Official Sony VAIO TT Series Owners Thread

Answering the "structural" question, honestly, my TT180 has been flawless. I did not have any issues with it whatsoever (I read every thread of this forum, and understand some people had trackball/mousepad, screen issues, etc). I had no issues whatsoever. Quite the contrary, the TT has been flawless and has performed exceptionally well on all fronts. On the structural subject, in my mind, you can't compare the TT with "brick" (older and/or heavier laptops from two or three years ago). In my opinion, one needs to compare a TT with other current model small/light laptops in order to be fair. For instance, one can't compare it with a MacBook Pro (they're in different categories altogether), instead it should be compared with the Mac Air at most (simply because Apple does not have anything as small and as light as a TT). Similarly, the SZ should be compared with the Z-Series (otherwise, we're comparing "boxers" that are in different "weight divisions")... Pardon my silly analogy, but it would be equivalent to comparing a "featherweight boxer" with a "heavyweight boxer" and say that the featherweight athlete is genetically flawed... In my mind, it doesn't work like that. In summary, I think that the TTs are well-built and perform very well for a lightweight/small footprint laptop. Just my two cents for whatever they're worth...

 

I have one of the TTs- the 230.

My only structural complaints are with the power button and the battery. If you dont hit it perfectly center it doesn't always turn on.

I have several times pushed the button first thing in the morning, went to grab coffee and come back expecting a booted computer only to have it still off.

The battery feels slightly loose especially when you move it around. I have not had it come off or lose power it just feels a bit disconcerting for a $1500 laptop.

That and everyone thinks it's a netbook

Seriously though I'm very pleased with especially the screen and keyboard and built in WWAN. I briefly had a HP DV2 and this thing smokes it in every way except price.

 

I've got a TT180 (made in Japan). No issues with the battery or power button... as I've often said on these forums, I'm generally very happy with my TT.

My only complaints are that the plastic chrome stuff damages easily (specifically, it got a bit dented/distorted when I used a kensington lock, right at the lock hole), & that the fit and finish isn't great around the bezel of the screen (it looks ok but there's a bit of play at a certain spot, like the pieces weren't adequately glued together or something).

As far as what I'd change, it would be the hard drive, without a doubt. It's adequate but definitely a performance bottleneck. I plan to put in an Intel x18 when they get cheaper. I also wish I had a 1.6ghz CPU instead of a 1.2....

 

Even in the graphics department seeing as the DV2 has ATI graphics?

 

Yes for me it's fine. It decodes video (even hd) just fine and the performance on all of my other apps is more than adequate as well.

Unlike many here i dont game on my notebooks. I have a desktop and xbox for that.

I would imagine that the dedicated video card in the HP would be somewhat better but again given the other tradeoffs with trying to use such a machine to play games to me would seem more trouble than it worth.

BTW: I do use hulu, and the playback is smooth on the TT but was never on the DV2 no matter what i tweaked. This was a surprise since I thought the dedicated card might have helped. I could get the DV2 to a somewhat acceptable level (usable when there was not an alternative)though you still could see delays and stuttering.

 

Does anybody knows if it's possible to install wwan module in the TT. i have the vgn-tt25gn and i couldn't order one with wwan in my country :-(

 

I have a VGN-TT190NJB and was wondering about the screen. When it is completely shut off, the surface of it seems like it has ripples. Also it is not glossy. Does the TT series come with different screen types? I am really unimpressed by it so far. The screen on the TZ was awesome.

 

Hello,

i just ordered a TT11LN/B ( Link) and am looking forward to receive it tomorrow

As this model is only with a normal 120GB harddisk, i am specifically interested in changing the harddisk. So i read the last 60 pages of this thread and found a lot of interesting information, but still have some question. I hope you can help me with it.

I understood that the TT uses a 1.8" harddisk, which sits in a place under the keyboard. Is there place for one or two harddisks? As this laptop is very small i cannot imaginge place for two harddisks, but i read some saying about dual SSD and using a stripset/RAID0. So i wonder if there might be place for a second harddisk.

Another thing is replacing the optical drive with a 2.5" harddisk, but as i need the optical drive i am not going to do this.

