Sony Vaio Z i5/i7 Official Owners Thread

Laptops and cars are the only things I get extended warranties/service plans for.

 

So it will only be a refresh on prices / packs without hardware?

I want to buy one but don't want to see USB3 or 2560*1440 supported ext. resolution in one month.

Thanks.

 

Hey Rubens,

I highly doubt USB3 will be in the picture. From everything I read in that forum the high end model really isn't going to change at all.

 

They are both portable powerhouses. The Acer screen is much lower quality, but it has a much more powerful graphics card. Both computers can be configured with core i5 and i7 processors. You would be hardpressed to find any other 13 inch computer on the market besides the Acer with an equivalent graphics card. If you know of one, please let me know because I'm in the market...

Well said.

I see what you're saying, but I don't consider 768 in a 13 inch that horrible. And regarding the SSD comment, I think what ippikiokami was saying was that you can easily swap the Acer 3820's HDD out and replace it with an SSD, thus bringing it more in line with the Sony Z in that respect.

 

Hey Zoinks, I went to Office Depot, Office Max, and Staples today and none of them knew what I was talking about when I asked for 3M sheets ("giant stickers"). I looked around and couldn't find anything either. Any advice?

 

guys, what about custom raid on two x18-m with G-Monster Evolution raid? anyone tried so far? And do you know if Intel's driver for TRIM on RAID0 will work here? or we need new drivers from G-Monster?
I have x25-m 160 now but would switch to x18-m 80*2 if that makes boost and supports trim.
plz advise

 

Did you try the auto parts or auto tinting places like I mentioned before?

Other than that, order some online.

 

I believe Intel does not yet provide support TRIM support on RAID. I suspect that the G-Monster raid requires software initialization (at least), but someone needs to try.

Do you have the HDD option, where the harddisk replaces the optical drive? If so, there are more options than using external hardware RAID. I'm going to write a thread on that next, I have... findings

 

I Have the 128GB SSD version and I'm considering upgrading the available space with the expresscard (since I have never used in any my previouses laptop this connector, I think it's good to use it for the new Z to extend available space), becoause I don't want to give up the optical drive and there seems to be problem with replacing it by 2.5" HDD
http://www.memoryc.com/storage/solidstatedisk/48gbfilematesolidgoexpresscardultra.html (review here : http://www.pro-clockers.com/storage/192-wintec-filemate-solidgo-48gb-expresscard-34-ultra-ssd.html)
or,
http://www.memoryc.com/products/des...mance_ExpressCard34_PCI_e_SSD-MLC_/index.html
I might try one of those in a few months (when I'll be out of space/and prices would decrease).
Sounds like a good idea ?

 

Thank you, TofuTurkey. My HDD version should arrive next week. And I believe it does not have RAID controller onboard. So any info from you will be valuable. as for GMonster in review I read that there is no trim and to clean drives you need to take each from raid and run eraser to get speed back. this does not sound good.

Will wait for your thread!

 

I decided to buy a Vaio Z with SSD. I am in the UK and I don't understand why there is such a difference in price between here and the US.

I have found the different options:

- SonyStyle UK: base model with SSD at £1709
- Amazon: The equivalent of the SonyStyle one at £1639 ( http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-VPCZ11...5?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1272209133&sr=1-5 )
- From eBay delivered from the US, same model except that it has a 2.53Ghz mode instead of the 2.4Ghz one( http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Sony-Vaio-Z-S...iewItemQQptZLaptops_Nov05?hash=item439e9c30e6 ). This one is at $1900 ( £1237 + £167 for postage)

What do you guys think I should pick ?
Is it safe to pick from eBay?

Thanks

 

If you're buying from outside the EU, you need to add import duty and VAT (which may be mitigated if the sender intentionally declares a lower value of goods---not good practice though).

From the URL below, laptops carry 0% duty, 17.5% VAT.

http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channels...ent&id=HMCE_PROD_009989&propertyType=document

 

Here's a screenshot, settings on High at 1600x900x16bit
The game's still in beta so I'm sure itll be even more optimized by release.

On a side note, I've had no issues playing AION on maxed

http://i41.tinypic.com/2zs0i1z.png

 

also factor in:

* US keyboard
* Warranty
* Delivery time

 

Anybody know if the diference between the Sony Quad raid 0 and a alone intel x25-M will be very noticeable?

Thanks.

 

Hi Guys

I'm from South Africa. The only model of the Z11 (i7) available here is the VPC-Z117GG. We aren't allowed to configure it, only purchase as is.
I have a couple of questions regarding the 256GB (64x4) SSD:
1) I gather that the drives are controlled by a Samsung controller, and that its not that good (performance-wise). I tried to read what I could but no mention of the amount of cache memory (DRAM) on these drives?
2) Is it possible to one day (in the future) swap it with a high-performance 2.5" 9.5mm SSD?

