Official VAIO FW Series Owners Thread

Looks like the FW CTO (Customize To Order) option has disappeared from SonyStyle, just the pre-configured machines are shown.

 

Interestingly, I can still get to the FW CTO configuration page using my browser history but it is gone from SonyStyle FW page like you said.

I'm glad that I ordered one on Monday (shipping estimate 12/23). LVF-30 was shipped already. I bought memory and hard drive separately from newegg.

 

Weird, the Canadian site still has FW CTOs. I wonder what Sony is up to.

 

They are out of base units with the black lid and there are some other issues as well that need to be ironed out. The CTO will be back up on Sunday from what I understand.

 

Thank you all for the congrats! I'll post benchmarks and a few pics tomorrow or Monday. My 290JAB looks just like the FW of ascariss.

P.S. FW290JAB (JAmesBond)

 

Hi guys
i noticed something in lcd
for example when i reading a pdf in full screen text in top half of screen seems more black than the bottom half. this thing also appears in pictures which have a monotonic color (all red, blue,...), the top half more saturated than the bottom

IS THIS NORMAL???
FW140E

 

If I try it now I know it would cost me at least $100 more. I just went to sonystyle and the FW wasn't even customizable. No way I cancel the order now.

 

Thanks! So the inside is also silver? It's kind of hard to tell from the pics.

 

You seem to have the inside info with Sony.

I assume your hard to get discount is some type of epp.

Does this also mean you know when the black case will become available? I have a new estimated ship date of the 19th. Do you think they have a good chance of meeting this date?

 

The inside is silver on any FW, the only difference being the white buttons of the white FW.

 

Yes, it is normal with ECO LCDs, the single fluorescent lamp is presumably located at the bottom of the screen.

 

Just got my FW290 CTO yesterday (ordered Dec 2) and have been taking it for a spin. The XBRITE LCD screen is light years above the ECO LCD on the FW store displays that I've seen, and the screen real estate is amazing with the 1920x1080 resolution.

However, I'm having an issue with its slight grainy texture that creates a shimmering effect and makes it harder to read text on white backgrounds. I've seen this on quite a few Dell machines.

Anyone else have a similar issue, or did I get a bad XBRITE panel?

 

Didn't notice any graininess.

 

Not to disappoint you but I do think they will get the black units back in anytime soon; if at all. Not 100% sure on that but I will be changing my order. If you talk to their customer service you will be able to preserve all you discounts from the original order. If you order is already being assembled, maybe u got one of the last black units

 

FEDEX forgot my order at Bloomington, CA since Dec 11 at 1:25AM

:/

lol

 

creating recovery discs on 3 dvd+rw with verify enabled is estimated to be 2.5 hrs... fresh install may make more sense..

 

That's like 5 miles from my house. I can like go there and steal it for you if you want.

 

Um, is anyone else having trouble reinstalling Windvd BD for VAIO from the recovery discs after a clean install?

There is some sort of Error 505 Code 41.

 

So um... I did a complete system recovery with the recovery discs because I wasn't able to reinstall the Windvd BD from the clean vista install I did. I was able to get Windvd BD back from the complete system reinstall so it's not the discs.

The problem is, now that the bloatware is back, the VAIO FW is at least 3 times as slow as when I had just the clean vista install. It takes about 3 minutes from turning it on to when vista is responsive whereas with my clean vista install, it only takes a minute for everything to load up.

I tried uninstalling stuff, but it didn't help at all. There is DEFINITELY something running in the background that's sketchy.

I'm redoing the clean vista install and trying to find some way to reinstall Windvd BD.

This is not a problem for people wanting to do a clean install and don't need to watch blu-ray movies.

Some help reinstalling Windvd BD would be appreciated if someone has any time what is going on.

Also I found out a way to get rid of that pesky "hidden paritition." That partition doesn't show up at that screen in the Vista install where you pick which partition to install to because that's a "vista recovery partition."

I just used the Systemrescuecd to get rid of that partition.

http://www.sysresccd.org/Download

It's pretty easy to use.

Just download the latest version, press enter when the "boot" prompt shows up, and type in startx when everything loads to get to the graphic interface.

Then find the partition GUI and send that "secret" partition to heck where it belongs.

