Sony VAIO F 3D series owners lounge

Not long to go before my VAIO F3D arrives... excited!

Interesting discussion regarding the 3D depth settings element. For viewing 2D videos in 3D, am I correct in assuming simply clicking the button will not suffice and you'd need to have a special player for that? Or would it work on any player e.g. MPC, WMP, etc.?

Also on video playback, has anyone attempted using the fantastic madVR video renderer (possibly the best I've seen) on the VAIO F3D? I'd be interested in hearing your experience.

 

The video files on my computer, I've been able to use the 3D button to view 2D movies in 3D with Media Center, Media Player, and VLC. The bundled Blu-Ray player software also converts dvds to 3D.

 

Interesting; just got mine and cannot do the same, unfortunately. Is this after an update to the latest drivers and software versions (for MC, WMP, VLC, etc.) or with something like CoreAVC?

 

Hmm, I think it was after installing a codec pack that things started playing in 3D. I know I have Shark007 Codec pack installed, but don't know if that's the only program letting 3D be used.

 

^Woah Derz!!!
How are you able to do that ? For me 3D only works with Nvidia 3D vision video player and 3D Bluray playback softwares like WinDVD/PowerDVD

 

Okay guys, I've had time to tinker with my brand new VAIO F3D for the past couple of days, doing a quick install, updating it to the latest Windows updates etc., and I must say - it is absolutely, breathtakingly fantastic. The screen is crystal clear, it is smooth like silk, and the whole thing is a joy to hold. I know some reviewers have claimed it's bulky or whatever, but that's utter nonsense IMHO, coming from an ASUS G series and having also used HP laptops, the build is noticably better and sleek. Yes, it's unique, but it's got a nice, sleek, futuristic look to it that I love (to each their own I guess).

I would highly, highly recommend that anyone do a clean install of the OS, and you won't lose anything either, because you can get any of the required drivers and programs through Sony's support page or Sony Care (go to restore->reinstall programs and drivers), though I would recommend the website. You get the latest drivers and the most necessary apps, not the clutterware.

To take full advantage of the machine, I will also recommend updating to the latest Nvidia drivers - [clean] uninstall your old one and install the new one - and don't be worried if WinDVD doesn't work, simply uninstall it (it's got several bugs and is a remarkably difficult program) and use a better media player like PowerDVD, where the 3D effects and overall BluRay playback is much, much better. You can even play MKV files in 3D via PowerDVD if you have the necessary codecs installed, which is breathtaking indeed. You also get Youtube 3D, and after you tinker with the options there (which, granted, is rather confusing, but you'll get the hang of it), it is a fantastic experience.

Also, I can confirm the VAIO F3D works flawlessly with madVR. Install the latest DirectX runtime setup, and also the latest MPC-HC, Haali Media Splitter and last, but not least madVR (I tried this well-worded guide), though of course you can try your own setups. Images are much smoother than ffdshow and it just feels amazing, overall.

Anyway, I have to say I'm really enjoying the F3D, it's a beaut! Of course I haven't had the chance to try games on it, so I can't comment on that, but since I'm not that much of a PC gamer anyway, I'll get there eventually, lol.

 

hi everybody....got my Sony VAIO VPC-F215FX/BI 3D model in the first week of August 2011. I was so caught up with my work and exams. So didn't have much time to explore the 3D options. Played 'Call of Duty' on 3D mode once and it was good.

I am not able to use the 3D button to view 2D movies (downloaded from the internet) in 3D with Media Center, Media Player, or VLC.

Can someone help.

 

As far as I know you can't use the 3D button with Media center, VLC and the likes. Or at least I can't, dunno if anybody here has been able to though
Only works with WinDVD

 

Hmmm....thats true..When I try pressing the 3D button when playing the video files playing in VLC, it says 'Cannot switch to 3D display. Launch a software that supports 3D content'. When I try opening the video file with the NVIDIA 3D player, it says the file format is not supported.

I have pm-ed Derz to see how it worked with the VLC player.

and btw, have you tried viewing IMAX - Hubble 3D bluray disc in your 3D vaio? How are the 3D effects? I am looking to order the BD discs through Amazon.

