Official Sony VAIO F Series Owners lounge *PART 2*

Watts can be measured directly on the DC side of the power supply and is the simple equation W=E*I where W=watts, E=voltage and I=current. Things get more tricky on the AC or mains side for calculating watts due to reactance and other factors. Most multimeters do not measure more than 2 amps of current directly. Measurement levels above that will need a discrete ammeter or inductance clamp style meter.

I have all of the above and will try to set up an experiment once I find all of the parts. Don't hold your breath.

From the SIW report, at up to about 3% CPU utilization, the I7 draws 15.34 watts. Above that it jumps to 55.04 watts. Nothing in between.

 

I just have the time to post some pic (Just wondering if you guys can check your device manager and see if you have the same components as mine, never heard about Optiarc for BD ROM)





Tried to see how many defect that my system have, so far I recognized few.

1)Morse code - FIXED
2)Spacebar Squeak - FIXED
3)LCD Bleed from the bottom of the screen - NO SOLUTION
4)Occasional speaker distortion - FIXED

I bought the system early march from JR.Com (I guess I might get the old stock), though I have the green dot version and 2010-02 on the back.

PS:I compared the screen with my previous laptop, an ancient acer travelmate, the SONY screen is a lot BRIGHT, after applying SpyderExpress profile (1600X900) the color is much better, but I like my old travelmate screen better, the black is more deep black then SONY.

 

I just read the PowerDVD10 Hardware support details, and i dont see NVIDIA GeForce GT330M listed.
Does that mean F11 doesnt support powerdvd10s future such us TrueTheatreHD,TrueTheatre 3d and HighDefinitionAudio over HDMI?

 

No, it means the release of the GT330m postdates the information in that Faq.

 

So as I say, use VAIOcare to uninstall then reinstall Corel. Then worry about the update.

 

Have to state that I have never lost the network card yet (whether in operation, when coming out of sleep or whether coming out of hibernation) in my F....has always performed like a swiss watch.

 

We need a review of the battery complaints that have plagued the past 10 pages or so. I have had a hard time following some of it, and a lot of new viewers may not get what we have been comparing.

 

"From the SIW report, at up to about 3% CPU utilization, the I7 draws 15.34 watts. Above that it jumps to 55.04 watts. Nothing in between" - But SIW also reports for the F on battery "Balanced Mode" with the screen not dimmed, no wifi & no Bluetooth: 34.5 Watts consumption:



Compared to 43 Watts when I ran Battery Eater here. It's a 2005 utility so probably not working out the 4 cores but it's still used by notebookcheck & Tom's Hardware for their reviews.

"W=E*I" is the same as in French P = V * I which I roughly translated as W = V x A, but the end result is still the same.

Looking forward to your data.

Edited to add: fresh from our Vaio_F_Series lab :

 

The battery complaints have been put humanly to sleep. They are gone where it's always nice & sunny, and it smells good too.

Check Vaio_F_Series Battery Overnight Drainage FIX!

Or Search this Thread with: battery.

"battery complaints that have plagued the past 10 pages or so" - do you prefer 10 pages of posts about whining or 10 pages about squeaky keys instead?
***

 

Sent an email to sony support asking them to visit this thread (I gave them the link) and comment or make some valued community "face-time", and to see the detailed consumer feedback. I got a very polite "!!!!!".

"Thank you for contacting Sony Support.

Customer input and response is invaluable in the continued support and development of our products. We want you to know that we appreciate your feedback.

Thank you for your time.

The Sony Email Response Team"


Also, nice work by the community on the battery issue. Joe, have others confirmed your fix? I believe it will work, but strength in numbers. I already have your battery issue post linked on the unification.

 

I got the exact same canned reply when suggesting to add to to Sony_support's kb the calibrating battery fix for the battery gauge reporting error.

But I don't take it as a !.

"Joe, have others confirmed your fix?" - a couple of people are working on it but they have been busy with all nighters or flying for real (as in not in a game ). Patience.

I asked twice to OoTLink to post is new battery gauge result as he reported the error & mentioned that he went through the discharge/re-charge cycle, but to no avail.

