Anyone at all interested in the Vaio L?

I was just wondering if the Sony all in one following had even a vague amount of interest in this laptop crowd. No one seems to be talking about it anywhere, but it looks like a pretty nice all in one compared to the few competitors.

Also, does anyone know if it uses a 3.5" or 2.5" HDD?

Sorry if this shouldn't be posted here, but I just couldn't find any other forum that had as big of a following as this one. Please remove if necessary. Desktop review has had 1 new thread in the past year for Sony!

 

It does look pretty nice...and I think it's safe to assume that it's a 3.5" drive since it says max storage 2TB..we barely have any 1TB 2.5" drives...unless it has 2 drive bays, but I doubt it.

Wait, are you talk about the old one, or the one with Sandy Bridge?

 

Ah good to know. I was thinking about ordering one and sticking an SSD in it.

 

I have seen them in the Sonystyle shop and they are simply stunning...but the screen picks up fingerprints easily...

 

They already have the newest model the VPCL2 with the metal V stand, or are you referring to the first gen?

First gen:
http://www.techfresh.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/sony-vaio-l.jpg

Second gen:
http://cdn.techdaring.com/wp-conten...O-L-VPCL219FJ-_-W-All-In-One-Desktop-PC-1.jpg

Even the second gen won't ship for another month according to the website. I'd be surprised if they have them a month in advance.

 

thinking of getting one of these, they looks great
just waiting for the reviews
VAIO L Series PC | Sony | SonyStyle USA

 

May end up ordering one when they offer their first sale or some sort of special offer. I'm looking at the CTO with the highest i7 quad processor, tv tuner, BD burner, 540M graphics, and 1TB. I too am interested in what reviews have to say.

and @ Waleed, sorry for not answering your question earlier. I must've missed it, I'm looking at the new one with Sandy Bridge that mith linked to.

 

i had a play around with the first gen L series, really wanted one before going to the shops becoz u can actualy mount it on a wall and hook antenna in and use it as a touch tv ..however when i actually had a go on it..my god..wasn't living up to expectations, the movements are ok but still has delay,and maybe coz i'm so use to my iphone4 everyuting just felt laggy...
maybe 2nd gen will be better..

 

found a small review for the new model
Sony VAIO L21 review | Desktop PCs | Interviews | Reviews | PC Pro

some nice hands-on pics
http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/38718/sony-vaio-l-series-computer

 

I can't actually figure out what it's for, so no.

 

I just placed an order for a CTO, expected ship date is 4/19:

Customization Details
ATSC/NTSC TV Tuner
1 TB hard disk drive (7200rpm)
Blu-ray Disc™ Player / Burner
Intel® Core™ i7-2720QM quad-core processor (2.20GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 3.30GHz
4GB (2GBx2) DDR3-SDRAM-1333
24" Full HD Touchscreen VAIO Premium Display (1920x1080)
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 540M (1GB VRAM) dedicated graphics


I'll give impressions once it comes. I'm still thinking about changing the HDD out for a 128 SSD.

 

It's an All-In-One pc... meh, personally if i was going to spend that much money i'd just build myself a desktop... double/triple performance for same amount... and i can upgrade components later.

BTW how much did you pay for that?

 

It's for the house and is in such a space that a desktop doesn't make much sense.... it's in this kitchen/desk type area where there's a stone counter top and very limited space. An all in one only makes sense especially to hide all the wires etc. We currently have a desktop here and the CPU tower takes up so much space on the counter (not much room under the counter to put the CPU tower nor do we want to drill though the stone) and with all the wires running in the back it just doesn't look good. (As well as the fact that the desktop is 8 years old =O)

So I agree, good value? No not so much. Practicality in this application? Yes. And I also agree in terms of upgrades, not really possible. You can only easily do the HDD and RAM which is why all the integrated bits were maxed out now.


You can see the MSRP on the website, with the configured specs it's $1770.

 

Congrats on your purchase.
Could you please post up some pics when you get it?

 

Thanks. I'll be sure to post pics once it arrives. I'd estimate 2.5 weeks before it gets here.

 

Can someone point me in the direction of disassembly instructions for the VPCL1 (previous gen L)? I've been searching all over and can't find anything. I want to semi familiarize myself with the last gen tear down for when I get this one since from the back, they seem to be similar with the 4 screw stand mount...

 

Got an email today saying it's been shipped. ETA is Wednesday. I find it surprising that shipping this time is 5 days with Expedited FedEx from China. My Z only took two days from Japan. Not complaining though since it's shipping 4 days early!

 

From my personal experience...things from China take a bit longer...doesn't matter which shipping company...don't know why...

