Sony Vaio Z i5/i7 Official Owners Thread

Nice, I have to try Google earth also when I have time...

And thats the error message that I also received.

 

It's not a signature model as Treofred suggested, at least they don't call it that in Sweden. But in the sense that it's very limited, I guess it is. The model is VPCZ11Z9E/B.EC1 and has a "nordic" keyboard (although the gallery pics shows a US keyboard). i7, 6GB RAM, FHD screen, 256GB SSD (4x64 it seems), WWAN (3G), DVD-RW, fingerprint reader, webcam.

The only thing I could read from the latest mail is that they will stop selling it because they won't be getting any more of them. Sweden is pretty low ranked on Sony's sales scale, but I guess other countries are not even on their map.

 

You (pause) are (pause) absolutely (pause) SICK! :laugh:

 

I just bought the HDD version of the Vaio Z (115) in Taiwan. I was wondering if anyone uncovered the service manual for the new Vaio Z to disassemble it?

Thanks.

 

I installed the SmartWi utility, and was able to turn on the "Location Services", but couldn't get a lock. Though, I'm at work currently and my HTC HD2 couldn't find any satellites either, so it's probably just that it can't find the satellites this "deep" into the building. I'll try again later when I get home.

One thing that's slightly annoying about the SmartWi utility is that it kept turning off the WiFi when I enabled the GPS/Location Services. I was able to keep them both turned on after a few tries, though.

Also, the WWAN is now labeled "Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband", but you got it working with a Finnish operator/SIM card, right? I don't have a second SIM card for use with the Z yet, but I'm considering getting one.

EDIT: I also tried the EarthBridge utility, and it cannot connect to the GPS: "The connection to the GPS device failed". Sometimes it additionally reports that "The requested resource is in use". Hmm... do you have the GPS NMEA device on COM 5? I have it on COM 9 (configured this port also to EarthBridge) and the Gobi Diagnostics is on COM 5.

EIDT 2: I turned on the "Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband", and Earth Bridge now displayed the same error messages that you got too. I could see the numbers changing in the raw GPS data field, but it couldn't still fing any satellites (again, probably because I'm inside a large office building). What was more problematic, though, was that I wasn't able to turn on the WWAN and WiFi at the same time. As I don't have the SIM card for the Z yet, the GPS functionality is a bit useless if I can't connect to the internet at the same time. I might be able to use my phone to connect, though... I'll try this later, but the best solution would be if I could use the WiFi and the GPS (WWAN) enabled at the same time. I think it was possible with the European Smart Network utility.

 

Do you know where in control panel I can uncheck this? I'm searching..................
_____________________________________

So I purchase a TV Tuner for the Z and Windows Media Center can only scan a total of nine channels, however the Tuner by Hauppauge came with software and it was able to scan all analog/digital channels. I prefer the interface of Windows Media Center as it provides a Listings Guide (TV Guide) which creates the title and automatically sets the time, where as, Hauppauge does not - you have to set your own time and create the title for each show you record.

Has anyone used Windows Media Center? There is no troubleshooting for this issue. Thanks.

For the 128SSD model, approx. 19hours of programming will fill the entire drive. I haven't even installed any programs yet. I think I need to opt for 192 or 256.

 

Control Panel -> VAIO Control Center -> Display -> Automatic Brightness Setting

Uncheck the 'Adjust brightness automatically'

If you find you turn the Auto Brightness On and Off quite often, you can assign it to the middle Feature button (the one between the ASSIST and VAIO one on the top right of the keyboard) by going to

Control Panel -> VAIO Control Center -> Special Buttons -> Button Settings
and chosing 'Automatic Brightness setting' in the drop down for S1.

Cheers

 

That would do it as well My favorite Steinheil just released anti-glare version of their optical film for the new Z and I would like to know of it fits exactly the old one as well. They don't show exact dimensions on their site and didn't answer my email...

 

On Russian version of laptop there is slightly different behavior.
I cannot turn on/off Wi-Max through SmartWii, so I use Intel software to control it. And SmartWii always says Wi-Fi is on, no matter is it Wi-Fi really or Wi-Max.
Also interested if Verizon mobile works with any SIMs.

 

The dimensions of VPCZ display are 29.1 x 16.4 cm. Just used simple ruler.

 

Thanks! It seems we have different ruler or the new Z have 0.1 bigger screen. Mine is 29.0 x 16.3 cm.

 

I wasn't very precise. I think your numbers are right.

 

OK, thank you one more time

 

Perhaps trivial question - but why does my 160gb Intel SSD appear to be only 149gb when looked upon at Partition Wizard?
C capacity 147.48 GB
system reserved 100MB
Recovery 1.46 Gb
----------------------
Total cca 149 GB

I demand my extra 10 GB, where are they hiding?

 

Because your drive has 160 GB - which is 160 000 000 000 Bytes.
But your computer does not operate in 1000s of bytes, but in 1024s of bytes (2^10) - which leads to 160 000 000 000 / 1024 / 1024 / 1024 = 149,01 - 149 GiB.

