Official VAIO E Series Owners Thread

For jungleguru. RIGHT NOW I SENSE A MIXED FEELING OF JEALOUSY, FUSTRATION, ANGER, DESPISE, AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

 

That is the reason. I feel a bit of a shumck, it seems so obvious now. Also on updating Intel RST, you have to go to the Intel site to do it as Windows driver update tells you there is none, as does the Sony Official Support site. And RST now tells me with a pop up bubble whenever I eject my external Hdd or turn it on.

I also used Black Viper's Windows 7 Service Pack 1 Service Configurations, and it reduced my Processes down from 55 to 47, this is on a Vaio E series with all the bloatware intact, plus far too much other software. So far, there have been no complications from disabling so many services, - I used the "Tweaked settings".


Black Viper’s Windows 7 Service Pack 1 Service Configurations | Black Viper's Website | www.blackviper.com

 

Thats what I was trying to explain without coming across as patronising, . As far as I know all Vaio VPCEC models are 17.3", & have two Hdd bays, & Sony being the tight multi-national b*****ds that they are, saw fit to remove the SATA ribbon for 2nd drive, unless you ordered it from them with 1Tb spec. Honestly, how much extra would it have cost to include that ribbon? £10 at most, on a laptop originally retailing at over £1000, what is £10? What vexes me is that you can't even buy such a part.

 

Can anyone provide a link to the semi-clean install thread for all Vaio's? I think i've found it - http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/146033-how-optimize-any-sony-vaio-semi-clean-install.html

And upon getting the SSD, can I use something like Easus ToDo BackUp Home 2.5, to clone just the recovery partition to the SSD via SATA to ESATA dock, then install the SSD, boot it, and do a semi-clean install? Then once installed delete the recovery partition, as I have back ups on DVD, as well as the recovery partition on the current drive.

Is it wise to partition a SSD?, I was thinking on a 128Gb, have 62Gb for OS + Programmes, & the remainder partioned for downloads, docs, video/music files.

 

you british are so indirect; if it was the EC; and I was being an idiot, whididntycha say so? would it be possible for you to send me a picture of the hard drive bay with the hard disk removed...i know this tech guy...no really hes not like the kinda "how do i turn on my laptop" kinda guy; (qualcomm) nways, shoot over a picture

 

Lols. Ok next time this sort of mis-understanding occurs, I'll be blunt, . Sure, I'll post a pic. Would be interesting to know, as when the warrenty runs out, I'd love to put in a 2Tb as well.

 

Hey, i don't find the VAIO button at the top to be of much use, and I was wondering if anyone knew how to modify it so that I could make a custom program launch when i press the button? I've trawled google for more than an hour, and can't find anything of use.

Any tips would be appreciated.

 

Others are working on a way for the F series, but it applys to the E series too.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/480606-z11-reconfigure-s-buttons-assist-dual-pane-vaio.html

 

An update on my SSD upgrade. It's been a long week, but I've almost got everything sorted. Boot time is now 20-21 seconds! Thats from moment I touch power button, to the moment Kaspersky green message flashes protection is enabled.
i've got my AS-SSD score upto 526.

Firstly formating the drive using Disc Managment, then Aligning the drive partitions using diskpart from Cmd was fairly easy. The problems started with cloneing my old drive. Was using Icy Box external dock, and trying to Clone the recovery partition, the system partition & my C drive, I didn't want to do a semi-clean install, as I wanted to see how things were with my system as it was, & do a system restore on new drive if it needed it.

On my old 320Gb Hdd, there was the recovery (10Gb), system(100Mb), C (60.2Gb), & D (220Gb). The C300 128Gb is only big enough for recovery partition, the system partition & my C drive.

Having trawelled though the Crucial forums, there is no clear process to do this. One person reccommend Macrium Reflect Disk, as he said Acronis had been known to cause alignment issues on SSDs. I used the correct options. Swaped the drives over, but did not secure the drive back in place, just put the bracket back on top, & covered that with 3 strips of scotch tape - this was a huge time saving idea, because Macrium didn't work, & I ended up swaping the drives over 3 times, because -

Neither did EASEUS ToDo back up, where I cloned the same 3 partitions sector by sector, & neither did Acronis Migrate Easy 7.
All claimed they could do the job & all failed. Part of the problem was that I wasn't cloning the entire Hdd, but all those programmes claimed they could do it anyway.

