Any thoughts on the new FE690 w/GO7600 ?

Kudos to Sony for utilizing a better graphics solution.

http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INT...A&catname=cpu_VAIONotebookComputers_FE_Series

 

Hey Chase,

Do you know whether the Go 7400 will be comparable to the Ati x1600 in terms of performance?.

 

No it wont be. The x1600 is comparable to the Go7600. The x1400 is comparable to the Go7400.

 

Sorry got it worng!!!, I meant the go7600, it is the option offered with the FE690.

Thanks for the advice.

It is good to see Sony offer a graphics card equal to the x1600!!!

 

how much drastic performance will we see? its only a $75 upgrade, when i upgraded to a 7400 it was a $50 upgrade.

 

but its all good to me, I dont plan to do heavy gaming on my laptop, thats why i have a desktop

 

Not gonna lie i am kinda bitter. I paid around 2300 for my pimped out 590 FE and they already released a better version? the same specced 690 FE as mine but with better options is now 1800! At least let me feel like a champ for 6 months eh?..-JB

 

I'm bitter too. I just got my new FE 590 only 3 weeks ago. This new FE 690 is way better and cheaper too. It is weird that on Sony's site the FE 590 is more expensive than the 690. I would have liked a personal inscription on my laptop..and of course the 7600.....

The release of the FE 690 reminds me of what Dell does..(continually releasing replacements)

 

This is awesome. This is probably what I will be purchasing for college this fall. This is great news! This notebook had everything I was looking for, and this new 7600 card makes it even better. The only reason I hesitated to purchase before was because I was unhappy with the 7400 card. Now with this X1600 alternative, I will be purchasing any day now. I AM SO EXCITED. Sony gets a lot of props for this move.

 

haha props if you didn't already order the 590 : ) Only thing i'm giving them right now is the finger....one month and they shafted me. grr... i wonder if the better card kills the battery any quicker though. i am quite anxious to see benchmarks on it, even though i;m sure i'm gonna get heated.

 

A 15.4" notebook is really bigger than i want but, the FE series has always had my attention. I've seen it in person. It is probably the thinnest, lightest 15.4" notebook i've seen and, has one of the most beautiful screens i've ever seen too. Now, it has a GO7600 and IS CHEAPER. I might just do this... I'm going to see if Portable One has this yet. I really don't want to deal with Sony if i can help it

 

too true but heat is the price you have to pay for the better graphics. I heard that sony FE's are good staying cool though.

 

mine runs remarkably cool, i barely notice it's running most of the time. I'm just upset they made it better by adding like 2 features? In their infinite genious i would have *thought they would let me pick the 7600 or 7400 the first time. This seems like the hp dv800t where they made modifications very shortly after. Leaves a sour taste in the mouths of those who took the inital plunge such as myself. More importantly at least to me, the vent for the gpu heat is on the back of the notebook! -jb

 

I'd bet the heat difference would be minimal. The fact that it vents out the back makes me not really worry about it. The card might be a little underclocked anyway. I think they made this notebook WAY more appealing.

 

will the 7600 also mean significant less battery time?

 

http://kettya.com/notebook2/gpu_ranking.htm

 

damn... this laptop looks quiet nice. I just recently sold my laptop, and now in the market for a new one. This actually might be my next one.. I have always had my eyes on the FE series but the 7400 + price has held me back.. i might just go for this one.

 

Don't waste your time, this 7600 card is only 128mb. Its not the real thing.

 

Hey AbN610,

If it is 128mb, do you think it is more comparable to the ATI x1400 graphics card?.

 

no way dude, the 7600 will smoke the ati 1400 by hundreds of points at the least. Don't forget it's underclocked more then likely, still not a weak card bby any means.

 

You guys get the Go 7600 whereas we Canadians only get the GMA 950. Injustice? You betcha.

 

Not the real thing? What do you mean?

 

Even if it is 128 meg, it's still probably a better overall card than the Go7400.

 

Hey Guys

As soon as someone gets the FE690, can they post the 3dMark05 score, I am trying to decide whether to go for the FE690 but I need a machine that can handle graphics intensive applications.