 

Bought one of these tonight from Best Buy. This thing really screams after doing a clean install. My only real complaint is the quality of the screen. It is without a doubt a step back from the Macbook Pro and the Asus G73 I had. And yeah, I know about turning the auto dim off and I also applied a color profile from this thread. The color profile helped, but not enough to make me happy.

The fan is also a tad noisy, but not so bad that I can't live with it.

 

Do me a favor, and check the label on your battery.

There you'll find that it is indeed a 5000mAh battery. If your utilities don't report in mAh, that's not my problem.

 

Why can't you say if your battery gauge is fixed or not?

You posted at least 3 times about a presumed battery problem, it's only fair to the readers of this forum to report when it's fixed.

BTW, I don't need to look at the label as I posted this 5000mAh info as well as for the optional large capacity battery a long time ago with links to the products pages here.

The VGP-BPS21A product page > Specifications: 5000mAh x 10.8 V = 54000 mWh rating. The screen captures from SIW & Battery Eater previously posted show: 57240mWh.

So yes, the battery is rated 5000mAh but the real capacity is higher when new in the case of the Vaio_F11. Would you prefer the opposite?

I'm starting to think that you are an escapee from the Trolling Rehab Thread.

 

You know, this IS interesting, (after fixing the power standby issue)everytime the Bluetooth mouse was lost on the F11, followed by a freeze, I was on Gtalk; just now I was on the Asus, running XP home, and Gtalk froze then the system bluescreened. And the person I was TALKING to had a freeze later on (on a P4 desktop.) I wonder if all my Bluetooth problems are errors caused by the Google Mail talk window application. (?)

As for the F11's network card failing to reinitialize after hibernation, well, it doesn't happen until it happens.

 

lol ok Joe, got the point, I'm impressed actually :O

I've never seen a li-ion that had more charge than it was labeled to have. xD

 

Why can't you say if your battery gauge is fixed or not?

Because it's fixed!

 

Because I ran it down twice today and I'm currently charging it XD

I told ya a few days ago it was at 100%, where the machine refused to charge it.

SIW reports a max of 57240 or whatever too, so.. yea. You were right. Sorta. Anyway, wasn't the reason I was going to return the computer anyway (the PSU and case edge are still withstanding). I'm up to my eyeballs in homework, so I haven't had the time to go trade out.

Much to your dismay I'll probably grab another Vaio F, lol. I like it, it's powerful, and I think the battery life (this one gets 2.5 hours!!) is pretty sweet. That's what really mattered to me.

I wish it was as solid as my PB, but we're talking about 8/10 vs 9/10 anyway. As you may have figured by now, most of my posts are exaggerating hardcore. I'm afraid I'll have to apologize for beating on you so hard >>

 

Uncle!!!!!!!!!!!!

"most of my posts are exaggerating hardcore" - be careful with that, many would be buyers come here to find owners feedback. Just say the truth.

Your truth is good enough as everything is relative.

 

Man I <3 1920x1080 screens. I'm still not sure why people complain so much about the LCD though, I have great desktop LCDs (S-IPS and all that), and while these may not be the best in the world they're pretty decent for a laptop LCD.

That issue is greatly exaggerated IMHO. If I have some free time tomorrow I'll try to pull off the color IQ test on here and see if I can't get 0. I was just taking a look and it doesn't look like it'd be that hard

 

What occasional speaker distortion are you referring to? This hissing?

I get some vibration on the left side of the chassis when certain high frequency sounds play. If I hold down the left side of the chassis near the speaker it goes away.

May have to send this in

 

It's not that extraordinary, my Asus has a 7400mAh battery that is actually around 7780mAh.

 

Zomg Asooose! lol a friend of mine thought Sony was this fancy posh brand, and Asus was the real value brand. I dunno. The G73 is fricken HYOOOOGE.

 

But it lacks the basic requirements of a professional notebook, such as Expressport, Esata, Firewire, and plain simple portability.

(edit) anyway everybody in this thread agrees Asus makes fine laptops. I personally never thought of Asus as a "Budget" brand, far from it... We're not ultimately making our final choice based on Cowabunga pizazz, or its hugeness or lack thereof, just the balance of price and features we require... with some Brand Preference thrown in.