So, I decided to do a Semi-clean install, from NinjaNoodles thread, & I am so glad. I used my System restore disks I created when I got the laptop, & 12 hours later!, my system was up & running.

First thing I did was updated Windows 7. This to forever as you can imagine, 100s of updates. I then installed Kaspersky KIS 2011 & updated. I also using my copied Vaio Care folder, installed all the programmes MythDat reccommed on NinjaNoodles thread. The only thing missing was ALPS touchpad driver, so installed that too.

I solved the C300 disk freezing problem with Windows 7, solution is on Crucial forums, & preformed many many tweaks found on SSD Review & a few other forums. There are also hidden processer power managment options on Windows 7, for which if enabled via the registry, allows you todo tweaks for SSD's on Intel HM55 chipsets that are underperforming.

I also managed to find Catalyst Control Centre 11.5, which is a huge improvement, Sony claim it won't work on their laptops but it does, they are just too lazy.
I installed VAIO Event Service Update version 5.1.2.03030, which does not seem to be on Vaio Europe Support, but is on other Vaio Support sections, this fixed something which was driving me nuts. When connecting to a 1080p HDTV via HDMI, the picture is resized, so you manually have to use the Overscan scaling in CCC 10.1 every time you connect, or even shut the laptop lid. VAIO Event Service Update version 5.1.2.03030 fixed this, I have no idea why Sony support Europe have not released this, or CCC 11.5 for Vaio E series. CCC 11.5 even has a 1080p24 mode, it works though I've yet to try it out with a HD 24p MKv file on VLC.

Installing VAIO Event Service Update version 5.1.2.03030 also allowed me to install VAIO Care - 6.3.0.09020. I have since copied the Vaio Recovery Folder back to where it should be, so my new Hdd can recover all by itself, should I ever need to do a clean install. Whatever you do, don't install Vaio Care 6.4, there are reports of massive problems with this, I don't think it is out on Vaio Support Europe yet.

I then installed TuneUp Ulitlites, & using the programme deactivator, & start up disable startup programmes, was able to bring the number of processes for startup to 44. I've hard autoruns does a similar thing, but I'm unfamilar with it, going to learn that one in next few weeks.

If anyone needs links to any of this stuff, I'd be happy to dig them out of my Firefox Session manager, or saved tabs. It has been alot of work, doing oll the tweaks for SSD, updating, plus everything else, but Imho it is worth it, my Lappy runs like lighting now, the Window Exp Index for the Hdd is 7.7, & thats not even SATA 6 Gb/s. / SATA III. It boots in under 21 seconds, & is able to boot and start Firefox 3.6.17 in just under 26 seconds, with just 45 processes running.

 

Is it not generally recommended to perform a clean install on a SSD rather than cloning from a HDD?

Just curious as your SSD is probably much better than mine but my boot time to desktop is 12 - 13 seconds, thats it at the point where I can open firefox, outlook etc and get an instant reaction.

At the moment I am running a fairly fresh reinstall of windows 7 which I slipstreamed SP1 into, 11.5 ati drivers, latest intel rapid storage drivers and NoD32 antivirus, tweak wise the only things I have done are disabled windows 7 startup animation and enabled all cores on bootup.

 

I know it is recommended, I just wanted to see how it would run cloned, then do a system restore from the recovery partition.

You have a faster i5, and did a clean install, that might explain the faster boot times, or the samsung might work better with intel HM55 chipsets.
Or it might just be Kaspersky holding me back. But I went from average 2:45 seconds boot time, to just under 20 seconds, so it's all good .

You don't need to enable all cores on BOOT advance options, as they are all enabled by default on Windows 7 start up anyway, those options are there for resticting the number of cores or memory on Boot.

There are many tweaks you can do to improve preformance, & some are absolutlely necessary, such as making sure Defrag is switched off, and that TRIM is enabled.

The only one I didn't do, was disable system restore, as I have found it invaluble. I simply adjusted it so it can only store 2%, or 1.2Gb of restore points. But there is alot of evidience that TRIM takes ages to work if you have to many restore points, or on at all, so I'm going to try cloning the C drive for back ups instead of system restore & see if test scores improve.

One of them, it is not clear which is better -
Computer Management>Device Manager>Disk Drives>Your SDD>Properties>Policies>Check "Enable write caching on this device"
- it should be checked by default anyway. >But I also Checked "Turn off Windows Write Cache Buffer Flushing On This Device".

