Official VAIO Z Core 2 Duo Series Owners Thread

I'm running first generation Z and using CUDA nearly from the beginning. Great for playing HiDef videos.

 

Thanks for your help there metsn.

S

 

Update : I ran the test again with BatteryMon tracking battery useage with the same settings as above on wi-fi using the EVDO router, but this time in Stamina Mode. My Z820 went into hibernation mode with 4% remaining. I surfed the web all afternoon and was on facebook. The result was as follows :

8 hours, 33 minutes before shutting down. At 4% remaining there was 21 minutes left according to BatteryMon.

 

Has anyone successfully used the Z-series with an external monitor in Portrait mode?
I've got a Z899GAB with Win7 64 bit and have had zero luck getting the external monitor to rotate into portrait mode. The Sony version of the NVidia drivers doesn't appear to have any switch for rotation, even though it is supported by the card and Win7. I've also tried Pivot Pro and iRotate with no luck.

 

You sure it doesn't support it?
It works fine on my Z 690, with Windows 7 RC build. I have it connected with my 1920x1200 external screen, and it rotates just fine.

 

Can you pass along the driver version you are using?
It does not work on Win7-64 as shipped on this machine, and Sony says it's not available on the Nvidia card.

 

Yep. The Sony stock drivers do not have the "Rotate Display (NVRotate)" option in the Nvidia Control Panel. I believe that the non-stock Sony drivers have this option, so maybe you may want to look up the following thread for more info:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=342947

 

Which Model started Sony offering 64-bit chips? I am looking at used Z PCs on eBay and I want to make sure I get a new enough model that it has 64-bit windows and not 32-bit windows. I didn't even realize there was models with 32-bit, but someone mentioned it in another post.

 

If I'm right, just the first generation was 32bit. From 2nd generation the preconfig Z were always 64bit.



btw...new UPEK PasswordBank extension for Firefox 3.6 is out.

 

So about 9 months ago I bought my Z, refurbished, from Sony. I've loved it a lot, but I have a few questions:

First, does anybody have any information about hardware changes they've made to the VGN-Z since its inception? I've caught a few comments about them changing the materials or color of the area surrounding the keyboard. Mine is more of a bronze than a black, and looks nothing like any I've seen at the Sony store. Does this indicate anything about my particular notebook?

Another question along the same lines: regarding materials, they say the lid is carbon fiber, but it seems to be a lot more plasticky feeling than pure CF. And I've read a lot of things about aluminum being used for the area around the keys, but this area definitely feels more like plastic to me than anything else. What's the deal with this?

Second, some issues: Lately, and ever increasingly, the arrow buttons have clanked and clacked while typing, and feel a lot more loose than they did at first, and certainly more so than the keys on the left side of the keyboard. If I hold down the body of the laptop with my free hand while pressing the keys, they seem to do alright.

Also, I've noticed (for a long time) weird splotchy patches on the left side of the screen. I'm pretty sure they're areas that are brighter, as they show up a little on white pages, and are noticeable (though not painfully so) during movie playback.

Anyone got anything to add?

 

They all have 64-bit capable chips, but only after the Win 7 refresh was the preinstalled OS 64-bit. Just the last generation then?

S

 

i have an issue i dont think has ever been mentioned.
the left usb port on my z, while something is plugged into it and a reasonable not at all dangerous amount of pressure applied to the plug, a strange kind of mixture of quiet electronic scuffing, hissing and popping can be heard from the speakers.
also, sometimes when holding it from that same side by the palm rest with one hand, all audio cuts out completely.

what the hell is with the build quality of notebooks these days...
and my screen ripples at the bottom when i close it at the top, in the middle. jeez.

on a somewhat unrelated note, can someone PLEASE link me to a clean install guide that actually works?

keeping i mind... or not keeping in mind that a clean install of every version of windows on this computer i have tried does not even detect the Ethernet card... unless its several consecutive burn errors.

thanks

 

Really? Someone said that Sony doesn't give the drivers for the older machines to make it 64-bit. I could be wrong. I just want to make sure that no matter what, I can uprade to Windows 7 64-bit and that it will use all my memory.

 

You can use W7 x64 with all Z. It's true, that Sony doesn't offer W7 drivers for the 1st gen, but it's possible to use drivers even from the last generation.

 

Metsn - can you drop some info about your CUDA drivers that you mentioned earlier?

Which drivers are you using, how do you turn it on (if you need to), how can I confirm it's running, etc.

Cheers,

S

 

As you can see from this screenshot from GPU-Z, I'm using stock drivers for W7 x64 from Sony.



It's running automatically, if you'll not turn it off in Nvidia Control Panel. The prove that it's working except the GPU-Z check is, that the CoreAVC 1.9.5 (not 2.0) is running with CUDA while playing HiDef video

 

Hello again, my friends.

