Official Vaio Pro 13 Owners Lounge (SVP13 2013)

I have the non touch i5 8gb ram version. I have exactly the same issues with the wifi, very poor range. I've tried all sorts of drivers, disabling the bluetooth and it didn't work. There's a whole thread online dedicated to the problem: [New Sony Vaio Pro] Wifi Issue! - Sony Community. I'm surprised that not many people on this thread seem to have this ridiculous problem.

I called up Sony technical support and they said that they are aware of the problem. They seem to think it is a software issue rather than a hardware one. I've asked for a replacement (also for another issue I have with the laptop) to see if there is any difference.

edit: I find the fan is ok on the 8gb ram model. No issues at all, nice and quiet.

 

Well than I may consider returning it anyway, as the 8gb option is only about 50$ more (it wasn't available in my country at the moment I was buying it). Since I'm a graphic designer and I love working on laptops I think 8gb may be a reasonable upgrade.

Hopefully Intel will fix the wifi issue in a month or something. It's just sad that the VAIO Z successor will have a bad fame because of such crap, it's the current flagship if I'm right, so it should be their priority to fix it fast ;P

 

I had the 8gb i5 model and I found the fan very loud, especially when on a Skype video call. I don't know if the i7 model might have a better cooling situation but I'd assume it would be even louder.

 

Well, the noise of the fan is quite important for me so I must reconsider this decision maybe. 4gb of ram currently is enough for me, Adobe Creative Suite is running flawlessly, but I was afraid what will happen in the future. Since the ram isn't exchangeable I want to max it out here, since both the processor and the SSD can be replaced.

 

I wonder if the i7 helps or hurts in terms of the fan. I don't expect the ram to make too much difference. I was going to return mine and maybe order a maxed out spec from Sony but I'm not sure if the fan would be any better and if it then would be better To find a different laptop. This seems to be the only good option but the fan may drive me insane.

 

BestBuy is offering a pre-configured i5 128 SSD 8GB Ram both in black and silver.

 

maaannn.... why cant they do that for the Pro 11.

All i want is the 8 gigs of ram. 4 gigs is just a joke esp when you are spending that much.

... i dont feel like waiting 2-3 weeks just to get 4 more gigs of ram.

 

how long did it take you guys to make recovery usb on vaio care? mine is stuck on 31%

 

Is there any way to disable this auto brightness? I found a setting in the VAIO control center but the screen is still brightening and darkening by itself. This is so annoying.

 

Why dont you use the search function. It is all in this thread -.- ( and not only once)

 

I think it took me 30 to 40 mins. Yes, it stuck at 31% for a long time.

 

I've had the laptop for about a week now and I'm very pleased. I was upgrading from a refurbished Dell Latitude E4300 that I upgraded with a 128GB Crucial M4 and 4GB of DDR3, which was a pretty decent laptop (Decent weight, very sturdy, excellent keyboard) though I needed something faster for running Hyper-V VMs at school, occasional gaming and programming.

I just have the fan set to standard and rarely hear it. The first day it was pretty noisy since I was installing all of my stuff, it was installing updates, ect. I do hear the fan kick on when I play some of my Steam games, though that's to be expected. The keyboard has less travel than my old Latitude, though it still has a decent amount of click to it. The screen is beautiful, some may complain about the slight graininess, though I have 3 matte, IPS, Dell Ultrasharp monitors attached to my desktop so I'm used to it. The colours and viewing angles are fantastic compared to the Latitude.

The Vaio Pro 13 doesn't feel as sturdy as my old Latitude, though that's to be expected when you go from a laptop over an inch thick and made of magnesium to a much thinner carbon fiber laptop. When typing normally and carrying it around, I don't notice any flex. However, if I try looking for flex, I'll definitely find it.

As for gaming, I quickly tested Counter Strike: Global Offensive and let it pick the default settings, which had a resolution of 1280x720. It ran smoothly at around 40-60 FPS in my experience. Minecraft seems to be a tad slow (20-30 FPS) when generating the level, though the FPS will hover at around 50+ FPS once it seems to finish generating everything. I don't expect to be doing a lot of gaming on this laptop, though it's nice to know that I can play some lighter games without lugging my desktop with me.

I'm planning on dual booting with Linux eventually, though from what I've seen so far it's not going to be easy.

 

I5 or i7 in your version?

 

Greetings fellow Pro owners. I've been a long time lurker on this thread and have seen the frustrations and miseries of those owners experiencing wifi issues. When I received my Pro 13 (i7,8G,256G), everything worked fine except I had a loose keyboard key (the 'o' key). I debated on how to address the issue (return for exchange, Sony repair, etc). I settled on having Sony attempt to repair the key - they dispatched a technician to replace the entire keyboard. I was quite nervous about allowing the technician open a brand new machine, but I relented. 4 hours later, the technician admitted he replaced the keyboard but could no longer get the machine to turn on (!!!). I was left with a non-functioning tablet.

