Sony Vaio Z i5/i7 Official Owners Thread

I've used the MS restore for years now and depend on it regularly.

 

I am now very worried about the Signature Z order I placed last week. I'm even angrier at Sony for canceling my order and causing this in the first place.

 

Damn, still learning how to use Z's keyboard, because of the gaps between keys are so large, I keeps missing letters, especially w and s keys. You have to hit "right" in order to register the keys...

I wish I have Lenovo's keyboard on Z...

 

What are you saying? You can insert an iphone 3GS sim card into it and get 3G on your laptop? I am not seeing one available in the US...

 

Sounds like a firewall issue. My husbands Dell does that all the time and it drives me insane. Not sure what he is using as a firewall, I hink Norton, but I don't like it.

 

He's talking about USB/ExpressCard 3G modems -- same ones AT&T sells with their LaptopConnect data plans. They are available unlocked from some retailers (like NewEgg). While it *might* work (I have not tried it myself, but I have heard of some people that got it to work, and others that didn't), technically, by putting your existing mobile phone's 3G SIM card into it, you would be violating your ATT terms of service, and *could* get in trouble with ATT if they catch you doing so without having a paid LaptopConnect unlimited data plan.

I agree with Joseph -- I now prefer not to pay for the added expense of an onboard 3G modem. I configured my last notebook (Thinkpad) to have a Verizon EVDO modem built in -- $200 option at the time. A year later, Verizon introduced a faster EVDO spec, so the built-in modem was obsolete and I ended buying an external $40 EVDO modem to take advantage of the faster network speed. And a year later I ended up leaving Verizon altogether to go back to ATT.

 

Your wish is granted, but probably not the way you wanted: The newest Lenovo has chiclet keys, just like the Z.

 

Guys...can you please help me out.

I have a Z11Z model here, european model, and I cannot get the nvidia drivers to work. Drivers from original VAIO EU page are not correct one, saying model not supported. Drivers from USA and Asia page to start to install, but it does not finish as it should and driver is not working as it should.

I need this because I've done a clean install.

Should I install anything else before/after the nvidia driver, does it matter in shich position the Hybrid button is?

 

That's totally the wrong way to negotiate. If you call and tell the rep that you expect the discount, they already know that you are going to purchase it and there's no incentive for them to give you a discount to make the sale - especially if your expectations are too high. Don't even mention this forum, then they'll definitely know that you are planning to make the purchase.

Instead, when you call in, you want to sound like you are on the fence about the purchase and you are wondering if they can offer any incentives for you. They'll ask you if you are planning on buying accessories or the extended warranty, so just mosey around a bit and "look around on the site". The rule seems to be 2 accessories + warranty = 15% off the laptop, so just pick a few accessories that look interesting to you and ask about them. The salesperson will say some silly stuff about how they're useful and stuff, and then they'll probably offer you the 15% once they feel like you are getting closer to the purchase.

Of course, you can cancel the warranty afterward with no penalty. Also, the sales reps in USA all seem to be from Canada, so making small talk with the rep (possibly about Canada) helps to reduce the impression that you have done all your homework and buy this laptop no matter what, and instead sound more like a real customer who has a decision to make.

 

Not disagreeing with anything you're saying, but that was my exact same approach the first time I called. Tried to appear on the fence, made some comments about the high price, mentioned I was interested in a few accessories and warranty, asked where he was from [playing dumb; I already knew their call center is in Canada], attempted to make small talk about Canada and the late hours he was working. Bottom line, they guy was a grump and only offered 10% and wouldn't budge. The next time I called, got a woman; mentioned fairly early in the order process that I was looking for a 15% discount. She didn't rule it out, but said "let's see what we can do." She took in all my order details. I was half expecting her to just string me along, but in the end she got the 15% discount cleared with a supervisor.

It does appear that they seem to be cracking down on the heavy discounts though, so regardless of your "buyer's technique", your results may vary.

 

Guess it depends on the rep. I had the exact opposite experience when I called in the first time and mentioned the forum, and the discounts other people were getting. When I called in later and played dumb, I got everything I wanted.