I want to be able to use the fingerprint while POWERING ON my notebook, not when Windows 7 try to log me in, I had this feature in my old SZ, I have protector Suite 2009, latest version 5.9

How can I do that?

plz tell me, I'm so excited to use this feature.

Will

 

Great - thanks metsn. I'm using the same drivers and get the same result. My asking was related to CS4, although it seems there isn't as much CUDA acceleration in there as I thought there was.

On a different note - which SSD driver are you using - the W7 one or the Intel Matrix one? I'm running the same drive, and it's amazing, but I'd be interested in what you thought if you'd given both a try. I'm using the W7 driver at the moment.....

Cheers,

S

 

Just wondering, does the Z use SATA I or SATA II?
It would be quite disappointing if it's only SATA I in our "old" Z.

 

Hello again, my friends.

I want to be able to use the fingerprint while POWERING ON my notebook, not when Windows 7 try to log me in, I had this feature in my old SZ, I have protector Suite 2009, latest version 5.9

How can I do that?

plz tell me, I'm so excited to use this feature.

Will

 

I'm on Intel Rapid drivers v. 9.5.0.1037. I did CrystalDiskMark benchmark, but it's before applying the latest firmware update, which made the speed even better

My SSD info when I did the benchmark:



Stock W7 drivers:


Intel Rapid drivers v. 9.5.0.1037:



And just for complete info...this is benchmark with that Intel driver and the newest firmware

As you can see from my screenshot, the SSD is running in SATA-300 transfer mode, so it's SATA II

 

Hey guys,

Looking to get a Sony Vaio Z. I will be doing onsite quick edits for it and was wondering how would you calibrate both video cards for color?

 

Hey guys,

I'm just wondering how many of you guys have opened your Z to perform an upgrade (harddrive, etc)?

I have a 3 year warranty, but I'm quite tempted to upgrade to a SSD. What do you guys think? Would Sony not accept it for repair later on if I need to send it in for repair?

I don't mind the speed of my 320 GB 7,200rpm Hitachi, but the vibration is getting to me a bit.

 

Jparity I believe it was advised if you do send it in for repairs during the warranty period that you replace the hard drive back to the original.

 

Thanks metsn. I'm getting roughly the same with W7 drivers - some very slightly lower, some very slightly higher - so I'll just stick with those for now.

S

 

Well in case of Z you have to be relatively skillful to be able to open it without leaving any traces But if you're brave enough, go ahead I've opened my Z 2 times and I believe I didn't make any mess (in fact it stopped to squeak on the left side of the palmrest )...but I also don't care about warranty.

I absolutely hated that 320 GB 7,200rpm Hitachi...and had to exchange it just after one month of use.

 

hi.. just wondering how did you manage to stop the squeaking on the left side of the palmrest?

thanks!

 

Don't know really....just when I was closing it I tighten all the screws at the same time...and really tight. In that way the palmrest and the plastic chases seems to be connected in a good balance.

 

i see.. good job

 

The new Vaio Z - VPC-Z1190X CTO is up for pre-order on the U.S. site now, shipping estimate is March 9, 2010

Some Example Prices

VPC-Z1190X Screen Resolution - 1600x900 / 1920x1080 listed as "Notify Me"

US $1899 - Silver - i5 540M + 128GB SSD + DVD RW + 4GB RAM + 7 Home Premium
US $2099 - Silver - i5 540M + 192GB SSD + DVD RW + 4GB RAM + 7 Home Premium
US $2799 - Silver - i5 540M + 256GB SSD + BluRay + 4GB RAM + 7 Home Premium
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

US $2299 - Carbon - i7 620M + 192GB SSD + DVD RW + 4GB RAM + 7 Home Premium
US $2999 - Carbon - i7 620M + 256GB SSD + BluRay + 4GB RAM + 7 Home Premium
US $4049 - Carbon - i7 620M + 512GB SSD + BluRay + 8GB RAM + 7 Ultimate

+ $50 for 7 Pro
+ $150 for 7 Ultimate

+ $150 for 6GB RAM
+ $300 for 8GB RAM

+ $150 for i7 620M
+ $500 for BluRay

+ $50 for Carbon Black
+ All Samsung SSD's, no casing (U.S./ Canada according to Rep)

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs...0151&langId=-1&categoryId=8198552921644702499

 

Okay so it's been a couple of weeks of no responses, so hopefully reposting this a third time will get me some feedback...

About 9 months ago I bought my Z, refurbished, from Sony. I've loved it a lot, but I have a few questions:

First, does anybody have any information about hardware changes they've made to the VGN-Z since its inception? I've caught a few comments about them changing the materials or color of the area surrounding the keyboard. Mine is more of a bronze than a black, and looks nothing like any I've seen at the Sony store. Does this indicate anything about my particular notebook?

