Official VAIO FW Series Owners Thread

The above is only true for a 32-bit Operating System.

Owais uses 64-bit Vista which is capable of addressing up to 16,000,000 gigabytes of memory, as opposed to only being able to address just 4 gigabytes of memory in Vista/XP 32-bit.

Me too, I understand everything in Task Manager on Windows XP, but it seems Vista's Task Manager uses a slightly different implementation and different terminology.

Hit the Help file in the menu on TaskManager. Help > Help Topics.

 

when i connect my laptop to a 1080p tv (a samsung 40" 1080p lcd) and my laptop is in 1920xx1080 mode, why does some of the screen get cut off on the tv

also with my 1920x1080 screen, i only get 3 screen resolution options.
but when i connect it to the tv i get 6.

edit: now iv got constantly 4 without connecting it to my tv, i aint compaining.
i had 1920x1080, 1024x768 and 800x600, but now iv also got 1280x720 without connecting it to my tv.

weird..... it shows the laptop and gpu are cable of showing those resolutions but chose not to unless you connect a tv...

 

This is the strange thing on 3650 GPU's. I have the 3470 on 1600x900 eco screen with modded 9.1 desktop driver and I`m able to select between like 20 resolutions with or without my lcd TV connected. Maybe it's something in 3650's bios, I don't get it.

 

when i use modded drivers, i get more resolutions too. but then i cant overclock the gpu so i dont use the modded drivers.

as i ratherr play at 1024x768 and get better fps.

i managed to get the new godfather 2 game to run at the highest settings(no AA) at 1920x1080 with about 20fps.
i OC'ed the gpu to 675/775. i didnt try higher and judt made those numbers up. i used ati gpu clock tool to do it and whats nice is its easy to use and when you restart you laptop, the defaults are there.
to OC, before starting a game, you just turn it on a OC in like 2 sec.

its weird though, adding a tv gives you more resolutions lol.

 

last time i checked the FW35 physically supports 4GB maximum of address space. regardless of the OS bit depth (32 or 64) you will never be able to use 4GB for applications in this case.

 

What are you planning on using it for really.

Build quality is pretty good, not happy with the loose solder connection in my speakers, im going to have to get that fixed later this year.

I think mac build quality is a lot better to be honest.

But I love my Vaio, since its far better value.

 

8gb is the max for 64bit. 4gb was for 32bit only.
http://vaio.sony.co.uk/view/ShowPro..._cons&pageType=Overview&category=VN+FW+Series
fw31zj is 64bit and has 4gb but it says it can support up to 8gb like most other centrino 2 laptops.
so thts 2x4gb memory sticks.
but i wouldnt upgrade yet as its too expensive for 4gb laptops ram.

 

not necessarily

to have all 4GB available for applications on a 64-bit OS the notebook must have a chipset that supports a minimum of 8GB, the cpu must support the x64 instruction set and the BIOS will have to be configured with the memory remapping feature enabled.

 

I recetly got a FW378j/b and im experiancing an issue when playin blurays on the laptop.... i get a weird white line that dances randomly from top to bottom and only when playin blu rays(DVDs play fine and not using the optical drive theres no line)........ anyone else experianced this and know how to fix it?..... this is my second FW378, the first one did not have this issue but i returned it and now this second one does...?

 

Have you updated the firmware and player? VAIO Update

 

I am considering purchasing a customized FW390 and have a few quick questions:

1) How long does the standard battery typically last for non-gaming functions (i.e. internet, word processing, etc)?

2) Is the screen viewable while outside on a sunny day?

Thanks!

P.S. the other computer I have looked at is the Lenovo T400.

 

I still haven't been able to figure out my video card issue. If someone could help shed some light on it, I would appreciate it.

I re-formatted and re-installed 32-bit Vista with original stock ATI drivers from the Sony website and I still have the same horizontal flickering/tearing which is most noticeable during video playback. I now have a clean OS with no installed codecs or software other than Catalyst and my device manager has no asterisks.

Has anyone experienced this issue or have an idea what could be causing it? I am going insane trying to troubleshoot this problem. I have a FW140D with an ATI 3470.

Thanks.

 

Just look a few posts back in this forum, someone posted a picture of a broken off left hinge. This is definitely a cause of concern for me, and obviously a design flaw.

 

i ran 3dmark06 at 1280x720 and got a score of 4665. anyone else tried it yet?

 

okay. with respect to the FW31zj (i assumed the FW3 5 was physically limited to 4GB maximum), you still need to enable BIOS memory remapping. just having a 64-bit OS isn't enough.

 

i called sony up and they say all there 64 bit FW's are cabable of 8gb

 

the chipset has undergone refresh (which should permit remapping), not the bit size of a cpu's data element

 

i dont understand what that means but all i know is all vaios can have 8gb all long as they use 64bit. thats what the sony man said.

 

the amount of RAM a notebook can physically support has nothing to do with how many bits the CPU uses to represent a memory address.

 

Bought my FW-140D in August 2008. 8 months later...

