Sony SE Owners' Thread

Look any of the clean install guides on this forum. It doesn't matter which notebook you are looking at. ABR is for backing up your Windows 7 activation to a USB key. What I basically wrote is that it's best to "format C:" and start with a new, clean Windows 7 what is installed by you.

 

It's up to you which applications you want to remove. You don't need any applications, only drivers for windows to work correctly. Stuff like chipset, GPU, network, touchpad, webcam, etc.

But if you don't know what these are and how they are called you might need to do a bit of research unless someone here can list all the essentials.

 

Just got an email saying that my SE has been built! Which is faster than I was expecting (they said it should ship in 2-3 weeks, and it's now just under a week). Now have to wait for them to ship it to the UK... This is very exciting!

Just wondering if anyone had any opinions/suggestions about what I'm planning to do to my SE when I get it:

1. Add another 4 GB of RAM - this should be fairly standard I hope, plus there's a Youtube video for adding RAM to the SE

2. Thinking of swapping out the HDD for a Seagate Momentus XT, which appears to be quite a nice hybrid. I'm assuming that this shouldn't be too difficult? Though does anyone know if there are any stickers/etc that need to be removed (and which would lead to the warranty being void)? And in fact does swapping out the HDD void the warranty?

3. Trying to decide between a) uninstalling bloatware, b) doing a semi-clean install (there've been some threads, mainly for the F series I think, about using the recovery disks and stopping the install before it starts installing bloatware), and c) doing a clean install. Leaning towards trying the semi-clean install and seeing how that goes...

Edit: Hmmm after reading around a bit I'm now tempted by the thought of swapping to an SSD instead...

 

Hi guys

I'm about to buy me a new Sony Vaio 15.5" SE laptop, but I just read in some forum posts that many people have issues with fan noise.

I was thinking about configuring with the i7 2640M processor and Radeon 6630M graphics card. Does anyone have the same configuration, and can confirm whether the fans does make a lot of noise? Is it a constant buzz, or does the fans go on and off repeatedly to high speed (which I find more annoying, like my Dell XPS 15 that I returned)? This is actually a deal breaker for me, so it would be really nice to have some first hand input on that. And besides, I will mainly use the onboard Intel graphics card, so the fan noise when using the Radeon card isnt that important.

I'm also thinking of upgrading to a SSD and 4 GB more of ram later, which I will do myself. Is this easy do to, or are the hard drives and memory slot well hidden and not easily accessible ?

And is there any rumor that the SE will have an i7 quad processor option later...?

Thanks

 

Don't get fooled by this email. Mine was said to ship in 3-4 weeks. I received an email saying "your laptop has been build" after just one week, but the delivery took 2.5 weeks (China is far away )

No warranty loss. Just two scres to open the laptops' back cover and you have full acess to battery, RAM-slot and HDD.
Just have a look ath the first few seconds of Sony Vaio SE disassembly - YouTube

im going to install a SSD to my SE and i prepared a clean installation according to
http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...-extracted-recovery-image-vaio-cs-others.html

I already have extracted the Sony.wim image and burned it to a dvd. So im at the point of "Doing the clean install", but before that i want to test out some programs on the old HDD.

A SSD is always a good choice (but an expensive one). No additional RAM or CPU-upgrade does have that kind of speedup effect on your computer. HDD to other components is the main bottleneck of todays computers and i have never heard of anybody complaining about an SSD upgrade.

 

I love this computer, but redorangegate is a killer. Has anyone talked about the possibility of replacing the screen? I haven't done this before, but would be interested to know if a) it is possible, b) it fixes the problem.

Thanks!

 

The SE have a 15.5" LCD panel while the standard is either 15.4" (16:10) or 15.6" (16:9), it should still be possible to fit a FHD 15.6" LVDS panel but the mismatch could make it a bit harder.

 

Well, shoot. Thanks for the quick response though.

 

Hi everyone, new to this site but seems like you all know your stuff.

Just received my VPCSE2C5E, and have ordered extra 4GB RAM plus SSD. I am wanting to install my own copy of Win 7 Pro x64 but am slightly unsure re. drivers/software etc.

