Anyone know anything about the Stick AC Adapter from Sony?

I will be traveling a lot with my Vaio SZ and I'm curious if this is a good way to save weight? Does anyone have the specs on the standard Vaio AC adapter? And I know most adapters can use both European and U.S. Voltage inputs... can the stick adapter as well? I only travel with electronics that have built in Voltage converters, and thankfully most AC adapters can take anything. I'd just hate to be traveling and find out that the stick adapter didn't work in Europe.

Also has anyone bought one of these? Is that little cord too small? It might be a pain to have to have the AC adapter on your lap because of the short cord.
I guess most of it comes down to weight and I can't find anything about either the standard one or stick adapter.

Also a hundred bucks seems a bit steep.

 

I've seen the stick AC adapter in person, and quite honestly, the weight isn't much lighter at all. I suppose the form factor is better since slim is easier to carry, but in my opinion, doesn't justify USD$100 for a stick. I would rather save the money up for another battery.

 

i'm actually curious about the stick adapter also -- do you know if it charges more slowly?

 

The over all mass of the stick is about the same as the stock adapter and it will work in Europe. You pretty much nailed it with the short cord. The stick looks really cool and comes with a nice nylon carry pouch, but it has to be about 6" from the laptop. That became a hassle very quickly when going mobile (especially on a lap), so now I just leave it at work so I don't have to transport the extra weight. My advice would be to stay with the stock adapter for versatility.

 

Thanks so much guys, quick quality responses. That's why I love these messageboards.

So it looks like it's not worth the extra $100 at all. If it's about the same mass and weight why pay money just for something that looks a little bit better or has a shorter cord. And in the end, the shorter cord just becomes a nuisance anyway. There isn't much point in having a travel AC adapter if you have to leave it home because it doesn't work well on your lap.

 

Bought a Sz680 for my wife last week...ordered the stick from Amazon (on back order with sony)....Arrived Friday....Shipped back to Amazon on Friday...save your money, there is truly no point to this charger...The stick is enormous and it definately felt as heavy as the standard charger....The shortness of cable (from charger to notebook) is about 6 inches long...so you pretty much have too place it on a table.

If you are looking for a slim lightweight charger, then I would go for the kensington travel adapter....very slim, very light (works on airplane outlets as well) and they also have a very nice roll-up cable keeper...see links below.

I believe the tip you will need is N3 (the SZ isn't listed, but if you call support, give them the SZ's power requirement, they'll tell you the tip)
http://us.kensington.com/html/6368.html

cable keeper
http://us.kensington.com/html/10433.html