Sony Vaio CA Official Owners' Thread

The SA drivers installed just fine on the CA, but they weren't any newer going by the version number of the actual Radeon driver. Still Catalyst 11.2.
I downloaded the following drivers and were able to update my CA w/6630M to 11.4. It should work the same on the CB and SA/SB.

[email protected]

 

hi, i'm afraid that review is about the model equiped with Radeon HD 6470M, the one with 6630M should get higher scores.

I got that model, and i'm pretty happy. I just need more battery life, i was wondering if someone here with the 9 cells battery could post photos of the Vaio with that battery. (i'm afraid it could get too bulky)

 

Quick urgent question. Should I hold on for updated VAIO E series ( Price, or better value) ..or should I go ahead with CA. Also would the price get any lower with these new models coming in ?

 

Hi,

I bought VAIO CA. I want to record streaming radio. Usually I did it using Audacity with Stereo Mix as a source. How can I have Stereo Mix source and disable microphone in the same time? No such options in sound devices.

Thank you

SlawekPL
=====================================
US-VPCCA190X-LBOM
No additional AntiVirus Software:
CD/DVD Player / Burner
AMD Radeon™ HD 6630M (1GB VRAM) hybrid graphics with Intel® Wireless Display technology
Fresh Start
8GB DDR3-SDRAM-1333
Intel® Core™ i5-2410M processor (2.30GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 2.90GHz
500GB Hard Drive (7200rpm)
Sony® Imagination Studio™ Suite Component: White
Genuine Windows® 7 Professional 64-bit
14" VAIO Display with LED backlight (1600 x 900)

 

Link: Updated Sony VAIO E and C Series laptops confirmed, to ship next month | News | TechConnect Magazine

 

Ibee, it's kind of hard to say what's going to happen with the "older" C and E models as far as price is concerned. I'd also like to know what may happen, but since a lot of their current promotions (primarily $130 off and free Bloggie) end the day before these refreshed models are supposedly available, it's almost a tough call on what to do. I at least hope the current colors will still be available; I really do want that green one still.

 

Thank You.. Would it be wise to wait ... incase the $130 price discount goes off ? Hard to predict .. Damnn

P.S: You must have some fine skills to pull off the green one. Cheers

 

New AMD Radeon drivers CCC 11.6

 

That will not update the actual driver, but just the CCC in the Vaios. The only way you can ever update the driver is either through Sony or via hacked drivers with modded inf files.

 

It's like a broken record with that guy. Here's something else for him: I tried downloading the new CCC you linked. Just told me "cannot be downloaded due to incompatible hardware/software on your computer. The version of your graphics adapter is not supported." Yet, I have the 6630M. But of course, this isn't a Sony problem at all. Not at all. /sarcasm

 

Putting an end to the endless search. Going for a Black CA (i5 2410, AMD 6630, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD ... ) Will have it around Saturday. I was playing with one at a Sony Display today. The Screen colors dont feel that vibrant. Any existing owner would like to comment ? And DAMN Sony for making an amazing notebook with Crappy Drivers. Hope they listen !!!

 

Do you see the 6630M in the device manager? What is the Hardware ID for it? Mine is PCI\VEN_1002&DEV_6741&SUBSYS_9080104D&REV_00

 

Yup, 6630M is in device manager. Where would I find Hardware ID?

 

ve


VEN ID 1002 is for ATi/AMD

 

Double click on the 6630M in the device manager, go to details, and choose Hardware IDs from the drop down menu.

 

Hi,

What should be done to have a Stero Mix as a recording option (Vaio CA)?
Thanks,

Slawek

 

About to get my CA s delivery. What are the recommended display drivers and hotfix which i should install ? Also how to remove the bloatware
?

 

! Prices are down to 599 dollars on Vaio CA with i5 2410 and 6630 .. i3 is 100$ expensive :O

 

Did anyone manage to grab one at the bugged price? I built one that ended up being $699 and left it in my cart. I came back around 4pm and they had already fixed it, unfortunately.