I am a bit disappointed to see that the 3D effect is more in depth rather than the images popping out of the screen as we always see it in theatres. Is it just my perception?

 

^
Oh yes don't even think twice about Hubble 3D. No doubt one of THE best 3D blurays available.
And pop outs have to do with actual content itself and not the F screen. Most movies have a lot of depth and very little pop out.
Movies like IMAX under the sea, Resident Evil Afterlife, Yogi Bear, Drive Angry, Final Destination all have excellent pop out scenes. So its the movies themselves and not the F "limiting" pop outs in any way.
Also, as Paul H. posted earlier, you can set the 3D stereoscopic depth to 100% while viewing 3D Blurays under Nvidia control panel.

 

thanks AVmaxfan....i am gonna get the Hubble 3D bluray soon...eager to see it in the laptop

 

Hi folks I just got myself one of these laptops and so far love it except that I can't figure out why firefox runs like its in the ice age. I've updated everything, reinstalled firefox and it is just painful to use.


can anyone suggest a fix?


thanks!

 

Good question.
It has been discussed a few times in this thread that the Firefox browser will speed up normally if you go to Firefox - Options > Advanced, and un-check "Use hardware acceleration when available". No one has posted a reason why this only happens on the F 3D.

 

awesome thanks that fixed it! still pretty odd, hope there aren't too many more bugs.

 

On August 5, Sony technical support was notified that their Corel WinDVD software for the Sony VPC-F2190X needed an update to correct compatibility playing issues for "The Final Destination 3D" Blu-ray 3D.

Then on August 10, I notified them that Corel WinDVD" wouldn't play the main feature movie on the "Mars Needs Moms 3D" Blu-ray 3D.

FYI:
Sony now has a Critical Update: Corel® WinDVD® BD Software
Update 10/06/2011 Download that corrects the problems.

Note: "Vaio update" isn't showing it as available on my laptop this morning when I checked for updates.

Paul

 

I am sorry that you're having technical difficulties, and I hope it gets resolved soon, but I can't help but say dang dude, get some better taste in movies!

 

^^
Those two are awesome 3D movies . Final Destination more so than Mars Needs Moms.

 

Actually I'm pretty sure it's a bug in the stereoscopic drivers, apparently it sees WLM, IE and Firefox as games because they use hardware acceleration. Turns out that nVidia thinks that if you pay so much money to get a 3D kit you would like to play all your games in 3D and so all games(and applications recognized as such) will automatically start in stereoscopic mode which seems to be the cause of the problems.

If you select "Hide 3D mode when game starts" or something in the stereoscopic settings of nVidia control panel and reboot this problem will be gone and all applications will be able to use hardware acceleration without problems(you want that for sure). Only difference is that you need to manually start 3D mode when playing a game by pressing the 3D button on the laptop, but that's not so hard is it?

 

Don't know if one of you already tried, but just found the pre-installed driver for the F23 series:
VAIO : Sony Europa

It's said to be a newer version then the one shipped on my Dutch/EU version and knowing that Sony didn't put on any newer version on the EU support site and the F23 is just released I guess it should be a better version without the problems of the Verde drivers(e.g. bad working video playback).

Unfortunately I'm in China and downloading is soooooooo slow... So I will just wait and see

P.S. Also just found out that the 540M in the F23 has 2GB of memory, which leads me to think that it's maybe a 555 underneath, as 540 is officially not delivered with 2GB. I read a lot of stories about Dell's shipped as 540M 2GB but with 144 shaders instead of 96, which means it's pretty much a 555. It was about time anyway they upgraded the memory, 1920x1080 in 3D(so times 2) on only 1GB is just plain stupid.

Normally I don't care about video memory, always had to much on a laptop as the GPU normally couldn't handle it anyway but now with 3D it's starting to make sense...

P.S. 2: Why is Sony so stupid anway to put up like 300 support sites for every region and then not updating them at all, if they just keep it manageable and put all versions of the same laptop together we might actually be able to find some software updates...

