Sony CW i3/i5/i7 Official Owners Thread

I was wondering the same thing and stumbled upon this site: http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/video_lookup.php?cpu=GeForce+GT+330M

The GT 330M benches roughly 1.5x faster than your 8600GT. Hope that helps!

 

Ah, one of those stunts.

Interesting.

I guess the takeaway message is that the sound is okay, but not horribly bad like some people have said.

 

Thank you, that is awesome. I want a machine that will let me game, and this sounds like it will be quite capable of it. Still would be nice to see what the E series will over in April....

 

I saw the B2B site offer CW with finger reader. I wonder why we dont have that option. And no instant on?

 

good link! is it safe to say that a score of 1000 means the gpu performs twice as well as one with a score of 500? is it linear like that? also is 3dmark06 linear?

 

What is interesting is Sony is the only one offering BluRay as an option. HP and Dell both no longer offer it ahah

 

had a previous shipping date of 16/02 - 23/02, its been amended to 29/01 - 02/02 now...


P.S UK CW Owners, have you guys got Intel Wifi adapters or Atheros ones? just curious...

 

plz anyone i need to know the package Dimensions cuz i will ship it to another country so i need to know the price .
i saw its 7.9lbs but am not sure

 

my last sony had the "One Touch Web" i never used it as it was a "very limited feature internet browser" I won't miss it in my new one

I wonder if the Blu Ray is becoming more of a headache than its worth for computer mfg and they are trying to shy away from offering it. I know from a lot of the posts i read, many people complain because they try to watch their computer's Blu Ray from their TV (and its not intended for that) or people complaining just general malfunctions of their unit, so it wouldn't surprise me if due to the expense of having to deem a lot of units "defective" or "open box units" we will begin to see the Blu Ray feature disappear entirely.(either that or a 2nd generation Blu Ray that is the exact same experience that a Blu Ray player will offer you if u connect it to your television).

Think about it: Even if your computer is working fantastic, but your Blu Ray is malfunctioning or not performing as expected, you become disenchanted with the ENTIRE computer and i don't think manufacturers anticipated when they first begun to offer the Blu Ray option.

Just my take on the whole thing, but don't go by me. Who knows? Every mfg will prolly offer it by next month and i will have been totally "off the mark" ... lol

Dumm

 

Am just getting the blu ray cos am planning on a full HD tv soon. Plus some movies are just meant for blu ray like Star Trek XI..like some people've said though, a full HD screen on a 14 incher would've been overkill...

 

Regarding Bose:

They have the amazing capability of tuning their systems and amplifiers to make poop paper cone speakers produce good sound...

they are far from good in the sense of accurate sound reproduction. There are so many better choices, its all marketing. I mean if you need a simple boombox to sit on the kitchen counter, the Bose wave isnt a bad machine. If you want a shelf system that sounds decent, and still need small speakers, look at Audio Engine or something.

It gets so much better than bose at not much of an increase in price...

I make fun of my roomate for spending $100 on Bose 2.0 multimedia speakers for his desk computer. I spend the same on a Klipsch 2.1 System which has so much more power, so much more range, for the same price. High quality drivers and amplifier. Higher quality cones (but still junk compared to higher cost systems, but still blow away bose paper). He was bought and sold by the Bose label and is suffering the inferior sound quality. ... Hes also a mac user if that gives you any idea of his need to spend significantly more on things for only a perceived increase in quality. haha

 

I think its also that most laptop screens dont have 1080P screens, and thus cant take advantage of the extra detail blu-ray offers, I also wonder if blu-ray drains the power too much to make watching a film worthwhile on battery power alone. I don't think it makes sense to use it for your TV because you get no remote, navigation becomes a PITA.. standalone bluray players are getting really cheap.

And until things like Microsoft office break the DVD space barrier, or computer games start coming on blu-ray... I dunno, seems like its still a few years away from wide spread adoption.

I have my PS3 for games and blu-ray, dont need it on the go

 

Two questions:
-For those who already have the CW, how is battery life?:
a)When using intensive applications (gaming, etc).
b)When browsing the web, using office stuff.

-You seem to know a thing or two so... do you recommend a sennheiser hd 595? or is it 'expending a bit more for a perceived increase in quality?'.

 

Sennheiser has a good rep for quality. They're not top shelf, but make pretty good stuff in the consumer space. (Or at least what I've seen)

 

UK CW owners.. any comment?

