Official VAIO Z Core 2 Duo Series Owners Thread

No offense...but that sounds as gross as (if not worse than) drinking your own pee from a snake skin "water bag" like the guy did on the Discovery channel. I thought that was the grossest thing a person could do before came across your post...lol

Man...just calm down.

 

I just read your comparison review and it was very informative. Question? Do you think the speakers on the Z will be comparable to the SZ without use of earphones? Personally, I was very content with the pitch of the SZ. Louder is always better, but do you think it's the same or maybe even slightly better?

I'm also concerned about the positioning of the USB ports on the Z; one on each side. I have a Simpletech 320GB portable travel external hard drive that requires it to be inserted into 2 USB ports. One drive for transffering files and the other is to power it up. And looking at the cable that came with it, there is no way the the 2 USB drives will extend from both ends of the Z.

Does anyone have an portable external drive requiring connection to 2 USB ports? Or does anyone have one made by Simpletech?

Will this apply to the Z with 1366x768 as well?

 

Geeee: I've got a usb extender cable, I'm sure that would work (but I don't have anything that would require two ports...)

Question about the graphics switching. I thought I read somewhere that the feature only works in Vista, is that correct? so if downgrading (or upgrading as you see it) would that eliminate the possibility for switching?

Also anyone know how much more weight or bulk does the extended battery add to the Z?

Thanks again!

 

Z's overall weight: Weight (Approx.) : 3.31 lbs (with standard battery). This is weight on none SSD and none BD.


Here is information on the extended battery:

VGP-BPL12 $249.99

Weights and Measurements

* Approx Weight : 1.04 lbs.

* Dimensions (Approx.) : 1.9"(W) x 1.6"(H) x 8.1(L)

Power

* Battery Capacity : 9 cells

* Battery Type : Lithium-ion

* Capacity : 8100mAH

* Estimated Battery Life : Battery life will vary based on model configuration. Please see notebook spec sheet for specific battery life.

* Output Voltage : 10.8 V



VGP-BPS12 $199.99 Standard Capacity Battery:

Weights and Measurements

* Approx Weight : 0.7 lbs.

* Dimensions (Approx.) : 1.9"(W) x 1.0"(H) x 8.1(L)

Power

* Battery Capacity : 6 cells

* Battery Type : Lithium-ion

* Capacity : 5400mAH

* Estimated Battery Life : Battery life will vary based on model configuration. Please see notebook spec sheet for specific battery life.

* Output Voltage : 10.8 V

All from SonyStyle

 

I've never had a Dell, nor a Sony laptop (had one of the first Vaio desktops back in 1996 tho), but the main reason I chose Z over M1330 was because in person, the Dell looked really cheap, and the screen resolution wasn't nearly as high as I'd like. I would have preferred to have saved some cash and go with the less expensive solution, but the Z just has a whole lot more going for it. Not to mention all the positive previews that are out there, and the "100% color saturation" also helped me complete my decision. I work a lot in graphics-related work so colors to be fairly accurate.

My Sager 9860 has served me well over the years, but it's extremely heavy. My Toshiba Portege M200 is a fairly good workhorse, but lags terribly in Photoshop and 3D apps. It was time for a replacement for the two *sniffle*. I won't retire them completely just yet, but they're certainly starting to show their age.

 

I hope your girlfriend doesn't read your posts...

But as for the anxious waiting game, I feel your pain. I thought putting in a pre-order might help but it's just made the waiting worse.

OT: Have you seen the South Park episode where Cartman freezes himself so he doesn't have to wait 2 weeks for the latest games console to be released? Very funny if you haven't seen it. I just looked it up, it's episode 1012 apparently.

 

On the general discussion about differences between Sony/Dell/whoever laptops... I notice that Sony tends to deal with certain functions like Fn key controls via software utilities rather than BIOS/hardware. So that is one area that is not as convenient as Dell or Toshiba or whoever because you need to utility to be running to use e.g. the brightness keys on a Sony.

In terms of build quality, I think Sony are very good but arguably not as 'bomb proof' as the Thinkpads from IBM/Lenovo. That said, the Sonys look much less serious and more luxurious than the Thinkpads, and the screens look much nicer in my experience. Just my 2p.

 

I guess i'm also joining the Sony Club now.

I've made up my mind and will be getting the VGNZ11VN/B.CEK. It's currently £1,749.00 inc. VAT and delivery from UK SonyStyle

Spec as follows.