 

I downloaded the update, but I'm reluctant to install it, since my F is the European model and on their site they state that the update should only be used on American models. What do you think I should do?

 

Sounds to me like a warning for European configuration differences, IMO, I would look for more information before installing it.

 

finally got the Hubble 3D bluray disc today that I ordered in Walmart (they had the lowest price of $34 including delivery & tax, whereas amazon & other websites had a higher price for this combo DVD and 3D BR disc).

when I tried playing it with CorelDVD it never worked and when I pressed the 3D button, it said that I had to configure the NVIDIA 3D application which I had done when I got the laptop a couple of months ago. However I had installed loads of programs and I wanted to reformat the laptop as I couldn't run the 'configure the NVIDIA 3D application'.

I backed up everything in my 1TB ext HD and restored the laptop using the recovery discs. Then I tried playing the 3D BR disc and CorelDVD asked me to install the latest codecs and I did so.

The 3D effect with Hubble 3D bluray disc was just simply awesome. Hope I should be buying more 3D BR discs to enjoy my new vaio 3D laptop

Can anyone suggest the best place to buy the 3D BR discs pricewise? Walmart website lookes the cheapest...any other suggestions?

 

Hi everyone. I’m going to get a new Sony Vaio F 3D series. However, I’ve got some questions and worries when making choice of this product.

Followings are some questions that is difficult for me to find the answer. I hope someone here can help me deal with them

1)I'd like to know more about the display quality of this 3d laptop. I’ve surfed a series of websites but there’ve been little information about it. So could you give me more technician specs about this screen? I need detailed information about it in terms of its display angle, brightness, contrast, gamut and 3d display ability.

I’ve seen a beautiful display in Dell XPS 15 L502X. I think it’s really awesome with a Full HD B+RGLED display. It’s very sharp, crisp, bright, vivid and saturated. Maybe it’s the best laptop screen I’ve looked at. This may result fr the fact that it has a high brightness (300 nit), high contrast ratio( 600:1), high color gamut ( 95% adobe RGB)

Could anyone here make a comparison between these 2 products?

This comparison is very important for me because at present I’m about these 2 laptop. It’s really hard to choose a product with better display between them.

2)Could someone here give me some assessments about the audio quality of this Vaio f 3D. And make a comparison with JBL audio in Dell XPS 15. Because as mentioned above, my brother had a Dell XPS and I'm really impressive of his laptop with beautiful display and marvelous audio.

3)And the last question, I’ve read some complaints about problems with playing some 3d movies and surf web by some browsers ( firefox, ie) in this laptop. These issues are really serious? And it’s easy to fix them??

These above contents are some questions I feel hard to tackle. So I’m very hopeful that someone can help me handle them.

I’m looking forward to receiving the answers from you soon.

Thank you so much!!!

 

^
Dude there is no comparison between XPS 15 B+RG screen and F 3D screen. In itself L502X has a brilliant screen but sorry it does not stand a chance to match the F 3D screen. L502X has TN screen whereas Vaio F has OCB LCD with perfect viewing angles.

Don't go by numbers go with your eyes.

And as for 3D quality where did you read about "problems" ? There are NO problems it has better 3D quality than any other 3D laptop/desktop monitor and most 3D LCD/Plasma sets.

 

So as an user of it, could you give me some detailed assessments about its display and audio quality?

Moreover, I need to compare with Dell XPS 15 because I have an acquaintance working for Dell and he can buy it for me at a price remarkably lower than the market price. However, I've also paid much attention to Vaio F 3D and been impressed by it. as a result, making decision is quite hard for me.

Sorry I made some mistakes when referring to "problem". What I meant there were problems with playing several 3d movies ( as some members mentioned on some previous pages) and using such browsers as firefox or ie. So could you give me an answer for these worries?

Thank you so much!!!

 

Please read the previous pages you will find enough posts discussing screen quality and audio quality.
Okay maybe audio quality not so much, I personally find it very adequate it gets very loud and the output is quite clean but there is no "bass" like in XPS 15. So in audio quality via built in speakers XPS 15 is better but not by a huge margin.

