Official Sony VAIO F Series Owners lounge *PART 2*

By the way I've found a temporary fix for the whistling - if you encode 20 hours of HD video in the background, as well as having a premiere project open, with soundbooth rendering a recording behind it, skype, spotify and 6 firefox tabs open in the foreground like I'm doing at the moment, it works it just about hard enough to get the fan above the "just above idle" point at which it whistles.

This thing is a beast!

Edit: The above should not be taken seriously as a fix, although technically it does work...

 

Hi guys,

I've been thinking about getting a VPCF11Z1E/BI but all this talk of fan noise has got me worried!
is it a problem for all the vaio f laptops or only certain models?

Any advise on this will be much appreciated..

Cheers.

 

Well I've just experienced a horrible run in with Sony's lead tech for my area. I called in the repair for the Morse code issue and they sent a tech out within the next couple of days. In a hour and fifteen minutes this guy has destroyed my mint condition Vaio F.

Before he even began to work on it he laid it down on my hard wood table with nothing protecting the top of the machine. I had to recommend that he put a pad (provided by me) under the machine before he begins.

The first time he disassembled my machine he broke the Wifi tab that connects to the mother board. He say's "looks like the Wifi is broken, I'll have Sony send a new mother board." Never owning up to the fact that he broke it. The second disassemble began due to not plugging everything in causing certain functions to not work. Once everything was plugged in and working (so he thought) he quickly said he would be back in a couple days with the mother board and said good bye. I went to my Vaio and was astounded at what I found.

I began by closing the laptop to see how it feels and couldn't help but notice the dozens of scratches now covering my machine. It looks like he took one of his precision screw drivers and tried making his own design on the top of what once was my scratch free machine, I was infuriated....it gets worse.

I then took a look at the sides and bottom of the case work around the inputs. I found the left side of my machine, in the corner by the S400 input, is cracked and that whole side will no longer snap in properly in the casing.

Next I found the sound no longer works and both USB ports don't work. Something is rattling around inside my machine now as well.

Almost as if this guy took my Vaio and threw it across the room and called it a day. I still can't believe what has taken place. Before he showed up to my house I had the perfect Vaio in mint condition, now I have something that is pretty much useless to me.

I contacted Sony about this debacle and they are treating this like any other warranty case. At first they were just going to send a box in 3 to 5 business days to have shipped to San Diego for repair. It took 2 hours on the phone with them finally speaking with national customer relations to get them to over night the box and have this expedited. Although my problem is still this, I don't want a refurbished machine sent back to me. I refuse to pay the amount of money I spent on my Vaio just to have a refurb less than two months into owning it.

I am not impressed with Sony's complete rubbish customer service in the least. They could care less that the tech sent to my home has destroyed my Vaio and are doing nothing to keep me as a customer. I asked what could be done on my behalf and all I was offered was a 3 month extension to my 12 month warranty, unsatisfactory.

Had I known what was going to take place I never would have let that guy step a foot into my home and just lived with the Morse code.

I'm merely posting this to vent my rage, for this I apologize

 

So I left my computer completely shut down, with nothing plugged into it (except the battery) for about 4 hours overnight, and I went from 79% battery to 64% battery.

The charge level seems to be inaccurate, however, as I've been using the laptop for about 30 minutes (web surfing, etc) and the battery dipped to 59%, but is now back at 64%? I'm using the battery management program (set to a max of 80% charge). Could this be causing the low readings? At this point I don't think the battery lost a significant amount of charge overnight, as the battery readings seem to be off.



Links:
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_LDrKKDoNZ5c/S5u2TnAgeCI/AAAAAAAAAMk/HYdxvAfVh3I/SIW_charged.PNG

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_LDrKKDoNZ5c/S5u2UrqidqI/AAAAAAAAAMo/gl2MsdnHMVM/SIW_aftercharged.PNG

 

@ YBF, cheers man..

Another thing I was wondering is, is it possible to upgrade the cpu on these laptops, say from the i7-720qm to the i7-920XM?