 

Thats also another great point you make. The battery drain is insane and if these Sony CW's are offering 4 hours under optimum conditions, i'll bet they barely can make it through a WHOLE movie. Its like, if you want to show it off, they have to "come to your house or visit with you when you're standing next to an electrical socket" to see it...lol

Since soooo many people's complaints are about battery life (to the point where they won't buy or will even return a computer because of it) its sort of silly to even offer a Blu Ray feature on a computer that can barely handle it. Surprising this isn't a #1 priority of either getting the battery costs wayyyyy down or improving their performance and life significantly. In this eco-friendly era i would have thought more would be being done to address this.

It just all seems kind of ridiculous with ALL the features and technologies out there, we are still getting 2-6 hrs out of a battery, and replacing them is costing 1/5 to 1/3 (sony) of the actual computer. It seems "technology on the specs of the computer is quickly advancing, but the laptop batteries are the same as they were 10 yrs ago. (not withstanding the thin & lights but they just don't have the mutitasking power we all crave so much. There's a drop of slight improvement for laptops 14in or higher, from maybe an avg of 2 hrs in 2001 to 3 hours in 2010. Not much of a jump there.

We are a nation wayyyyy more on the go than 10 years ago! Compare your old 5 to 10 yr old laptop up in the closet to a laptop of today and everything is 10 to 20 times the specs..except for... (wait for it...) THE BATTERY...lol

Crazy!

I would like to see an invention that weighs under a pound, costs less than 50 bucks and has a multitude of connectors to fit any & ALL laptops (and cell phones too while you're at it!) to give you power for say, an add'l 3-4 hours when your laptop and cell phone die "smack dab in the middle of your day!"

Any inventors reading this, get busy!

 

We've actually made great strides in longevity from the power use standpoint. Trouble is people generally choose more power over more life. I'll do a rundown test on my new CW if someone can point me to software to do so.

 

Just turn on bluetooh, wifi and run a full screen dvd w/ volume at a normal listening level for a movie. If it can last 2+hours I would be happy

 

To the people that have received their new CW's, can you switch between graphics solutions? Such as turning off the 330 and use the i5's? I ask, because that would be a huge power saver, if you were looking for longer life and weren't going to be doing anything too graphics intense.

 

On pretty heavy internet use, adobe acrobat/photoshop. Transferring data.

I got about 3 hours and 10 minutes use on my new Sony CW core i5/500GB/4GB DDR3/Blu ray

I just got the laptop on Friday.

So battery life is fairy average. Not great. Haven't tested full DVD/blu ray yet.

 

Hey, aneftp. I just wanted to thank you and the other proud new CW owners for all the info you've posted on this thread. I've been ridiculously indecisive about this laptop and have found your comments very helpful. I actually ordered the $950 i5 from Best Buy, it's due to arrive today. To be honest, I'll probably keep it in the box for a few days and keep checking back here to see what new owners have to say (not to mention those folks at Apple and their fancy new product on Wednesday!) before I decide whether to keep it or not. It seems like you and others are very pleased with the laptop overall in terms of quality, heat, performance, etc. My biggest hesitation is whether to jump over to Mac (I know there must be tons of threads about that), but it seems like feature-wise this system has the bones to compete for quite some time for less money. Would you agree? Thanks again to everyone for your insights and reports!

 

I'm assuming that if you ordered it in store then you would miss out on Bing cashback?

 

Sony is becoming more competitive because of the economic environment but here is where they get you, on the accessories

 

hello i just got my cw and charged the battery to 100%. i remember reading its good to train the battery by running it down then charging it back up and repeating. is this the right information. Thanks

 

No, this is not the correct information. There are actually not many benefits from draining the battery. On the contrary, a deep discharge of the battery is very harmful (but no worries, the batteries have built in measures to ensure this doesn't happen).

Heat is actually the number one factor in batteries decreasing in performance over time.

 

I went ahead and ordered a CW as well.

I really wanted to get an Envy but the 750 dollar premium to pay for a laptop (albeit one that is incredible) wasn't something I could justify. That thing ran REALLY warm and the reports of a 2hour at best battery life wasn't something I could get over for a $1699 price tag.

After modifying my expectations as far as the plastic materials on the CW, I'm actually quite satisfied. I played around with it for a good half hour in the store.

Can't wait!

 

You order the bestbuy one?

 

Can anybody verify that the new CW's 1600 x 900 screen has better viewing angles versus the older CW's 1366 x 768 screen ? I saw the older screen and felt it unacceptable. I mean, come on....the slightest off center viewing caused the screen to be washed out. I know there are those that said it looked great while sitting straight on but a 14 inch notebook should allow at least 2 people to view the screen at once, with no compromise in screen brightness and clarity. Anyone ?

