Official VAIO FW Series Owners Thread

Guys what exactly does "sleep" do?

Usually in the night i leave my laptop with azerues running, with this one for the first time i left it running and when i woke up i had to click to get it back to running, meaning it didnt download anything over night?

do i have to turn off sleep if i want it to download in the night?

 

In mozilla, though I'm pretty much sure in IE as well, you can zoom in a webpage (make it bigger to see the fonts better) by going to View->Zoom->Zoom in.

 

Thanks, did you see my other q's?

you have been a big help

 

It has a lot to do with the hardware upgrade prices and the $100 discount they were running that day. Plus I used a code posted on slickdeals that was similar to the sony campus discount.

 

I used the same code, corporate something or other, and with your figuration it would have been like 1400 or something like that.

PS how the hell do i chat with Sony online, i keep getting this message "The chat request has been canceled"

 

Did you buy on Dec 2? The deal was different by the 3rd. As far as the chat request it seems to disconnect right when you are the #1 in the queue. I just kept trying.

 

Can someone link me to a good cheap HDMI cable that is good for the FW to LCD please?

 

Ah, yeah you got an extra hundred off, congrats!

I am happy with my deal as it was 1170 all together and i got a pretty suped up laptop

 

After spending the weekend and yesterday with a new FW290 CTO (2.4 GHz, ATI HD3650, XBRITE LCD, Blu-Ray reader), I'm torn with whether or not to keep it. Here are some of my thoughts:

Pros--

* 16.4" XBRITE screen is beautiful--one of the nicest I have seen with truly white whites and rich colors. The 1920x1080 resolution gives me a lot of screen to work with and keep windows accessible.
* I love the sleek look of the FW keyboard and design, especially the sloping bend below the palm rest. Keyboard has nice feel and key travel.
* Runs great with everything I've tried so far including games and stays amazingly cool. Graphics aren't too bad given that I've had issues with ATI in the past.
* Blu-ray ---> 'nuff said
* Got it for a great price

Cons--

* Subtle graininess/sparkle to the XBRITE LCD with light colors that makes it harder for me to stare very long at the screen when browsing, reading, etc. Combined with the fine resolution this is a *big* problem for me.
* On anything less than full brightness or one notch below, whites tend to take on a greenish hue which is unpleasing.
* Looks do not equal feel--the FW just feels like hollow plastic and less solid to the touch, compared to some other Vaio's and recent HP consumer notebooks, which btw seem more "finished" and sleek. The Titanium grey lid both looks and feels cheap.
* Size and weight--this system isn't as portable for everyday use as I would like.

Not sure whether all the pro's outweigh my issue with the screen and other cons...I've looked at *a lot* of notebooks over the past year and they've all come up short on either the LCD, video card or portability. Anyone else have a similar dilemma?

 

Is this a good deal on an HDMI?

http://www.amazon.com/Cables-Go-403...2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1229444765&sr=8-2

 

Anyone else have slightly bent or curved in ends? (AC and Power?).

I am on my SECOND Sony Vaio FW in a week (the first one the hinge literally snapped off from the LCD panel one morning when I opened it to check my e-mail), and this one has a slightly curved/bent end on the 'barrel' thing around the AC adapter area.

Wondering if this is common? I have named my laptop Snaggletooth due to this.

 

Yeah, but you should go to monoprice.com and find a Category 2 certified cable. Monoprice cables are generic but they passed Category 2 testing, which is really what you'll need for 1080p. Category 1 is really only tested for 1080i. If you're cheap, you can just use a Category 1 cable for 1080i though. I doubt you'd notice the difference.

You can spend like $20 on a monoprice cable that passed Category 2 testing or you can spend like $300 or something on a Monster Cable that passed Category 2 testing. Your choice! :-D

 

S1 sleep does absolutely nothing except turn off your screen.

S3 sleep turns off everything except leave power to ram. When you press a button, the computer comes back to life almost instantaneously. At least that's the theory. :-D

S4 sleep: The "sleep" that you're talking about on the VAIO FW is S4 sleep though.

That's Vista hibernation. It writes the contents of the RAM onto the hard drive and actually shuts down the computer. When you press the power button, it reads from the sleep contents and loads windows back to where it was when you went to sleep.

 

Thanks but what exactly do i do if i want to have something running overnight?

Just tell it to leave everything on?

PS according to your definition what is the difference between sleep and hibernate?

 

I've just received my coupon for my free LF-V30 base station. It also has Free 2-day Expedited shipping. I just placed my order.