On another note, WOWOWOWOWOW! Ordered my Z CTO this Monday morning 4/5. Today (4/7) at 8:30 AM I got an e-mail saying my Z was being built. Just now (5:50 PM) I got an e-mail saying it was shipped!

Bloody fast turnaround if I might say so myself! Way to set expectations low Sony and then totally blow them up!

 

It needs to be in speed mode. What about the model. you do know its VPCZ1 and not VGNZ right?

 

Thanks, somehow managed to get it to work, thou driver installation hang and got a black screen (laptopa was on, but no hdd activity) and after 5min decided to turned it off, when restarted, everything was working, strange.

Yes, the model is VPCZ11Z, quad SSD, full HD screen are its main powers and its one hell of a machine, hope to owe it someday

 

Be careful what you wish for

 

The amount for the Signature Z is currently a hold in my bank account. I called my bank to ensure that this won't cancel like last time. I was informed that once it shows up as a hold, it has been authorized, and will go through (he said that if it was canceled, it would not show up at all. Sound logic.)

Sony also upgraded me to two-day shipping for free. So, while it may not arrive here on Friday, I've been told that FedEx will deliver on Saturday. I won't be here to get it (I have class from 9am-230pm an hour away from my house), but my girlfriend will.

So...looks like we're finally a go. Giddyup.

 

The i7 isn't an option anymore on the CTO models...prob temporarily out of stock?

I'm also worried about the Signature's "limited quantity." Are these things produced in a pre-defined amount?

 

Quick update - I'm getting 4h of battery life (real hours, not the time that Windows shows) browsing with WWAN.

i5 540M, 8GB RAM, 256SSD, Full HD screen.

 

For the record, it says the Signature Z is out of stock at the moment. A person in another thread said that a salesperson informed them that they are out of i7 chips, hence the hold up.

 

Very cool. I guess these top of the line signature models are "selling like hotcakes."

I got to admit that I really envy you guys who own this particular signature VAIO Z model. I just wish I have that kind of money to snag one myself.

 

I found a photo showing the inside of a Japanese version of the new Z



It's the model without SSD. Notice the hard disk controller flexible cable goes to the optical bay instead of the SSD tray.

As expected the TPM module is included.

 

You can see more photos of the VAIO Z HDD model taken by dimension6 in the following post:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5980564&postcount=84

 

OK, so when I renew my ip address manually (go into cmd and type in ipconfig/release and then ipconfig/renew), the internet seems to work for a while...then go back to not working. Can anyone offer a permanent solution?

BTW were new nvidia drivers released already? Anyone care to offer a link if they were (sadly I don't have as much time to keep up with this thread as I'd like)?

 

Thanks for the link. Very good pics

 

Sorry jamsy, I can't offer anything. On my old SZ with XP I would have to wait 15-30 seconds after resuming from sleep to access anything networked based, but with my new Z it's available immediately. Might have something to do with your WiFi access point and/or router's DHCP.

 

I was goofing around with SmartWi Connection Utility and turned on the Verizon mobile broadband button and then had problems with my WiFi. After turning the Verizon button back to off...my problems with WiFi stopped. Just mentioning this as a possible problem, (if you messed around with SmartWi).

 

Mine did the same, couldn't install Euro graphics drivers (55MB), so installed US version (121MB)... Got black screen, waited, but then hit return and the thing rebooted... I'm guessing there was a dialog there telling you it had finished installing and asking you if you wanted to reboot, but it hadn't loaded up the graphics driver, d'oh...

 

If you have the "Sony Smart Network" installed check and see if it has a strange "DNS server" listed, every time I set up a new network and "Smart Network" kicks in to define it adds a DNS server, without asking which I need to remove, if I don't, I get the same net effect as you are depicting ... just my 10c

 

Two questions for Z owners:
1) Is there express card slot? If so, 34 or 54 mm?
2) Is possible to boot notebook from external CD/DVD usb drive?
Thank you

 

It seems the US Sony site has also lost its i7 option, for now...

 

I made the jump and ordered it today

I know that there was an offer for the i7 that was then removed and bouced onto the 540m. But after reading some reviews on the internet I thought that the performance gain with the 620m was not sufficient in comparison to power consumption and the extra 50€, so i ordered it anyways.