I'd quite like to upgrade in the future when prices come down if that's possible.

Not sure I should be posting this question here, if not apologies..

 

@pandemoniumone

Sorry about your user experience with the tech. I was planning on scheduling mine in a week's time. Now I will have to talk to Sony about their handling policy before anyone steps past my door or if I have to ship it out.

BIG THUMBS DOWN TO SONY FOR EVEN ALLOWING THIS.

WHERE IS SONY'S GUARANTEE TO ITS CUSTOMERS?

I now have NO CONFIDENCE in their tech support at all! I do not want someone who will treat my notebook like a ragdoll breaking parts left and right. I also do not believe cosmetic damage is excusable. If they damage it they'll have to replace it.

 

I have kept the taskbar on the right side of my screen for over a year. The extra vertical is something I prefer and keeping the desktop icons off as well. Here is my issue with Win7. I cannot keep two rows or columns of icons on the taskbar- this could be done with Vista. Win7 has a slider (which allows another column), but there is too much dead space in the taskbar area. Keeping the taskbar on the right or left has improved in Win7, but not with is one issue. Important to me. The start button will stay on the top unless you can find a reg hack. Any info or reg hack for my icon issue would be greatly appreciated.

waitwaitwait- My opinion is based on the pictures, you have more bleed than mine. Again, hard to tell with pictures. Bleeding is very minor on my F and should be expected with all laptop screens.

 

I am interested in this Vaio F11 w/ i7, 330m from Newegg.
Before I buy, couple quick questions:
Is the screen glossy or matte?
Just how big does it feel? Does it feel like a behemoth or reasonable?

 

The screen is matte in the UK for the premium 1080p screen. It is glossy for eveything else. The lamp technology (I believe) is dual ccf lamps. The matte screen is good, but there have been complaints about backlight bleed and poor viewing angles for the glossy.

It feels pretty hefty. Definitely not for people who travel often. It's very much a mobile desktop replacement in terms of the power and heft.

 

No matte screen for US buyers?

 

Glossy in the US. I stepped down from a 17' HP Pavilion and prefer this size. I use as a desktop, do not miss the reduction in screen size, and when I do carry it around it's lighter than a 17". A good balanced feel without the gamer plastic look.

 

Nope . At least not for now.

 

No, the GPU is soldered in, the CPU CAN be swapped. The point is that the cooling system and design of the slim case do not allow for adequate ventilation for a higher power dissipation.

What would be worthwhile is putting in an i9, six cores and 50% greater speed yet with lower power consumption.

 

What would be worthwhile is putting in an i9, six cores and 50% greater speed yet with lower power consumption.[/QUOTE]

Our i7's will soon be so yesterday.

 

Cheers MelodyMaster,

So no way could I later put a i7-920XM processor in without it catching fire/blowing up/killing me?

As for the six core i9, sounds sweet but I'm assuming that's just speculation?

EDIT: btw I want this laptop for music production but I've heard that the firewire on these laptops may not be suitable (I use an m-audio fw audiophile)
has anyone any experience in this field?

p.s. really appreciate the help I've been getting, wish all forums were like this..

 

I've had my FW screen replaced by a tech who came into my home early this year. He was very knowledgeable and very careful with my machine. When it was replaced along with my motherboard, I inspected it and it was in mint condition. My suggestion would be to hang around the tech and see how he is handling the computer if you see he or she is being to rough on your Vaio, perhaps ask them to stop and see if Sony can send another perhaps more experience tech out. I couldn't imagine someone doing that to my Vaio, i'd end up arrested for assaulting the guy, lol.

 

If Sony puts out a better screen for North America in one of their upcoming refreshes, would it be possible to purchase that part from Sony? and, would you do it within your warranty period?

 

Yes, I would definitely think twice before having an in home service done on your system. Unless Sony suddenly changes direction with how they are handling my case my next machine will be something other than Sony.

Trust me, hard lesson learned. I only wish he was still in my home when I found my Vaio in the state he left it in.