Appreciate your valuable input.
Thanks

 

It never occurred to me to go this route to extend storage capacity. I also have the Z with 128SSD. I purchased a WD500GB External Drive. However, I like the portability of this Express Card rather than a flash drive. Does it fit flushed into the slot or does it stick out? Is it offered in 128 or 256? I link to your post, but couldn't find it. Besides, I'm sure its expensive. Are there other Manufacturers that you recommend, should I walk into Fry's (an Electronic Store), and they happen to not offer this make. Thanks.

 

Thanks for your replies! But what about Amazon vs SonyStyle?
Has anyone here bought from Amazon ?

 

Another manufacturer:


They stick out but by one or 2 mm so it's cool.
128 are rare and very expensive (more than 500$). Not interesting in my opinion.
Note that the filemate becomes hot when used. It's better to find reviews before buying...

 

Plus something like a £40 or £50 "adminstration fee" which Parcelforce, DHL of whomever the delivery company is, is allowed to - and will - charge you for the "privilege" of paying VAT.

 

Zoinks2K
I see you posted a thread on SSD degradation but it is far to thecnical for me. I also understand you bought the z11 in december. So from a user perspective has the performance on the SSD been degraded in four months?
Best,
C - The perspective buyer!

 

if the pound was still fetching two dollars then i'd say buying a z in the US rather than the uk was a good plan, provided you have a trusted source and are prepared to pay/play the import game

given that the £ is fairly weak right now, the uk z prices have actually dropped year-on-year and the current limitations of the US spec offers (hd screen etc) it seems much less appealing

 

No one had a Z11 in their hot little hands before mid-March. That's when they started shipping them.
At that time, it seems to me, Zoinks managed to put years worth of use on his machine, in a matter of weeks.

 

I received my CTO yesterday and it's my first VAIO. I have been a loyal Dell Latitude and ThinkPad user for a decade. This machine had the four key assets I wanted in a notebook -- (1) ultra portable (2) SSD (3) internal BD-R (4) internal VZW air card.

I am actually transition from a Lenovo X301, which some I work with do not believe is an upgrade. For one day of usage, the key differences between the X301 (also with internal SSD and VZW air card) are:

- X301 has the eraser for mouse control. I can tell it's going to take a while to adjust to the the trackpad on the bottom of the keyboard

- CTO is actually smaller and lighter than the X301

- CTO's display is definitively crisper and brighter than the X301

- The keyboard on the CTO will take some getting used to, compared to the Lenovo, but so far I like the feel

- The SSD drives on the CTO score about 50% higher on the internal Win7 score than Lenovo's. This CTO is a single 256GB drive compared to a 128GB SSD in the X301. Both running Win7

- The keys on the CTO grease up far faster than on the X301 .. well, perhaps they attract contaminates at the same rate, but the CTO prominently shows them

- I like using VZW's native VZ Access program on the CTO, rather than the wrapped VZW through Access Connections on the Lenovo

- For a right-handed person like myself, Lenovo's placement of the fingerprinter reader on the right side of the wrist pad is preferable. However, I appreciate Sony's consideration in placing the reader squarely in the middle of the laptop

All in all, a nice move forward, but not a monumental leap from something as capable as the X301.

 

Awesome! SC2 looks great! And I was always thinking about getting into Aion, glad to know that it maxes it =) Thanks a lot for your pic

 

Why not do a SD memory card? They have 64GB cards now.

They still work great. I've moved out of my testing phase and have had a few weeks of real usage. No problems with stutters or writes.

If I were to pick a gripe, the 4xSSD takes longer to post than I'd like. If my memory is right, it was longer than the 2x setup.

 

They cost twice more than PCIe expresscard SSD ! and they are not as fast.

 

And earlier you said something to me about garbage collection, do you know something is working on these. You said it wasn't an immediate problem but I don't trust sony to come out with a fix. In order to shell out for this laptop I need to know if its worth it and the write speeds won't degrade. I really like this laptop but will downscale to U30JC if I don't think I can trust the Z SSD's to not degrade with in a four year period.

 

I'll assume you've read my thread on this. If not: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=469272

There isn't anything for Sony to fix because nothing is broken.

TRIM is a new ATA command. The Samsung drives have hardware support for it. The issue is that NO company has RAID drivers that support TRIM. Intel is working on it, so we are at their mercy.

The garbage collection that Samsung has implemented in these drives is very effective in protecting write performance. To date, nobody has been able to slow them down for longer than a few minutes. Believe me, we have really beat these drives up so it hasn't been for a lack of trying.

I'm not concerned about long term performance any longer. Even though I want to see TRIM-able RAID drivers, the drives should function well without them.

I'm 99% sure this is a non-issue. The final 1% will come in 12 to 18 months.