The "barrel" where the A/C adapter plugs has become extremely loose and is about to fall off.

I have treated this laptop with extreme care ever since I bought it brand new.

I predict it is only a matter of time before your "barrel" goes.

Definitely a design flaw. I'm sure Sony is well aware!

 

Its not like they'd actually test the !

Im kinda sick of this big corporation attitude, where they expect their customers to just put up with the design flaws.

http://forums.cnet.com/5208-7587_102-0.html?threadID=252612&tag=forum-w;forums06 (trackpad issue)

They need to have a recall of the FW series, and fix the problems that have been happening.

The build is rubbish too, ive already got scratches near the edges where the screen should protect it (when closed). I guess its just from sweat? Sorry Sony I actually use my laptop. You'd think they'd test the build before they release it, but I don't think they give a about their product.

 

my touchpads fine.
my hinge is fine so far and my bros(had 9 months). he didnt even notice till i told him, just leave it alone.

if its gonna fall, tell sony to fix it for you.

 

Its not always that simple, these problems have a way of suddenly revealing themselves when its to late and the damage is done, then you have Sony telling you "that problem was caused by you (the user) and therefore we arent going to take any action to repair that for you."

And TBH the fact your touchpad is fine doesnt count for much. Hardly silences the voices of all those who have experienced a defective touchpad.

My laptop is about 2 months old now, and I had problems with my touchpad 2 weeks into its life, thats absolutely ridiculous, this isnt just a rare problem it is a common problem in Vaio's, if you did some research youd discover its to do with the ALPS hardware theyve decided to use with their touchpads.

 

hmmm my touchpad is working fine and i've had this laptop for 4 months now...

on another note, how do u think fallout 3 will run on my laptop? If anybody has the game can u comment on its performance?

I have the FW21E, Vista home premium 32 bit, 4 gig ram, Radeon HD3470 with 256 vRam

 

i know its synaptics> alps but iv hadd 2 laptops with each in the last year. and id saay they all worked fine. i personally like the touchpad as its smooth and easy to use.

also, vaios have 2 years warrantys, so shouldnt they fix the problem? just tell them how can it be your problem when its happens to so many people and say you will report them to trading standards

 

2 year warranty/guarantee? I thought it was 1yr.

I bought an extra 2yrs for peace of mind.

My last laptop, a Fujitsu M3438G, [ died horribly] just after its 1yr warranty and the events that transpired afterwards were stressful, time-consuming and costly. (taking legal action), and I never want to go through that again.

 

no, i thought its 1 year aswell, but then i checked the support manual and wasent sure, so called then up and yep, 2 years

It pisses me off how sony is still giving 4200rpm and 5400rpm HDD's in their laptops then cost over £1000. thats just stupid.
sony style were giving away 128gb SSD's for the same price as there 400gb HDD's as a special offer with £250 off the SSD, i wish i had bought the laptop when that offer was on.

 

wow funny how this has turned into a "bash the fw" thread

 

Yeah, the barrel design was very poorly thought out. My right side one broke off but I didn't send it for repair yet, and now my left one has problems too. This could actually be a fire hazard because of the wires in there.

The barrels are just held on by a piece of plastic -- they should have made that piece out of metal due to the constant slight flexing that will occur every time someone presses the button or plugs in their AC adapter. The plastic tab also has a hole drilled in it for a screw which probably weakens it a lot -- looking closely at my broken one it's cracked right where the screw hole is.

 

Sending my laptop back so i can get a dell studio xps 16".

my hinge is loose on the power cable side and a little on the power button.
my laptop waeks up from sleep mode be itself.
my DVD drive makes retarded noises when i put a disc in.

so im just gonna return it.

sony style are retards, they took 6 weeks to make the laptop, then i get a laptop with 3 faults......

 

Wow this is insane but I have to agree. And on top of all of that the 1920x1080 resolution is just asinine. It almost seems like sony is purposly making laptops that are missing just one or two things to make it perfect. Like a 1600x900 option on the FullHD screen. I just dont get it...

 

I will say yet again, the 1920 X 1080 if fine, in fact its great.
This is the best screen for resolution I have ever had.
For you its not, that is your opinion, it does not make it asinine.
Good luck with an XPS 16! have a look at the Dell forum for the problems they are having with the screen and other malfunctions, and I guess you don't want a Blu ray burner, as this is not an option.

 

FullHD is by definition 1920 * 1080 I don't know how you would have an option of 1600 * 900 on an lcd. There is a fixed number of pixels on an lcd and you cannot change the resolution like you can on a CRT monitor.

 

The FW is not perfect. The innovative "barrels" look ended up with a serious design flaw in the hinges. One need to be very careful and not put any pressure on both sides, which makes the portability of the FW questionable.

It is not a gaming laptop (its video card options make this obvious - the highest Windows rating you get is 5.1 due to the video card). It is also not a portable "go to school/college" laptop - its footprint is a little bit larger than what would be the perfect "always take it with me" size.

However as an entertainment laptop package, FW is still the best on the market. The combination of HD resolution screen, Blu-Ray playback and ATI HD processing is fantastic.

