Official Sony VPC-Z2 (VAIO Z 2011) Series Owners' Thread

Thank you! That´s what i mean - the intel HD chip is capable of much newer open GL and the stock driver is too old! Anoying!

 

Hi does anyone know if the noise cancelling headphones come with the UK spec Vaio Z

 

As far as i know the noise cancelling headphones come only with machines in US, i´m not sure about also in japan?

 

Ok thanks SirRobin did you find any info from Sony about the latest Intel graphics driver and if it would affect the PMD

 

I´ve read in another thread that it is no problem to use the original intel HD grapic driver - but only if the pmd is not used. Don´t know if its possible to update the driver through the device manager if the pmd is in use...

 

How is the height of the XS3? I grabbed an Incase 13" MBP case from the Apple store and it didn't fit the Z2 very well, too tall, and very tight in width. I'm concerned that the XS3 might fit the same. Any chance you could take a picture of the fit?

I like Booq, I have one of their backpacks. They have good products and they stand behind them.

 

What do you mean? Can I install those drivers even if I have PMD (but not connected)? Will it affect PMD work once a re-connect it? Or I need to wait for some "bundled" driver ATI/Intel?

Cheers,
Miki

 

The XS3 fits nicely around the Z2 and there's some space above it, enough to fit the sheet battery. (I've added a magazine to simulate the sheet battery (~8mm thick) and it closes without any problem) The Z2 doesn't slide or more at all, even without the extra sheet battery.

Some photos; Photo Album - Imgur

It may look like the sleeve will touch the Z2, but I really doesn't. You have to make sure you position it in the middle, otherwise the corners might touch/rub the inner side. (because of the straight angles of the Z2).

 

I think the switching possibility will be lost when installing the intel driver.

 

That's a bit of a bummer but no big deal I guess in the end. Thanks Ota.

 

Most countries in Asia Pacific come with the noise cancelling earphones except for Japan and China (they have alternate models with no noise cancelling earphones bundled).

 

I don't know about the ones off the shelf but the owner-made ones have the option to add them for 2500 yen...I originally ordered them but managed to change my order to add more memory and decided I didn't want to add them on my new order.

 

I apologize if this has been posted already. Here is a code for free upgrade to FHD screen on CTO in the US.

VAIO Engineer Tears Open VAIO® Z Series Just in Time for Shipping (Video) SONY make.believe

 

Guys someone please help Beaups. With the amount of info that he shared here about the Z2 its only fair you guys help him out ASAP. He posted a thread yesterday asking for Z2 ICC profile and nobody has posted yet. Please check out his thread here and post the ICC profile for him.
You can find the profile in
Windows/System32/Spool/Drivers/Color

 

ok, i just got an update from sony that they are building my laptop. i ordered the WANN. so does anyone know how long it usually take to get here at USA shore?

thanks

 

I am due to recieve my new Vaio in about 2 weeks, and would like to know if the latest intel graphics driver could be installed without affecting the radeon one for the pmd. Hopefully someone will have tried this before mine arrives but I guess could try that and do a system recovery if it doesn't work

 

Yet more reviews of the new Z.

This reviewer likes the style of the new Z ("gorgeous lines") but still wouldn't buy one (over the eGPU issue).
[Review] 2011 Sony Vaio Z Akihabara News

And a favorable review ("If you're in the lucky position to spare no expense, the Z Series will reward you both on the road and at the office.") from Entrepreneur.
Sony's New Z Series Laptops Offer Lightweight Power

 

I just posted the profile over at the thread. I will post it here too for whoever needs it.

 

They don't really update their site but they do customise the size of the sleeve. When I want one for the Z1, they even tell me I should have a thinner sleeve compared to the VGN-Z abiet same dimensions on the spec sheet.

So I guess either they might already have info/exp in making sleeve for the Z2 or you can just send them the dimensions.

 

Hi all noticed a lot of posts regarding a padded case for the Vaio Z, I believe this is the one you have all been after. Its a UK site but should give you some information and if it's here in the UK must be available worldwide.

 

Whut, £129.99?
They process a whole cow for each single one, don't they?

 

I bought my CKZ3 for about £80 directly from sony.no *shrug*

It's super strange that neither sony.co.uk or .com sells it yet

 

Yep, that one's been mentioned a few times in this thread.

A better link for info is here.

It weighs 13 oz. It is not big enough to take the Z2 with a slice battery attached.

 

Guys, is it possible that laptops for substitution request are made faster? I mean, for my first order they said to me they would have sent it between 12 and 17 August while they started it on 5 August (so minimum 6 day-work.. and they actually sent it on 12).. but for this substitution laptop they started on 19 August they said me that they would have sent it between 23 and 28 August (minimum 3 day-work). Is it possible that substitution products have priority?

 

I went to the apple store today to check out the level 8 sleeve as well as some other sleeves. I tried out pretty much every single one and i didnt like any of them more than the altego that i currently have. Most fit worse, some fit the same, all were overpriced, so i didnt get anything.

I also emailed that wrappers site with the alcantara sleeves to see if they could make a sleeve tailored to teh z2. Havent gotten back to me yet.