It did make a small difference iin test scores, but the opinion is split on this one. I found a report by a MS Win 7 engineer as to why switching it off can be of benefit.
Flushing your performance down the drain, that is - The Old New Thing - Site Home - MSDN Blogs

Here are a few lists of Tweaks -

The SSD Optimization Guide | The SSD Review

Configuring your SSD for Windows 7 (how to guide) - Overclockers UK Forums

http://forum.notebookreview.com/solid-state-drives-ssds-flash-storage/517917-how-improve-ssd-performance-intel-series-4-5-965-chipsets-jjb-tweak.html

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware/474521-installing-ssd-tips-tricks-benchmarks-2.html

http://forum.notebookreview.com/solid-state-drives-ssds-flash-storage/512634-ssd-performance-tips-underperforming-ssds.html

Most of these tweaks can be done in 2-3 hours maybe less. You should see a big difference in test scores.

 

Hi guys,

I have attempted to install an i7-720qm into my E Series, it all seemed to work OK at first but when I used it properly it was crashing quite frequently.

Any ideas as to why this is? I installed SpeedFan and the temps looked OK, maxed arount 70 C.

Below is a link to the E Series entries in my blog, with pictures of a teardown.

Matt Norrie's Blog | Sony Vaio E Series

 

I took pics, but have yet to install the Sony Mobile software to transfer them, but MattNorrie beat me to it with his i7 upgrade -

 

It should definatly be compatible -
Mobile Intel® HM55 Express Chipset

 

I suspect that this may be a RAM incompatibility issue(unlikely) or a power management issue(likely). Try tweaking with the vaio power management in the bios; try turning all settings off.

As for the HDD cable, I believe it is available as part no. A1766534A M980 SATA HDD FPC but seems like you'll have to import it from the states. The tech guy I talked to said he's seen one before but had no idea on where to get one(he's in the US).

 

Try following this - it says it is for SSD tweaks, but by just enabling them in the registry, you can then tweak them yourself.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/solid-state-drives-ssds-flash-storage/517917-how-improve-ssd-performance-intel-series-4-5-965-chipsets-jjb-tweak.html



This allows you to access 'hidden' advanced processor power plan settings in Windows 7 Advanced Power settings. By tweaking those you may be able to get it running okay.

 

The black round plastic surround on my headphone jack broke off today (the one that's next to the red mic jack that looks exactly the same except for color). I am not exactly sure why. This is my desktop replacement notebook and I rarely remove the headphones from it. I am guessing it's the result of the combination of a half inch thick, 3 inches long, heavy headphone connector of my Sennheiser HD555 headphones hanging off the jack all the time and perhaps a careless removal of the said headphones once or twice. I'll try to superglue it and see how it works.. Otherwise, I might be switching to an external USB sound "card". I am not sure if I'd want to send my laptop to Sony just because of this issue.

 

use Epoxy glue to make sure it never comes off again(decent epoxy glue not cheap one). Get Araldite if you can(not quick set). any other kind of super glue like cyanocralyte(the ones that say not to get on your skin) or UHU will lead to the ring coming off again.

 

I put the i7 back in and tried changed the power settings, the only way I can get it to work is to effectively turn turbo boost off with the power settings - this defeats the object as it is slower than the i5!

Overall the i7 works OK maxed out on all four cores but as soon as a single core goes to 100% and it starts turbo boosting wither the app crashes or the laptop restarts.

 

Is it anything to do with the Vaio psu not coping with the i7 when it maxes out, read plenty threads where people have upgraded the vid card and needed a better psu, just curious if the same issue could be caused by a upgraded cpu.

 

I got soo fed up with the ar9285 that I hunted down anything else and found an Intel 5100. Now the wifi is perfect. No loss in signal, full bars...no disconnections EVER. Perfect.

its this one

great card, supports several different bands including 5ghz which the atheros dosent and others between 2 and 5 to ensure maximum compatability

 

It may be the issue however the laptop works OK, with all four cores maxed out which I'm presuming would use as much if not more than one core maxed?