Back to changing the system 1.8" harddisk, i understood that you cant use all 1.8" disks. I understood it needs to have 8mm height (are there other heights of 1.8" disks?) and it needs to have micro sata connector.
Will these harddisks fit?
Toshiba 250GB
Samsung SSD

Regards,
conserv

 

Really in agreement with you. I have seen the TT and did NOT like the non-glossy screen - I didn't like it also of reasons other that it's not being glossy. And I have a TZ, with a splendid screen.

Will there be a next version of the TT with a screen that is as good as the TZ screen?

 

Single drive configurations use a standard 1.8" SSD, but dual drive configurations use dual slim 1.8" SSDs . Slim SSDs are essentially a standard 1.8" drive with the casing removed to save space. Samsung makes up to 256GB slim drives, if you look at their product page, so a 2x256 drive combination is possible, as is currently done in the Z (not sure what size drives the Z uses, however). If you're upgrading from a single drive to dual drives in the TT, you'll have to hunt down the cable thingy that allows you to hook up both drives, I wouldn't know where to acquire that, though. I do recall someone around here posting a link, though.

 

I posted the specs earlier for the Samsung vs. Intel SSD drives. I own both and am running the same OS on each. The Intel BLOWS AWAY the Samsung -- no comparison. No wonder with 250MB/s read rate for the Intel vs. 90MB/s read rate for the Samsung. The write times are rated the same and can't really tell much difference (for what i do anyway).

Aren't you looking at the Intel X18-M, which comes in 80G and 160G flavors?

I have a Sonystyle-built VGN-TT190 with a 1.8" 60G Samsung SSD and a 2.5" Toshiba 250G HD; no internal DVD.

 

Where can one download the latest version of Sony's vaio media plus software? I just installed Windows 7 and I don't see it anywhere on sony site?

 

Did the same thing, with Sierra's Win7x64 drivers and everything, but no device is detected by Watcher, and device manager doesn't show anything either.

philfree, was your device detected immediately or what did you have to do to get it working?

 

Yes it worked immediately but on WinXP and Win7 32bit, never installed Win7 64. Was only the GPS not working or the whole card got not detected? You may want to flash it to the latest firmware available on Sierra site for 881U card and install latest 3G watcher as well

 

The whole card doesn't get detected (that's confirmed by the attempt to update the firmware - thank you for your hint!). It's an MC8790V. I thought they use a standard interface with these modules, but maybe TT's BIOS doesn't like that type. Anyway, I'll give it a try with 32-bit next.

Or can you enable and disable devices via Vaio's BIOS somehow (Devcon doesn't seem to see anything)? F2 doesn't provide a lot unfortunately.

 

Oops, I have MC8780 which I thought was the one you had (or MC8781). I don't know what card it's installed in apart from being embedded in some PC. 881U firmware is for MC8780/MC8781. Please check first what card MC8790 corresponds to. For the device being not detected check Sierra site, seems to be compatibility issues which Norton for example, may be others, check their FAQ.

 

Hi philfree, did your tt already had wwan and you replaced it with the sierra? i need to know if it's possible to install a wwan card in a TT that was ordered without wwan.

 

what could I use to clean the streaks and stuff off the screen? I have a soft cloth but what else?

 

I damp it with a touch of water. My lady would say otherwise ;-)

cheers ...

 

is the vaio tt series good for playing 720p and 1080p videos

 

Thank you. I got a super soft tissue paper and soft screen cloth. Did the trick well it looks like.

I would think the TT would be good for 1080p video seeing as it comes with an optional blu-ray drive, not to mention it supports 1080 when outputting it to an HDTV via the HDMI port.

BTW does anyone know how much the blu ray burner cost for the TT from either Sony or a third party retailer? What about just a drive that will work with the TT that can just play blu-ray but only burn dvd?

 

I've just replaced the WWAN option card that the TT came with with a Sierra card. If you want to install WWAN on your TT it will involve major work but not impossible if you can source the parts, you need to buy and install the mini-PCIE sub-assembly for the WWAN, the WWAN card itself (easy part), install the antennas on the lid and remove the blank plug to install the sim holder. It can be done but sure will be pricey and not this easy...

 

i think the tt series should have a 1600-900p xbrite duraview screen not a 1366-768p screen considering the p series has a 1600-768 screen on an 8 inch

 

Going on what i have read in this forum the US Z models do not have a sim card slot holder on the wwan board. However, the EU models wwan board does have a sim card holder.
Is this the case for the American TT models? Or do the EU/American models share the same wwan board with a sim card slot? I know that for the TZ it was the case.