 

Do still make those recovery discs though. Once you do a fresh install, the things that are on those recovery discs will no longer be available. The absolute first thing you gotta do is make those recovery discs. I know they take forever, but you just gotta power through the pain!!!

 

That must be the Sony Media Plus thing or whatever that's like indexing all your media files. I fully uninstalled that, including the PS3-like media center thing so it's useless and Windows Media Center is for that anyways.

 

You might want to take a look at this thread for a 'clean' install with a Sony recovery image...

 

Envy on all of you who are able to get the free Base Station. I have tried endless times trying to contact Sony and finally get to talk to a real person in Customer Care after holding my phone for 2 hours. She just doesn't want to give me anything, for according to her, price guarantee doesn't include free gifts and according to her, Sony NEVER gave any free gifts to customers who ordered last week. I even told her that I read the postings of you guys, but according to her, these postings are just lies and not true!! Anyway, you can read the details in my thread...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=331077

 

Kind of spoils the experience of getting the new notebook. I just have an uneasy feeling about the whole transaction. For some reason I don't think my notebook order will ever get processed.

 

Um. So I spent 2 hours on the phone with Sony tech support trying to reinstall Windvd BD for Vaio back onto a clean Vista install. It doesn't work. I guess there is some way to pull the installation file out from the recovery partition. It doesn't really matter for me anymore though. I'll just use something else. The Windvd BD that comes with the Vaio is really old anyway. The new Windvd is version 9. The one that came with the laptop is version 8. It's kind of ghetto.

So just be aware of this problem BEFORE you do a clean reinstall. You should read that one thread where someone figured out how to pull the installation files from the recovery image BEFORE you wipe that partition.

 

The FW CTO option is back up on SonyStyle. Blu-ray still free, P8400 2.26 free, the ATI 3650 is the only graphics option shown, no 4500 integrated. But the odd thing is the memory options, no 4GB is listed, it lists 2, 3 and now a brand new 8GB, say it again, 8GB option for $600, whoa-

 

I had no problems at all with Sony, though I think I might have some problems with FEDEX as my order is supposed to arrive at Dec 16th in NY and it's still sitting at Bloomington, CA since the early hours of Dec 11th.

I'd like to make only one comment about Sony. I was in between buying the HDX 16t from HP and the FW290 from Sony. I'm from Brazil and I was planning on paying with my international credit card (issued in Brazil) and shipping it over my sister's house in NY and then picking it up two weeks from now as I'm going to spend the New Year's eve with her.

I've tried buying the HDX from Sony with 4 different credit cards and none of them went through. They either complained that the credid card was not issued in the US or that the billing address provided didn't match the one on file. I was very frustrated so I decided to go with Sony.

I simply typed my first credit card and made the billing address the same as the shipping address (my sister's house in NY) and the order went through like a charm. They didn't even check the name on the CC to see if it matches the one I've entered.

 

Oh, I intend to use my card (international card) to buy on Sony Style but they said I can't do that. Well, I am jealous that you can buy from Sony US with your card. I am outside US.

 

How can I make the recovery discs? What are the steps? Please help.

 

VAIO recovery center. it took less than 2 hours at the end..

 

few more things about FW290:
1. 1920x1080 LCD will only do 1024x768 or 800x600, can't even run 3dmark Vantage since 1280x1024 is not available.
2. Sandra 2009 GPU benchmark caused ATI driver to fail and blue screen

gpu-z screenshot of 3650

 

LOL... Download the latest ATI drivers from Windows Update released like 2 days ago. You get like 30 different resolutions.

Sadly 1600X900 is not one of the options. I guess the math doesn't work.

1080 to 900 would be a 12 to 10 scaling. I guess that doesn't work too well. Oh well.

 

Can u post a link to these updated drivers? I don't usually use Windows update.

 

I'm outside US too. You can use your international card to pay for it but obviously you must have it shipped to an US address.

 

I wish I had known this good news. I begged a company in US for buying and ship to my country. I had to pay their service about 70 bucks

 

New to Sony, got caught buying a 180D thinking it was current and after reading the threads am going to return it.

CDN web site showing a VGNFW285DH but one of the threads said only the ECO screen is available in Canada.

If its true - its not good enough
i.e. Screen Size: 16.4"
Resolution: 1920 x 1080
XBRITE™: Technology: Yes

Can anyone please let me know if the VGN-FW290JAB has the HI Color screen? Newegg has it on for $1,099.