I was so furious that Sony's only offer was to allow me to send the brand new machine into their Texas repair facility, I decided to take matters in my own hands and cracked the machine open to find that the technician had not reconnected the power correctly. I rectified this and got the laptop to come back to life but then I noticed that I had horrible wifi reception - similar to what many members of this thread have reported (connecting only when immediately adjacent to the router, etc). This was not a problem previously. I reopened the machine to discover that the technician had also not reconnected the wifi antennas properly to the wireless card. When I reconnected the antennas (two connectors), I noticed that the connector was *very* finicky and I could see how they could easily be dislodged if not installed correctly.

I write this for the benefit of other owners who are having issues with their wifi connectivity - it might be worth the 20-30 minutes required to open the machine and check on the antenna connections.

I hope this may be helpful.

(PS - when arguing on the phone with Sony support about returning the laptop with a SSD containing confidential information, they *instructed* me to open the laptop and remove the SSD; I confirmed that, in their view, opening the laptop does not void the warranty...)

 

Someone spoke about it earlier but has anyone managed to get dual display output functional? (One review mentioned an adapter coming with a certain version of the notebook)

 

I tried to order this Vaio pro 13 "but the Sony Store is down. damn

 

Hey Guys,

I just recently purchased Sony Vaio pro 13.
Intel i5-4200U, 8GB RAM, 128 GB, Touch.

I was assessing Windows Experience Index and got following values:
Processor: 6.6
RAM: 7.5
Graphics: 5.8
Gaming Graphics: 6.3
Primary Hard Disk: 8.1

These values some of those (Processor, Graphics and Primary Hard Disk) are somehow lower than those that were shown by MobileTechReview on Youtube. Ram for that one is 4 GB.
Values are :
Processor: 6.9 - why mine is lower by 3 pts?
RAM: 5.6
Graphics: 5.9 - mine is lower by 1 pt
Gaming Graphics: 6.3 - mine is actually high by 1 pt
Primary Hard Disk: 8.1 - mine is lower by 3pts

Can anybody explain this to me?
I don't understand - the machines are identical, except RAM.

Thanks,

 

Hello!

You should try again now. Also, use this promo code: SORRYAUG13 to get a 10 % rebate. Together with the free SSD upgrade to 256 GB this is a great deal, imho!

 

In some regions the machines differ in some specs that aren't that obvious at first. For example in North America the Vaio Pro usually has a PCI-E SSD while in Europe the device usually has a slower mSATA-SSD. Another problem for Benchmarks are the aggressive Power Saving features which can result in very different Benchmark results (even when repeated several times on the same device).
For better results make sure have all available Power Saving features on "Maximum Performance" but even then it is possible that CPU or GPU is throttled when the temperature is getting too high.

 

What on earth is the logic behind European models having SATA and US models having PCI-E? I was just about to order and then I saw this!?!?!

 

Could you direct me to this free SSD upgrade? I can't find it.

 

Till when is that promo code active?

 

US only? Doesn't seem to work with Sony Canada

 

I got given that code when I tried ordering from Sony UK- havent tested the code yet though.

 

You don't need any promo codes for a free SSD upgrade, just visit sonystyle canada and both the 8gig ram and 256 SSD are free upgrades now.

 

Thanks but I was saying for the 10percent discount. Seems like that's uk only. There don't seem to be any valid Canadian coupon codes as of today.

 

This. All you have to do is pick the 256 SSD when you're configuring your model in the store.

Both the promo code SORRYAUG13 and the free SSD upgrade is valid until tomorrow, monday the 12th of august. I suppose it's until 23:59 (=11:59 pm).

Also, I'm not sure in which countries the promo code is available. I'm in Europe. Oh btw, this website (of sony) seems to give some guidance: Sony - Maintenance - Check it out!

 

I know, I wanted a discount on my pro when I got it last month but only was able to get 56 bucks off the final price but the free upgrades currently on now are worth 170 bucks, so it is definitely a nice deal. for that you could opt for fresh start or get the sheet battery, which I would recommend, it's tiny and light and def adds a lot of juice to the laptop.

the Canadian deal ends on the 17th btw

 

Anyone know of any Kensington lock security add-ons for the Pro 13?

thx.

 

Yeah, I forgot to mention.
Mine is Canadian.
Actually i have new WEI after I tested several times (in the first comment the values are right from the store)
6.6 - This is lower by 3pts from the same device in US. (MobileTechReview)
7.5 - fine (I have 8GB vs 4GB)
5.8 - fine - higher by 2pts
6.3 - fine - higher by 1pt
8.1 - lower by 3 pts from the same device in US. (MobileTechReview)

Yeah I should try max perf.

Thanks

 

does anyone know anything about this online store?

Sony - VAIO Pro Ultrabook 13.3" Touch-Screen Laptop - 8GB Memory - 128GB Solid State Drive - Carbon Black - Online Big Store

they have the 8gb i5 I want, but the price is much lower than the same thing from the official sony site. could it be legit?