If it is the case it allows people to purchase their laptop from the US and use their WWAN card in the EU. It also allows people to switch over to ATT in the US.

With 8GB of ram, 1.6 processor and 4500HD graphics the TT really is quite a powerful little notebook.

 

Well the TZ and TT WWAN is tied to the American CDMA networks of Sprint and Verizon. 8gb of ram is nice but the 1.6 sounds better to me, as I think the TT has unofficial support for 6-8gb of ram.

 

coldmack, the TZ wwan base board looks like this. The sim card holder is on the wwan base board.
http://i343.photobucket.com/albums/o464/scottyinco/notebookreview/DSC01949.jpg
The Verizon mini pci wwan card could also be changed to any wwan card and inserted into the wwan base board.

I'm not sure if it is the same for the TT North American models.

Things are pretty expensive in the EU and if the WWAN will work with a simple swap of the wwan card it is something i know i might consider in the future.

 

I know you get like a 200 discount on any Vaio model if you get with with WWAN(some come with it standard) and get the service activated via Verizon. So I would take it that it is the same, but a newer model or something?

 

I think that would be pointless. 1366x768 on an 11" screen is towards the limit of what many pople can comfortably read, without cranking up the DPI settings. Now, it's true that 1600x900 with higher DPI settings would give you a sharper image, but I don't think this would be a very noticeable differece.

 

I gotta agree+disagree. If the TT had a higher res I would have a REALLY hard time not going for the TT. I love the shape and size of my Z, but the TT is a pretty stunning piece of kit. The downside off the TT is that I think it makes too many sacrifices to achieve its size. The res is something that doesnt need to be compromised on. I think when it comes to pixel density its all down to the quality of the screen that defines whether its usable or not.

There are people that don't like the 1600x900 of the Z and think its too tight. Personally, I would love a bump up.

Imagine the future....

TT = 1600x900
Z = 1900x1200 (or whatever the 16:9 equivalent is)

I think I would cream my pants.

There are netbooks coming out now that are gonna have 11"-12" screens with 1366 x 768 res, that makes the res of the TT unacceptable IMO.

 

I am just gonna keep thinking to myself those 11in netbooks(or ultra thin low power machines), have either a glossy screen, or a screen that isn't as good as the TT in terms of color and quality.

 

Yea that might be the case, but the higher end notebooks really do need to be ahead of the cheap ones as far resolution goes, at least thats what I see. It should go hand in hand with the higher quality screen.

 

Does the TT has a matte display as good a the Z series ?

I need to work outside in the sun ...

 

Some say yes others say no. try it out at the store to see if its for you or not.

 

So, I have one slot of ram open(2gb total right now) and I wondering since I only use a 32bit Windows 7, would moving to 4gb of total ram(or even seeing if 6gb might work) be a good choice despite the fact 32bit os can see a max of 3GB? I know it would be nice to have some future proofing for the just in case situation I decided I want to go to a 64bit.

What about for the dedicated video? Lets say I got 4gb on a 32gb os, any way I can dedicate that extra 1gb the 32bit os does not see solely to the Intel GPU? If so, how can one do this?

BTW: I just looked at CPUZ and it keeps fluctuating the speed of my CPU. I have the 1.2ghz model, but CPUZ keep moving between ~1.2ghz and ~1.59ghz in speed. Is there something wrong here, with either my cpu, or cpuz, or is this just normal? Thank you.

 

What? It show up as 1.6ghz cpu? Is it possible to upgrade the cpu of the TT to the new 1.6ghz? Or what about just ocing a 1.2ghz to 1.5ghz or 1.4ghz to a 1.66ghz?

 

Waste of money. Why not just upgrade to 64bit?

 

I still run software that is 32bit still(and I don't think work under 64bit). So, is it then no possible to get the GPU to recognize that extra gig windows wont recognize for itself?

Also how could allocate more ram to the gpu?

 

The ram gets allocated by windows automatically I believe...so if windows doesnt recognize it....

What software are we talking about that doesn't run in 64bit? I'm just wondering cause unless its archaic stuff then it should run.

 

Well I am using PS CS1 and I rather not spend the money to upgrade as it is fine for me needs. I also may start using Sony Vegas not sure if that has 64bit support or not.