 

Maybe the exchange of mail between China & USA need to be inspected more? etc. Japan and the US are fairly close so less governmental inspection, negotiation (and tensions)

 

I've also picked up one of the newest VAIO L's off Hong Kong's Sonystyle store. Being a resident in Hong Kong, space is extremely contrained, as my apartment's only a mere 1,100 square foot large (and by local standards, that's relatively large already). That's why I opted for an all in one instead of a desktop with a seperate monitor and machine. All in one machines are extremely practical in a place like Hong Kong.

Here's my configuration:

Intel Core i7-2720QM @2.2 Ghz
8 GB DDR3 RAM
NVIDIA GT 540M w/ 1024 MB DDR3 Graphics Memory
1 TB 7200rpm drive
Blu-ray disc drive
VAIO Display Premium 24" Touch Monitor

Priced at 14980 HKD (if taking the pegged 1:7.78 rate of HKD:USD its roughly 1925 dollars)

I can't find a better all in one with a stellar configuration like this. The iMac once used to be a nice choice, but the new VAIO L nukes it hands down this round. Of course it'll be a new story when the new iMac comes out, but my family simply ran out of patience to replace our current desktop computer (USB 1.1, Intel Pentium D, 1 GB DDR2 RAM, and even a floppy disk drive, so you get the idea).

 

HAH! Your old computer is even slower than ours. Our family computer is an 8yr old dell with 2.2 Intel (don't know which) solo core, 1GB RAM, integrated graphics, etc. It was just getting too slow to even handle everyday tasks.


Do you already have it, or is it en route?

I agree with you, not really any other all in ones out there with the same [laptop] specs. It'll be nice to do some video editing and BD burning once I figure out how, something the Mac would never have.

BTW, your apartment in HK is really big!

 

I don't know how your eight year old computer can manage to run ahead of our six year old computer @.@. Ours was one of the IBM thinkcenters 6 years ago, and we purchased it off a local IBM vendor. Anyways our old computer had a wierd glitch that makes it reboot itself for 5 times (every here and then) before operating normally. Granted that we couldn't afford to waste any time watching the machine reboot itself every once in a while it was really time to swap it out for a new one.

We have the L series here at home already. I'll try to post a picture later today or tomorrow.

 

Thanks! I'd love to hear your impressions.

Do you have any plans for SSD?

 

No. Absolutely no plans for SSD. First off, my mom would kill me if she sees me opening up the machine, second, replacing the HDD is not worth all the mess trying to replace it.

The 7200rpm drive will carry us through quite a long time, so an SSD is not an neccesity (and especially since I treat my Z as my main computer).

 

LOL

RAM will be the first thing to get upgraded and maybe change the HDD to SSD.

BTW Dell's processor is Pentium 4 @ 2.2ghz.

 

Well the computer arrived yesterday, two days ahead of the FedEx ETA.


The computer itself looks very nice and minimalistic. It's just like a flatscreen TV with a nice silver metallic painted metal V stand.

I'll get my initial minor quibbles out of the way first. The casing is glossy plastic, the thing I don't like about it is that the mold used for the case isn't perfect and you can see some minor waves near the buttons on the top indicating how the plastic isn't a perfect contour. (something you notice on Asus netbooks, where the bezel is glossy black plastic, you can really see how the bezel isn't perfectly flat- it's wavy) Something I've noticed on review models and other pictures online is that the webcam isn't perfectly lined up in the hole, I have the same issue on mine. Not really a big deal, but annoying nonetheless. This also attracts a lot of dust.


The 7200rpm HDD is slow to open applications and boot up isn't anywhere near any of my other laptops running on SSD. (Basically, I'm spoiled by my laptops) hehe

There are many things I like about the computer. The speakers are very good and loud. I think the 1080 screen is very nice, although would prefer a slightly higher resolution since DPI isn't that high on such a big screen. It is very bright and the colors are nice. I haven't noticed any noise issues yet but I haven't really done anything intensive either. A nice thing about the touch screen is that it uses the same technology as last gen's L and J series all in ones. Basically the thin bezel around the edge of the screen is raised slightly above the screen and it has some sort of sensing mechanisms in there to see where you are touching the screen. This way, it's essentially capacitive, but it allows you to use a stylus or something similar. It'll be nice to avoid getting fingerprints all over the black display.