So your 10 GB are hiding in a more-or-less marketing trick, as noone usually knows the difference between GB and GiB.

 

Thanks, I knew math would be involved ;-) Now I am at peace.

 

When I spoke to sonystyle, they told me that they would no longer offer the Vaio Z11 via their website in Sweden. That is the message they got from Sony HQ I presume. But, you are able to buy via other retailers. I checked with 1 retailer and they stated that the Signature option will not be available in Sweden... Only via UK/USA.

 

Yes, you can order from other retailers in Sweden, but I thought this was the only batch Sweden will get. When Sonystyle.se and all other retailers have sold it, it's gone. I may have misunderstood her on that though, time will tell.

 

I work for an IT Solutions Distributor and have ordered my Sony Vaio via our suppliers. They do not supply direct to the public. One supplier just received a batch of 26 and the other will get a new batch 24th April. So, it seems that supplies are still coming through. As a Japanese company, I'm sure they view the Market from a Scandinavian perspective and not just Sweden. Scandinavia from my experience are normally the first adopters of technology and so I would say that it is a good Market to enter. Of course, the like of Germany and the UK offer larger markets, but that normally results in receiving priority for newly launched products and lower prices compared to the rest of Europe due to the better returns.

 

I woke up this morning to find that Sony sent me a shipping notice and tracking number. Rather stunned, I checked it quickly, only to find that it was the VIP suite.

Tease.

 

Some of my older software is having problems in Windows 7 so I am in the process of downloading the Z's XP drivers from the www.esupport.sony.com/US site -just in case the provided Vaio XP DVD downgrade disk does not include them. I have the Metal Mosaic model. Any words of warning before I proceed to downgrade?

 

I believe the WWAN card Gobi 2000 has both CDMA and GSM capabilities, so even if it says it requires Verizon network, it can technically handle GSM SIM cards. That said, the card could be locked to a particular provider network. Also, it's not clear (I probably forgot this) whether the SIM card slot at the back (hidden by the battery) is sealed in cases where the provider is CDMA based.

 

Sounds encouraging, I agree that Scandinavian people are usually rather early adopters, so it ought to be a natural market for cool gadgets like the Z. But that only makes it more strange that SonyStyle.se will stop selling it.

Well, well. Thanks for the info.

 

Is anyone else having issues with stalls? I knew that they could occur when the SSD becomes saturated, but after a week? My Drive is filled 110/228GB, and A couple times a day i'll get stalls that last 2 sec, where everything freezes. I also had one yesterday which lasted 15 seconds, where the mouse could move, but everything else was frozen. FWIW, I have Intel RST 9.6 installed.

 

lol...I had a similar experience. My high capacity battery is on its way, no clue when the Z will follow.

 

I already got the high-capacity battery (got that last week), and now the VIP suite will be here in a few days...but the Z is MIA TBA.

 

Or you can install the Microsoft virtualized Windows XP, it uses VirtualPc. It works well, your programs actually 'believe' they are running within XP. They spent some time to integrate the virtualized environment with the real so it doesn't feel separate.

It won't install if you got Home premium but it will with Professional or Ultimate:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/

 

The only time I get what you are describing is playing facebook games, but I got that on my old PC. So I don't think I can consider that stalls more than a facebook game issue. I only have 128 GB drive, but I have 85 free right now.

 

Yes, both GoogleEarth and EarthBridge can indeed access the GPS and get a lock on satellites (though I do still get the error message with EarthBridge). Thanks, Repeli!

 

I picked up my pre-built Z yesterday and I am really amazed how light and beautiful it is. It was literally the first time I saw it when I went to the Sony Centre to pick it up and it looks amazing.

Initial thoughts are the fan is not loud at all for me. My previous laptop (AW M15X) was a lot louder and I had to get a cooling mate for it as well.

Screen is bright and sharp (1080p) and I dont have any problems reading docs or excel at the moment. I wish I could afford the BD upgrade so I can see how it looks on this screen but I guess I can try and download an HD movie.

I cannot comment on boot times or anything as I still need to get all the bloatware off but it seems smooth so far.

£2250 is what I paid which is very expensive since you can probably get a similar spec model at half the price (without SSD of course) but the quality and thought that went into this machines is fantastic. Overall I am very happy with it apart from I didnt get the noise cancelling headphones which I thought all pre-built models get!

 

Received an email from sonystyle.ca yesterday :

"This is to advise you that production on your customized VAIO computer has begun."

Probably the next email it's when it's shipped. Not supposed to be long, Sony only have to put memory and ssd in it. 10 minutes max to build!

Someone know when Sony Canada ship from ? I didn't take the express shipping, only the free regular shipping.

 

I too have a European Z, and have installed the SmartWi app from the US support site, but I can't see an option to turn on the GPS..!? I can turn on the 'Verizon' card, but there's no GPS option. (I have the European Gobi drivers installed, so that could be the problem, but I didn't see any US alternatives)...

Any ideas..?