 

Yes, the FW290JAB has the HI Color screen. It's worth to buy.

 

Thanks for the response - Its about $400 cheap that a similiar 290 CTO.

 

cto comes with english only keyboard, the other pre built models come with both english and french keyboards.

 

Is the FW270 at Best Buy a good deal for 999.00?

 

I'm from Mexico and I'm planning in ordering one tomorrow from Sony Style Mexico, since I've to cut cost in order to afford one I will just ordered with only 2 GB of RAM.

Here are the specs:

• Core 2 Duo P8600 (2.40 GHz)
• HD 250 GB (5400 RPM)
• 2 GB DDR-SDRAM (DDR2-667, 2 GB x 1)
• DVD±R Doble Layer / DVD±RW
• XBRITE-FullHD™
• ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3650
• 802.11a\b\g\n with Bluetooth

Total cost:

19,399.00 (1462 USD) | If I add 4GB it goes up to: 21,399.00 (1613 USD).

So I was thinking in buying in a few months two DIMMs of 2GB to add 4 GB to the system and sell the ones that will come with the Lap, but can you guys point me out what modules will work with the lap please.

Does this one will work? bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8724767&type=product&id=1200703058546

Thank you in advance.

 

I just bought the VGN-FW270J/W from Best Buy. Now having second thoughts with the Intel 4500MHD integrated video? If I don't use it for gaming I should be fine right?

 

1) Definitely, you don't want to add $150 to get a 4GB RAM configuration. The one in bestbuy works, but is too expensive. Try this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820208407

For RAM, brands do not affect the performance.

2) About the GMA 4500MHD, if you don't play any games, it is fine. Some reviews say that it has problems with HD playback, but some other reviews say it is OK. So, HD playback is the most that GMA 4500MHD can do. Anything beyond that is not possible.

 

SP4, I will recommend you don't buy it from bestbuy, it is too expensive. Try directly from Sonystyle.com (but bear with their bad customer care) or buy it from ebay.com. I think you can get one with ATI 3650 (a decent GPU that can support even the latest games. So, no need to worry about heavy graphics in the future few years) with the same price as bestbuy (after tax). Try to buy one with the specs similar to mine and I think it will keep you for many years.

 

Quick responses on the FW 270!! I plan to use it for office apps, internet, e-mail, wifi and webcam. I am interested in its performance and durability. I plan to take it overseas w/ me. I am not a gamer but I do intend to watch a lot of dvd and blue rays.

Also time is a factor for my purchase since I am leaving at the begining of the year!!

 

a few other remarks (since I have read A LOT on FW). Some claimed that it is not durable for hinge on the laptop can be easily broken (made of plastic). But some said it is OK. There is no International warranty, meaning that you need to send it back to US for repair. Some reviews claim that Blu-rays might be problematic for blu-rays, but I guess that it should be fine. But, I think the best is to get one with a dedicated GPU. ATI 3470 is a small GPU that should handle HD playbacks well, but not 3D games. ATI 3650 can support even the latest 3D games (up to now). Don't buy it from Bestbuy, it is far more expensive there. Try directly from Sonystyle (although I recently had A LOT of bad experiences with them) or try ebay or newegg. It might be cheaper there.

macasterj: isn't that the price of FW270 in bestbuy is 1049.99? And you need to pay tax. I think you can buy one with similar price in ebay and with ATI 3650 GPU.

 

Question:

How do i install WaveOut Mix? cause my vaio didn't come with that feature...And the support at sony don't know their own products saying all i have to do is view the disabled info, and it'll be there, which is clearly wrong. So does anyone have any idea how i can install this? Realtek

 

for those interested in whether GMA 4500MHD plays HD movies well, read the discussions in the thread:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=331316

 

The price of the FW270 is 999.00 according to the ad in todays paper, So is the HP 1175NR, my second choice.

 

What the hell?!? Those specs should only costs around 1050 dollars US from Sonystyle.com. Do you have to order it from Sony mexico?

As far as the 2X2GB of DDR2 200 pin laptop ram is concerned... Any of these will work. They're the right speed:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...1309121118 1309221140&name=DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)

DDR2 PC2 6400