 

Bad news, see pics -somewhere earlier in this thread- it is all Ricoh, looks like the main reason for buying Vaios- the TI chips is over. The worst is that using express card FW wont help since the express has also Ricoh chip. Since I am also doing audio, will probably get Z instead if they still use TI, or shift to MBP.

 

Damn that's made things complicated..

Unfortunately I can't switch to MBP as I've been on pc/cubase for 10y, all my projects etc. just can't be switched..

Thanks anyway.

 

Does anyone know why the screen refresh rate sticks to 59 Hz not 60 Hz... I have Vaio Premium Display with 330M GPU. The LCD supports 60 Hz.
What is the reason behind this?

Thanks...

 

so ive got an infraction for asking whether the laptop is plastic and whether it can break easily. Thanks

 

Good question. I've been meaning to ask this one too.

 

Congrats! Myopia of the brain is sad indeed. Most often, people on this site have been magnanimous in answering many of your questions. Far kinder than I would be. Give people a reason to believe you are connected to the internet and have the ability to do basic research on your own. Take a step back and read your posts and honestly tell us it's the mods and us who are the ones who don't 'get it'. I've been off topic, asked noob questions, and wondered why no one has answered a question of mine. But remember common courtesies apply, even in a thread with people throughout the world, whom you will never see, participate in.
Hey, lets get more knowledgeable about our F's now. That is all.

 

It has to do with the actual laptop display. Many displays actually have a ~59.94hz refresh rate. In previous versions of Windows, this number would be rounded up to 60hz. In Win7, there is no rounding so the refresh rate is stated as 59hz. Effectively, it's the same as 60hz - that's why if you try to change to 60hz, it reverts back to 59hz. This has to do with the refresh of the monitor and not the gpu itself/drivers.

As far as I know, there aren't any reductions in image/video quality resulting from a 59hz refresh rate. I might be wrong though. The refresh rate in games looks fine to me.

 

Why? Cubase works on Mac too. If you want to stick to pc buy only with return option or possibility to test with your soundcard, i wouldnt buy any computer without checking how it performs with my audio/midi setup. Dont have such possibility with F, maybe later when they are more widely available. Unfortunately cant give any info about TI Firewire chip/ which models, I am not even sure if new Z series will have one.

 

Here is my SIW information after full charge and after 4 hours shutdown and newly started on battery.

100% to 82%

 

Yeah it's not just Cubase though it's the amount of plugins that are windows only.

Plus the MBP's STILL haven't been updated, & you get tied to the Apple machine (all of a sudden dropping express card for example) meaning you can only upgrade your hardware when they feel like it.

 

Gotta try this again once it recharges to 100%. After sending that post and redoing Joe Bleau's suggestion on draining a phantom charge which was approximately +/-10 mins later. I had a reading of 76% in SIW

 

hey guys, I just did a clean install on my laptop and i got a question,

You know the quick launch buttons on the top of the keyboard: the assist, s1 and vaio button. I was wondering if you change what they launch. I tried searching this thread, couldnt really find it.

Thanx in advance,
HG.

 

Turns out I was lied to by national customer relations. I called FedEx to inquire on the box that I was expecting and was told nothing for today as well as in the near future. I'm on hold (waiting to speak with a manager) with Sony as I type this after being told national customer relations gave me "miss information" that I wont be seeing the box until Tuesday of next week. They're doing an exceptional job at making sure I never purchase Sony again.

 

I think i know what you mean. There is an inbuilt option to change the s1 button only. But i wanted to change my vaio button. Cause when i press it it launched mute option.

Regards,
HG

 

Re: Vaio Special Keys Remapping

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=6000527&posted=1#post6000527

Unification Post #2 http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5992644&postcount=554

 

No, the i9 is definite, the Intel embargo ends June 26th, that's when units using that CPU from ANY manufacturer will be available for sale. But pricing is yet unknown.