Again about the screen as I have mentioned before countless times here this is not a laptop but a Bravia 3D HDTV with Windows 7. I don't think there could be a better compliment for the screen than this.

And as for the sheer numbers since you are so curous

Brightness - 310 cd/m2 (XPS 15 is not 300 as u mentioned its around 270)
Contrast - 550:1
Viewing angles - limitless virtually
color accuracy DeltaE value - 2.1 (Its a score only seen in HDTVs and no laptop scores even close to F 3D score)

And as for the "errors" its not an issue with F 3D but with WinDVD. Even if you buy any other 3D laptop like XPS 17, HP Envy 17 3D, Alienware M17X 3D they too have the same issues as its software issue with WinDVD and not the actual laptop
Firefox issue fix was mentioned already please check previous page.

 

Wow it's really really awesome. It appears that Sony built this laptop at a very high quality. I think that the display quality of this laptop can compensate for its audio quality.

And by the way, could you give me more information about its gamut, or percentage of Adobe RGB it can reproduce. I think you're very knowledgeable about this laptop and as such you can give me the accurate answer for this question with ease

Thank you so much for your reply. It brings about a lot of valuable information about this laptop that I find it very hard to look for in almost all technological websites

 

It is a 100% ntsc gamut screen according to sony. S RGB is covered completely and adobe rgb is 90% covered.
But unless you work with adobe rgb colors , which most people .don't then you won't have any issues and color accuracy counts more than gamut coverage. In terms of accuracy its better than any other laptop.
Why don't you check it out yourself in a store ? also don't judge the screen quality just by playing sample windows videos and pictures. Play the 3d intro video which you can find on vaio gate at the top left corner.
The screen begs for high quality full hd bluray content
What I love about the screen the most is its uniform solid blacks. And the fact that I can sit at any angle and not have to adjust the screen as their is no image deterioration. And of course the punchy colors that wow me whenever I watch full hd content.

Oh and yes I have seen both xps rgb led and the new b + rg you mentioned

 

Review Sony Vaio VPC-F21Z1E/BI 3D Notebook - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

I checked the icc profile with my profiling software. sRGB fuel covered.

Anybody know if the panel is 6-Bit or 8-Bit. That should make a difference calibrating the display. So far no shop here has the 3D model... Can not test it personally... Regarding Green the gamut exceed sRGB - so all not color management software will show to strong saturated Greens...

For photos no problem - but for video I do not know personally a video player which usese color management...

Best, Walter

 

^
That is the calibrated ICC not the default that comes from factory.

As far as 6 bit or 8 bit is concerned I have no idea.

 

A DeltaE value of max. - 2.1 would be excellent for a laptop.

Did you calibrate yourself? What about default color temperature?

Best, Walter

 

^
Default (Factory profile)

Delta E Average - 2.1

Color Temperature - 5815 Kelvin (11% Deviation)

Brightness - 310 cd/m2

Calibrated

Delta E Average 1.4

Color Temperature - 6446 Kelvin (1% Deviation)

(This is with 270 cd/m2 brightness. Lowering the brightness will allow Delta E below 1)

 

That sounds really good. Already tested the 15.6" Dreamcolor from HP - there I get an Average DeltaE 0.7 (in Adobe-RGB) up to 1.3 in native mode... / with icc profile used. That was almost perfect. Only the structure of the matte panel scared me off...

There is now only the new Sony Vaio SE with the IPS FHD display to have a look... I am ISF certified for homecinmea calibration too, therefore my eyes are uses to dead-on quality...

THANXS!!!

 

^^
Did you see the F 3D with your eyes ???????
The SE screen does not compare with F 3D screen as its only IPS whereas F 3D has OCB LCD with superior viewing angles than IPS and better color reproduction. Also screen uniformity is almost perfect.

 

Not so far!!!! It's difficult here in Austria to find shop with all demo models. So far only standard model. Dell had nothing to show for me, only HP was able to ship me a Dreamcolor model. Therefore I asked you about calibration results - so I know that the F 3D is worth a serious investigation...