Thanks

Enlighten

 

Yea I just went ahead and forgot about the FE690 and ordered the Dell Inspiron e1705 - much better graphics and a much better value, IMO.

 

i was about to order the fe690 too until i did a google search and found out it has 128mb... lol.

 

That should be sufficient for most games shouldnt it?

 

If you do not plan on playing any games, is there a reason to get this GPU? Would DVDs and photos display any better?
Thanks.

 

From what I've read, no.

A dedicated gpu is a a neccessity for gaming and I also think for 3D intensive applications

 

Its still better than the one it used to have, 7400. I can play battlefield 2, fear, and JO with it, and it doesnt get loud or hot. So the 7600 should still be tight

 

Does this model still have the button where you can switch it to power save, and not use gpu, and a switch to swtich the gpu on.

Also i heard that the chipset and CPU support 667MHz RAM, but the Sony Bios does not and it will just downclock to 533MHz. Does that still apply?

Also, i heard that sony doesnt ship the laptop with drivers on a cd...its on a partition? I thought this laptop would be very good for me, but what gives?

 

Hmm i would also like to know about the ram, i was planning on purchasing 2gbs of 667MHz.

If that IS the case, how much slower is 533? would it be a considerable difference?

 

i also heard somewhere that the 7600 go they use is only 128 mb, not 256...

 

That dosent really bother me, a 7600 128mb isnt that bad.. its pretty good actually.

 

I'm wondering if the 7400/x1400 256mb is better than a 7600 128 mb.

 

No. 7600 has a greater memory bandwith if im not mistaken meaning its faster.

 

o, so even the lower end 7600 is better than the x1400/7400 eh?

 

In France, the Vaio FE with 7600 is the FE21S. And there are a benchmarks here (in french) : http://forum.hardware.fr/hardwarefr...ute-gamme-VGN-FE11-VGN-FE21-sujet-24881-1.htm

I summarize :
3DMark 2003 for the 7400 : 4095
3DMark 2003 for the 7600 : 7331 !!!!

So it's better than 7400.
The 7600 is equivalent to X1600 ati

 

right now if you buy 667 ram it will automatically clock down to 533, sony its supposed to come out with a bios update i think.

 

O, i just checked the sony site and it says :NVIDIA® GeForce™ Go 7600
128MB dynamically allocated (RAM/Video) memory. Is that the same card as like the one that you can get in the asus?


Is the one in France same as the one here in US. THe FE looks real appealing, except for the down clocking of 533 and that there are no cds that come with it...i heard it is all on the hard drive partition...ew?

O

 

It is really easy to make CDs from the hard drive partition. The FE has very few minor downsides. It shouldn't drive you away. It is way better than the competition, Dell E1505, HP, etc.

 

I just hope that the bios is changed to allow 667 mhz ram.
Yea the FE looks pretty good.

 

My FE690 will be arriving by wednesday, do you want me to post some benchmarks and stuff when it arrives? I have never really tried to benchmark a laptop and any programs would be a help

I got the FE690 w/ the 15.4 screen with camera, 7600, 2.16 core duo, 1gig ram (gonna get another off newegg soon), 100 gig hd, bluetooth and wireless internal, duel layer drive....thats all i can remember off the top of my head

 

Yes please post your thoughts on it, the build quality etc. what you like and dont like about it. Some benchmarks maybe 3dmark.
Have you tried any games on it?

Does it come with any backup cds?

 

No problem, ill be sure to post that information when the computer arrives in the next 2 days.

I think im gonna try out HL2 once i get it up and running, mabey a little lost coast to see what it can do?

 

http://board.iexbeta.com/index.php?showtopic=63373&st=30
found here that the benchmark for 3dmark05 is bout 2900(it s in german, but search for FE21S and u ll find it.) 2900 mark is bout 1000 less than a 256mb 7600go, mayb is underclocked, who knows. But it ll sure hold me off from buyin it.

 

I dont think that should hold you back.

The score is higher than the 7400 and the x1400 right?

 

Yea, thou i like the design, but gamin is quite some priority for me. It would be sweet if they put the 7600GT of the AR11 series(the one wif bluray) into it.

 

FE690 arrives tomorrow i cant wait

 

tell us how you like it jhirsc76!