Official Vaio Pro 13 Owners Lounge (SVP13 2013)

Not from my experience, from HP, Toshiba, Dell, Acer, Clevo, MSI, none have issues installing component OEM drivers. Most manufacturers test the stock drivers and may package them differently, but they are pretty much the same drivers. Of the other Sony's I've configured/owned they had similar issues. Tied to Sony drivers only.

 

anyone know how to get fan control back in vaio control center with a clean install? I really don't want to install Vaio care.

edit: nevermind. I just had to install ALL Vaio control center updates (all four of them!) in order. How stupid. They can't just make one that supercedes all the others? Plus I can't get the latest Vaio Care to install either, but I don't care. So far so good. Installed Win 8 stock. Now going to install Win 8.1 all clean. Getting a 3DMark11 score of 900

 

I've never had any issue installing drivers straight from Intel on my SVZ. Including the latest beta graphics drivers.

 

I just did a clean install and Intel drivers installed without a hitch. With factory install, it said they could not be installed.

 

One interesting thing I noticed under Linux was that when using the standard ACPI brighness controls, the max brighness is limited to 350 cd/m2, which matches what online reviewers saw under Windows.

However, if I use Intel brightness controls instead (/sys/class/backlight/intel_backlight/), I can boost brightness all the way to 500 cd/m2 (measured with an i1 Display2 colorimeter).

HTWingNut, I think it could be interesting to see if the default Intel drivers you installed under Windows also offer this extended brighness range...

 

Good point. I have Spyder Express 3 should measure brightness.

 

I'm working at upgrading the Vaio driver in Linux kernel (new version is expected for kernel 3.15). ACPI brightness controls are limited by firmware to about 70% of the maximum value allowed by Intel hardware. Sony's driver in Windows respect those limits and we replicate that behaviour in Linux, although you can bypass them (as you figured out) accessing directly Intel hardware.

 

Interesting.I have a vaio pro 11, but always thout it's not so bright as my surface pro.And also not so sharp the screen display.
How can I increase the brightness?Have w8, and not going to Linux.
Thanks

 

Interesting.I have a vaio pro 11, but always thout it's not so bright as my surface pro.And also not so sharp the screen display.
How can I increase the brightness?Have w8, and not going to Linux.
Thanks

 

Mine is a Vaio Pro 11 too. The limits are stored in the DSDT in ACPI, so to be able to increase that limit in Windows there're 3 options:

1.- Patching Vaio Control Center to override the limit.
2.- Patching the DSDT
3.- Writing a new control application that replace Vaio Control Center.

Anyway, I don't know the risks of doing that. I have increased the brightness in my laptop for a brief period of time without any visible side effect, but YMMV.

 

Hi! I have my new Vaio Pro 13, and I'm getting to know the machine. I have 4 silly quick questions, if someone is kind enough to answer them

1- The lid does not close firm enought. You can easily open it an inch before the mechanism stops you. Anyone noticed this?

Video here: [video]https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B46rVCTtf4xlVWw5YUhwUS0wVzg/edit?usp=sharing[/video]

2- I'm sure this is by design, but the keyboard and the outer chasis are not at the same level. You can see the keyboard case rising like a bump near the edges, most noticeable just below the power button.
3- Windows 8 restore reinstalls also the Vaio software? or just a clean Windows 8?
4- If I restore the system AFTER installing Windows 8.1. I get a clean Windows 8.1, or plain 8? Also, if I create the recover USB, I get the 8.1 recover?

Sorry if some of this was previously answered. I did only a quick read of the thread.
Thanks in advance!

 

No, that's not normal for the lid. It should be firm to open and closed fairly tight.

 

Thanks HTWingNut. Thats what I thought. I'm trying to reach my contact at Sony Store, to try swap the machine for another new one.

 

Cool, thank you for your effort!

Interesting.

I agree. Surely Sony engineers did not put that limit in there out of spite. The system is probably not designed for the power draw or the thermal output of running the LCD panel above 350 cd/m2. No problem for me as I'm perfectly happy running it at 80 cd/m2, but I thought I'd let those desperate for more brightness know that there is a way to boost it, even if there are risks involved.

 

How to do it?Patch Vaio Control Center or DSDT.
I don't know how to do it.
Would you help me?
Thanks

 

I installed w8.1 and could not install intel drivers.Got the msg you say it has to be OEM driver.
As Widi wasn't working with 8.1 and Sony Drivers I went back to w8.
Notice that beyond the Widi problem, w8.1 does not show properly some windows as w8.Think it is a relolution problem.
I don't know if installing w8.1 like you did, also has this problem.
Your Widi is working properly?
Did you noticed this bad appearance in some windows appearence?
I installed w8.1 from the microsoft store.
How did you make a clen install of 8.1?
Best regards

 

I installed w8.1 and could not install intel drivers.Got the msg you say it has to be OEM driver.
As Widi wasn't working with 8.1 and Sony Drivers I went back to w8.
Notice that beyond the Widi problem, w8.1 does not show properly some windows as w8.Think it is a relolution problem.
I don't know if installing w8.1 like you did, also has this problem.
Your Widi is working properly?
Did you noticed this bad appearance in some windows appearence?
I installed w8.1 from the microsoft store.
How did you make a clen install of 8.1?
Best regards

 

A couple of questions for the owners:

1) Is the matte display so matte than the glossy one?
2) Are the reflections of the glossy so irritating in light rooms or sunlight? Is there a way to avoid them?

