Official VAIO Z Core 2 Duo Series Owners Thread

Maybe people are on holidays.... :S

I'm pretty sure we'll see the firsts reviews in Sept.

 

Well that wasn't me who posted the TZ screen shots, that's just an example of what it looks like. It doesn't always appear, it just comes and goes whenever there is motion on the screen, kind of like watching interlaced video, but diagonal.

I'm definitely not a perfectionist.. I don't really care about the heat/fan noise/keys/flimsy lid, but having to watch those diagonal lines moving around the screen every all the time drives me crazy. My TR doesn't do that, nor does my desktop LCD or iPhone, or LCD TV. Like I said, maybe you need 20/20 eyesight to be able to notice it.

But I haven't seen the 1600 screen, so it would be comforting if someone came out and said "yes, I can see the problem on the 13x7 screens but it doesn't exist on the 1600x900 Z"

 

Just an update for buying in the UK as of now:

Sony Centre Galleria TCR has sold out of Z11VN/B (has 25 on order but no date)

Sony Centre Baker Street has 11 Z11VN/B in stock

No discount but you can get a free case and mouse at least. It's my third free Sony laptop mouse, don't really know what to do with it them!

 

Does anyone know if the Z with a 32bit OS can use the extra 0.75GB of ram for hybrid graphics memory?

 

Got my Z last night. The model I purchased was the z520n which has the 2.26ghz p8400 cpu, 3 gb ram, 250gb hd, and 1366 x 768 screen.

My first impression of the machine is that its amazingly light for a 13 inch notebook. I currently have a sony tz and thinkpad t61 and the Z feels almost as light as my tz.

The screen is also amazing. When I bought the tz, I thought I had seen the best portable LCD ever, but the Z LCD trumps that. Its just as bright and vibrant as the TZ lcd, but there is no glare. I don't know how sony did it, but the Z screen is the best yet.

The bulid quality and keyboard are also excellent.

Regarding the fan and noise issue that people have been talking about. The Z fan is definitely noisier than I expected. It is louder than both my sony tz and thinkpad t61 (which is incredibly quiet). I've tweaked it somewhat by undervolting the cpu and using "silent mode", but the fan still comes on more than I'd like. Silent mode seems to lock the CPU at 1.7 ghz (as shown with rmclock) and caps the CPU temp at around 50-55 degrees C (using coretemp).

From my observations, I've noticed that if the CPU temp goes below 40 degrees C, the fan turns off, but then if the temp goes above 45 degrees C, the fan goes back on. This seems to be overly aggressive to me. My Z seems to idle at around 39-40 so the fan is usually on most of the time unless I'm not doing anything. I've also noticed that even if the fan isn't on, the machine still produces a low hum.

Contrast, my TZ fan only goes on if the CPU temp goes above 55-60 degrees and its a smaller laptop.

So far, I love everything about the machine, except for the fan noise. Hopefully we get a BIOS update that addresses this.

I'll take some pictures of the Z with my TZ and T61 soon.

 

Glad to see someone finally applying undervolting on the Z.

How low could you succesfully lower the voltage? Did you push it to the edge?

1.7Ghz Ghz still seems like a lot, maybe you could try throttling it down more using RM Clock and get the CPU at 40.

Z was number one on my list but a completely silent laptop (at low load) is important to me.

 

I think keeping temps below 45C would actually benefit your internal components in the long term! Think about all that warm air just sitting on top of them if it wasnt for the fan

What everyone needs to internalize is that the Z is an incredibly light, and small form factor laptop - the HEAT needs to be PUSHED out!

And from all the above Z owners, their laptops didnt get hot enough to fry an egg or even notice that it got warm!!! (a la HP Dv4t, Dv5t)

The fan noise issue is being exacerbated beyond compare, and I wish everyone would just see the whole picture (the Z as a whole -its accomplishments + benefits!!)

 

The fan goes on, but its not super loud unless I'm running the cpu at 100%.

Here's 2 screenshots of rmclock. The 1st one is the undervolt and the second one is the normal voltage. There aren't that many multipliers to play with.

Also, when running in silent mode, since the cpu is locked at 1.7 ghz, it won't run at the highest multiplier, so I'm not even sure if undervolting is useful in this situation. And I can't set the FID below 6.0x so I can't even UNDER-CLOCK it.