So there is like no way to dedicate that extra gb solely to the gpu? Anyone ever try and see if they can get their machine to recognize 6gb or ram? I know some of the Z people on their older machines that only supported 4gb of ram max were able to get their os to see the 6gb and some even got 8gb with certain ram(specifically the ram the new Z with 8gb uses) to show up and work.

 

Those people were running 64bit I'm sure. The issue was with voltage and the hardware not working, it wasn't an OS system when they were talking about being recognized.

I know this is kind of an obvious statement but, why not upgrade your PS? CS4 not only runs under 64bit but also installs a 64bit version and runs beautifully.

 

As I stated I rather not spend the money.

 

Hello everybody.
This is my first post,although i am a big fun of Vaio...I have the vaio TZ and in a few days i will go to Hong Kong,for short vacations.
I thought that after 2 years with TZ,it is time to buy a new laptop..The Vaio TT of course...
I live in Europe and the prices here are very high (2.500 euros for the 128GB SSD model with 1.4 proccesor)..So i am interested in an SSD model,but unfortunately,Sony Asia-Pacific haven't released an SSD model.
On the other hand,i see now in sonystyle Hong Kong a new entry of TT models,the VGN-TT36GD with 1.6 prosecor,250GB HDD,4GB ram,Vista business 64bit and DVD,in a fantastic price of 10.980 HK$ (about 1000 euros)...Maybe i also purchase an intel X-18 and replace the HDD,so storage type is not a problem...
But i have a question for all you guys,that own a Vaio TT...
When i look in the specifications,i don't see an HDMI output,not only in TT36GD,but in ALL models except the TT27GD/X that has Blu ray driver...
So..Is that true?HDMI port IS NOT standard in all Vaio TT ready-made models?
Does anyone have a Vaio TT without a working HDMI port?Or its just a mistake in the specs of Asia-Pacific models of Vaio?
Thank you all for the answers...

 

I am happy that i am finally about to join the ranks of TT owner, whoo hoo!

Now cos of my budget i have had to go for a TT11M/N as i have managed to get it on the cheap £803 ($1320). I would have liked the newer models with a larger HD and Blu-Ray, but i'm content with the one i ordered.

I wanted to know out of the 120GB HD, how much is actually available if you take into account the recovery partition and all the OS and SW which is installed? I plan to create the recovery discs and get rid of the partition.

Kind Regards

 

Well - the last of the TT's went today. The Z's and UX's are all gone. Only the SZ's are left. I intend them to be out before the end of September - really on ideological grounds, since they (along with the UX's) haven't actually let me down, and I'm having trouble picking a non-Sony successor right now.

It was a good 11 years, Sony. My VAIO journey started with your first ultraportable back in 1997 and I don't think I missed a single ultraportable flagship of yours - and until the SZ I was very happy. But then came this year.

Perhaps I'll be back in '11 or '12, when the range is replaced and see how things are then.

Until then, I bid your rapidly deteriorating build quality - in your Made In Japan models no less, how sad - and your biblically terrible service, adieu.

​

 

Is there service really that bad there? I been to the local sony store here and they were very good.

 

I was on the sonystyle site last night pricing out a TT and it was allowing me to configure a CTO model with 2 SSDs and a BluRay drive. I thought the second drive was only available if you chose not to have the BluRay drive? Would this configuration include a BluRay drive in an external enclosure? Or is it possible to cram two SSDs and a BluRay drive in this machine now?

Also, I noticed that several mainstream items (like standard capacity batteries in black and leather carrying cases) were "no longer available." Is the TT being phased out or did I just happen to hit the site when stock was low?

 

Just want to say thank you to all the folks on this forum. Through this forum I was able to enable hardware VT on my TT as well install an Intel SSD without breaking the PC.

It's safe to say I couldn't have done it alone.

The TT is an incredible machine for what it weighs. With the SSD, boot times into Vista seems 50% faster and Adobe Lightroom now flies when I scroll through 11,000 pics.

 

hello,
how did you enable the hardware VT on the TT ?

I'm really interested

 

http://go.notebookreview.com/?id=52...7/enable-vt-on-insydeh2o-based-sony-vaio.html

 

Oh yeah. As I may have said before, I've always bought Sony on the basis of me never - or extremely rarely - having to put one in for service. Which worked fine until the tail end of '08.

The shops are fine as far as regular shops go.