BTW, my sister just received the VAIO I bought.

I just can't complain about Sony anymore.


Order Number: SW081********

Your order contains the following item(s):
Product: LFV30
Per Unit Price: $0.00
Quantity: 1
Total Price: $0.00
Description: LocationFree® Base Station
Ship Method: Expedited
Estimated Ship Date: 12/17/2008

Subtotal: $0.00
Tax: $0.00
Shipping Charges: $0.00
---------------------------
Order Total: $0.00

 

Guys a few more noob q's

How to use Eyecam, dont even know how to enter that area?

What is the vista buttons for the XP command of Alt+Cont+Delete?

 

It won't go to sleep if you have something running overnight. It'll just turn off the screen and the computer will keep running. Just make sure you have it plug in because that battery won't last the night.

 

Quick question...

I just bought a FW290 CTO, my question is... What programs should i remove and which programs do i need to keep?

Thanks in advance

 

gotta a quick question.. i did the semi-clean install for my fw290 and so far so good.. just want to know why in device manager says i have t9600 while my system properties reads p8600.. btw i ordered p8600

 

you might have been lucky =)

download cpu-z and see what it says

 

cpu-z confirms it as p8600.

 

i ran this test on my other laptop with p8400 and it's core speed is bout 2260mhz and my fw290 w/ p8600 is showing core speed of 1595mhz.. does that mean somethings messed up?

[edit] nvm.... freakin battery power options caused low core speeds

 

Hey FW owners, I'm the new kid on the block.
Just ordered a FW290CTO. Sony said it would be about 3 weeks to ship.

Appreciate all the info on the FW.

Where's a good place to buy a memory upgrade?

Here's what I ordered.

LocationFree® Base Station (Free)

Product: VGNFW290-CTO $1399.00
LCD 16.4" (XBRITE-FullHD™)
No Fresh Start™
250 GB SATA Hard Disk Drive [7200 rpm]
Video Standard
No Engraving
Standard Battery
WLAN (802.11a/b/g/n) with integrated Bluetooth® technology
ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3650 with 512MB vRAM
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T9400 (2.53GHz) [Regular price $300]
Blu-ray Disc™ Read and Write Drive [Regular price $250]
Titanium Gray
Microsoft® Windows Vista® Home Premium 64-bit
2 GB DDR2-SDRAM (DDR2-800, 1GBx2)

 

You could get something like this...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148159

Grats on the new laptop

 

How did you get it so cheap?!! I got mine (as in the signature, Eco screen) for $850 and to get your specs with the offer I got, I need to pay at least another $150!! When did you order actually....

 

if i get the "BluRay Read Only Drive" can i still play DVD's and CD's?

 

Yes, you can still read and write CDs and DVDs.

 

SICK, Thanks

 

Hi, im a new Vaio FW11M owner, and i would like to know if i can upgrade the video card in the laptop, and what is the best card on the market i can replace the current one with?

Regards

 

Look at my posts from earlier in the day or in the beginning of the month. I've covered this subject a couple times already.

 

You'd probably have to change the motherboard as well, taking the costs beyond a reasonable value. So, unless you want to spent almost as much as what you paid for the laptop itself, you can't.

 

Hye kohyeekan,

Does your FW have a bulge on the right side below the HDD area? refer to this pictures. forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=331958

 

The GPU is soldered on the motherboard therefore you can't change it unless you buy a new motherboard. Motherboards are normally custom-made for each notebook, so you'll have a hard time finding one that matches the vaio. If you want a better GPU buy a new notebook, go for alienware.

 

Do people actually reply on these forums, or just talk about ordering laptops

No one else has slightly bent ends on the barrels of their FWs? I've had two already, both like that out of the box hmm.

 

Check about 8 pages back, people were talking about their barrels.

 

Do you have a pic?

 

I'll take a pic after work.

It's just slightly curved inwards. Similar to pictures earlier when someone showed a picture of their distorted barrels. Mine is about 1mm or 2mm off, and if you rub your finger off the barrel it's obvious, plus, you can see it too, as it's crooked.

 

It has been discussed a few times, please take the time to read the entire thread, then you will see the posts.

 

Mine's not crooked but then again I didn't get a Free Location Free Base Station.... Stupid sonystyle won't pony up the free stuff.... Grrrrrr. If you got a free base station and a crooked hinge, I wouldn't complain. It's just cosmetic. Unless it falls off or something. Then it's a real problem. :-D

 

I didn't get anything It just came this way from the store. It's bent vaguely, but still bent. The last one wiggled and everything, and in the end something ELSE broke after a week.