 

Anyone else here have the VPCEA with a ATI mobility 5650?

in most games I have played, if I have shadows anywhere over the low setting (or off) I get a lot of frame/input lag.

just wondering if my graphics card hates shadows or if something is wrong with it,
- Tyler

(games tested: GTA4 and CoD Blops)

 

Although I didn't have those specific games, I believe its just the ATI 5650m.
Maybe I had too high of hopes for it, but shadows and reflections definitely made me pull my hair out trying to play some games ( was hoping to play heroes of newerth completely maxed as my desktop eats the not-very-demanding game alive, but even small battles induced lag very noticeable while scrolling)

Paying $600 (refurb) was definitely worth the hardware, but the restriction of sony's outdated drivers [yes there are ways around them, but its still a pain] and the poor battery life i was getting (2-2.5 hours power saving only typing a paper or online HW) made me look elsewhere. So I traded for a mbp with a bunch of accessories I won't be doing gaming away from my desktop now, but that's the price I have to pay now that I realized playing games lower than max settings is not appealing

Best of luck to you with the E series

 

Does anyone know how you can control the multiplier of an i5 430M on a Vaio EB1S1E?
I lowered the maximum cpu usage to 10% in power settings, but cpu-z shows that my multiplier is still jumping between 9x and 10x. Now I don't know what the minimum or maximum values are, but mine ranges from 9x to 19x.

I'd like to control the multiplier manually to maximize battery life (and maximize performance otherwise). Is this possible?

 

hi everyone!
i just bought a vp-cec and i loooove it so far but i have a few questions.

1. from all the buzz i read about the monitor, mine seems a bit subpar.
it is nowhere as bright as i thought it would be. at first i thought it was because of vaio's light purple theme but even after changing it to a bright blue the colors seem a bit dull. My brightness setting is at maximum so i am wondering if anyone else has any gripes.

2. i read that a clean install would help remove the bloatware. i do not notice excess programs in the windows uninstaller, so are these bloatwares actual programs like Evernote, or are they programs built in to the architecture of sony's version of windows? also, if i made a clean install disc and somewhere down the line my os stops working (laptop gets a virus or something) would the install disc do a complete reformat?

3. the CEC model is huge, i know. that's why i love it 17.3 inch screen is soooooooo nice to use. the CEC has more room to work with so i would assume the engineers at sony would give it a bigger fan and power supply to deal with the excess power the bigger monitor needs. my question is: is the internal hardware any different from the CEB version? should i be prepared for a shorter laptop life due to the increased power consumption?
i am hoping this laptop will last me a good 4-5 years as my last acer has.

my review of the CEC model so far:

this is the absolute best keyboard i have ever used, hands down. even with the rubber keyboard cover the keys are responsive, make an awesome clicking sound to reassure me that i have pressed the right keys, and the keys are spaced out sufficiently enough that i do not accidently press the wrong ones like my previous acer. thus, this keyboard promotes good finger posture (if anyone has ever played piano you would know how important this is )

the speaker volume is somewhat subpar, lower than they should be, but i'm not a huge audiophile anyways; laptop speakers are usually bad and if you want better sound quality might as well invest in external speakers.

the mousepad takes some getting used to, but once you have it down it's nice to work with. the bumps help to ensure you that your finger is in the right spot without looking. this way you can go straight to the right side to activate the scrolling if need be. mouse buttons make a clicky sound, which personally i don't like, but are responsive enough

fan seems to be strong enough to handle the most intense programs, yet quieter than my previous laptops

overall i believe i made a good purchase considering i ordered a refurbished one, so here's hoping this will last.

cheers! and if anyone can answer my questions i'd be so grateful.

 

I too have a CEC and I'm surprised that you say that your monitor is not bright as I thought mine was too bright and I had to immediately reduce the brightness. I never ran mine with the standard install but if you left click on your battery and select 'Adjust brightness' you should be able to adjust the brightness to your liking.

 

i realized that i was using the laptop in a sunlit environment, and that's why the colors were dulled. doh!
the reason i didn't realize this was because the screen was so unreflective unlike my last acer which was basically a mirror. i couldn't see my reflection or the sunlight in the sony so.... i don't know whether to be mad at myself or praise myself for making such a good purchase.
cheers!

 

Even though glossy displays make blacks look blacker, I cant believe you like gloss....its like your ghost's watchin you when you work...matts....easier on the eyes....anyway...congratulations on your 17.3 inch tank. Put up the specs on your signature!!! What graphics card?

Has anyone been having problems with the 11.5 AMD Driver? All my videos stutter and vc-1 playback(wmv) is really crap. The 11.5a didnt work, but I later installed the 11.5b and that seemed to fix everything....