A few notes: There is a power brick that you have to plug in. It uses the same 19.5V ones like many Sony laptops but the supplied brick is much larger and heavier. I think I'll leave the included one plugged in, but I would assume that the laptop versions would work as well. I believe the tuner capability can only be accessed from within the OS itself and you can't use the monitor as just a TV without turning on the computer. You can, however, use the inputs on the back to just use the L as a monitor (no need to turn the computer on). The stand comes installed on the computer. If you want to wall mount it, you have to take four screws off the back and you'll lose the black trim panel.
Upgrading memory requires taking off these same four screws as well, so you have to lie the computer flat on the screen in order to upgrade. It'll probably be easiest to have someone help you. This thing is 30 pounds so once it's in position don't move it. You can tilt the screen with relative ease.
I believe the display is actual glass, so it's quite glossy. It may get irritating if you have bright lights behind you.

I've got a WEI score of 5.9, the weak link being the HDD. RAM got 7.6 and processor got 7.8. I don't recall the graphics score off the top of my head. I think these scores can be quite arbitrary since my also has 4GB DDR3 1066 (I believe the L has 1333 sticks but runs at the 1066 speed, I have to check later) and my Z has a score of 5.9 on RAM. Regardless, I plan on upgrading both to 8GB at some point.

I'll get some pictures up in the following days. Feel free to ask me anything.

 

Sorry it took so long to take pictures! As you can see, an all in one made sense for this application. The old desktop's tower that used to be here took up way too much room and we don't want to drill through the counter top. The whole casing is glossy plastic which attracts a lot of dust. The screen is also glossy so it has to be wiped down when people use the touchscreen function with their fingers. (I ordered some capacitive styli so this should alleviate this problem) The glossy screen does get a little distracting in this area, but it's okay with the brightness turned up.

Ignore the tinted shade in the back, we'll get a mesh window cover down the road. The last few images are just size comparisons with the 13.1" Z and 8" P. The L's screen is 24".

 

Very nice! I have been playing with one at the nearest BestBuy and MicroCenter. I am tempted to pick one up. What are your initial impressions. I like the touch screen. With Win8 scheduled to come out next year, this machine will be well poised to take advantage of the new OS.

 

hey mate..i know u mentioned it slightly in your post before...but have u figured or is it possible to use it as a tv/display without loading through the OS and comp???

cheers mate thx in advance

 

why buy L when you already have A?

 

I think it's a fantastic all in one computer. The new iMac refresh has the desktop processors and ability to have two disc drives and SSD from the factory which I'd say are great advantages over this Sony but the Sony is the best you can get for Windows all in ones. The touchscreen is actually quite useful and convenient. Jobs said your arm would fall off using a touchscreen this big, but it's nice being able to just flick something every once in a while.

I haven't done anything processor intensive like video editing but doing some light photo editing, it's a breeze. The only bottleneck is the HDD which I plan on upgrading to an SSD some time in the future when prices are more reasonable for a ~250GB drive. The speed for opening programs and booting up is quite adequate though. I'm just spoiled with SSDs on all my laptops.

It is possible to use the display as a monitor without turning the computer on. You'll have to have something plugged into the computer's HDMI or composite inputs. You cannot, however, watch any TV with the computer off. The TV tuner works within the operating system, and we use Windows Media Center to watch any TV.

As I said earlier, this is the family computer that replaces the old desktop. I very seldom use this computer since I use my laptops for all my computing. I will use the L when it comes time to video editing, though, since it has a quad core processor.



Edit: Sorry for the crappy photos. I'll use a real camera later on to take better pics.

 

Yes, but no blu-ray.

I wish the Sony also had eSata but the usb 3.0 should be fine. No matter how hard I try, I just cannot work with Apple's operating system so the iMac is a non-starter. Having said that, their 27" monitor is sweet.

 

meh The iMac was out of the question when I found out it has an Apple logo on it.

I wish this had an express card for more expansion. I'd like to add Thunderbolt to this in the future if it becomes the norm. I do wish all 5 USB were 3.0 spec. As I'm sure you know, only USB 3 is on the side, so if you leave an external permanently plugged in via 3.0, you see the wire on the side which would annoy me.

I do wish the screen were higher resolution since I'm used to the higher DPI on the P, Z, and iPhone 4. But realistically, I can't expect much more than a 1080p screen on a computer monitor this size. (iMac 27" being the exception, as you mentioned)


As an aside, whenever I use a Mac such as the iMacs at my schools design department, the damn thing always freezes up and I have to reboot. Some Mac users swear by their "flawless OS" but all I have are problems during the brief stints I use them. It's kind of ironic.

 

not really interested, it is no better than a Z so it is a downgrade

 

Hello? The Z is a laptop and the L is an all in one.

And how is the Z any better? The Z has a dual core Westmere processor, while the L has a quad core Sandy Bridge! The L also has better RAM speed, FSB, L3 Cache, GPU, etc.