Walter

 

^
Its worth some super serious investigation

 

Wow, Austria sounds like a boring place or a place were people only like to save money(learned something from Switzerland?) instead of buying premium laptops Even here in China, where almost no one can afford it, there is tonnes of stores with working demo models of the F21's and also the other expensive VAIO: Z21...

I always keep watching the demo models and act like an interested consumer, but unfortunately for them I got mine in Holland from Sony itself

Not related to any performance of the laptop, anyone tips for cleaning the plastic around the inside? It's almost impossible to keep it clean, will always show some kind of grease which maybe is left from the original protection plastic...

 

No no Austria is not boring, but outside of Vienna it's usually a problem to find the special things in life... If high approach...

The main problem is the distribution politics of the big companies. Dell Germany was not able to provide a product, HP gave me a workstation with IPS. a good contact in big company made it possible. Thanks HP, dreamcolor works reg. accuracy.

Sony so far in big shops only (Mediamarkt and Saturn) standard models without this panel. The knowhow in the companies itself regarding good screens is poor... I will investigate further ))

AND for sure i will have a look at the F with 3D screen. Maybe i will order at Amazon ... There return is easy. I assume this OBC design regarding color will give generally another impression - maybe more clear...

Best, Walter

 

I've had a VAIO® Notebook Computer Model # VPCF226FM/B for a few months now and have tried 3 different solid slate drives but I'm still having issues. The people at SONY have not been helpful at all when I've called or tried to talk to them through live chat, so I figured I'd ask on here. I'm having issues with my computer freezing for 10-20 seconds at a time or the screen going black and the USB 3.0 ports when trying to connect my external hard drives.

I have a Patriot Wildfire 120GB Solid Slate Drive:

Patriot Memory

And I have 3 Seagate 1.5 TB FreeAgent GoFlex Ultra portable drives.

Basic specs for my laptop are:

Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit
Processor - Intel® Core™ i7
Processor Speed -2.0GHz (with Turbo Boost up to 2.9GHz)
Cache Memory - 6MB
System Memory (RAM) -8GB
Type of Memory (RAM) -DDR3
Graphics Card - NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M
Video Memory - 1GB (dedicated)

SONY did send me the 7 disc VPCF220FX Series recovery CD's.

After I used the CD's and finished all of my updates for Windows, I continue to keep having issues with my laptop freezing and sometimes when I turn it on it says "No Operating System Found".

When I plug in my external hard drive to the USB 3.0 ports the hard drive is getting power, but Windows is not recognizing the drive. If I plug it into the USB 2.0 port it works every time, but I'd like to have the data transfer speed from the 3.0 port.

The only software I added to my computer are:
Adobe Air, Flash, Reader
Google Chrome
K-Lite Mega Codec Pack 7.6.0
Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010
Mozilla Firefox
Quicken 2011
QuickTime Pro
Winrar 4.01 (64-bit)


I uninstalled all of the SONY software and for a day it stopped freezing then it started all over again.

I have a copy of Parted Magic to do a secure erase if needed. I tried that with the previous 2 solid slate drives I had, but they were both recalled which is why I currently have the Patriot Wildfire.

I was directed to go here from another thread for F Series owners.

What do I need to do to get my laptop to stop freezing and what can I do to stop having issues with the USB 3.0 ports.

Are there specific drivers that I need to install that are not on the SONY website? Do I have to make any changes regarding BIOS? Does it have anything to do with the Intel or Nvidia components?

Based on the spec's of my laptop, I was told that it could handle the hard drive upgrade from SONY and the Geek Squad technicians at the Best Buy store that I bought it at. I'd really hate to have to switch back to the Toshiba 7200 RPM 640GB hard drive that came with the computer. I keep hearing that having a solid slate drive is the way to go if you want to have a fast computer. I'm really only using it for accounting software for work and watching Blu-ray movies.

I've been learning more about computers since I've been trying to resolve these issues and I've gotten a decent foundation regarding the basic spec terms. I'm a quick learner too, so if someone could provide me with any information that I can read to resolve this issue I would GREATLY appreciate it.