 

i LIKE matte, my previous acer was so glossy you could use it as a vanity mirror.
i got the radeon 5640, 1 gb. let me tell you its so amazing going from playing starcraft 2 on lowest all settings to ultra on all settings.
i can't figure out how to edit my signature so here are my specs:
VP-CEC 390x
17.3 inch premium full hd
radeon 5650 1 gb video card
4 gb ram
i5 processor

are the internal guts of the 17.3 inch E series similar to the guts of the 15 inch EB? i.e. the motherboard, fan, power supply etc.

 

A couple of days back, i wanted to install Ubuntu Studio 11.04 on my EB using a pendrive. I copied all the necessary files and set up the pendrive, restarted my laptop, and went in the BIOS. Surprisingly, there was NO option for USB boot in the boot sequence.

This is pretty pathetic on Sony's part. I mean, why the hell do they have to provide a totally stripped down BIOS, with ABSOLUTELY nothing in it, save for date/time changes and some minor options.

I was thinking to flash the BIOS. Has anyone tried this? Could anyone provide a link to download the firmware? A link with the list of steps to be done would be pretty helpful too.

Will this nullify the warranty?

 

This is weird cause I can set to boot from external device. Infact, its actually default already to boot from external device(i think, or maybe i changed it). Burn it to a dvd!

 

same thing happened to me, i tried making a startup disc on my 8gb flash drive but it wouldn't recognize the drive as a valid replacement for a cd, so i had to use a dvd

 

Yeah, that's the default boot option, and i'd have used that, except I'm out of blank DVD's. So I needed to boot it from a USB only. Almost every BIOS out there has this option, except Sony's E series. Why why why?

Edit : Oh, wait, I thought external device boot was the same as boot from optical device. Just went to the BIOS again. Turns out they are two different things. So External device would mean it's USB boot capable, right?

 

Affirmative, optical device(removable disc storage) is different from external device

 

I'm considering the EA46FM model from Best Buy. One thing I'm a bit confused about is the numbering on the different models: I know the EA1S1 had a 16x9 screen, but what is different between the EA46 and the EA24, EA22 and EA36?

Other than the tinny sound, how is the display and touchpad for the EA46?

 

Are there any other docking stations for the E series than the Targus ACP51USZ ? This one seems to suck pretty bad and I'm looking for a better alternative.

 

Hello, I purchased dirt 3 recently and have been getting the red sun bug, I checked the game forums and a driver update is given as a solution.
I've been looking around this site to learn how to update the drivers for the 5650 but I haven't got a clue as to which ones to use. From what I've read I can directly download the drivers insted of getting the CCC pack from the ati site?

 

It would be best if you could get the entire pack as they also contain the avivo package and an updated, more function ccc.

You need to get the 11.5 package. Unfortunately the package has some major bugs and it would be better if you obtained the 11.5b package and installed that. (I'm jealous you can play Dirt, I get about 3FPS on my 5470)

 

Sounds a bit low even for the 5470, for me Dirt 3 runs even better than Dirt 2 did on my 5650, I have all settings at high, 4 x AA and my fps almost never dips below 40.

Plenty vids kicking about showing people using a 5470 getting 20+ fps, might want to try updating your CCC Cap or something.

 

I installed 11.5 using ATI installer method, ( I tried my old method of uninstalling via control panel then installing in safemode like i used to with Nvidia cards with no avail) and it worked, I was well chuffed, I then tried to install the 11.5b hotfix and got a BSOD and now CCC doesn't work; claiming that there is no driver or its corrupt so at the moment I'm reinstalling 11.5. Will update progress.

Update: Tried installing 11.5 but it failed. ATI install manager shows in control panel and CCC continues not to work. I'm not sure on what to do now, I was thinking of a system restore to revert and then installing 11.5 or using the 11.5 install manager to uninstall all components then install 11.5.

Update: Decided to system restore and go to 11.5 without installing the 11.5b patches. Looks like only CCC updated and not the drivers since I've still got the red sun issue.

Driver Packaging Version 8.672.1.3-100208b-100876C-Sony
Provider ATI Technologies Inc.
2D Driver Version 8.01.01.973
2D Driver File Path /REGISTRY/MACHINE/SYSTEM/ControlSet001/Control/CLASS/{4D36E968-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}/0003
Direct3D Version 8.14.10.0708
OpenGL Version 6.14.10.9117
Catalyst Control Center Version 2011.0419.2218.38209

 

Have you tried a software from GURU3D called driversweeper(its discontinued on their site but you can download it elsewhere)? Try that, then use a registry cleaner to clean the registry. I remember having very similar problems like BSOD's and stuff with the 11.5 but I managed to pull through with the 11.5b.