Another question along the same lines: regarding materials, they say the lid is carbon fiber, but it seems to be a lot more plasticky feeling than pure CF. And I've read a lot of things about aluminum being used for the area around the keys, but this area definitely feels more like plastic to me than anything else. What's the deal with this?

Second, some issues: Lately, and ever increasingly, the arrow buttons have clanked and clacked while typing, and feel a lot more loose than they did at first, and certainly more so than the keys on the left side of the keyboard. If I hold down the body of the laptop with my free hand while pressing the keys, they seem to do alright.

Also, I've noticed (for a long time) weird splotchy patches on the left side of the screen. I'm pretty sure they're areas that are brighter, as they show up a little on white pages, and are noticeable (though not painfully so) during movie playback.

Anyone got anything to add?

 

rcast1986: As for the white spots, these are pressure marks on the screen which you get when the keys (or anything else) touches the screen during transport. To avoid these, one should put a soft cloth or the piece of foam that comes with the laptop originally between the keyboard and the screen. They are not removable.

 

New VAIO Z is showing up on VAIO BY YOU in the EU also; top i7 model with 512GB SSD eur 4000,-!!

 

Link please.

 

Looks like the VPCZ11X9E/B model will be around £1650 in the UK:

http://www.morecomputers.com/productreviews.asp?pn=vpcz11x9e/b.cek

 

Actually that's not too bad. Less than I expected.

S

 

Sorry to bring this up again but i'm on the verge of preordering Vaio Z. Has anyone calibrated their screen? Did you have any trouble because of the switching graphics?

 

Hey guys, do any of you have the carbon fiber lid? Does it easily scratch?

 

Just take good care >> It can be scratched as any other material >>

 

hello, can someone link me to any install guide of windows that actually works with the z?
i have tried several, none of which recognized my ethernet card.

also, has anyone been able to boot it from an sd card?
just wondering. thanks

 

The ethernet drivers are on the Vaio support website. One for the Z and another for the Z dock.

S

 

How do you make the audio work when using HDMI as your output to your TV? I can't seem to get it working.

Win7/ Windows Media Player 11

 

Go into Vaio Control Center > Sounds > Sound, and play around with the settings. When you have the HDMI connected to your TV, you should see an audio option for HDMI, and just set it to default instead of the Build-in speaker (Realtek).

I only own the premium carbon fiber lid, and I would say finger prints/ smudges are apparent in certain angles. However, I don't think it's very easily scratched. Just take care of it, it's not any easier to scratch than the silver palm rest.

PS, on second thought, who thinks the palm rest is somewhat easy to scratch? I have to say, the coating on the palm rest isn't "hardcore" scratch resistant.

 

I thought I'm always super careful with my equipment, and I never leave anything hard or heavy on the laptop, but somehow there's a scuff of the carbon fiber lid after all. Not deep, not tragic, but you can see it against the light. So given that I'm careful and yet it happened, I've got to say it scratches quite easily.

 

I also have the premium carbon fiber lid and it is scratched a lot. As Naujoks said, not deep, but clearly visible... unfortunately... I expected it to be more durable. But I guess it is just plastic with a carbon finish or so...

 

It's interesting...I have non premium carbon lid with premium pattern and it doesn't scratch at all. It even doesn't look like it would be easy to do that. The silver Vaio sign does though.

 

BTW: I actually noticed that the edge between the space bar and the hand rest caused a thin "scratchline" on my display. It has two spots that I can feel with my fingers. It is not visible on a bright screen but well, they are there. Does anyone know a way to even it out?

(I started to use the micro fiber cloth again... :/)

 

You mean you can actually feel two spots (bumps) on your display along the scratchline? I am confused as to how would a scratch create bumps on the screen.

Some people say it's all just an over-priced mostly water solution, but maybe TV cleaning solutions may work? Most people do not recommend using alcohol pad for LCD/LED display because they are corrosive for the coating, but it may well work in your case, given that you do indeed have bumps that you can feel on your screen.

 

that sounds pretty odd that it would actually scratch it. its marked my screen before but nothing else.

vaseline tends to work pretty well on screen scratches. to be honest i wouldnt try anything else on a screen like this because the surface coating is so thin.
vaseline just fills the gap and makes it invisible because it has a much more similar light refraction index or something

 

It is not a bump... but like a scratch you can feel. Usually, the marks on the screen due to the keyboard are just the dirt on the screen imprinted by the keys. This is different. You can clearly see the line the hand-rest edge "imprinted" on the dislplay without getting rid of it by simply cleaning the display. As said, it is not visible when the screen is lit. So I will probably follow niffcreature's advice and do nothing about it... hmm... or I get a new Z (no, I won't)