I'm also planning on buying the docking station when it comes out with usb 3.0, or maybe a usb 3.0 express card if i can find one small enough

Thanks to everyone in the forum for all the info you've provided !

The specs are below (sorry, they're in french)

Processeur: Processeur Intel CoreTM i5
Système d exploitation: Win 7 Professionnel + WinXP
Couleur: Noir Noir
Disque dur: 500 Go Serial ATA (7200 t/min)
Mémoire: 4 Go 1066MHz DDR3-SDRAM
Disque optique: Pas de Lecteur DVD
Ecran: LCD 33,3 cm, 1920x1080, webcam
Connectivité: Pas de WAN sans fil
Fonctions de sécurité: Fonctions de sécurité
Batterie: Batterie jusqu'à 6,5 heures

 

In Hong Kong also the i7 model is out of stock for an indefinite period of time.

 

Also, i forgot to ask,Tthere were some pictures posted a couples of posts back about a person changing his HDD with an ssd.
I was just wondering if the optical drive sata port is also present on the non ssd version of the sony, i couldn't make it out from the pics

Thanks

 

Does the HDMI-out also work if the Z is in stamina mode? I think that wasn't possible with older Vaio models.

 

I doubt it; I think the HDMI is part of the NVidia set-up. I saw the NVidia drivers install HDMI audio components...

 

I've been checking the french SonyStyle website for a couple days and indeed the i7 CPU is not available anymore when building your own config. Though, since this morning and until Apr 20th, the i5 540M is at the price of the i5 520M - that's 50€ to spend somewhere else

 

Audio over HDMI isn't that imporant for me. But I need the HDMI video for external monitors, TVs and sometimes projectors preferably in stamina mode.

Can some owner please confirm if it works?

 

Nope...HDMI doesn't work on stamina mode.

 

Well crap. The hold on my bank account is still there. I had hoped it would go to being confirmed and out of my account this morning.

This also nearly guarantees that I won't see the laptop before next week. Bah.

 

First german review is out:

They get 6 hours of Office working

They could do 60 min Gaming bevor the Power gets off - hardcore

Only one hour of portable Gaming is really bad...

http://www.chip.de/artikel/Sony-Vaio_VPC-Z11Z9E_B-Notebook-Test_42189721.html

 

Anyone having numbers on this? Would be interesting if there is really a noticeable difference in power consumption and heat.

 

Whatever you connect to via HDMI will most likely be plugged into the mains, so it stands to reason you can plug the laptop into the mains also...

 

I hope that not referring [yet again] to that old notebookcheck review that has proven completely inaccurate.

 

Is anyone having trouble with....

A) blue screens out of nowhere (I just had my first).

and

B) Vaio Update not functioning. I see two updates, it starts the download and then just tells me "update failed. Try again later"

 

Why not? I have been using it this way for like one year at least.

 

That's one step backward for Lenovo.

 

there is a thread on this under Sony.
It's funny how quite a few z owners experienced this blue screen at about the same time!

 

Here's the website i based my data on

Look at the power performance section specifically (difference is mostly under full load).
It's true that the 620m will peform tasks faster than the 540m and hence will be on a high load for a smaller time, but i dont think that the difference in time will compensate for the higher power usage.... then again that's just me

 

Here we go

 

Oops, sorry did not read your post before posting

Just curious though, why is it inacurate ?

 

Got my Z11 yesterday and spent evening setting it up. It came with a single 4GB Samsung DIMM (apparently PC3-10600, 1333 instead of 1066). My Hynix 4GB modules from Z690 work fine.

I ordered Fresh Start and ended up uninstalling about 1/3rd of what was in installed applications list. WIDCOMM Bluetooth stack had to go too: I use BT for mouse only and MS stack is fine, just add proper device ID to MS inf file.

Indigo IOx ExpressCard worked without a hitch.

TPM module is missing. By the way, page 79 of User Manual says that not all models have TPM.

There was an annoying whirring sound from the fan initially but it seems to have quieted down since.

Overall, I like it more than previous Z.