It seems that the Sony support site has not yet been updated for the SE2, are the drivers for the SE1C5E safe to use? I am aware of the process for clean installs http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...b-windows-7-clean-install-backup-restore.html .

Also the only preinstalled software that I am interested in keeping is Acrobat Standard (didn't realise this was even included...) but this is not listed on the download site. Is there a way to preserve this when I load Win7 Pro?

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

Hey there does anyone know if the TPM is included on the SE2 and should the motherboard be H67 B2 or H67 B3. I many want to know since I wanted to encrypt my drive.

My SE2 is not showing a TPM and is showing up as a B2 board.

*EDIT*

After talking with Sony, they said that there is no TPM chip on the model I have, and they will not state if it is H67 B2 or H67 B3. Which sucks since I did want to use the TPM chip and was one of the things the drew me to the laptop.

 

The TPM is a separate chip on the board and not in the chipset. Maybe you have forgotten to enable it in the BIOS. It only appears when it is enabled there.
And afaik there's always TPM *and* fingerprint or none of the two. So you should have no fingerprint sensor between you touchpad keys. Please correct me , if i'm wrong.
I think all european models come with FP + TPM (and abgn WLAN via Intel centrino Advanced-N 6230).
But maybe i'm completely wrong on this.

 

Looks like it got lost in the flood of questions after I directed you to the thread.

Someone in here posted that the difference the i7 makes doesn't justify the price. I think it was stated at a 12% speed increase at best. It might increase the heat? I wouldn't know.

My SE's fan is barely audible when under a load while on Intel's graphics. It seems to be fairly consistent and doesn't do a lot of stop/starting.

Here is a review covering the fan noise from notebookcheck.net

This video might demonstrate how easy it is for RAM, How to install additional RAM in your Sony Vaio S Series Laptop - YouTube

It should take you less than 5 minutes. Just need a small screwdriver.

Hope that helps, anyone else can chime in about their experiences with the i7 model. I don't think a quad core is on it's way. The most recent refresh happened and it wasn't part of the improvements.

 

hello. i'm having problems with a sony vaio notebook, model vpcse - 1e1e . in games like cod-mw3 i get like 30-40 fps 1920*1080 but in windows is so laggy ... when i minimise windows, when i simply drag them on desktop. Does anybody know any solution? Or i need to go back to Sony for the warranty?

 

PS. After chenging from speed to stamina and back to speed it's normal again. Also after changing the windows theme to basic and back to "windows 7" it's working fine. But i dont want to do this every time i start my computer. Can someone help please?

 

Anyone know what driver i need to install in order to get webcam working again? For some reason it is not showing up in the device manager. There is one unknown device which I assume is the webcam.

Edit: Nvm, it fix itself after a few restarts.

 

Thanks for the reply - guess I'll probably have at least another week to wait then

The links are really helpful too - think clean install would probably work well provided I manage to get all the drivers working properly/etc! Though I guess if I don't manage to do a clean install successfully I can always just use recovery disks (and then uninstall bloatware...)

And I think I'm more or less decided on the SSD now! Thinking possibly a Crucial M4 128GB or 256GB...

 

Clean installs seem like quite a bit of hassle. For my delivery next week I'm leaning to just uninstalling all the crap I don't need. Any guides for that?

Also does anyone know if Sony install an SP1 integrated version of Windows 7, or vanilla then SP1 on top?

 

Does anyone know where to find the webcamdrivers for the upgraded cam in the SE2?

 

Please, can someone try something for me? Install Fraps from Download Fraps 3.4.7 free version and try to monitor fps in windows aero just by dragging very fast a windows in desktop. How many frames u have? I have a max of 48 fps . But after changing the theme to Basic and back to windows 7 aero i get 60 fps. Make the test just after restart. Please let me know if someone else has this symptoms. Yes or even no. I think i'll send mine on the warranty on Tuesday. Thank you!

 

Hi,
I just received my SE2 upgraded with an corsair ssd and a clean w7 pro install.
I just wanted to know what memory speed rating you have.
I have 5.8 I found this very low
Thanks
stdu

 

does this laptop have pci express card?