Operating system Windows Vista® Business
Microprocessor Intel® Core(TM)2 Duo Processor P9500 (2.53 GHz)
Language version English
Main usage Ultra-portable
Weight range (Kg) 1Kg - 2Kg
Standard memory (MB) 4096
Memory specifications DDR2-SDRAM (1066 Mhz) (2 x 2GB / max. 4 GB with 2 x 2 GB)
Cache memory (L2 - KB) 6144
Hard disk drive capacity (GB) 320
Floppy disc drive Not Supplied
Display size 13.1" (33.3 cm)
Laptop Screen Resolution TFT colour display WXGA++ 1600 x 900 X-black LCD
Graphics chipset NVIDIA® GEFORCE(TM) 9300M GS
Speaker Built-in stereo speakers
Modem Built-in modem V.90/V.92, K56 flex, Fax/Modem
Lithium-ion battery VGP-BPS12
Battery life up to 4.5 Hours
Dimensions (W x H x D mm) 314 X 24.5 - 33 X 210 MM
Approx. Weight (g) 1.499
Bluetooth(TM) Supplied
Wireless LAN Integrated Wireless LAN IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n
Integrated CCD Camera Motion Eye Yes
Guarantee 2 years in AT/BE/FI/GR/NL/PT/SE. Others: 1 y

Just wish it also had a backlit keyboard and blueray, be the perfect laptop for me and would last me for years.

I just ordered myself a Amex Platinum which will give 5% cashback and hopefully another 5% back using quidco.co.uk.

Anyone know if i can get it cheaper in the UK?

 

Bad form to double post, sir... tut tut!

But as I said in the other thread where you posted this question, I don't think you can get it cheaper at the moment, no.

 

lmaoo!! Dude u better believe ill beat u to it. And yea theres a Tim Hortons and a StarBucks actually right right accross my office. I get gree coupons from my work so .

 

I decided to go with an Acer Pentium Celeron 2.2Ghz

 

WTF...

Are you kidding MAN....

OMG I can't believe this...

 

I guess the wait was too much for him Along those lines of the suggested South Park, it would almost be better to take a break (as if I could) from these forums for 2 weeks. Then come back to 'em when there will be some reviews and I can actually buy. There is no such a thing as a pentium celeron

 

That's gotta be a joke lol. At least, I hope it was a joke...

Then again, if it'll keep you from committing suicide or vomiting, maybe that's a good thing.

 

Well, so much for that FW I'd been considering. Off to the Dell forum...

 

a kids joke. as so many said before: calm down, relax, go fishing.

phil, are going with the Z? (again congrats to the new status )

 

I saw FWs in several shops in Tottenham Court Road the other day (I was hunting for a Z while on a rare day in London)... nice piece of kit although much too big for me personally. If I needed a desktop replacement type laptop though, it would be on my shortlist.
Certainly it proved how old fashioned my current laptop is... it was only an inch or two wider than my 15" laptop that has 1024x768 res!

 

Yeah I saw the FW in a MediaMarkt, it was the low end config without the double lamp but the screen was still very impressive and the keyboard was a joy to type on =)

Well I'm going in the holidays soon, so for some days I will not think at all about the Z and when I come back I expect some decent reviews =)

 

Huh? Where'd that Google translator go?

 

thanks. not sure yet. want to see pro reviews and user reviews first.

might be travelling to US in sept/oct so that will make my choice a lot easier.

but then again my ancient asus is still running fine...

 

Called up Sony Store, the guy said he's going to contact his Sony headquarters and call me back and lemme know when they are expecting it to come in.

 

lol, Ok I just got an email from Sony Head Office, they responded and said the Vaio Z will be avaible for pre-order by Mid-Augest.

 

lucky you. mine got killed the whole hdd has gone, now i have to get help from a data-recovery company. i am just checking the pre-order process at notebook.de - i hope they can tell me when it is available. Officially it should be available week commencing 18th of August. Hope they will confirm this.

 

You know what thought just occured to me though. We're all sitting here waiting for days to go so we get out laptops asap right. But have u guys stopped to think that we're rushing the days and making winter come fast, these beautiful summer days are going cuz of the rush on this laptop. The technology era is what makes time just fly by.


"A watched pot never cooks"

 

I don't really know, but the speakers look pretty small. They might be worse than the SZ, but I haven't heard either the Z or the SZ's speakers in person, so I can't really say.

Unfortunately your 2-USB hard drive is just about the only thing that doesn't benefit from the ports being on each side . For most things, this means you won't have to worry about fat USB plugs making it impossible to use both like on the SR.

Both screens (1366x768 / 1600x900) are supposed to have the same 100% color saturation according to Sony, but I remember a Japanese review showed a slight difference (slightly redder reds on the high res model), although it's not a major difference (maybe just a standard manufacturing variation).