 

No there's no way the screen could be updated while keeping the warranty. But at least the display would be AVAILABLE as a Sony part, probably some $400 or so. Barring that I myself would try to obtain it from a third-party LCD vendor, or another laptop vendor such as Samsung. Changing it would have to be done by an independant technician.

 

I HOPE the firewire is suitable, that's an important use for me too. It's the small connector, meaning one has to find a cable with the client-type plug on both ends, something I don't have in my overflowing box of computer cables.

Is there an M-audio Firewire audio card? That's interesting. I use an M-audio 192 on the desktop.

 

OH, no native drivers..? Damn.

(edit) well it can still be used for capturing video, an express card with multiple ports including TI Firewire could be used for Nuendo.

 

melody are you happy with the build of the laptop and do you think it will last you a long time.

 

From what I have gathered over time from the "What notebook should I buy?" section of the forum plus alittle bit of research, most people prefer to use notebooks with a Texas Instrument firewire chipset, those are known to work well for audio production purposes. That said, there are many people who have had notebooks with non-TI FW chipset that have been fine. But TI FW chipset is pretty much guaranteed to work.

And yes M-audio makes a range of FW audio interfaces.

 

Standard NTSC video is 59.94, that's the ACTUAL refresh rate, improves vertical resolution on native video. But 60Hz is available also. What would be nice is 120 Hz or better to be multiples of film, North American, and European scanning standards, still used as refresh rates in HD video.

No, for the number of single-purpose posts of questions which are well-covered during the normal course of events in this thread. At one point it sounded like you were going out to buy it. Why didn't you?

The F11 uses plastic, has a lousy screen, noisy fan, is built only to Sony's best cost-advantage, has many compromises, design problems, crummy warranty, and is overall a terribly flawed piece of machinery. But those who OWN it (note the operative word..) love it..

 

are you being serious about all those problems, if you are why did you buy it then.

 

I agree.

Check jacksjw's interesting post here.

 

About the screens, a single notebook model can have panels of the same specification (ie. resolution) from different manufacturers. Lets take an example such as the Thinkpad T61p, with the 1920x1200 screen option, you have the possibility of receiving a LG or SEC (samsung) manufactured screen. There are of course other panel manufacturers such as AUO.

Basically what I am trying to say is that not every F series (of the same screen option) will have screens from one single manufacturer. Then of course screens from a manufacturer will not all be perfect.

 

Because as Joe Bleau puts it succintly, It is a muscle car err... laptop

Edit: Jokes aside, when you actually get down and dirty to really use this computer, it produces amazing results!!!

 

Most including myself also purchased this notebook due to it's features it includes at a very reasonable price. I compared other brands at this same price they didn't even compare. I hated seeing HD screens as features on a notebook but with only dvd drives in them, to me it kind of defeats the purpose. Sony so far has given people a lot to like with the F spec wise. It's not perfect but no laptop is. I would say to any one looking at this model to pick one up in a heart beat.

 

@OotLink

Whaaat? lol...the look grew on me..I think Sony did quite well to pack this thing in a size that's almost the same as the FW. At the very least we don't get the Bangle B*tt look of BMW

 

I was sold on the looks of the brown FW590, which I had originally ordered. I didn't see an actual F11 until my silver one arrived in January. It's a definite step down in looks but at least it has the VAIO hinge and sunken keyboard, a design trademark.

The FW had a kind of retro art-deco look which the F11 has lost. And I'm a 1920s collector so the FW fit right in.

 

The hinge felt like I could easily pop it off the first day I got it but I sure do miss those dipping curves.

 

for me the looks are important, i hope its not ugly like some other laptops out there, as long as its good and professional then thats all that matters.

 

@YBF

Ok, this has been plugged in for almost an hour now at 100% recharge. Shutdown and removed battery and pressed the power button to remove any left over charge (lid open and closed - if that matters).

Once powering up on battery right after, I get a win7 battery reading of 94% and SIW reading of 93%. Are they both right?

Note: I am in high performance mode with wifi and bluetooth enabled. Also I have Aero and whatever other win 7 features came at default with Fresh Start.