Free financial consultation or 2011 tax advice to anyone that helps me resolve this issue!

 

You should try dispcalGUI(Free software) with "Spectrometer" instead.

My X220 IPS calibration results and its profile verification.

 

Actually all VAIO F3D Models come with screen made by AUO Optronics. and its screen model is B160HW02 V.0.

 

^
I posted that several pages back and I don't know what you meant really ??????
Are you trying to say that F 3D uses TN panel ?

AUO B160HW02 V.0. is an OCB LCD panel. It has better viewing angles than your X220 IPS.

@topic

I am really surprised by the calibre of the F 3D screen. I went through key data wrt colors of some of the best professional desktop IPS monitors/LCD and Plasma HDTVs and and the F 3D holds up EXTREMELY well especially considering high end workstation screens achieve Delta E below 1 at around 100 cd/m2 or lower whereas F 3D achieves DeltaE 1.4 with an extremely high brightness value of 270 cd/m2 (almost three times as much)

And also it reaches the desired 6500 Kelvin Color temperature very easily.

 

So someone posted now icc profile of the Vaio SE - generally bad gamut with big drifts...

Maybe you can provide the icc profile of your F 3D screen?

Regarding 6 Bit versus 8 Bit look here:

TFT Central

Here is a good test to see quick results too...

http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/downloads/Colour_Gradients.exe

In europe you get only 2630QM and in short time 2670QM, nothing higher reg. Quadcore...

Cheers, Walter

 

^
You already got the F 3D icc profile right from notebookcheck ? And unfortunately I have deleted the Sony icc profile as I use the notebookcheck profile now.

Hmm dunno why no CPU options in Europe. Can you buy from US ?

It will be cheaper as well for you as Europe prices are higher than US. You could get it with i7 2860QM for the price of i7 2670QM there.

 

An F21 3D i could now get for 1500€ incl. VAT. Maybe add later stronger CPU, if needed. Has the new F23 3D also glossy enclosure?

Regarding service Europe is advisable. In past always had perfect service by Dell guarantee on next business day.

Downside for travelling is for F3D size and battery power. But if the screen rules...

Maybe you check this test reg. 6Bit with dithering vs. 8 Bit?

Best, Walter

 

OCB LCD Technology stands for Optical Compensated Birefringence, which is in fact not the big threat to IPS technology. Show us your screen's contrast ratio and inferior Gamma/Grayscale curve after calibration to prove that F3D screen is superior to my 12.5 IPS screen in every aspects. In terms of color accuracy, F3D screen is not applicable to any professional applications at all.

My current 12.5 IPS grayscale after calibration

 

Do not trust him. He can talk to talk, but not walk to walk. I am still waiting for his new calibration results.

 

Gatehouse, For someone who has evidently never experienced the screen himself, satisfy your own antagonistic defensiveness and get one yourself.

 

Yes do not trust me but trust some free software based results and overlook the fact that X220 IPS screen does not even cover 80% of sRGB and firmly believe in the fact that the F 3D has a pathetic color inaccurate, low contrast, non professional run of the mill 600$ laptop screen and X220 IPS is 1000 times better than F 3D screen.

And we all F 3D owners are big liars who know nothing about a good display and lie about the screen being gorgeous just to avoid buyer's remorse for paying 2000$ for a laptop with a terrible screen. And to make ourselves happy we even make laughable statements comparing its screen to our high end HDTV sets.

EDIT:

Going through your last few posts its very evident that you are on a mission to attack Sony screens and ardently deny them being good. You did this in the SE forum and now your diverting your attention here.

And what makes you think that you can come here and judge me on this thread and ask people not to trust me ?? Clearly you have no idea about what you are talking about cuz if you did you would never come here and even argue over the F 3D screen. Since you do not own a Sony notebook yourself and nor have you been an active member in the Sony forum I suggest you think twice before attacking me or anyone else here.
We don't need your approval on what is right and what is not.

 

Pictures say it all

My current 12.5" IPS Profile:


Sony VPC-F21XX 16" 3D Profile directly from notebookcheck.net