 

Just received an email saying that my SE is now on its way to me (from somewhere in Germany, using DPD), so hoping I'll get it early next week!

Think after reading and thinking even more what I'm going to do upon getting the laptop is:
1. Make recovery DVDs
2. Install new SSD - at this point I'm leaning very much towards getting a 256GB Samsung 830, if I can get over the fact that this is almost half the cost of the SE...! Then again given that I saved £150 by going for the i5 2450M over the i7 2640M, that's £150 put towards an SSD already...
3. Try doing a semi-clean install on the new SSD using the recovery DVDs, and uninstall any bloatware that gets through. Though I suspect that I'll find even the factory install blazing fast (as am coming from a fairly old system!)...

Then install more RAM and programs etc...

 

double post by error

 

Half the cost? SSD's are near 1 pounds / gb these days, even Crucial M4, Samsung 830 and Intel 520 are. BTW, Intel has 5 year warranty. Here is a link for the Samsung: Samsung 256GB SSD 830 Desktop Series SATA 6Gb/s KIT with Norton Ghost - (MZ-7PC256D/EU) [MZ-7PC256D/EU]

 

skytears13
U should know that the se only supports sata II speeds btw
Also remove the dvd drive and put the normal hdd in it if you just want storage.
(large files on ssd is very little faster than large files on hdd)


eivsemb
The fans can be very audible when under load like playing 3d games. This was
somewhat embarrissing when i had to use my brand new fast laptop for a
presentation of a 3d game is made. But other than that it does not bother
me since i have headphones when playing skyrim.

It can also be somewhat audible when using the processor and hdd for example
when downloading files. But i use 2 big 24inch screens with this baby so im
always pressuring it. And i download over ssl.

linkin
it does not have a pci express slot on the body. Maybe internal but that would void warranty, and i doubt that there is one.

pokr777
Aero is ugly. Use basic.
Also are you using stamina or speed mode. Did you change any of the software it came with? What ratings does windows gove your pc (control panel > system > rating )

 

I'm thinking of installing seagate momentus XT, hybrid drive, I read good reviews about it.
Seagate Momentus XT (750GB) Review & Rating | PCMag.com

 

Thanks for the link - was wondering how reliable overclockers are though? As reviews of the shop seem to say it's not great with customer service/returns, and I get worried about their customer service lines costing 10p/minute to call from a landline (and probably more from a mobile...) - had a few too many negative experiences with other companies! That being said they also currently have a great deal on the Intel 520...

Almost half the cost was going by Samsung 830 256GB being about £300 on Amazon. The base price of the SE (with student discount) is about £600; the one I ordered was just about £640 after student discount and quidco...

Thanks - yes I did see the SATA II thing, but the SATA II drives I was looking at (Samsung 470, Intel 320) actually seem to cost more than the newer SATA III drives (Samsung 830, Intel 520, Crucial M4)! So it makes more sense to just get a SATA III that's backwards compatible... (Should add that I'm just going by Amazon UK prices at the minute and haven't exhaustively looked at prices for the SATA II drives elsewhere...)

Will probably keep the DVD drive as I like being able to watch DVDs on my laptop (all those box sets of TV shows!), but will get an external HDD to use...

 

I have installed Fraps and made your test. (Checked "Monitor Aero desktop (DWM)" and dragged a window around the screen. Theres a yellow number on black in the top left corner and i suppose that are the fps you are talking about.
Sorry Pal, i always have 60 fps, in Stamina and Speed mode . After direkt reboot, after Suspend-To-Ram etc.
But there is one thing you can try: I manually changed the Monitor refresh rate from 40Hz to 60Hz in Stamina mode. When i set the rate back to normal, i only get 40 fps maximum. So maybe thats the point.

Oh, and i upgraded my drivers to the latest graphic drivers from the Sony Service Homepage a while ago.

Hope this helps.

 

Hi,
I have a strange behaviour :
i did a clean install after changing the hdd by an ssd corsair force 3 240gb
Everthing seems fine but now i have strange noise on disk access.
Does someone already have this kind of problem ?
Thanks
stdu

 

I remember, someone mentioned it here in this thread.
Has to be maby around 20-50 pages ago...