 

Hi guys, Im thinking about buying the CW. I dont really need a laptop now but I saw the specs on the Best Buy model was impressed considering the price. Is the Best Buy offer too good to turn down or can I afford to wait a few months?

 

LOL i dont know THAT much, i just know bose and a couple other brands i have cross shopped in the past

 

Yes i was reading that the newer laptop batteries should never be discharged less than 10% whenever possible. Also (didn't know this fact) that just plugging it in for a minute or two uses "ONE WHOLE charging cycle" and that each battery has a "finite" # of cycles contained within, and so plugging & unplugging several intervals a day can severely reduce your laptop battery's life.

As i said in my earlier post, its kinda sad that Battery Care is such an integral part of laptop owning, and yet a lot of people make a lot of mistakes and find themselves with a dead battery or one which will not hold a charge.

In addition to inventing that portable power source i mentioned earlier, i think there should be a more detailed battery program that comes equipped on your laptop that monitors and periodically evaluates your charging habits and guides you by estimating the effects it will have on its life!

Dumm


"

 

Is the model you are thinking the VPCCW26FX (899) or VPCCW27FX (949) is what's too good too pass up, i'm with you. I ordered the CW26 and am anxiously awaiting it. I think its a GREAT deal, considering same model, same specs are advertised on JR & New Egg for $1049.00...Also just seen the i3's and i5's became available on Amazon.com today too, prices 100 - 150 more than Best Buy....

 

I used to spend a lot of time making sure I kept my battery at optimal levels to keep it good for as long as possible.. But then I realized, Will anything I do really significantly prolong its useful life (more than a few months)? The point of having a battery is to use it for its convenience...

Its inevitable that you will need to buy another one, likely only 1 before the computer is obsolete... So you might as well just use it as you need it and not worry about it, and expect to need to buy a new one after 1.5 - 2 years. Regardless of measures taken to prolong its life, unless you keep it at a 40% charge in the refrigerator (in which it could last up to 4 years), it will degrade on its own no matter what

I don't worry about battery care any more especially since I have had such good luck with those cheap Chinese replacement batteries. I've had them on my last 2 laptops, for less than 1/3 what the manufacturer was asking for price, and they have worked great

 

i agree 100% about how "worrying about the battery" undermines the convenience of having one. I am so glad to hear that you have used the "knockoffs" repeatedly and with a lot of success. I was checking out a lot of reviews today and thinking of buying one on ebay but was worried that 1/4 of the price is "too good to be true". After reading your post, i might just take that plunge and get one of them. Is there any one site/seller you would recommend?!

Thanx,

Dumm

 

http://www.abatterypack.com/others/product.php/134/78/Universal+External+Li-Ion+Laptop+Battery

That is just a random result of a search with google. I don't know anything about the store or the product quality. Look around a bit and you'll find a suitable solution.

Edit:
3rd party batteries can work just fine. They can also kill your notebook. If it does, don't be upset if Sony doesn't cover it under the warranty.
It's a bit like the lottery, only winning is less fun.

Same goes for external battery packs btw. Make sure the brand and / or product has good feedback. (not from users who had the product for 1 day)

Edit2:

Probably costs more, both in terms of money and energy, than will be gained. You'll be interested in this though:
http://osirisdevelopment.com/BatteryBar/

 

I actually agree with this. Lithium ion batteries have been around forever. I'm a little surprised by how little progress has occured on this.

As far as battery life increasing from 2 to 3 hours on a typical notebook about a decade ago, that was all due to the introduction of the Centrino. I remember when it was introduced, there was a lot of hoopla as to how little power the chips consumed.

I still can't get over the $249 price tag on the extended battery. I've owned laptops for the last 15 years and hands down this is the most absurd price I've seen.

 

Don't worry, I'm sure there will be a Chinese made one at 1/4 that price. $250 is just insane.

 

Yeah. It's just too good of a deal.

Blows any other 14" laptop in terms of what's under the hood out of the water. The Asus N81/X83 is a good competitor but the low resolution on these models was a deal-breaker for me.

 

To tell you the truth, there would have been one already. If you look at the battery models, it's shared by a lot of Sony laptops. There are plenty of the standard battery knock offs for about 60-70 bucks. I want the extended battery though! I just took a vacation to Hawaii from CA which is a 5 hour or so flight. My XPS 1340 laptop gave out 2/3 of the way though the flight and I had to spend the rest of my time with my thumb square up my bunghole. NOT FUN!

