Official Vaio Y 13.3 Series Owners Lounge

thanks for the response. I know, I read every thread for this Acer in this website and all of them have to do a checkup and Benchmarks to see if their laptop is fine or not lol .. thats stupid !!

So how much battery life you guys get on your sony ? With like 50% brightness, wifi on, MS Office and some web surfings with the standard battery ?

 

With that kind of usage, the i3 model with integrated graphics should be good for 5.5 to 6 hours. I saw 6 hours in power saver mode while browsing over wi-fi, MS Word, and installing some programs. Those who opted for the dedicated graphics are getting less, closer to 5 hours I think.

The biggest issue I have with the Acer Timeline series is the keyboard. Same problem with MSI and some Asus models too. The Sony VAIO Y has better build quality all around, but the keyboard is most noticeable difference. Acer also has a poor reputation for reliability. Sony VAIOs have problems too, but they're less common.

How important is performance to you? The Acer has a huge advantage there.

 

again thanks for the reply. If you got 5.5-6 hours in power saver mode with MS Office and wifi on and all those, then its perfect !! performance is not really important to me cuz I already have an 2 years old 15inches Asus laptop which still beats many $2000 laptops in performance and I love it, its just too big and the battery is max 2.5 hours. As long as I can use MS Office and has a good keyboard and its thin and light, then its good for me

 

I've got to say that after a week of use I'm disappointed with the noise level of this laptop. I'm used to thinkpads and macs so perhaps my standards are too high. As dmk2 suggested earlier, the pulsing fan is probably more distracting than a steady fan. There is also an intermittent high pitch noise on my model that is audible when the fan is off, as a few others have reported here.

I tried downloading speedfan with the idea that I could adjust the CPU fan algorithm, but speedfan couldn't find the CPU fan, it must be non-standard. Is there any way to force the fan on steadily at minimum speed? Any other tricks people have found?

 

???

Don't you have to pay for the second battery?

 

Mr. DMK2 and any other with battery fit problem..

Can you write here how exactly can i fix this issue? i dont want to hear the battery sounding when i get the laptop oot of a table! thank you!

 

Thanks again

 

hey guys, new model for y series is coming up? it seems like sony is not restocking their current inventory. both black/purple stock config is now OOS.

 

I just noticed that the SU7300 doesn't have hyper-threading... Would that make a difference in your choice? Should I keep that in mind before making my final choice?

 

Can anyone tell what the viewing angles on the Y display are?

Is it as bad as the ASUS (because I sold it for that reason)? Is it better?

 

The Asus viewing angles are the worst ever to my eyes and the Y looks much better to me. Not as good as my current LG laptop, but definitely better than the Asus.

But that's just me...

 

Thanks Nazgulled

In case anyone is wondering, I'm referring to the ULxxx ASUS laptop displays.

 

It's always best to compare yourself, so if you get the chance, go to a store and compare them yourself.

 

That's the thing. I would but I live in a small town and there's nowhere to do that.

I have to buy my stuff online, so I depend on other people's feedback.

 

I see...

Well, like I said, to my eyes, the Sony's are definitely better than the Asus's.

 

Hi There,

I Just got my VAIO Y series, everything sound fine except LCD. According to Config. it's LCD is LED but when I compare it with my old laptop LCD it sounds better. I am wondering how it come? LED is supposed to be better but in my case it does not. Can I do anything to fix this?

Thank you

 

The way you applied the word "better" is meaningless... It doesn't tell us anything really.

 

Sounds?!?
What exactly is the problem?

 

geoman2

can you give us little more insight?

Thanks

 

1: Just because something has a newer technology doesn't make it automaticly better.

2: If your problem is with viewing angles then no, there is nothing you can do.

3: If your problem is with colour reproduction or black levels etc, then you can use various things to calibrate you're screen to suit your eye. (One persons perfect is another's oversaturated and messed up)

 

Hi and thank you for your response,

Could you please let me know how can I calibrate my screen to suit my eye?

regards.

 

Hello, My computer comes with a feature called: INTEL VIRTUALIZATION TECHNOLOGY that can be activated trough the initial setup (pressing F2 when booting start). What is this? should I Enable this?