 

Same here ... Missed it. Although some people at Slickdeals.com were able to order it. DAMN

 

I don't get why some people when they right click on their desktop see 'configure Switchable Graphics' and some don't. I don't see it on mine. I just see Catalyst Control Center.

 

I suspect that the factory has installed 6470 drivers instead of the switchable 6630 drivers. I have been unable to install the correct drivers and Sony support told me to factory restore the PC.

To be honest, gaming performance is great and I'd rather not have switchable graphics after reading about some of the problems with that.

The Intel graphics do not even appear in the device manager on my Vaio CA.

 

Actually now i've just looked the intel graphics don't appear in my device manager either and my gaming performance seems fine. Hopefully it stays that way cos i'm loving this laptop!

 

Make a backup and upload it for us maybe

 

What a sad case i just found out 3 days ago the graphic card problem

i bought a Sony Vaio VPCCA15FG 3 weeks ago and i never know there are issue about the graphic card ,............
i am a VJ and i dont want to use a MBP coz i don think it is user friendly and i found out this Sony outlook was so cool and the graphoc card is very sufficient to me..... but at the end when i try out with my VJ software it can only run on normal mode in Intel hd graphic and not the Ati radeon 6630... what a sad case i been searching around for solution for 3 days but no luck ......
my VJ program need to run with high resolution and a big memory but it just wont accelaretion with the ati so sad................ what to do now?????

trying disable the intel graphic hd install the lastest driver etc still the same

my 2nd screen video keep freezing and lagging till i so fedup with this Sony


hope u guys here can help me and update me if u have any solution or driver update in here

cheers guys!

 

So... has anyone managed to open up their CA and see if the processor is soldered on to the motherboard?

 

I just got my CA a couple of weeks ago. Updated everything that I could, including the ATI hotfix. I don't really play highly graphic-intensive games, but when I tried running The Sims 3, I initially got all sorts of graphical glitches and garbage.

I made sure that the game was selected to run using High Performance, but I'm not sure if it's even helping. The game will only run with all of the settings turned down.

Stupid question, but is there any way to tell whether a game is actually recognizing the graphics card, other than in-game performance? Based on the settings I need to use, I have to assume that it's only using the integrated graphics, but it would be nice to know for sure.

 

hey guys,

I've done a lot of research for the past month, and on paper, the Vaio CA series looks the most attractive.

However, based on some commends on this huge thread, I see several problems:

1. The graphics is incompatible with many programs. I will go into engineering and will use programs like AutoCAD. Will I experience many compatibility issues?

2. I heard that sony's customer support really sucks. Say that I bought this computer, and the disk tray or monitor malfunctions. Do they send a technician to my house, or do I have to mail them my computer?

3. I heard that the refreshed Sony CA series are coming out. Are they going to fix the driver problems? What new features does the refreshed series have?

Thanks in advance

 

2) Most companies have sucky customer support these days (not all, but most in my experiences through my own machines and on behalf of relatives and friends). If you choose in home service, they come to your home (if Sony offers it, I don't remember). Otherwise, you mail your laptop to them like any other manufacturer.

 

why the dont fix the problem instead of making new model sob sob..........

 

Thinking about getting the CA

but can anyone comment on the screen quality of the 1600x900 full HD lcd? I know notebookcheck really gave a bad review of the CA based on the low quality screen so was wondering if the higher quality screen was any better in terms of things like viewing angles, color contrasts and etc

 

Just a quick question (Also considering the CA for my next laptop): Does the backlight also illuminate the characters in they keys?

 

1600x900 is not FHD... it's HD... i dont know why notebookcheck gave a bad review on the screen, but no complain from me on the screen...

yes it illuminates

 

How are the viewing angles and do you find the screen better than any of your old laptop screens in terms of color and contrasts?

 

i think the brightness and contrast a bit let down, but that's it. about color i think it's okay

 

For the information of potential Canadian buyers: there's a 200$ rebate until tomorrow on all Vaios, which sealed the deal for me. I'll soon have my black 1600x900 original CA (not yet refreshed in Canada) for around 800!