 

Here is a i7 cooker and it cooks at 101 degrees

http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/26/...o-hits-100-degrees-celsius-your-lap/#comments

As usual engadget thinks it is an anamoly

Here is more news about the cooker

http://gizmodo.com/5524473/core-i7-macbook-pro-could-make-water-boil

 

Excellent...Sony has released a firmware update (v2.2.3.593.596) for the Bluetooth module that specifically fixes the mouse dropping out problem. I'll keep you posted on if it fixes the intermittent problem or not.

 

I agree 100% with Zoink's comments.

 

Where did where did you get the new bluetooth upgrade? link plz? thx

 

VAIO Update. You can also find it here: http://vcl.vaio.sony.co.jp/download/EP0000224082.html

Click the "同意する" button at the bottom of the page.

 

It does have a RAID controller, albeit a software one. Thread is here:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=478785

There's some amount of hacking needed, which I'm working on... The good news is that the necessary SATA ports are already present, so we don't have to look for an external RAID solution.

It's currently not possible to replace a Sony SSD with a 2.5" (or a 1.8") drive, the space isn't sufficient. If you can get the HDD option, which provides a 2.5" drive in place of the DVD drive, then you can use any off-the-shelf 2.5" SSD.

Agreed. I was thinking last night that I have to make an effort to clean the keyboard everyday...

 

I don't even have to see the Apple logo anymore: from far away, if I see someone using a laptop placed on its side (portrait mode), and tilting his/her head sideways accordingly, I'll know it's a Mac

And now I have to run away before the Mac fanatics come get me. Maybe they won't run so well with their heads permanently tilted sideways...

 

excellent. we can remove this from the z cons list

 

echelon, you just bought a Sony Vaio Z, not a Sony Vaio CTO (CTO = configure to order)
thx for the comparison anyway =)

 

Is it worth it to get one of those external/express slot creative soundcard? We all know that the speaker itself can make ears bleed, so of course I'd have a good pair of headphones/earbudphones to compliment the soundcard. How much different a good soundcard will make if compared to the current Z internal soundcard?

Also, can anyone recommend a good pair of gaming headphones to use with the Z? or just good headphones/earbudphones (because gaming headset usually USB connected but i also want to use it with my mp3 players)

I been using the included Sony noise-cancelling earbudphones whenever I listen to anything with the Z. I can just plug it into my home entertainment system, but I like to carry my laptop around the house. Also which one would be better, my Klipsch Image S4 or the included noise canceling Sony earphones?

I'm just a bit bored and would like to buy things to make my Z as near perfect as possible without sacrificing the look and the portability.

thanks all

 

So does this mean the slot in the laptop for SSD's is just empty? Wish could have SSD and HDD in the machine at once.

 

I am going to return my i5 / 256GB SSD model and exchange it for the i7 / 384GB model. Maybe I will get one with a quieter fan?

To avoid having to re-install all my programs, can I create a disk image of my i5 256GB SSD model and restore it to the i7 384GB model and then "enlarge" or partition the SSD from 256gb to 384gb?

PS: I love this computer. It's so fast! The only complaint I have is the fan noise.

 

Well..., know that the i7 will exercise the fan MORE not LESS than the i5.

 

For the HDD option, yes the slot where the Sony SSD would sit is empty.

It is possible to get both (Sony) SSD and HDD, you'll need to replace the optical drive with an Ultrabay adapter (Thinkpad), or something similar.

 

Be aware that if you have a 4 x n RAID you will run into serious problems.

 

Why are you returning it? As Oscar2 pointed out, you're likely to get increased fan usage with the more powerful i7. Is fan noise your only beef or did you not like something about the i5/256GB SSD combo?

 

I think the internal soundcard in the laptop is pretty good, but the speakers are just crap. For gaming I'm using this Headphones http://us.store.creative.com/Fatal1ty-Professional-Series-Gaming-Headset-MkII/M/B002BH3JDA.htm

These are pretty good, a little expensive, but also you can take the MIC out, from the headset.

 

since I have a 1x256 SSD, I am not getting quite the same fast Benchmarks as the others on the forum, even after enabling write-through. (I am attaching my Crystaldiskmark results).
That's why I am going for the 1x256 + 1x128 combo now.

Since the i7 has the same power specs as the i5, it is going to get the work done faster, so the fan should be on probably the same amount of time.

Half of the users in the forum are not complaining about the fan, so I have a 50% chance to get a quieter one with my new order

 

Out of curiousity huberth, which Z model do you have?

Looks like you have the dual (2x128GB) SSD setup.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=471811

 

I have the VPCZ119GX: SSD 256GB (US & Canada): logical: 2x128 GB --- physical: 1x256GB (1 slot)

 

Where can we get the HDD caddy needed if we want to replace the Optical drive with an SSD on the VPCZ1?