 

Why don't you spam elsewhere.

 

Precisely.

Now that the new iMac has been released I'm quite mad now. The VAIO L was a piece of trash at its price. I could've already gotten a better config on the 21" iMac with a few hundred dollars to spare. The worst graphics card on the iMacs still excel the GT 540M by far. It even offers an SSD option

Proves that I should've done more research in all in ones, but at least the VAIO L is still top of the line in terms of Windows all in ones

How do you feel Generic?

 

Like I said, the iMac was out of the question when there's an Apple logo on it. I don't feel bad.

I just feel jealous that in the "spec wars" the iMac wins on processor, SSD, and screen. Oh well, the L still works well for what it's used for most of the time anyway.

 

I disagree with the screen part. Having used the L at home for more than a month I say it's practically indistinguishable from the Z. There is no screen on the market that comes close to the Z's screen, not even the Macbook Pro/Airs. Even the F 3D's screen is reviewed to be inferior to the Z's. I screen appearance and quality is quite subjective but frankly I see my Z laugh at everyone's screen at school.

I'll be leaving Hong Kong to study overseas in a few months so I won't be using the L for quite a long time. I guess my parents wouldn't need anything more than a i7-2720qm, 8 GB RAM and a GT540M to check their emails and online financing right ?

 

Exactly my point. Most of the time it's used for web surfing and word processing. But it's nice to know I can do video and photo editing without a hitch as well. (I will need to upgrade RAM though)

I think the iMac uses an IPS display so it may be better in that regard (although I find the Sony very nice) but the 27" iMac has a higher resolution. Pixel density could be higher for my tastes after getting used to the other devices I mentioned earlier.

 

While I really like the iMac (but have the same predilection against Apple), the Sony is a pretty good value:

27" iMac
3.4Ghz i7 CPU
8Gb Ram
1TB hard drive
AMD 6970M GPU
DVD burner
$2,399.00 (U.S.)

24" Vaio L
2.2GHZ i7-2720QM CPU
8Gb Ram
1TB hard drive
Nvidia GT 540M GPU
Blu-Ray burner
$1,919.00 (U.S.)

The Apple beats the Sony hands down in terms of the monitor and graphics. The iMac's processor is marginally better. The Sony comes with Blu-Ray. System memory and storage are identical. Is the larger screen and better graphics worth $480.00? I think the Sony can make the case as a good value proposition compared to the iMac.

 

Wrong. The processor is not *marginally* better, it is significantly better. The L utilizes a laptop [email protected] Ghz while the iMac uses a desktop [email protected] Ghz. I think that $500 is more than worth a far significant CPU and GPU.

 

It's not worth it to me- BUT, if the comparable options were available on the Sony, I'd order it with the better processor and graphics. (Not the bigger screen, 24" was already a stretch for how close the chair is to the monitor on our counter).

I never understood, why can't Apple support Thunderbolt and USB 3 on their devices? Seems stupid that there's no USB 3 on any Macs. (This is actually more a rhetorical question since the answer is Apple is a stuck up and they are invested in Thunderbolt) lol

 

No, you are wrong. How do you define significant? According to PassMark, the 3.4Ghz i7-2600 scores 8,863 while the 2.2Ghz i7-2720QM scores 7,386. The iMac has a processor that is about 20% faster.

You are also not considering the cost upgrade of a blu-ray burner, so the cost differential is even greater.

 

There's quite a difference betwee a 2720qm and a 2600...The biggest feature of the iMac in my opinion is that IPS display. To me, that'd be worth nearly the $500 uptick by itself.

 

The BD recordable drive is a $150 option from Sony. So just take the 480 difference, subtract 150 and it's like a $320 upcharge for the iMac. You get the nicer screen and better processor. You can probably hack in the BD drive yourself if you feel oh so inclined.

 

You have that backwards. If you take out the blu-ray player, the Sony is now $630.00 cheaper.

At the end of the day, does the unit perform? You own one, I don't. How is it working? Does it seem slow? Is the display too small? Is the resolution too low? If you start answering yes, then the price premium for the Apple may make sense. For my needs, I am leaning toward the Sony and I will find another use for the $480.00 that I would save

 

Oh sorry I do have that backwards. My bad.

Just ask yourself what you need the computer for. I think most people won't give a hoot about the difference between the laptop i7 and the desktop i7 between the Sony and the Mac.

 

Proprietary HDD/SSD on the new iMac!
Apple Restricts Hard Drive Replacements on New iMacs - MacRumors.com

 

This may sound like an extremely idiotic question for enthusiasts, but if I were to use the L as a monitor for my Z, should I plug in the HDMI out or HDMI in?