 

You are aware that rebooting is the act of restarting (turning off then turning back on automatically) the computer right?

I'm guessing you were mistaking this with reinstalling the Operating System which is a completely different thing.

 

No, I am aware of the difference between both of the operations you mention above. What I was wondering, though, was whether using the diagnostic utility when the wireless dropped didn't offer possible reconnect strategies (change IP address, reset network adapters, etc.) or, that failing, unplugging and resetting the modem.

I couldn't really get my mind around the need to actually reboot a computer to get the wireless card to reinstate an Internet connection. Wow.....

 

Well with an SSD it only takes 20 seconds or so anyway..

 

Hi everyOne,
And at last i received my F113FD after 3 months as a replacement for FW590 wich i received it defected. Sony did keep its promise and send it this time.
the new f11 series i received is a piece of art, it has:
windows7 home premium
core i7 720QM 1.6
6GB of 1333 Mhz ram
500 GB 5400rpm hd
Nvidia gt 310M 512mb 1600x900
BD reader
Blacklit keyboard
Black color

I love this notebook it is fast and i realized that it has no fan noise no whining
no issues that been posted previously in the thread, it is great and beauty
I need to ask: can i install win7 Pro from a FW590 (recovery disk) to my new f11 series notebook? and if the FW590 power adapter works with the F11 one!
Thank you

 

If the power adaptor is 19.1 volts, 100 watts at least, and has the same plug, it can be used.

You'd have to lie to Microsoft to activate Windows, since it was licensed for the FW.

 

Good evening / morning / afternoon??

This is my virgin post so go easy on me!!

After spending much (wasted) time waiting foolishly for a refreshed MBP I decided to go for a F11.

Apple have lost me to Sony and they only have themselves to blame!

Anyway the little black beauty is due for shipping 23rd - 28th March and I can't wait.

To hit the ground running with my new purchase I wonder if anyone could help me out with the following.

1. Ive ordered the 500GB 7200rpm. Anybody know if this has a partition applied to it and if so what is the split? I understand the reason for the program split from data but I do hope its not 250gb/250gb like in my current Toshiba as I find it a pain and a 100gb / 400 gb split would be better.

2. Not a huge gamer but was thinking about linking this up to my HDTV via HDMI and getting a bluetooth controller. a) does the bluetooth interfere with the wireless network (i'm running n by the way) and b) what the resolution going to be like as Ive heard that at 1920x1080 alot of games will get very choppy?

3. I know it has been covered in other posts but what bloatware should I lose? I was thinking Norton and Mcaffe as the biggest resource hogs? I dont want to do a clean install as ive had to do several in the last six months with my Toshiba (don't ask) and Windows 7 NEVER seems to pick up all the drivers.

Sorry for the huge first post!
I will repay all with full details of my dream machine once she arrives.

 

1. Can't help you sorry. I don't remember what my 500gb drive was like, but I don't remember any 1/2 1/2 split like you talk about, that would have been very odd. The system restore disks didn't do anything like that when I put them on my SSD, so you probably shouldn't worry about it.

2. If you got a 330m gpu, then many games will run fine at 1920x1080, you just have to lower other settings. Mangosango did a huge post on it. You can find it under "reviews" in the http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5992644&postcount=554

3. A semi-clean install may be the way for you to go. Check out the unification post. Also, I _did not_ do a clean install, because I have SSD and the core i7 is b l a z i n g fast. Getting rid of the obvious ones seems like a "win", like mcafee, etc, but after that, just try using the computer. She's very fast, and you may not need to do as much cleaning as you think.

4. CONGRATULATIONS and WELCOME!

 

"The company (Optiark) was established on April 3, 2006 as a joint venture between Sony_and NEC Corporation" - Not exactly new kids on the block.

Read more about it: Sony_Optiarc BC-5500 Series, Sony_Optiarc (Wikipedia), Optiarc BD-5730S-01 with a few user reviews and sony_optiarc search on Amazon.
---
Vaio_F Extraordinary Battery?

I never wrote that the F's battery was "extraordinary", just responding to the OP quoted here saying: " (F battery) should be around 5000mAh, the rating of the battery itself). It's probably going to be more around 4400-4600 - while the SIW & Battery Eater utilities both show an actual higher capacity than the one stated on the battery label as explained here.