I guess the refreshed models are coming soon in Canada too, as the guy at the Sony store (I went to have a real look before choosing the color, but they only had a white CB left) was saying CA and CB are discontinued.

 

discontinued? really? it was just about 4 months after the released... well, i know about the botched hardware configuration is one thing but... to discontinue this early... is sony insane? were they planning not to support the earlier CA / CB series? what a joke... if that's the case i've had it with sony...

it's better to buy something else with much better support... like HP or Dell...

 

hahaha are you fu***** kidding me? better support dell/hp? hahahaha yeah right!

 

Is the 1600x900 as good as the 1920x1080 screen on the CB in terms of color quality? I went to the Sony Store and they only had the CB with 1920x1080 and it looked amazing.

 

1600x900 14" screen is mediocre just like all other 14" 1600x900 screens out there. It's better than the bottom of the barrel 768p panels but it's nowhere near the Dell XPS15 screen quality.

 

I've never actually seen a 14" 1600x900 screen before, but since Sony seems to be the only brand offering one right now (and for me, 14" is an ideal size), I decided to go with it. We'll see how it turns out I suppose ANYTHING is better than the crappy 768p screens that are the default these days...

 

for me this screen is really nice, and the colors are good!

I'm still getting used to this lappy but so far I think is pretty good

 

Any impressions on the 768p screen as here in India that is the only available option.

 

I'm thinking about ordering this, I just got a Lenovo T420s with dif specs than I ordered, so now that I have been graced with a second chance I was thinking about ordering the VAIO CA. After reading the thread I have a few questions,

Is the glare on the screen insane? Looking at the pictures people put up, it looks prettty bad

I know that the C series just got refreshed like mid last month, are most of these gfx switching problems not as big of an issue? Or is it that it's really only an issue for picture editing like mentioned earlier, and is it better for gaming?

I was going to install an SSD in the optical drive, and it sounds really easy, but for my HDD, would it be better to then get a 5400rpm drive as opposed to a 7200 because the lower rpm will lead to longer battery life?

Also someone already asked this, but no one answered, would it be difficult to replace the wifi card?

 

I replace the HDD (default WD) with a SSD (Intel 120Gb) and optical drive with that HDD (WD)...run really really fast!
Is glare and is bright, but for me in not a issue, and you can always change the brightness level on energy options
About the Wifi, well I do not know, but the default wifi is pretty good, so far I have not had any problems

 

Which place is it better to put? In the HDD bay or the optical drive?

 

I put the ssd in the HDD bay and a second HDD in the dvd bay...the optical drive's in external enclousure/slim dvd....The SSD should be put in the hdd bay and if you want more store space well put the default hdd in the optical bay for a total of 2 hard drives.

I bought this SSD

12.7mm Universal SATA TO SATA 2ND Hard Drive Caddy on amazon for $15

White USB2.0 Slim DVD / CD RW Burner External Enclosure Caddy Case with SATA Connetor For Laptop for $8

You can read these official guides:

• VPCCA Series Hard Disk Replacement Instructions
• VPCCA Series Optical Disk Drive Replacement Instructions

Or see this video: How to change the memory and hard drive in a Sony Vaio VPCCA

 

is the CA series bulky? i returned my Dell XPS 17 because i totally under estimated of the size and now is considering XPS 15 and Vaio CA. i know one is 15'' and the other is 14'', but has anyone seen them both? how are their sizes match up?

 

The XPS 15 is substantially more bulky than the CA, but the CA is not super thin either. The XPS 15 weighs about 6 pounds, the CA weighs about 5.4. The XPS 15 is also wider, longer, and thicker than the CA.

 

For anyone who is having the Graphic issue with Radeon 6630m, AMD have a preview of CCC 11.7 I installed it and I have no issues now, the card works beautifully enjoy

http://developer.amd.com/Downloads/110619a-121104E.zip