 

True, but like I said, I also own the Sony TZ, which is even smaller and the internal components more cramped, and its quieter than the Z due to the fact that the fan on the TZ goes on at a higher temp vs the Z. However both fans (Z and TZ) are equally loud if the CPU is being pushed at 100% (using ORTHOS to tax the cpu) .

 

guys? pls tell us

 

32bit I think they mentioned it already

 

the os is 32bit

 

Anyone notice PortableOne selling the Z with an upgrade option for a 128GB SSD for $525? Intrigued, I contact them about it and the reply was that it's an OCZ in a single drive (not dual 64GB like Sony's) so no raid.

The rep wrote further that it has much better performance than the Samsung drive Sony sells. Not sure about that based on what I've read but it could be a new drive from OCZ. Another thing is that he wrote "140MB average seek, when Sammies are only 100MB". If he got it confused with seek time in MS, then Samsung is better in this regard.

Another issue is Sony warranty if I were to order SSD option. I didn't ask but I imagine that it would still have full warranty since PortableOne is an authorised reseller. Anyway, I'd better to confirm before pulling the trigger.

This leads me to a question: would you void your warranty if you were to replace the hdd yourself later on? I remember upgrading the SZ was a major pain involving dismantling the case and prying the keyboard open, which I'm sure voided any warranty. Would Sony even do it for you if you wanted to pay them to install one not purchased from them?

 

Does a 1600 x 900 resolution Z work on a TV with a native resolution of 1366 x 768p if I were to connect the 2 using the VGA/HDMI ports?

Does it matter if I use the HDMI or VGA?

 

A couple of more comments on the different "thermal" modes. If I set the thermal mode to "performance", the fan kicks into a higher/louder mode right away and if I run orthos to tax the cpu, I can observe the cpu temperature going to 100 degrees C and then the fan starts sounding like a vacuum cleaner. Silent mode does a good job at keeping the cpu temp low and thus the fan noise at a minimum.

There's also a "balanced" mode, which tries to keep the fan noise at a minimum but doesn't lock the CPU at 1.7 ghz so it will get noisier than silent mode.

 

Try Notebook.de (Don't forget the keyboard.) or UK shops: pricegrabber.co.uk or kelkoo.co.uk.

Especially if there's Nvidia GPU sitting right next to it

Thanks, so did you try going even lower until it got unstable?

 

am thinking of getting the new Z, or perhaps the SZ (which may be retailing cheaper than before cos of the new Z).

have read your comments, and it seems that the Z doesn't meet certain expectations, or perhaps not as good as the SZ in certain ways...

could any of you who own the new Z compare this with the SZ and let us know how they fare??? thanks!

 

I've only been running in stamnia (intel) mode since I got the laptop.

Yeah I tried setting the voltage of the highest multiplier to 1 and it bsod on me.

 

Ok that makes sense. Could you try lowering the voltage of the lowest multiplier? (the one for 1.7)

That would be the most interesting to me, see if you can make it dead silent.

 

nevteo - it will depend on your personal prefs - and in my subjective opinion, Z outshines the SZ in infinite ways.. (its beyond compare)

But dont take it from me, I still worship the order status page every 5.7 mins hoping for a change.............

 

Nope, .9000V is the lowest it will go. 6.0x fid and .9000V VID is the setting where it runs at 1.7 ghz.

 

Hmm too bad. So this is a limitation in RM Clock if I understand correctly.

Interesting though, since it's still stable at .9000V it may very well be stable at lower voltages.

By the way, I guess you know but Power saving is quieter than Performance on Demand in RM Clock.

 

Yeah if there was a way to lower the voltage at 6.0x that would have been perfect.

 

Hmm yeah maybe some alternative program. I've asked here:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=3821377#post3821377

NHC is one option I know of, don't know if it will work better.

 

I tried to get something off them, a case or anything else but they just wouldn't offer anything. What case did you get? I ended up buying the leather one costing £100 as it looks pretty robust.

 

You'd be better off calling SonyStyle UK if you don't need it urgently as they will give you 5% off which is better than nothing.

i then got another 5% cashback using my AMEX Platinum (moneysavingexpert.com)

Which case are people getting. The leather one looks nice but too expensive. I'd just like a nice sleeve just like the XPS M1330's come with.

 

I'm actually interested in hearing about this as well. I'd like to hook it up to my AQUOS TV via HDMI. Is it possible to use the TV as a secondary display (using the HDMI with audio)?