 

Well, it isn't a trivial question. I haven't bothered to do that as I'm fine with the current brightness level, but in the process of Linux driver development I had to examine both the DSDT and the VCC code.

If I had to do it, I'd patch the DSDT. To do that you'll need to:
- Dump ACPI DSDT table (maybe using RW Everything)
- Decompile it (Intel ACPI decompiler)
- Patch it. The code that retrieves the brightness level is in method SNF3. The values are read from GFX0.RTLx, so I'd multiply those values by 10/7 (for instance) before finishing the method.
- Recompile it (Intel ACPI compiler)
- Inject the patched DSDT into Windows.

As you see, some experience may be required to do that. Maybe someone could build a patched DSDT to inject, but keep in mind that a DSDT is hardware and BIOS specific, so it has to be very clear where can be used.

 

The matte display is definitely far less glossy than the glossy one. It is less matte than some other laptops or external LCD screens that I've used in the past, though. Let's just call it "light matte."

I think that's highly individual. Millions of people use laptops with glossy screens and are apparently happy with them, even if at the same time people like myself can't stand those reflections (I've actually put a matte screen protector on my tablet, for example). I still generally try to avoid bad lighting such as, say, a very strong light overhead or working with a bright window behind my back, because the display clarity goes down in such conditions even if the screen is matte. Where a matte screen makes most difference for me is actually in good lighting conditions, where with a glossy screen I still see at least a partial reflection of myself, whereas with a matte screen there's no reflection at all.

 

mmmh.
I'm asking because, unfortunately, on the Sony Online Store of my country they have already done selling Vaio Pros, so I have to wait for something to come back in the Outlet, or buy the matte model elsewhere at a minor cost.

Do you all think it's better spend around €1000 for the model with a good carbon black finish but a glossy display (and so battling with reflections), or spend around €800 for the model with matte display but a "cheap" black finish? (I've seen the black matte model in a store, it's different from the Carbon Black one...it's clear they have painted the finish, because the grey and black do not fade in progression but they are clean and distinguishable from each other).

I would have chosen the glossy/touch one for that reason, but I fear I could regret the matte display because I'm going to use the notebook almost everywhere. Dunno, I hope you could help me choose

 

Not going to try it.i'm not a technician
Anyway thanks for helping.
Best regards.

 

So they only have a matte model in retail stores? Interesting, as it is generally a less common configuration. In the US it's much easier to find a glossy one in stores than a matte one.

Jena, it's your decision, we can't make it for you . And it sounds to me like you already made a decision: you don't like the finish on the matte one, so I don't think you should buy it. And since the world around us is full of laptops and touchpads with glossy screens, it shouldn't be too hard for you to figure out if you can live with the reflections or not.

 

if you're in europe the store is open to today only. on the website the "Store" no longer shows computers, but the link next to in "Electronik" does get you to "Computer" and then to the model which you can then buy.

The matte model reappeared here last night, with W7.

 

Anyone have luck figuring out how to stop the integrated GPU from throttling @ 60C? I contacted sony support but they were no help obviously.

 

Just ordered my SVP1322M2E2 and it should be here any day now

 

Yes, exactly. If you go around online stores that sell Vaio Pro 13, you will see that a good 90% of them only sell the matte model. I think it may be beacuse is the cheaper model, the other with touchscreen and glossy is, instead, considered a sort of "premium".

Yeah I know, sorry...you're right. My hope was that someone who bought both models could have told me the real differences between the two chassis finishes and mostly between the two displays...because instead of what some could think, the displays are different in terms of color saturation, contrast, brightness.


Anyway, I think I will buy the glossy model with carbon black finish...but I need a info, if you could provide me.
I need to know if there's some good protective screen cover that can lower the reflections without blurring the text or distorting the visual output.

Thanks

Curiosity...which games you play that make the HD4400 to throtte?

 

Hi everyone! I was trying to update my Intel® HD Graphics 4400 Driver through the Intel website that has a newer version, but I'm keep getting an error! My current version is 10.18.10.3304. Intel website has 10.18.10.3412. Pls help

 

As is my understanding the stock Intel graphics driver will not install on the Vaio Pro 13. Any graphics driver has to come from Sony. That is unless someone can modify the Intel driver to work with the Vaio Pro 13 but I'm not sure if that's even possible.

 

If you you do a clean install of Windows 8 it should work. I don't have any issue installing Intel drivers on my SVZ

 

Why would you want to install those drivers? Do they impact performance?

I'm asking because mine should be coming in the next 5-10 days

 

Back when you could order CTO SVPs, there was an option to have a factory-installed screen protector on top of the touchscreen. Sony did advertise it as reducing glare; perhaps somebody who ordered their SVP like that could comment?