 

x86 virtualization - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It helps with running virtual machines, a virtual computer inside a computer. If you don't know what it is then you probably won't need it.

 

So after researching for over a month i finally placed my order for Vaio Y series
This is going to be my first Sony Vaio laptop.
This is what I ordered and will be shipped on 10/13/2010

Model : US-VPCY1290X-LBOM
Fresh Start
Intel® Core™ i5-430UM processor (1.20GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 1.73GHz
ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 4550 GPU (512MB VRAM)
Genuine Windows® 7 Professional 64-bit
320GB Hard Disk Drive (5400rpm)
6GB (4GBx1 + 2GBx1) DDR3-SDRAM-800
Standard capacity battery

 

Very good machine!

 

does these vaio Y offer always on usb ports? for charging usb accesories?

 

I believe they do. As it got 3 USB 2.0, Will let you know once i got mine.

 

I placed masking tape on the battery. I added the tape layer by layer until the battery no longer moved. I think I needed 3 layers. The picture below shows where I placed the tape.

Given the intended usage, I would not worry about it. Even with a single core CPU, hyper-threading didn't make a huge difference.

White LED backlights have some advantages over CCFL backlights: they consume less power, they switch on instantly, they don't require an DC to AC inverter to drive them, and they don't contain mercury. Also, when used in an edge-lit configuration for a laptop screen, they they take up less room so the screen can be thinner. But they don't necessarily improve the quality of the display. The best quality laptop screen that Sony makes still uses dual CCFL backlights.

The main reason why the display quality of the VAIO Y is worse than your old laptop is that Sony is using very cheap LCD panels. Laptop prices have fallen a lot in the last 5 years and manufacturers can only afford to put good LCD panels in their premium models. It could be worse. If you think the Y is bad, try a comparable Acer or Asus.

 

I plan on purchasing this laptop late November/ early December for a long trip I am taking. My questions are:

How much battery life can I squeeze out of it?
How long does it take to charge?
Are there any planned line refreshes for the Y series in the near future?
What about: Noise, Heat and screen brightness?


Thank you

 

anyother experiencing the charguing usb port?

 

apart from these i would also like to know whether there is battery discharging problem like other vaio models, when the laptop is shut down or in sleeping mode??

 

I don't think so. As a test I just plugged my iphone into all three ports while the computer was sleeping and got nothing.

 

bad news here! i dont know why do they make laptops without common features..!

 

This is an option in many laptops even though often it is not mentioned in specifications. Often it needs to be enabled in the BIOS. Also, it could be that the laptop needs to be plugged in, so as not to drain the battery...

 

Do a search to find out about the battery life. That question has been answered many times.

Mine charges from 5% to 80% in about 2 hours or so. I think it takes maybe another 2 hours to go from 80% to 100%, but I haven't really timed it so that might be inaccurate.

There were some posts a few pages back where we speculated about a possible refresh. Somebody said a Y22 model appeared in Europe with the same specs & price but a different lid color. On SonyStyle US, all but one of the ready to ship models have disappeared and the configure to order model was briefly out of stock. So a refresh may be on the way, but it probably won't be significant.

Noise, heat, and screen brightness are covered pretty well by these reviews:

Sony VAIO Y Review

Sony VAIO Y Series Review - A Review of the Sony VAIO Y Series

Thankfully, no.

Agreed. It's been a year or two since Toshiba came out with that feature. I'm surprised that it hasn't been copied by everyone.

 

For those with the extended battery on the Y series, how is the size compared to the standard battery? Is it much larger? Does it stick out a lot on the back/bottom? Thanks...

 

It sticks out about 1/2", which props the rear up a bit. I like it when using the laptop on a table, but the standard battery is more comfortable on my lap. Follow this link to see a post with pictures comparing the two:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony-owners-lounge-forum/450972-official-vaio-y-series-owners-lounge-66.html#post6525079

 

I did multiple searches, just wanted a second opinion on it. Does the processor configuration effect the battery life badly? Most of the reviews I am looking at were either the Pentium or the Core 2, with maybe some of them with the i3.