1600x900 on the left, 1366x768 on the right:

 

SZ780 speakers sound really good actually.

 

Yes that's the same date dutch suppliers say. Good luck with your data recovery.

 

Mid-August now? Damnit! Come to Canada already!

At least it's good to see that will be able to customize the SR if you want to on SonyStyle.ca!

 

Well actually it was more "Denglisch" (Deutsch + English) xD

But I think you got what I meant

 

Nice comparison photos!

What do you guys think of the pictures?

I honestly can't tell the difference in the color one, and I can see that the lower res screen is slightly darker in the second photo.

 

Actually the slight difference in colors might just be due to the difference in viewing angles since the laptops were side by side, and not taken individually at a consistent viewing angle.

Anyway, I think both screens are built exactly the same, just with different resolutions, so there shouldn't be any difference in color practically.

 

The higher res B&W shot has a slightly smoother gradation -- as expected.

But I can't see a difference in the color shot.

 

I can't tell the difference. I guess thats good....

Thanks for answering my questions....

So are you going to give up on the FW? I saw those new 15.4 Dell XPS notebooks on the Home Shopping Club. Very Cool and the colors offered weren't bad! Get the Orange, and I'm being serious, especially since your from florida. "Florida Oranges, Like. No. Other."

 

Looks like the colour temp of the hi-res screen is higher in the b&w photos. The low-res screen seems to have some colouration to it.

Would that be a correct diagnosis?

S

 

I used to work at Staples a while back, and we had so many returns and problems with Dell computer, I wouldnt recommend it. Maybe as a PC yea, but not a laptop. They recently got sued to for lieing to their customer's.

IMO, I would rather go for a IBM Thinkpad or HP.

 

I'm not sure yet. Maybe. A lot depends on what TetonWolf says about his soon-to-arrive FW with HighColor.

To be honest, I started thinking very seriously about the Z. I love, love, love the small footprint size -- but the small screen size (and larger resolution) would drive me batty since I use the laptop all day long. So I'd love the laptop size but not love the screen size. Tempting? Yep. Foolish to spend all that extra money on something I shouldn't really buy? Yep.

Is this a joke? I haven't seen any new XPS units yet. What are they? Where are they? I've been waiting for the XPS Montevina refresh.

Hey... Florida oranges are better than California oranges.

 

What about a small laptop (Z for example) with an external screen?

That's what I do.

 

Ahhh... well, that's what I do now. My D420 (12.1" and 3 lbs) is hooked up to a nice 20" S-IPS external monitor. BUT...

I want to move away from being "stuck" in front of the external monitor. See, I work from home, and I like to use the laptop on my kitchen table (believe it or not) and there's no way my wife is letting the monitor sit on the kitchen table.

Also, I like the freedom to move to the couch, or wherever... And lastly, I want to be able to use the laptop outside on the patio, on occasion.

Unfortunately, the external monitor can't be dragged to all these places... hence the want/need for a laptop with a larger screen.

Hey, if you guys have a suggestion for me, fire away. I'm open.


P.S. -- I almost never take the laptop out of the house (except for the backyard). That's an important fact.

 

You must have a really nice kitchen.

 

hook the z to a tv via hdmi

 

Well, the kitchen has a really nice view. Plus I can have the TV on in the background, listen to my stereo, eat breakfast, lunch, etc... the kitchen table is just a great place for me to work from.

"Honey, can I bring the TV into the backyard?"

 

No honey, I dont want the neigbours see what u do in front of the tv.

 

I see. I think the FW would be really nice for your situation. I think the 1530 will be too small. I'd gor for a light 16.4" or 17" in your situation.

LOL.

 

Well, if you think a 15 is too small, and most non-Mac 17s seem too big/heavy, the FW should be just right. I feel like Goldilocks.

 

Hi bbasra,

I think it should be DDR3.

 

I think it should be too. I copied and pasted that from the SonyStyle.co.uk website.

Too many mistakes on the site. :-S

 

I joined the FTUF today. Federal Throwing Up Foundation.

 

Oh yea, I heard FTUF's really popular at ShangHai Institute of Technology. LOL jk

 

I thought you bought yourself a different toy so you wouldn't die from throwing up...
Anyway I would suggest you meet with ATU (Anonymous Throwing Ups)

Well almost as popular as the South Hampton's Institute of Technology's FTUF's

 

Well back on topic:
Does someone understand Japanese here? I was interested if in one of the reviews they said weather the 9300M card uses DDR3 VRAM or DDR2...

Woohhooo 600 posts already... 500,000 we are coming xD