 

I'd read it was quite short travel as well, but it seems to be longer than the MBP (I did use that a few weeks ago though and it's not mine, so I can't swear to that 100%)

A pale shadow of the SZ keyboard, but that was to be expected.

Didn't take the extra battery I'm afraid.

 

Oh alright, i have tried the macbook keyboards and they are fine for me so this one will work equal or better.

Status on the sony site still says: The order was being sent. (kind of strange, probably a translation error)

 

chin up, mine just says its in production. As of tomorrow that will be 14 days since they told me it was "in production" im expecting perfect build quality

 

Congratulations on your new SB.
Could you please post some pics?
Could you please tell me if it gets warm in the back under the screen?

 

Yes, it gets warm. Same place as a Mac, given the similar design. Not uncomfortably so so far though.

I am hesitant to make any real comments on heat, cooling etc until I've had a proper look at setting up my power profiles and things properly though.

Pictures - too busy fiddling with it at the moment to take any really, but it looks like the ones in the pictures on the Sony website!

 

Blows an awful lot less hot air out the back once I turn off the AMD card!

Knew that was a waste of money...

(more scientific temperature/cooling research still to come)

 

Mine has been in production from 3/3 till 21/3. Almost 3 weeks

 

Mine was in production, then out and apparently shipping, then back in production, then delayed because of the earthquake, then turned into two laptops and delayed again because apparently one was built & the other one wasn't, then out of production & shipped to me at which point it was definitely only one laptop.

Basically, anything Sony tell you up until you get a TNT tracking number is effectively meaningless

 

wooohooo, just got an email w/ tracking number, I'll have mine no later than Thurs @ 7pm

 

If anybody remembers where that teardown PDF is in the SA/SB thread, post a link. I followed that thread from the beginning but somehow missed that one link. And the thread isn't long enough to be searchable(@*&*$#!)

 

When did you get your order confirmation with receipt ? I just got it, says that the laptop has been sent today but still no track and trace number . Usually laptops come the day after so im hoping it will come tomorrow, my new roommate will be home then .

I don't know where it is, but i have it on my pc so i have uploaded it to my ftp. http://www.nutral.net/images/inside.pdf

 

thinking about ordering one of these soon.. how's the build quality on it? does it feel "sturdy"? my old sz150 felt a little bit on the flimsy side, esp around the screen

 

I placed my order on Sat March 19th and got the conf/receipt same day. Just received the shipping conf w/ tracking number this afternoon. One thing to note, I selected express shipping as I was going to be out of town during the standard delivery period

 

What did you order with it ?
Would be terrible if i could have gotten my laptop earlier if orderd a week later.
Could be the sheet battery though, i haven't seen anyone that received it and had a sheet battery.

 

You rock buddy, thanks.

 

Really impressed with the build quality. My SZ3 flexed more, but obviously that was carbon fibre. All the metal makes it feel nice and durable.

i5-2520/8GB/500GB 7200/TPM, no 3G, no sheet battery.

I ordered before you though didn't I?

 

what is the amd gpu in it?

 

6470M, I think? Didn't pay for the upgrade.

Only been using the Intel graphics so far, although I haven't done any proper testing it does seem to run warmer on the AMD. The Intel will be fine for my needs anyway, I only got the 6470 because there wasn't an option to get rid of it!

 

Would a Toshiba make more sense if you didn't want a discrete GPU? Lighter and similarly equipped minus the GPU

 

That was certainly a strong contender, but in the end a few other factors swung it for the Vaio - like the fact I've had quite a few of them now & they've all been very good, and I badly needed a laptop & the Sandy Bridge Vaios came out first.

This looks like it will be a really nice laptop, especially for the cost - slightly more than half what I paid for my last Vaio!

 

Awesome, i got my tracking code this morning and the package is already on route. Too bad im having classes today. Package is coming from germany and not from tilburg like they said. Almost everything they said to me on the phone was wrong.
I will post some pictures of the laptop with sheet battery later today when i have it.

 

congrats, looking forward to your opinion on it. what specs did you order?

 

Black, i5 2520, 6630M, 500g 5400, fingerprint+tpm and sheet battery. I am very curious about the gpu performance. My current laptop has a 9600M gt and runs most games on low with the lower resolutions. I am going to see how easy i can replace the odd with my intel g2 80gb.

 

curious myself, I have the AMD 3650 and I am wondering how it will compare to the new 6630, probably better I would imagine.

 

Allright, my current laptop has around the same specs as yours (t9400, 9600mgt) Im curious if i am going to be able to work on a 1366x768 screen. My current laptop has 1680x105 wich is a great res. I am going to do some autocad, photoshop, dreamweaver, illustrator, word and excel stuff on it.

 

Don't envy you that!

1366x768 is pretty rubbish but bearable at 13.3". It won't be a huge issue with what I'm doing with it (I have a work laptop for my design stuff, and a workstation for my home audio stuff), and I have an external screen I can use if necessary.

May well look into the possibility of upgrading to an SA screen in a year or so though.

 

Mine is put back again to next week, so finally rang sony. They claim its through lack of parts (yeh building peoples who bought after me.. )
more specifically he claims he's heard on the grapevine its the 6630M GPU's which were delayed, but laptops with them are shipping today onwards....

would be very interested to hear the full specs of people who have received theirs?

 

Makes sense, if they ordered a different spec. They seem to be sending them in roughly the right order though, despite delays - I was the first on here to order one I think, and I got mine first.

 

i ordered after you (4/3), and i got mine first (monday morning). I think the spec will make a difference.

this is my spec : 500 GB Serial ATA (7200 rpm), CoreTM i5-2520M 2.50GHz, AMD Radeon(TM) HD 6630M 1GB, Black, 8 GB, Security features.

 

oh thats awesome! can you do some intensive stuff with the AMD turned on to see how it handles the temps?