 

Has anyone here had wifi issues (poor range) and been able to fix it through software means? I'm wondering if it might indeed be a hardware defect..

 

Many on this forum, such as myself, have removed the existing network card driver (mine came with 16.0.1) and upgraded to the latest drivers (currently I'm on 16.1.0.14).

This has fixed it 99% for me, i now get a disconnect every so often (many days go by without one). as opposed to one or two every hour before.

I got my driver from the AU support website as mine is an AU model, but some are getting it from the Japanese site or the US site

my one is below

Support for SVP13218PG : VAIO® Pro 11/13 : VAIO™ Laptops & Computers : Sony Australia

 

Thanks, but I have already tried that.. The problem isn't disconnects. Mine stays connected but when I am further from the router (4 bars or so) it is terribly slow. 0.50mbps vs ipod touch 6.5mbps. Do you no longer have this problem with the driver update?

 

So I ordered one of these yesterday as the price was too good to let go. (Free upgrade to 256Gb ssd and 10% off total).

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone had tried to switch the intel network adapter to the ac7260 model? would that even work with the antenna in the Pro 13? And why didn't Sony use wireless AC in the first place?

I might have to return mine if the networking is not up to par.

 

I asked a couple of pages back, and it seems it should work and fit, since it appears to be an identical card but with AC and also dual band like the current card in the pro is. I'd do it on mine, but I am afraid of opening it up.

 

@ascariss
did you get your Pro with PCIe SSD in Poland? I'm asking because I already ordered mine in Polish Sony Online Store and I'm wondering whether I get PCIe or SATA drive

 

I also have a Polish one, so that information would be useful for me too By the way: is the cpu worth upgrading to I7 from I5? Because acording to cpu benchmarks the performance boost should be minimal. Also: the WIFI doesn't actually disconnect in mine. The only issue I have is that I have like 5-6mb/s, 10 metres from the router (VDSL, running on both 2.4 and 5ghz channels) whereas my XPERIA get's about 20mb/s in the same place. But it's better than anything, in the beginning I had like 0.5-1mb/s. I switched back to the driver from Intel's website and I also altered a few of the adapter options - I turned off basically everything except the HT mode.

Another thing: do you think it's worth returning this one, which has 4gigs of ram and replacing it with a 8gis model?

 

Update: now I'm getting the same rate as on my XPERIA (at least in the last speedtest). I've switched the "wireless mode" option to 802.11a only. But that means that the 2.4ghz rate is turned off.

 

My Pro was bought in canada in july, so this is why I have PCIe. I would guess the polish CTO model has SATA one like all other EU models, and from what reviews have posted, there seems to be little or no difference for the drives when using them in real life, you won't notice much of a difference when using the laptop.

If you can get the 8 gig model, I would advise it to future proof the device, 4 is plenty for win 8 but, the upgrade from 4 is not that expensive, 170zl now.

 

I ordered my today from Sony Store Poland....There is option extra 18h battery for free....Very good deal....

 

So I have a new problem with the laptop. 2-3 times a day, the laptop does permanent automatic left clicks, in other words, anything I hover over get opened immediately. It goes away only by restarting the laptop. Any ideas?

 

Is this using the built in trackpad or a stand alone mouse? If it is trackpad, perhaps lower the sensitivity down a bit?

 

Same here. All the updates finally addressed stability, but not speed. The laptop is extremely slow in locations where other machines are MUCH faster. It doesn't matter if I have 4 bars on the display, the speed is still pathetic.

 

Both. I use the trackpad and a Logitech mouse. When it happens, I can disconnect the mouse, but it still keeps going. It is not connected to using the trackpad I think. Its random using mouse or trackpad.
I have removed the mouse including software and it still happened.
I'll try the sensitivity settings.

 

One option is trying to reinstall all the mouse drivers, I had severe issues with my trackpad, and decided to reinstall both regular driver and update and it resolved my issues.

 

Looks like others are also having my problem with the high pitch noise: Noise coming from Vaio Pro 13 - Sony Community (I'm AxlMckagan). Does no one else here have this problem? I know I mentioned it before but I'm wondering if it is a widespread thing now. You have to be in a quiet environment to be able to hear it but it is irritating.

I'm not very pleased with this product, especially with this problem and also the wifi. I hope my replacement will be up to scratch. If not, I'll be forced to get a Macbook Air which is the only current Haswell competitor here in the UK.

 

Wow, that's a deal! Now I'm definitely returning this one in exchange for a 8gigs version with the sheet battery!

 

As long as you don't want to put windows on that MBA you'll be ok..otherwise read this.

2013 MacBook Air NGFF PCIe SSD Review (256GB) - Pre-Configured MBA Doesn't Set The 'PC' Performance Bar | The SSD Review

 

Did you check SORRYAUG13 code? Works in Poland store.
[edit] Too late, I tried yesterday