It could also be configured with T-series processors with large L2 cache and up to 8 GB ram and could serve as a powerful 64-bit Audio/Video processing workstation or programming/database development desktop replacement.

It runs cool, it is very stable and joy to work with.

Just make sure you know what your priorities are and if you can live with the FW shortcomings, before you buy one.

 

a little something for everyone to get off the complaints topic it seems something new appeared on the ati website for hd3600 series
http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_catalyst.aspx?p=vista32/common-vista32

 

Was deliberating between the XPS16 or the FW35V. Chose the FW in the end because I heard the heat being mentioned a good few times regards the XPS16 (I haven't read anyone mention heat on the Vaio FW yet in comparison), and the chassis of the XPS16 looks oddly unfinished on the sides (where the ports are), and looked a bit like a boat, sagging in the middle closely toward the ground, and was overly thick/bulky, put me off a bit (personal preference only).

Thought the black plastic might also attract heat during summer, rather than reflect it.

Also liked the clean style of the FW and funkier looking rubber keys, a pleasant nod toward the MacBooks.

I'm a careful user so hopefully the hinges wont be an issue, but it doesn't inspire confidence.

 

No its not fine. It is overkill. Flat out. I find it rather humoring that everyone gets all crazy and excited about it when the fact of the matter is that in a side by side comparison the FullHD screen is NOT that much better and brighter than the ECO screen. And yes once again the text and font size is small and agitating. Regardless of weather or not you can change the DPI and zoom in whenever you want it just is a pain.

 

So basically you would have wished for the 1600x900 ECO screen to have two internal lamps instead of one? (I'm guessing that's the only difference between the two, apart from resolution?)

... By which Sony could sell the 1920x1080 to those who want HD, and the 1600x900 (I guess they couldn't then call it an ECO screen if it had two lamps) for everyone else.

 

The first FW generation (FW100 series) - Sept 2008 to Nov 2008 had two screens: XBrite-Eco (single lamp) and XBrite-HiColor (dual lamp) - both with 1600x900 resolutions.

In the FW200 and FW300 series, Sony decided to offer the dual lamp screen only at 1920x1080, so they can safely put the Full HD sticker on the laptop.

It would have been nice to be able to choose between two dual-lamp screen resolutions. The real reason of having only 1920x1080 available might have to do with the ATI 3650 card (the official ATI 3650 HD driver does not offer 1600x900 resolution).

The FW100 series had the ATI 3470 card, which always had more resolutions.

If you are looking for a dual-lamp screen at 1600x900 resolution, check out the Sony Outlet - FW100 refurbs are offered from time to time.

 

changeing the DPI makes windows look stupid, zooming in lurs things and makes them look out of proportion and changeing the resolution is also crap.

the colours and brightness is by far better.

its up up to weather you dont mind the small text or not.

 

Thanks - nice find - works great!!

 

I've had my FW285 since Oct'08 - Have traveled with it also - the keyboard, screen and coolness are the things I like about it most. The 1920x1080 is a matter of personal preference. Personally, I like the extra real estate it offers when using Excel and other programs. The sharpness of the screen is fabulous. I wear bifocals and can read/type without my glasses.
For the barrels - just be careful, I place in in my travel bag with the barrels up so the pressure is on the front of the laptop - so far after about 6 trips via car/train no issues.

 

Does it work with the Mobility Modder? (The newer Catalyst versions, specifically post-9.1 don't work with Mobility Modder anymore)

 

I have DH Mobility Modder ver 1.1.1.0 installed - worked great.

 

Not like it would matter you cant use these drivers with a Vaio laptop I believe. Since your restricted to using the Sony releases of ATI drivers.

And last I checked DH Mobility Modder only works on drivers before 9.0. It even says that in the readme, so none of this: "But it works!" business. Because it doesnt, ive even tried it on 9.1 drivers and had no luck.

 

I am running 9.1 on FW11M with 3470 Ati card and I had no problems whatsoever. 9.2 and 9.3 doesn't worked with mobility modder though.

 

FYI - I just picked up a FW298 for $999 at clearanceclub.com and the FW378 is the same price. They only had one 298 left and I was shocked to see how cheap it was! Yes, it does come with a 90 day warranty but I picked up a 2 year warranty for $130 and they are shipping the computer out today.

The 298 has the 2.53GHz processor, Full HD screen and Blu-ray Disc read/write optical drive. SonyStyle couldn't even come close to matching this

 

Yeah, same here. I'm running 9.1 on my FW without any problems. Proof:

However, I tried both 9.2 and 9.3 and they give me errors when installing. Some people claim 9.2 works by manually modifying the .ini file but I don't plan on getting my hands dirty.

 

managed to run crysis at ultra with 35fps average on 800x600 with new drivers and overclocked too 750/900 (from 450/700). i know its high but i was only testing and the heat was at 65degrees.

im not bothered about the laptop as its going back anyway, but that was quite good for crysis.

 

how is the ns compared to the fw?