 

Yep

i posted those pictures a few back as well.

Discouraging at most.

and realisticily whats sony not to say " No sorry it's a user issue and you borke them "

Sony can pay that card and they we are screwed

 

That should still count as a manufacturing defect or something. You gotta go to the store and say that you need a new laptop because this one is broken.

I hope you just the laptop a few days ago though.

 

oright no worries then, so if you have a low end FW you cant put the high end GPU in it?

never mind if not, cheers for the reply

 

Nope, you can't.

 

My old usb mouse died and since it was wired and not wireless it was a hassle, fortunately it began cutting out too much and I couldn't use it anymore.

I was planning on getting a bluetooth mouse from sony but opted against it. Instead I bought a logitech nano VX

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/mice_pointers/mice/devices/3271&cl=us,en

So far it's great. I have an older wireless logitech attached to my desktop and I can say I have had no complaints, so logitech as a logical choice for me. the shape is nice, comfortable and easy to use. The hyper scrolling is kind of cool and makes a breeze of large documents or websites.

It comes with the batteries including, 2 AAA, and also a carrying pouch, which is of quite good quality. The small USB receiver is also why I wanted it, since I don't even notice it being attached to the laptop and you can walk store the laptop away with it even.

It also comes with an adapter for the desktop, which you can just take the small adapter off the laptop, plug it into the device that connects via usb to the desktop and use the mouse there.

Quite satisfied with it and would recommend it if people are looking for a good mouse for their laptop. I got it on sale for 59.99 Canadian plus taxes, so around 67 bucks.

 

Hey Fellas,

Just wanted to share my specs and timeline with you all during this xmas rush, so here it is: (Sony Style Canada says work on laptop has begun)
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T9400 (2.53GHz)
LCD 16.4" (XBRITE-FullHD™)
ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3650 with 512MB vRAM
WLAN (802.11a/b/g/n) with integrated Bluetooth® technology
320 GB SATA Hard Disk Drive [7200 rpm]
Blu-ray Disc™ Read Only Drive [Receive a Bonus Blu-ray Disc™ Movie Pack featuring: Hitch, Surf's Up and Casino Royale]
Large Battery
Black
Engraving
Microsoft® Windows Vista® Home Premium 64-bit
4 GB DDR2-SDRAM (DDR2-800, 2GBx2)
Estimated Shipped Date: 23 Dec 08

 

I took a close look at mine and I didn't notice anything crooked. If you've seen this multiple times it has to be something your noticing that others are not. Take a pic and point it out.

 

Congrats, very similar to the one I purchase. The only difference is I bought the standard battery and Blu-ray read & write drive.

 

Haha, I haven't looked at my laptop yet. Quite busy now and debating whether to keep the laptop. Will post figures during the weekends when I have more time....

 

Just wondering if anyone else has tried to order the FW 290JAB from Newegg? I've tried 3 times in the last 2 1/2 weeks and each time they've sent me the 290JQB.

The JAB has the full hd screen and a 320gb hdd with 7200rpm ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834117832) - the JQB has the eco screen and a 250gb hdd with 5400rpm ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834117803).

My computer keeps getting shipped from Newegg's Memphis, TN warehouse and the warehouse people keep telling the Newegg people the JAB is in stock but there is obviously a problem they must not be aware of as they keep shipping the JQB. I only ordered the 2nd and 3rd time because the service reps told me they were in stock and they keep knocking off money, guarenteeing the $1099 sale price, and giving me free next day shipping. By the time I decided to order from Sony the version I wanted wasn't available any more. I've asked Newegg if they can ship it from one of their other warehouses but they said they can't - it's shipped from the closest warehouse with the item in stock. Newegg made the 290JAB unavailable for purchase yesterday, I guess they're finally trying to get the problem fixed - I'm just wondering how many other people this happened to?

I'm so frustrated bc my old computer is having issues and I really really want the FW with the 290JAB specs. When the first computer showed up I got to play a little before I realized it was the wrong version and it was soooo nice! Anybody have any idea how long it will be before Sony gets new parts in stock? Looks like the only processor speed available right now is 2.0ghz and I saw earlier comments about not being able to get the black cases with the HD screen. *sigh* If only I didn't live in the southeast I probably would have had the correct computer weeks ago, stupid Newegg

Oh one last question - I thought I read somewhere in this thread that the bluray read-only drive still has regular dvd/cd burning capabilites but when i tried to find the info on the Sony website I didn't see that mentioned - where can I find this info? Thanks!