 

pokr777
Aero is ugly. Use basic.
Also are you using stamina or speed mode. Did you change any of the software it came with? What ratings does windows gove your pc (control panel > system > rating )[/QUOTE]



Hi icezz. Thank you so much for replying. Both are the same, speed and stamina. Yes i changed to win7 ultimate, and back to home premium with the beck-up disk. It's just the same. My ratings are 6.7 and 6.7 for Ati. I didn't try on Intel cause i don't use it that much. On Win8 i have 6.6 and 6.6. It's fine for me. But in 7 the lag it's so annoying. And to get rid of it i need to change the theme every time i start my pc. I think soon i'll send it in warranty
If anyone did the test in FRAPS please can you post u're FPS here?? I'm really curious!

 

hi, i'm just about to order me a SE in a few hours... the last decision I need to make now is the color....

at first I was thinking about going with the jet black... but on second thought the silver looks really nice... please give me some heads up!!

 

Well, I think there you are at a point where you really should make your own decision.
I see no real advantage of one of the two colours - so it depends 100 % on your taste.

 

I saw some pictures of the jet black... it kind of looked like a dust magnet.... and feels like palm prints and finger prints looks bad too...

 

I have the black SE.
And i have very oily skin, so you can see every fingerprint of mine on the black. I heard that the silver version is less likely to show fingerprints.

Bu at least i can wipe off that spots easily from the metal parts of the notebook body. It it not so easy to wipe it off the keys of the keyboard and it is almost impossible to wipe it off the trackpad keys.

Oh yes, the trackpad keys!
Mine looked really awful after just one month of usage, like other peoples notebook look after two years of heavy usage. I had to put protective covers on them! (Just small pieces of a smartphone screen protector foil - cut to fit).

So maybe the silver version would have been better for me. But i heard that the silver color is going to change to black stains after a few months or a year, while black always stays black.

But the main reason for me to order black was:
I didn't want to have a MBP look-alike.

@pokr777: have you read my post?

 

ok went with the platinum silver...

bought a 4GB crucial DDR for 20$ and a 128GB Crucial M4 SSD for $165... should be enough right?

oh and the vaio is the i5-2450 with the 6630M... everything comes down to $1230...

 

Ex-Samsung 7-Series user here...
I will also be ordering the Silver one, with 4GB ram and 128GB M4.
I'll be getting the i5-2430 version with the 6470M, don't really need the graphics. Total is $970.
I might also order the sheet battery, so another $100 there. Total is still less than the $1150 I originally payed for the Sammy.

 

where are you buying it from?

couldn't find a good deal on it, went directly to sony.com

 

metaKaos. Sorry, just after you asked i've seen it. Thank you very much. In 2 days i'll send it to warranty. i was thinking it's a general problem but it's not. Do you have any idea from what it's coming this lag?

 

Could the SE 2 owners comment on the screen please?

 

Just got my SE today!

Up until this morning I thought it was still somewhere in Germany (last location tracked by DPD), turns out that dpd.de tracked much slower once it got to the UK, while dpd.co.uk updated quite quickly... So it was a very nice surprise to get it today, thought I'd have to wait another couple of days! (So that makes it just under 2 weeks since I ordered, with the order saying that it usually ships in 2-3 weeks...)

First thoughts:

1. They shipped it in a massive parcel with tons of packing. Must say I wasn't expecting that at all. On the upside no one in their right mind will look at it and think there's a laptop inside...

2. Box is very nicely packaged - everything in its own little compartment. Not very much in the way of documentation (a quick start guide, recovery guide, brochure for accessories), the manual is apparently electronic.

3. The screen is AMAZING and completely blows my old laptop screen away. Just looking at it is a joy. It's a bit like looking at an iPhone 4 or 4S when you're used to an iPhone 3GS... Unfortunately reds are still somewhat orange (this is an SE2), but I have to say that until I put up a red box in Paint I didn't notice this at all. What I noticed was just how amazing the screen looked...