Otherwise, you can buy aftermarket anti-glare screen protectors; here's an example from Amazon US:

Amazon.com: Kai Anti Glare Screen Protector for Sony Vaio Pro 13 Touch Ultrabook: Computers & Accessories

Keep in mind though that screen protectors of that size can be exceedingly hard to apply without getting any dust particles stuck under the protector.

 

Of course it is possible to modify the drivers to install them on any machine... A few years ago, trying to install some nvidia drivers on some laptops, that normally didn't allow any OEM drivers, I use to go to laptopvideo2go.com and download a modified version of the nvidia drivers and got successfully installations. Normally only the inf file is require to modify, nothing else is needed, the whole driver is kept intact.
I already went to the forums.laptopvideo2go.com but didn't saw anything. Latter going to try if I can modify the inf and see if it gets installed or ask for some help on the laptopvideo2go forum.

?? Cause every new driver can crush some ugly fudgly bugs... duhh
And yes, they may introduce newly bugs as well

 

Any wifi problems with the new vaio 13 pro model 223 with the intel ac and 8gb of ram?

 

Could someone deepen the HD4400 throttling question?
I think I'm going to play (not so demanding games anyway) when I travel, or in other situations...should I be worried? Because I still don't understand why the GPU should throttle at 60° while the CPU does at around 95-100°. I mean, since the GPU is in the same SoC of the CPU, it should be the entire SoC to throttle down, so the throttle temp should be the same for each component in it.

The strange thing is that 60° are so easy to reach...

Actually yesterday I was searching in this thread and I found someone used Vikuiti screen protectors. I, then, went to the K

It seems very good and easy to apply, even if the dust problem it's still there.

Here it is:
Pellicola protezione schermo per Sony Vaio SVP1321C5E Vaio Pro 13 Ultrabook: Vikuitiâ„¢ DQCM30


Anyway, a thing I don't understand is why on the site lets you choose the protector dipending on the model (SVP1321xxxx). What's the difference between one and another? The display it's the same :/

 

Applying the screen protector... old but still valid: http://forum.notebookreview.com/har...773-tips-installing-lcd-screen-protector.html

 

Is the refresh SVP1322 model made in japan?

 

Hey guys, I'm debating whether to get this laptop- found a good deal for around $950 for the i5 version.
Or should I rather get a T440s for around the same price(same specs except the screen size, the resolution and the touchscreen)?

 

Received my replacement SVP132A1CU unit today. The lid is still a bit loose (you can open it easily a couple of inch before the mechanism stops you), but this one no longer spontaneously open up when I hold it vertical.

Other small details I noticed so far (because I'm a detail addict):
- the connector cover on the back (for an external battery I believe) moves a bit (it holds but you can hear a "tick tick" sound if you touch it). I've secured it using a sticker.
- I'm pretty sure the old unit had an sticker detailing the Wifi card model and ID. This one only has two CNC ID stickers. Since this model usually have Wifi problems, and I know this batch of SVP13 just arrived to my country, I'm wondering if something have changed internally.

 

No one has taken any new photos of the interior of the VP since Sony pretended to add shields to lower the WiFi interferences?

Just asking that by curiosity, as I have returned mine months ago (I got a zBook 14)

 

Can someone please, please, please help me do a reset on this machine after having installed windows 8.1? I have no disks, have no product key (didn't come with one). The Sony store near me closed. Microsoft was no help. A refresh won't work, need a reset.

Does anyone know how to do a reset (reformat) on this machine after having installed windows 8.1?

 

You don't need product key as if restoring will auto detect the chip embedded serial. Just you need to do factory restore,
can't use any Windows 8 install.
Hope this is the correct answer.

To restore the PC you have to turn it off and press the assist button. From that menu use factory restore (If the partition with it still exist) will work

 

It says "files missing" or something like that. Well diagnosed problem with 8.1 Any workarounds?

 

Finding a Win 8.0 ISO OEM version.

 

Battery of Tests for new VAIO Pro SVP1322A4EB 13.3” Touchscreen :

Can anyone suggest a list of checks I can carry out on the Pro 13 - I will pick one up
in UK and run some tests before leaving to ascertain if it needs to be returned before I
leave UK.

From the many messages so far this would at least include:

Wifi
Bluetooth
Fan
Anything else you can think of!

 

derek744 > display frame , lower area (where SONY logo is printed) . That in some models is a little bit loose . In store models where others have pulled it from it's place is even worse .... so check that too .

fan noise in Z2 an Pro13 I have them set in Silence mode (not Standard not Performance). That is how you should check it (even in ASUS UX I have set it same way and is very quiet too )

 

Trying to decide what Sony software for remove, I've found this very useful Reddit thread, explaining the use of each program and if worth removing or not.

Might you be able to reassure me about which bloatware can safely be removed (or rather, which software I should keep) from a new Sony Vaio laptop? I even a list for you... : techsupport

The Pro also ships with some sample music, easily removed from "uninstall software".
"VAIO Improvement" is the only software I'm not able to find info about, any thoughts?

 

But...that problem wasn't only present in the non-touch model? (because it lacks the glass)

 

I thought the installer version didn't matter with Windows 8--any version should be able to detect the hardware-linked license. Is that incorrect?

 

Indeed, it will also work with the MSDN complete version.