Cheers.

ponx

 

On CDMA version of GOBI card on older Z SIM slot is absent but can theoretically be soldered on. Card configuration is determined by loaded firmware (custom embedded Linux). Firmware was loaded during card initialization, i.e. when you turn it on. There was firmware available for Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile (the latter two in Gobi drivers for Thinkpads, AFAIK). So, the card is not locked. An interesting project http://www.codon.org.uk/~mjg59/gobi_loader/ that requires Linux though.

 

I'm happy to ready that, I will receive mine soon, a read a negative thread talking about the bad bottom of this laptop, but for me it's not very important, I just want the bottom stay cool if I run a game. I hope it will be. In last november, I cancelled my order of dell xps 13 after reading heat issue of it.

 

I suggest you mention this in this thread. It would also be very helpful if you could see what the CPU is doing when it happens, so keep task manager open at all times and sort the processes in falling CPU order.

Not sure if a freeze when the mouse is still moving can be a SSD degradation freeze. It could be something else.

 

But if it's like for the previous Z, P, etc they have modified a tiny bit of hardware and those Gobi cards DO NOT have the SIM reader on them. A while back, TnkGirl did a post on how she unlocked her Gobi 1000 on her P and that involved surgery to the card to re-introduce the missing SIM Card reader components (worth $6.00 I believe )

 

thanks for the insight. yeah i noticed the different number of rings and firgured that was a little strange

 

What types of games have you guys tried running yet?

 

Wow, you've actually gotten your Z You have the US signature model for Verizon, right? If you intend to look at its innards, you can settle this SIM card issue

 

Thanks for the info. I may put it on hold a while longer. Found the software needed a site key to work. So I am checking into it.

On my other software I found another way was to right click on the software's icon,
Properties/Compatability/Change settings for all users/

and check "Run this program as an administrator".

 

I've played FarCry2 at native res (1600x900) with 2x AA, and it plays pretty well (not tried running FRAPS yet)...

 

I'm not much of a gamer, but I ran the Crysis demo the other night. Its built-in configuration checker set it to 1024x768 in high detail. The game ran very smoothly in those settings. I might actually end up purchasing the full game (even though FPSs have historically given me motion sickness ).

Keep in mind, the Z is not a gaming rig -- not in this form factor, not with this GPU. With that said, I think it will perform fairly well for a wide range of titles as long as you keep your expectations in check.

 

How about Dragon Age?

 

There's a 'cure' for motion-sickness: sea-bands. I bought some from Walgreens, they're these bands you wear around your wrists, with a little knob in each one. That knob, placed over a certain spot on your wrist, gets rid of the sickness. Since this is acupuncture, it has no side-effects. It works, try it! I am amazed...

 

I saw something similar twice. However in my case the mouse was frozen as well. I was editing a doc and everthing froze. I thought I was going to loose my work. I waited about a minute and everything started again. Since my mouse froze I tend to think it is a driver issue.

 

There is down side in SmartWi. I cant turn both 3G and WiFi on at same time. But I got Google Earth working with 3G and GPS. It was actually quite easy...
You can turn on Wifi and then location service, but there is no port showing in dev manager. So I dont think it will work without turning 3G on, witch turns WiFi off.

If you get numbers rolling in Earth Bridge it means its getting readings from gps chip.

Once when I installed SmartWi i got Verizon app with it, and I actually tried with Elisa sim, and it did work. Now I have generic oneclick internet, witch I got from sony's Europe site.

Did your machine came with noice canceling earplugs? Mine came without. They are getting those in US. Im thinking to go to sony center and try noice canceling earplugs from walkman.

 

Thanks for the tip! I'll try it. I literally threw up one time after playing MoH years ago. (There's a whole backstory that involves my wife calling 911 thinking I was poisoned, me unable to tell her it was just motion sickness from the game because I couldn't catch a break between all the spewing, the fire department/paramedics showing up and having a laugh, and subsequently hanging around my living room so they could watch the NBA finals....but I digress....) I swore off FPSs after that. LOL.

 

There is multiple firmwares for WWAN that you can change with Oneclick Internet program. I found out when I managed to lock my WWAN to verizon. (atleast I think I did) After that I went to oneclick Internet and changed firmware back to generic, and it was working again.

I tried verizon connection manager what I got from Sony US. It was around 100 megs and didnt came with SmartWi.

Just to let you guys know if you do the same. I almost my pants thinking that I locked my WWAN. Program was saying "configuring modem" or something, and after that it didint find any networks except Verizon, and of cource it didnt had any coverage

 

I think I also experienced this before I rebooted.

 

Wow, fortunately some FPS games can be switched to 3rd person, which I do to avoid that hurling sensation. I hardly ever game anymore, just create characters for Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion, kind of a hobby. Fortunately you can play in 1st or third person.

I can say on the Z I can get around 15 to 20 FPS more than my Macbook Pro 2.4 Ghz. The MPB can get jerky FPS when 6 or more of my companion characters are in the same room:


Not so with the Z. I am really happy with it's performance.
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