4. There is indeed a lot of pre-installed VAIO software...

Currently making recovery discs before playing around with it a bit more. (It's taking a looooong time to make the recovery discs - just about half an hour for the 1st one, and there's 4 in total! Just getting impatient... )

 

For those that have the laptop already, how's the pixellation/clarity when you put the screen to 1600x900? 1080p sounds great for movies, but reading text/programming seems like a pain in the eye for me; the DPI is too high. Maybe you can include some pictures of the screen with this res?

 

Kish21: I just set my screen to 1600x900 and it looks okay to me - but keep in mind that I'm coming from a very old laptop and thus have a pretty high tolerance for display quality!

I'm going to switch back to the Full HD resolution though as I like how icons/etc take up just that little bit less space. I did find reading text a bit hard but it's not difficult to zoom in in Firefox, so hopefully that will be fine.

 

Did the fan seem annoying under regular use (I'm not a gamer, so I don't care about noise during games)?

Did you notice any issues with the sound, through headphones? Someone said they heard a "crackling" sound after Windows sounds, like the ding or click sound, played. I noticed that as well on Sony VAIO CA, so I'm hoping the SE doesn't have that issue as well.

 

Ichinenjuu: I can definitely hear the fan but it's tolerable, though I suspect part of that is because it's quieter than my old laptop. Although it did get really loud while it was making those recovery discs (though this is perhaps normal for burning discs - have no idea as it's been years since I last burned a DVD!)

Also heat-wise it still feels quite cool after 5 hours of use. Although the right palm rest is starting to warm up a bit.

What annoys me the most right now is that I keep accidentally hitting the touchpad while typing and have more typos than I usually do. I suspect though that once I get used to the new keyboard it should be fine... (I keep forgetting too that there's a number pad on this, and that there's also dedicated "home" and "end" buttons, which is great for me...)

 

Thanks, that's what I'm probably going to end up doing then. Stick to 1920x1080 and just zoom-in whenever text is too small to read.

 

I have a question,

I bought a M4 SSD and thinking about installing a fresh windows 7 on it and formatting the 500GB HDD and put it in a caddy as a 2nd drive. But the problem is I don't have a Windows installation CD, and the country I'm in don't sell these officially. So only CD I can get is a pirated one, how can I retain the original Windows it came with the Vaio? help!

 

More thoughts:

1. Colour. I was very worried about this and actually postponed getting this laptop because of the red/orange issue. After a day of fairly heavy use I can quite honestly say I don't notice the red/orange at all, even the Coca Cola website looks fine to me (not pure red, but red enough that I wouldn't have commented on it). No strange tints as well when watching videos. I may well find myself more bothered by this as time passes but at the moment - not an issue at all for me.

2. Screen. Still amazing (even taking into account red/orange).

3. Noise-wise it definitely runs much quieter than my old laptop. I don't notice the noise unless I'm listening particularly for it, or if the DVD drive is running.

4. Webcam (the upgrade Exmor HD) is very good. Seems almost a bit wide-angle as it gets a larger field than I was expecting...

5. Fingerprint sensor is pretty good and seems to work quite well

I'm now waiting for my SSD and extra RAM (should get here tomorrow). At this point in time I'm probably going to do a full recovery to factory settings on the SSD and then uninstall programs. Was going to try a semi-clean install or the sony image method, but after spending the better part of the last 3 hours trying to extract files using mod2wim, failing miserably (despite trying multiple times and with all changes suggested such as making sure it's for 64-bit), I think it's just going to be a factory restore followed by uninstall...

 

1. Do ABR Backup on the Sony Windows 7.
2. Download a Windows 7 64-bit SP1 version with the official SHA: "36ae90defbad9d9539e649b193ae573b77a71c83" (a google search 1st result)
3. Delete ei.cfg using ei_cfg remover:
http://code.kliu.org/misc/winisoutils/eicfg_removal_utility.zip
4. Install the same version, i.e. Home Premium
5. Activate using ABR Restore

 

Yeah probably a good idea as all LCDs only have one optimal (native) resolution. As soon as you change it everything has to be recalculated through interpolation which causes a massive loss of quality and blurriness.