 

That's really high clock for idle mode on the 2.26ghz Sony Z. My 2.2ghz Santa Rosa Macbook Pro idles at 1-1.2ghz in Vista. I undervolt it to 0.85V.

What is your actual battery life like? (Not estimated from Vista)

 

I believe it was the SR that some people said fell short in comparison to the SZ.

 

Today I went to local Sony Center shop (in Prague, Czech rep.) and was quite surprised, they have all the new models displayed. While I was there, Z was just updating, so I had to play with other at first. (btw, it was funny, because the Z was updating, after that stack and died ). I was quite surprised on the build quality difference between SR and FW...FW looks great, very well made and stunning screen (in my point of view, colors and brightness of FW looks even better than the Z).

On the other hand I was very disappointed with the SR, which doesn't have anything from beautiful SZ. For me SR looks like a plastic toy, very cheap looking and bad build quality.

When I touched Z, it was exactly what I expected...after seeing so many pictures and reading the manual two times. Z looks to me like not too showy, great build quality and fain materials nb. I couldn't hear any sound from keyboard (big difference from TX) and even the fan was running, I couldn't hear anything even with ear close to it and the notebook was completely cool. I was expecting a bit higher brightness as everybody is talking about, but unless the highest setting I wasn't satisfied. Also the speakers sound is a bit worse than on my TX (a bit shocking for me).

But still it's the best notebook which is possible to buy for me...and the pulsing of the green and orange light is exciting ,) Btw...inside was HDD 320 GB 5400 Toshiba one.

 

Just tried the HDMI out on my VGN-Z11VN to output video + audio to a Pioneer VSX-AX2AS and it's working perfectly. 1080P and Dolby Digital out when playing with Media Player Classic.

 

Have you seen the new notebook sleeves from Tumi? They're very nice and sleek. It's made of NeoPrene and has a high-quality leather trim. I know Sony makes a NeoPrene, but Tumi's sleeve tends to be a little more plush and the material is thicker than Sony's, providing better protection. I'm planning on picking one up this afternoon; $75usd/medium (14"-15" screens). Sizes range from small (12"screens) $65, Large (17" screens) $85. I'm going to see if I can get the Z to fit the small. I prefer a perfect snug fit, rather than having room for movement. It's worth taking a look in person.
Here's the link:
http://www.tumi.com/alpha/neo-prene-medium-laptop-sleeve/

 

Ohh that's perfect! Thank you.

Did you have to change any resolution settings? Or is the Z capable of streaming a 1080p resolution signal without having to do anything? I say that since your display is a 900-lines one, right?

 

Hi, can you tell me if I can show windows on my TV via HDMI? I'd like to use my 1080P TV to surf the web sometimes. Thanks.

 

I want to know of a 1600x900 Z would work on a TV with a native resolution of 1366 x 768p using the VGA ports. Anyone please?

 

Speaking of resolutions, if anyone has the Z and a 30" monitor (I know, it's a stretch) can you please check if the vga out supports 2560X1600? The Nvidia website says that the 9300M should, but I just want to make sure.

Thanks

 

Please don't take this as offensive as it isn't intended to be, but while undervolting may help in his specific case - it is a bit misleading to the rest of the forum to imply that if he undervolts it will solve everyones fan problems (which is kind of how I read your comment and subsequent ones).

While undervolting is definitely something we should all try when we receive the laptop as it really has no disadvantage, it is also true that we all won't be able to undervolt, and the amount to which we can undervolt can vary significantly (otherwise Intel would have just set the voltage amount to that level). In particular, those that have the higher frequencies that need to dissipate even higher levels of heat will probably have less room to undervolt.

So while undervolting *may* help *some* of us (and I'm sure the original poster is grateful for the suggestion), I just wanted the rest of the forum to understand that if fan noise is a problem, it is a problem - and that while undervolting may be an ad-hoc fix for some; those considering purchasing the laptop really should make sure that they are happy with the noise level with no undervolting, as that's really all they can be guaranteed.

 

Vaio Z to TV connection:

I've spend 2 hours surfing the web to find out how all of this works.

Even though, in my opinion, it's not clear whether a specific TV will work properly with a Z notebook or not, I'd like to share with you what I've found out.