 

I'm a long-time Sony Y-series owner. Have the original model with the SU7300 processor from back in March when they offered a $100 discount on it.

I have a question for any owners who have switched their Toshiba HDD for an SSD, have you experience any significant battery life improvement and if so by how much?

I got a pay bonus and have been contemplating purchasing this:
Newegg.com - Kingston SSDNow V+ Series SNVP325-S2B/128GB 2.5" 128GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Currently I have only used 70.2 GB on my harddrive so I really don't think I'll need a 320GB harddrive and I plan on keeping my VAIO until I graduate from college in 2012.

 

The old SU4100 and SU7300 models had the best battery life. U5400 and i3-330UM seem to be getting a little less and the i5-430UM still less. You also lose some battery life if you select the ATI graphics. Depending on which of the options you select and where you set the screen brightness, you could see anywhere from 4.5 to 6.5 hours for productivity and web use over wifi.

I have an OCZ SSD in my Y. The battery life may have improved a little bit, but not a lot. I'm guessing maybe only 15 min. or so. It makes a huge difference in system performance though. I have SSDs in the Y and my VAIO F. Unless I'm doing something CPU intensive, the Y now feels just as fast as the F with i7. The upgrade is definitely worth it.

 

Could you tell me what model was your OCZ SSD so I can do some spec comparison?

Thanks

 

JEEEEAAAAAS!!!!
Unless the Y has a much more serious problem than the S, I can offer you a much....... better looking and easier solution:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/475297-my-two-months-vaio-s-review.html

I put that like 4 months ago and forgot about ever having a loose battery )

 

I honestly still have no idea what the loose battery issue is, I pick up my Y-series everyday before I go to school and I don't hear any noise whatsoever so my battery fits in pretty snuggly.

 

OCZ Vertex 2 100GB. I wanted the Sandforce controller for its theoretically longer life, but the performance is highly dependent on the data type because it uses compression. It's very fast with small, randomly accessed files (e.g. OS and programs) compared to other drives, but it's slower with already compressed files, e.g. media.

The compression also affects the benchmark results for Sandforce drives. ATTO and IOMeter just write zeros, which are perfectly compressible, so you get unrealistically high numbers. AS-SSD and Crystal Disk Mark write compressed data so you get worst case numbers. Other controllers don't show as much variation.

I like to look at HD Tune read benchmarks on actual user's disks (not fresh empty drives). HD Tune reads the data currently on the disk rather than test data, so it gives you the best idea of real world performance.

Thanks for the suggestion!

I just used what I had on hand It's pretty ugly, but you don't see it when the battery is installed.

How thick are the things you used? I might not have room for them on my Y since 3 or 4 layers of masking tape isn't very thick.

My Y115 was loose enough to require the tape to keep it from rattling. My Y21 and F have less free play. Not snug, but tight enough not to rattle. They all use the same battery (and the S too). When I exchange batteries the problem stays with the laptop and does not follow the battery, so I think the differences are due to model variations and not sloppy tolerances in battery production.

 

It's about 2mm high but just one is sufficient. It really depends where you put it, that's the perfect spot right there. It holds the battery perfectly so that it does not move in any direction. And you can barely see it

 

Yeah, I heard similar things about Sandforce. It's best as a boot drive and not a sole drive for a laptop.

Also sorry to bother you again, but I just realized Sony doesn't tell you how to swap hard drives in their manual. Is there a manual you used to find how to access the hard drive or is it easily accessible from underneath the laptop, I have experience with swapping laptop parts but it was with a Dell (who are very accessible).

 

It's a piece of cake on the Y. There is one access panel on the bottom. Remove it (3 screws) and the drive is right there, along with the 2 memory slots. Then remove the 4 screws holding the drive in place, slide it to the left to unseat the connector, and pull it out.

 

Is the magnesium casing only on the lid? Is the rest of the laptop just plastic? Thanks...

 

I't hard to tell what the lid is made of, if it is magnesium alloy it has come kind of coating (could just be paint). The whole underside looks like plastic because of the black coating it has but it is in fact metal.

 

There's a magnesium frame in the body of the laptop. You can see that when you remove the bottom access cover.