 

I do have the same DVD optiarc 55004.

My F11 is also 1600x900 can you share or provide the link for the SpyderExpress profile (1600X900)?

Thank you in advance.

 

Been noticing the alternating fan noise on mine. It fluctuates in a way that is a tad annoying. I know it has been discussed before, but is there anything that can be done about it or is it just the way it is?

And to the person who said they put a piece of tape over the sensor in order to keep the backlight on: THANKS!

 

Good news.
The webcam issue has been solved after the webcam was replaced by Sony.

After many calls and reformatting the machine Sony sent a technician to replace the webcam.

Now all seems to be working great.

 

1) Mine came with 500GB 7200RPM (Fresh start) It comes with two partitions. one main 459 Gb and a hidden one for the Sony recovery tool.

3) The machine came with win 7 PRO 64 Fresh Start and it came with some sony software that I consider to be very useful .

 

I hope that you took some photos of the replacement procedure & will post them here!

Or at least could you describe the procedure? I would like to replace the webcam with a higher definition one if possible.

Did he removed only the LCD bezel or the screen itself?

If he did remove the display, pray to God that you noted the brand & model number!

 

Took some pictures but they aren't good and it will take some time to get them out from the camera.

Sorry to disappoint you but no I didn't take the part no. of the screen. The camera replacement never exposed the full screen so I didn't get a chance to see it.

The steps were simple.

1. Remove battery and A/C adaptor.
2. Remove all the screws under the battery and at both sides of it (under the screen hinges).
3. Remove turn back the machine and remove the section in front of the keyboard the one that holds the S1 button. You need to snap it out.
4. Remove the speakers.
5. Remove the hinge screws.
6. On the screen remove the small rubber pads on each corner.
7. Remove the 4 screws that holds the frame of screen.
8. Snap out the frame.

To reassemble follow the same steps backwards.

 

Hrm, Sony emailed me at 1am on the 17th saying my Vaio was now at Sony Logistics and would be dispatched on the 18th (I was wondering why it wouldn't be dispatched that day if it's already at Logistics...) but now it's 11pm on the 18th and they've not notified me of dispatch. Looks like I wont be getting it before the weekend like they said

 

For fun & for tcklim, I just removed the Vaio_F11 speakers cover (5 minutes) & took some photos:

1- First you need a little helper and a soft working surface to avoid scratching the Precious:



2- I used a small Phillips screwdriver with a magnetized point, useful to extract the little screws from the deep holes & it helps also when putting them back in:

Before sending in your_F11, you could try:

1- Vaio_F Sound distortion *possible fix* in, you guessed it, the Unification Post #2. On my F, several of the canned Realtek equalizer settings & the Dolby for some media add distortions to the F's speakers: clicking the Speaker icon on the task bar > Enhancement & Dolby tabs:



When using more than one equalizer simultaneously, the sound is terrible so I disabled all effects in Realtek & use only the one included in Media Player or in the free Media Player Classic, only if needed:



If you use the Media Player 12, included in Win 7, there is an equalizer as shown above, have you tried it? To set the graphic equalizer or by changing skin: How To Enable Equalizer in Windows Media Player 12.

2- to eliminate your cover vibrations: tighten the 6 speakers cover screws as seen in the photo #2.

3- if that does not work, check the possible vibration sources seen in photo #5. You could also add some small pieces of self adhesive foam strip to the interface speaker/cover or to the underpart of the cover itself to absorb said vibrations.

I would rather try these easy DIY fixes than risk shipping damage or cosmetic scratches made the repair tech.

Hope this helps!

 

Funny, while you were writing this post, I was doing some of the steps you described & writing the "How-To Remove Speakers Cover, FIX: Distortions & Vibrations" above.

"Took some pictures but they aren't good and it will take some time to get them out from the camera" - if it's a SD or SDHC memory card, there is a fast card reader below the touchpad on the_F11. If "they aren't good", you could PM me & I could tweak them with Photoshop maybe & send them back to you for posting?

How long did the tech took to complete the webcam replacement procedure?