Try steps: 1. Clean the registry. 2. Uninstall+delete the ati driver form device manager 3. Restart( DO NOT LET WINDOWS INSTALL THE DRIVER, WHEN IT SAYS IT IS OBTAINING FORM WINDOWS UPDATE, HIT SKIP) 4. Run driversweeper 5. clean registry 6. restart 7. Install the 11.5 8.restart 9. clean registry 10. install 11.5b restart.

I had to try this twice before getting it to work PLUS

Driver Packaging Version 8.672.1.3-100208b-100876C-Sony -why does this say sony? obviously windows automatically installed sony drivers, mine says 8.85.6 bla, bla..with no sony
Provider ATI Technologies Inc.
2D Driver Version 8.01.01.973
2D Driver File Path /REGISTRY/MACHINE/SYSTEM/ControlSet001/Control/CLASS/{4D36E968-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}/0003
Direct3D Version 8.14.10.0708
OpenGL Version 6.14.10.9117
Catalyst Control Center Version 2011.0419.2218.38209

 

I downloaded Windows 7 Professional from the MSDN site with a original, valid key(Yay to the computer society of my college). I currently have Home basic with my EB series.
Reading the past several pages, i noticed that people who have installed a fresh copy of Windows, usually ran into several problems like some Fn keys not working, Quick Web Access not working anymore, and so on. However, I'm planning to use the Windows Anytime Upgrade option to upgrade Home Basic > Professional, so that I don't lose my installed software and settings, as well as circumvent the Fn keys problem. Has anyone tried this way? Is the transition smooth? Anything I should do beforehand, like copy the contents of the Vaio Care folder, etc?

 

No idea why it says sony, I'm unsure on which registry cleaner to use i've got CCleaner but I don't know what to clean (or fix according tp CCleaner), i don't want to ruin the registry. I'm happy to do everyhing else.

 

I updated my 5470 drivers and CCC to 11.5b without a glitch yesterday. Earlier it said Sony at the end in the driver packaging version. But after i updated to 11.5b, it just shows Driver Packaging Version 8.85.6-110524a1-119714E. That's probably why ravenperch too doesn't have Sony mentioned. You needn't worry about that.

I updated mine straight from 11.3 to 11.5b. Maybe there's some video driver compatibility problem with 11.5 and the card you use. Try installing 11.5b. It should do the trick.

 

I'm going to recommend against doing the upgrade.

The point of doing a clean install of windows, is, well, getting the clean installation of windows. If you do an upgrade you're going to bring all the bloatware into your new copy of windows and your user experience won't change much at all.

Also, install all the drivers from Sony's website (except for video, get the latest and greatest from amd.com) and you'll be set with a fast booting, well performing clean copy of windows 7 professional, and the web boot up option (although I barely even use that feature myself).

At least that's what I did, and I'm more than happy with this smooth running copy of windows,
-Tyler

 

Well, it was a moot point anyway since the MSDNAA key wasn't working for anytime upgrades, since its a bulk version of W7Pro. So i performed the clean install. Installed all drivers and everything's working great now. Thanks anyways.

 

The VCPEC, although a laptop, is more of a desk top replacement, & what with the battery life of 2.5 Hrs / capacity at 3500mAh, I don't think the screen is designed for use outdoors in direct sunlight. But indoors in a very sunny room at midday, with the brightness way-up to max it's fine. Most of time, midday in a sunny room included I run it at approx 50% brightness which is perfect for me.
While I'm on this topic, has anybody calibrated the screen for VPCEC, not the 1080p, but the 1600 x 900 one?

 

I went from 10.2 to 11.5 using the following method when I did a semi-clean install on a SSD, with no problems at all. Am going to attempt 11.6 this weekend.