 

Tough call.

On one hand, Best Buy might have special pricing with Sony in which case the price will be around forever.

On the other hand, it could be an error in which case they would raise it to the price everyone else has it for: $1129.

 

It's highly likely a combination of both scenarios. I used to work for BB and they would get competitive early price contracts with big name manufacturers for about $100 less than other major retailers. As soon as all of the contracted supply was sold, the price immediately increased. I have no reason to believe that won't happen with these new CWs. Just a heads-up for those still on the fence. (However, if you don't really need a laptop now, the general rule-of-thumb with technology is that if you can wait, you'll get a better deal for a better system in the future.)

 

Hmmm well i did one off of ebay and 1 off of a random "www.batterycompany.com" style website once... You have to check reviews to see if people are satisfied in general.... Make sure there are over ~500 reviews too because there are a lot of fly-by-night scam sites that will have no reviews in google shopping.

I mean people do complain about getting defective batteries but I havnt gotten any, I should also mention that I got one for my sister as well and hers was fine too, so thats 3 good ones for me. Dont blame me if u get a bad one though lol

I cracked my old old one open to look and there was a "QUALITY CHECK PASS" sticker on the charging chip so where ever it came from (could be the same factory HP used for theirs, who knows!) they have quality standards in place.

 

Can anyone answer his question? I'm about the pull the trigger on the BB model and if the screen is still mediocre, I might wait for the Y460.

 

yes and no. i bought a CW21 on Friday for $799.00 (which i have since returned because the 899.00 with almost double the specs seemed too good to pass up so i ordered it Saturday) and they have already lowered the CW21 to $749.00.

I DO use Battery Bar but it is just so inaccurate at times, plus i am really wanting a program that collects information about HOW i use the battery and gives me an analysis based on that.

I was thinking of getting a cheap knock off battery BEFORE even installing the new one that will come with my CW26 and try to preserve that one, and use the knock off one to try to judge how to get the longest life. As for it voiding the warranty, is there a little black box that would tell Sony i had a knockoff battery in my computer? In the event my Sony battery died, i would of course "keep it" in case i needed to produce it to have my warranty honored.

 

For me, price vs what i want. The BB setup is nice, but if I am going to spend the money, I want to sup it up.

With EPP, I think 7% - 10% discount would work on the SonyStyle CTO. Just waiting for them to release the 1600x900 resolution and nVidia 330m.

Then again, buy the time they decide to do that, HP and Dell might get something lol ahahha

Sony has the upper hand as they are the only one offering Blu-Ray drives....

ARGH!

I would love to get a MBP i5-540 w/8GB RAM and just run windows off it all day long...hahaha

 

From reading my receipt and it saying "vpccw27fx/B/COREI5 430M/4GB..."
tells me who ever matched the Sony SKU model with the UPC number messed up and used the pricing for the CW with the 430M instead of the 520M. Even though I have yet to see an option for a i5 430M it explains the price difference.

 

The Best Buy CW26 IS the 1600x900 resolution with the Nividia 330M card for 899.00 w/o Blu Ray, 949.00 with. (thats why i returned my CW21 and ordered the CW26.

 

i hope that won't affect the one i ordered online CW26. model. So they charge you for the lower price of the 430 but give you the 520 model?

The model with the 430M is the silver 13 inch (VPNS111FM/S) SKU: 9999124400050012 that includes the netgear pkg for $1049.00-

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Sony+-+...uId=9999124400050012&childSku=9701289&count=1

(and they need to get it together with their ads-- the ad says its white but its as silver as the Lone Ranger's horse...lol)

i went and saw it on Sat. Really nice, only 13 inch i ever saw with a CD/DVD drive and beautiful design, but i had to have that higher 1600x900 resoultion thats coming on my CW26.

 

Well either way its a positive, since if they marked the website wrong then I'll be ing up a storm or you get a better laptop for cheaper. So far the people who have ordered the CW27 from BB for $950 have got the correct model with the 520M. I'm just upset that I didnt know of bing.com cash back before I ordered mine and my g/fs cw26 would of got about $50 off on each then... ohh well I cant wait till Saturday when I can pick up my CW

 

Yea, but it is not i5-540 and 8GB RAM and 7200RPM drive...hehe Wanted the flexibility to get that upfront w/o having to worry about getting it later and add it in.

I guess the only different between CW26 and CW27 is the color white vs blue huh. LINK