 

Thanks ota con. This seems also to be a good way for those interested to see the color of the blue/purple model, since that is the one he tears apart.

 

has anyone tested this?

 

I think the lack of answers is your answer, dalamchops

 

was hoping someone could help me out : (

 

^ at the moment, this is the best I've found out

MacBook Pro (2010) vs MacBook Pro (2011)

It's something about MBP 13" (since the platform it's the same) .. it's playable till 1280*800 at medium quality.. I think (since how it goes in low quality) that it would be playable even at 1600*900.. BUT, I think that you would see a bad and grainy image with lower resolutions: even if interpolation get a worse image..it's not so worse.. I barely see differences in games between 1920*1080 and 1680*1050.. sometimes even at 1440*900 I don't see big differences. And this with a 24" screen.. such resolution in a 13" (with such pixel density) will make differences with interpolation much thinner... so don't worry too much about resolution. That's my advice.

 

Well main concern is that i don't know how the Z2 manages the memory. If the 4gb config is a single chip soldered onto the board, then it'll be lacking dual channel and significantly hindering its performance with the integrated graphics.

 

in my new z, the touchpad kind of wobbles (and, thus, has a strange feeling/seems cheap). this might be due to its functionality to click.
compared to the old z, i consider this as a major disadvantage.

in other words: I'm hearing this little noise every time I tap my touchpad , as if something was loose under it. Anyone else with the same issue??

 

The 4GB configuration is for sure a single channel one. If you want the dual channel (that would mean double bandwidth) you must take 8 GB.. there's no other route.

 

yes, that's why i want to see if someone can run some test for me. The 8gb route is a huge upgrade in price

 

on the sony's CTO page it shows the 4gb as a 2x2

4GB (2GB x2 fixed onboard) DDR3-SDRAM-1333

even if no sc2 test, maybe 3dmark06?

 

Really?? Maybe they changed something since I saw a photo of a Z opened up with 4GB configuration and only one slot was filled.
Well, better this way.

EDIT: my mistakes.. they're all results with PMD XD

 

OMG I posted the day after you did originally, go look.

 

I think its just yours. If im tapping i have absolutely no give. It only gives if im actually click the physical buttons, which is what im guessing its supposed to do, because button you cant click arent very good buttons at all

 

Yeah, I tried the Apple store too, no luck.

Let us know how that goes. I want something that fits perfectly, protects the Z including the corners (not with poorly fitted zippers that might scratch like most of the Macbook cases), and isn't heavy and overpriced like the Sony sleeve. For now it sounds like that would have to be semi-custom.

I'd even consider paying a bit extra to add the VAIO logo on the sleeve.

 

If it helps at all, I'd be interested in the alcantera one, that would be nice.

 

thanks man. There's too much stuff going on in this thread. lol

 

I think a number of us in this thread are ready to jump on one if the fit is good.

 

we should find a source and groupbuy custom made

 

just got my z2(i7). The fan noise is realy big when the cpu is fully loaded, but still acceptiable.

 

Hi, all

I wonder if any fellow forum members can shed some light on the following:

(1) Since Windows 7 doesn't support TRIM in a RAID array, how does Sony deal with the performance degradation of a Z2 with dual SSDs when so configured?

(2) Are the two SSDs user-replaceable?

Thanks!

 

Find me a laptop which isn't loud when the CPU is at 100%....

 

1- The SSD has some sort of built in garbage collection mechanism
2- The SSD is a really customised stripped down and barebones SSD...

 

Thanks for your prompt reply, ota-con.

Presumably, the SSD performance will depend on how aggressive the garbage collection algorithm (Kingston at one end of the spectrum and Micron at the other) and how often the machine is idle.

I wonder if Samsung's new 830 will be used.

As to size, do you mean eSATA or a 2.5" SSD stripped down?

Hard to tell from this image:

 

1. Not a Windows problem, it is a RAID problem which isn't really a problem at all. TRIM commands are not able to be sent to the drives when in a RAID volume.
2. No, well, not really.

Time will tell on the G3 SSD's garbage collection routines, but I doubt it will be any worse than the G1's.

I wrote up a monster thread on the TRIM/GC/Performance degredation issues here. Long story short, the GC on these drives were sufficient to maintain performance over the long term. Write amplification/attenuation has been largely mitigated without TRIM.

As for size, the closest comparable stand alone drive would be a caseless 1.8." The "drives" are actually a single piece of PCB with a controller and memory on each side. I call them SSD sandwiches. Older Z's had up to 4 of these (2x SSD sandwiches), but the newer models seem to only have one.

Layouts of currently known SSD configurations:
128GB = 2x 64GB on one sammich
256GB = 2x 128GB on one sammich
512GB = 2x 256GB on one sammich

Please keep in mind that Sony appears to be using G2 SSD's in EMEA, so this is just for the US. Sony has also been known to swap out components between device refreshes, so your mileage may vary.

I posted pics of the 128GB and 512GB G3 drives here and started a performance thread here. Good news is that the sammiches seem to take advantage of the SATA III controllers and are as fast or faster than any single 2.5 or 1.8" drive from a read/write throughput standpoint. This includes the new Intel and OCZ Vertex 3 drives. The Vertex 3's do have a higher IO tho