ATi Mobility Catalyst 11.6 Display Drivers For Notebooks (15/06/2011)


Driver Packaging Version 8.85-110419a-118232C-ATI
Catalyst Version 11.5
Provider ATI Technologies Inc.
2D Driver Version 8.01.01.1152
2D Driver File Path /REGISTRY/MACHINE/SYSTEM/ControlSet001/Control/CLASS/{4D36E968-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}/0003
Direct3D Version 7.14.10.0833
OpenGL Version 6.14.10.10750
Catalyst Control Center Version 2011.0419.2218.38209

PLEASE NOTE, IT IS BEST TO CLICK ON THE LINK, & READ THE THROUGH ALL THE POSTS, ESPECIALLY AS FOR VAIO ONE STEP IS MISSING, ONE THAT RAVENPERCH MENTIONED -

3. Restart( DO NOT LET WINDOWS INSTALL THE DRIVER, WHEN IT SAYS IT IS OBTAINING FORM WINDOWS UPDATE, HIT SKIP)

If you were to let windows update install the driver for ATI 5470, or whichever one you have, CCC 11.5, & probably 11.6 will open but not function correctly at all.

After the following windows update is suggested - ATI Technologies Inc. - Display - ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5470
Download size: 20.6 MB
Update type: Optional - Make sure you turn it into a "Hidden update", so that it is never accidentally installed.


ATi Catalyst Mobility 11.6 display drivers for notebook computers (15/06/2011)
Release Notes for 11.6 drivers
For more info, check out the 11.6 discussion thread here:
ATI Catalyst 11.6 Software Suite - HardwareHeaven Discussion Thread

These drivers should work for all notebooks with a compatible ATi GPU (See supported devices list below).
This is especially useful for (but not limited to) notebooks manufactured by Toshiba/Sony/Acer/Panasonic where the ATi Mobility Download Utility is blacklisted, preventing users from installing the drivers from ATi website.

The following notebooks are not compatible with this release:
• Any notebook launched after this driver release
• Switchable Graphics enabled notebooks using Intel® chipsets.

Download Links:

ATi Catalyst Mobility 11.6 For Vista/Win7 32 bit (15/06/2011)

ATi Catalyst Mobility 11.6 For Vista/Win7 64 bit (15/06/2011)

How to Install :

1. Perform complete uninstall of your previous drivers :
Go to 'Add/Remove Programs' , select the ATi drivers package and click Modify. Use ATi's 'Express uninstall all ATi software'.

*Recommended: Install the latest system drivers and run windows update to get the latest udates for your operating system.
For Intel based systems (Pentium,Core2Duo,Core i3/i5/i7 etc.), download and install the latest INF drivers from here:
Intel Chipset Software Installation Utility v9.2.0.1030 (21/04/2011)

2. Reboot.

3. Install Driver Sweeper
Driver Sweeper v3.1.0 (05/06/2011)
Run it and remove all ATi files.

4. Reboot yet again.

5. Download the driver for your system, using the links posted above. Simply run the installer and follow the instructions on the screen.

6. When setup completes, you'll be asked to reboot for the last time. Do it instantly and without delay.

7. Make sure you're running 11.6 Catalyst - Go to CCC and select Information Center from the menu.

*EXTRA STEPS , recommended to ensure compatibility :

A. Update your DirectX using Microsoft DirectX Web Installer/Updater tool:
Multiupload.com - upload your files to multiple file hosting sites!

B. Install/Update .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 and 4.0 Using Microsoft .NET Web Installer :
http://download.microsoft.com/downlo...tfx35setup.exe (.NET Framework 3.5 SP1)
http://download.microsoft.com/downlo...Full_setup.exe (.NET Framework 4.0)

C. Run Windows Update and install all software updates.


Good luck !
And please post back results.


Supported Devices List :
Quote:
ATI PowerXpress enabled notebooks using AMD chipsets
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2400
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2400 XT
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600 XT
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2700
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3100
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3200
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3400 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3430
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3670
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3850
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3850 X2
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3870
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4100
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4200 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4300 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4300/4500 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4500/5100 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4670
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4830
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4850
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4860
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5100 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5400 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5400 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5600 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5700 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5800 Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6200M Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6300M Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6800M Series
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6900M Series

 

Has anyone tried this software -

Driver Genius Professional Edition - Backup, restore and update all your drivers easily

Driver Genius Professional Edition 10

On doing a semi-clean install, I updated as many drivers as I possibly could, all using the original manufactures websites. But on doing a scan with this software, it found 27 drivers out of a total of 78.

So far, all I have done is made a back up of all my current drivers. I'm a little bit apprehensive to use this software, even though I've researched at least 10 of the drivers it has suggested to update to, & they all seem genuine. I may install it on a relatives laptop that I just did a factory complete recovery / reinstall of original software, & see what the results are like, but any input from anyone regarding this software would be appreciated.