First of all, I've to say that most of TV incorporate EDID (Extended display identification data). This is a standard that defines a hand shacking mechanism between the source (Z notebook) and the destination device (TV). Using this standard, a TV (or whatever) sends information regarding its features and capabilities to a notebook (or whoever is in charge to output the image signal).
Among the features and capabilities that a TV transmits are: Audio, Video (native resolution, and a set accepted resolutions).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EDID

On the other hand, Z notebook features the Smart Display Sensor (VGA and HDMI). It enable us to connect whatever TV or projector without having to our resolution settings. At least is what sony states:

"Smart Display Sensor. Automatically adjusts to match connected displays
View presentations, digital images, and video without compromise thanks to Sony’s Smart Display Sensor. By automatically adjusting the video output to compatible LCD displays and projectors, the Smart Display Sensor eliminates the need for manual configuration."

So, presumably our Z will "ask" our TV to send its capabilities (using EDID standard) and autmatically adjust VGA/HDMI output according to the maximum accepted resolution.

For those who have a 1366 x768 read the link below:
http://hd1080i.blogspot.com/2006/12/1080i-on-1366x768-resolution-problems.html

1366 x 768 isn't a standard resolution for HDTV, so a sofware-rescaling process will always take place.

My opinion:

What I think is that both TV and Z will perform a rescaling.

After having processed the information coming from our TV, our Z will output a HD 1080-line signal since most HD-capable TV accept 1080. (whether it is 1080p or 1080i will depend on whether our TV is a Full HD or just an HD Ready TV set).

So both will have to rescale: the notebook will transform its native 900-line format to a 1080-line format, while, at the same time, our TV will transform a 1080 signal into a 1366 x768 resolution signal.

I think we wont have to do anything. It's all an automatic process.

 

Not sure what you mean.
The graphic chip can output to both displays at the same time. 1600x900 for the laptop and whatever resolution supported by the chip via HDMI, I only tried 1080p as my TV is compatible and it was just fine. Sound (Dolby Digital) was fine too.

 

No! Graphic chips have been able to have two independant outputs for quite a long time now. The notion of primary and secondary display is something that can be controlled by the user that has an impact on how the OS works because most OS like Vista were originally developed for a single display.
There won't be any rescaling involved.
For instance, if you open a video player and play HD content from within the notebook display and then drag the player to the secondary display (1080p) then assuming your TV is 1080p there won't be any rescaling.

 

Yes, I just did that, I was displaying some video content on the TV via HDMI.
I didn't see the taskbar on the TV because the external display wasn't setup as Primary but this can be changed if one wants to.

 

Ok, yes that was question.

Had you to select "1080p" in nvidia control panel so that the HDMI port outputed that resolution signal or the process was automatic*?

*I mean, whether both notebook and TV selected a suitable resolution automatically.

 

I connect to my TV with an amplifier that has been setup to do HDMI passthrough IIRC.
When I connected the HDMI lead and set my amplifier to route the signal to the TV the laptop detected the external display and automatically selected 1080p. From then on I think I could have selected other resolutions, I know some ATI or Nvidia chips do offer a large choice in resolutions such as 1080p60,1080p59,1080p30,etc etc..

 

I have a Sony Bravia Full HD 1080p TV. My laptop should turn out beautiful on it and work perfect.

 

Ok perfect!
So my supostion was ok in my other post. (There is a hand-shaking to determine which signal the notebook has to output)

Yes, I completely agree with you on the fact that graphic chips can both drive the notebook lcd while outputing another signal through a HDMI or VGA port.

Regarding rescaling... I'm not sure. But since you can chose several output resolutions, someone have to rescale the current display information.

EDIT: Sorry, you already told me that it was the OS

On the other hand, rescaling in the TV is a fact since it has a 1366 x768 resolution.

 

Well, there will be rescaling somewhere depending on the content being displayed and the destination native resolution.
I was playing 1080p display over a 1080p HDMI connection on a Full HD television so no re-scaling for me
If I was playing anything apart from this 1080p resolution then there could be up-scaling or down-scaling.

 

Your TV won't have to re-scale providing it has 1080 lines.

 

How does one change the TV to be the primary display?

 

I just got a slip cover (VGP-CKZ1). It's more useful for me because I just need something to protect it in my bag. The mouse is one of those small optical wired things: VGP-UMS30/B

Which shop did you go to?

 

Here's a list of shops that usually ship within EU: http://geizhals.at/eu/?cat=nb13&sor...vaio+z11&v=e&filter=+Liste+aktualisieren+&xf= Geizhals.at is a price-comparison site from austria. It is in german only. Shops can be selected by shipping region: Austria, Germany and EU-Shipping.