Anyway, thanks for the how-to info!

 

Sadly the pictures are in CF :-(. But your pictures are much better than anything that I could provide. They are in fact great.

BTW on the right speaker there is only one screw because the other is a pass through if you have the picture would be great.

It took him about an hour and I think this was the first time he did disassemble this model.

You got pretty far. From there is only removing the screws of the screen hinges and removing the 4 screws of the screen corners. About 10 minutes more than you already invested.

 

Hi - I have a VPCF1190X purchased direct from Sony Style in January. Last night I left the laptop on running on battery power only. This morning, I could not get the laptop to turn on. I thought it may be the battery drained but I plugged it in and still could not get the laptop to turn on. The green power light would turn on and off every few seconds. I left for work and then came home tonight assuming a full day of battery recharging might help. However, I still cannot get the laptop to boot. The green power light stays on solid, and if I touch the keyboard the backlight turns on, but nothing at all displays on the screen. I can hear the fan on the laptop, but nothing else. It seems like the laptop is asleep but there's nothing I can do to wake it up.

Called Sony Support but they were unable to help, after several different attempts, taking battery out, unseating/reseating the RAM, etc. They are going to send a technician, but that could be several business days.

Has anyone encountered a problem that sounds like this?

Thank you.

Ed

 

I'd already gone through all the equalizer and dolby settings, it wasn't the same issue and switching the dolby enhancer off very measurably deteriorates the quality of the sound overall. I'm not referring to the poor bass on the machine - that's fine really as I don't use this to listen to music - but simply a vibration sound that will occur during certain frequencies while watching movies or even youtube videos. It's definitely a build/chassis resolution as holding down the left side during the same movie clip prevents the rather irritating sound from happening.

I had also tried tightening the screws at the bottom of the machine but no luck.

I had not tried removing the speaker grill and messing around with the internals though, didn't think it would be that straightforward. Will try tighten the fan screws over the weekend and report back.

Thanks for the very detailed steps there Joe ..... cute cat.

 

Thanks MelodyMaster.

 

There is no messin' around the internals. Removing the speakers cover is very easy & straight forward.

Once the cover is removed, try a media that was causing the vibrations you noticed. After securing the screws & stuff shown in photo #5, I was suggesting to apply some small pieces of single sided foam tape (or strip) as seen in this page (or in hardware or electronic parts stores):



It can be thinned out if the gap cover/speaker is very small.

A piece can be added to a part under the cover that is not in contact with anything to absorb vibrations. Just a little bit can be enough to change the resonance pattern.

I knew you did not have a sound effects problem but thought it could be useful to some so I added it to the post.

If the cover is not tight against the laptop body even with the screws tighten then check this also:

 

Quick answer for your question #1.
Someone already answered this part...but all HDD from Sony will come with 2 partition...main partition and ~10GB partition for hidden factory image.
For example...your 500GB will have 1 system partition will have ~470GB and ~10GB partition, which you can delete AFTER you create the backup disc.

With Vista and Windows 7...you can split the partition at anytime...
Just right click on Computer icon...click on manage. When the "computer management" window comes up...click on Disk Management under Storage. Right click on "Windows (C ," then click "Shrink Volume." Then follow the rest of the instuction to free up space. So if you want the future drive D: to be 300GB...then shrink by that amount. After you this...you will get a new space of 300GB for example...right click on that to mark active...sometimes you might have to give it a drive name...
I know it is not complete instruction...but I think you get the idea.

Whole point of my answer is to point out that it doesn't really matter how many partition it comes with... you can partition it any way you want...

I hope it helps. And enjoy your new F.

 

technically then you could replace the speakers if you are one of those people who complains a lot about them.

 

I thought the speakers were pretty good for laptop speakers.

Going to pick up Vaio #3 tomorrow. I've noticed my two had green dots, should I get a yellow dot one? XD Also compared Vaio #2 to my brother's white macbook and man...

I can't believe the Vaio is more solid, being so much bigger XD

 

First time laptop buyer... more of a multimedia guy and this one seems to be the best deal in this price range. However, I'm reading about buzzing problems... have they been fixed yet and is it inherent to the F series or have some just purchased a lemon?