Best 13" Ultraportable? Vaio Z? SA?

Hi,

I need to pickup a 13" lightweight, hi performing, 3lb laptop. The Z13 Looks pretty awesome froma specs perspective:
- 1920 x 1080,
- 512Gb Raid 0 SSD,
- 8GB Ram,
- i7-640M,
- Nvidia Hybrid 330M GFX,
- 3lbs.

Price is not really a factor. Weight is.

So some questions:
1) Will the SA be superior -- and if so, in what way?
2) Is there something other than the Z and SA that one should consider (from any manufacturer!).

Thanks.

 

Official specs have not been released for the SA. We have some idea it will most likely have a 6630 dedicated card which is better than the 330 Nvida graphics in the Z.

Also, processor options i think we can say will be better also as it's Sandybridge.

We don't know yet if Sony will offer the 1080p as a CTO in the SA.

We also don't know yet what type of drive the SA will take. They could go for a 2.5 which i would prefer or they could do something similar like what they did with the Z.

 

The SA is going to be more an additional model in the VAIO portfolio. Yes, it's got hybrid graphics like the Z, but as implied elsewhere the SA is not a Z successor. It will merely be sold alongside the current Z, with the current Z getting a proper sucessor later on in the year (or maybe at next year's CES).

That said, if price is not a factor, you could wait for the later refreshes of the VPC-Z lappies. Judging from past activities, the VPC-Z will get a Z14, and maybe a Z15 even.

You'll probably be getting a slightly better CPU (though I doubt Sandy Bridge), and there is a slight possibility of a GPU upgrade (as the non-3D F series have experienced I believe, as did the SZ series back in the day).

Either that, or you could try waiting for the Z14 to come out and score the Z13 for a bargain. Or you can try hunting for a Z12 for a bargain but not too sure if they're too easy to find new these days...

 

if weight is a factor the rumors are saying the SA will be around 3.4 lbs while the Z is closer to 3

 

Next Z will be an all new Z and of course it's Sandy Bridge.

 

At the risk of asking what's already been answered (somewhere) -- if the Z13 specs are:
- 1920 x 1080,
- 512Gb Raid 0 SSD (Max 2 SSD's?)
- 8GB Ram,
- i7-640M,
- Nvidia Hybrid 330M GFX,
- 3lbs.

What are the equivalent SA specs as best as we all can guess - and how superior are they? The Z14 seemstoo far away (summer?), so it's the SA or the Z13 I guess.

 

10characters

 

Thanks for the info!
I think I will skip the SA and wait for the new Z.
Would you say it's significantly more powerful than the current Z?

 

Sony list the weight of the Z with an optical drive at 1.44kg 3.2lbs approx. It's rumored that the SA will weigh about 3.4lbs and this weight may include the optical drive. If it comes with a 2.5 HD using a bare one will bring the weight down to around 3.25lbs.

It also looks thinner (or at least no thicker) than the Z to me without the battery slice that is.
YouTube - Prototype VAIO Laptops
All this though just waits to be seen.

 

With bulky I mean the screen bezel is wider, as well as the display itself looks somewhat massive to me.

 

...Guess that rules out an in-generation refresh. The VPC-Z has been in production for a year or so now. And during then there have so far been 2 refreshes.

I recall the VGN-Z being produced for a year and a half. And those Zs have had 4 refreshes (5 generations). Though Japan had 3 refreshes with a total of 4 generations worth of VGN-Z.

I would assume there to be AT LEAST one more refresh with the VPC-Z before they're phased out; heck, there's still 6 months to go as far as the previous generation is concerned (so, a Z14).

If the next Z is 'all new' as you say beaups, then you're implying that the Z13 is the last of the VPC-Z as we know it?

 

Just the usual game of design teams, production, economics, profit margins and logistics and the like and competing suppliers with different models.

As far as Sony goes, on the Z they use a really nice display that has been a winner. SR was also really nice however S went downhill with a poor display and wasn't as well rated as competitors.

Hopefully Sony will get back to a strong footing with the VAIO SA which I am looking forward to seeing it compete against other models. If it is a winner with strong performance and a quality display then Sony will be likely the one I will be most interested in.

 

Z14 just came out in Japan last week. The ONLY difference is an option for 1TB SSD in Raid 0. You can find it on conics.net the option is, as you'd expect, crazy expensive.

 

This 2xSSD, 3xSSD,4xSSD is a bit of a puzzle to me...perhaps someone can explain.

The Z13 can be purchased with a 2x256Gb SSD Option in Raid 0 right?
But is that the limit from a physical perspective? or just what they choose to offer as options. In the Z13, could one put 3 or 4 SSD's in it as a user driven upgrade -- both from a space perspective and, I suppose, a drive controller perspective? or am I just confusing myself?

thx.

 

That's something I've wondered as well. I haven't opened up my machine with a 2X 64GB but where do they find space for two more 1.8" drives if you have a quad SSD setup? Are they stacked on top of the first two?

 

Sony doesn't sell upgrades.

The Z holds two slightly-smaller-than-1.8" drives.
The drives sold in the 4x option (and one of the drives in the 3x option) is a special dual-sided (sandwich) drive. So you have two drives per physical card, and two cards, for a total of 4x.

The 2x units can't be upgraded with more drives, as they use both slots. You can exchange one of the drives for a sandwich drive with exactly twice the usable capacity (ending up with 3x of the same you had 2x of), or exchange both drives.

Your best bet to get more space is to either toss out the DVD/BD and put a standard 2.5" drive there, or toss out both your existing 1.8" drives and replace them with 1.8" drives without the casing.

Technically, buying a 4x drive set and cabling from Sony repairs is also an option, but will cost you so much it's not even funny.

 

Best bet for the Sony VAIO is getting memory replacements and the SSD options seperately.

You can buy a full 8GB upgrade for cheaper than you can upgrade from 4 to 8GB.

And the SSD's will also be cheaper in OEM form especially the Micron c400 and Intel X25M 3rd gen.

One should pick the notebook they want and then get the addons later. Swapping the HD and memory should be simple but one still needs to copy the existing HD files over to the SSD.

On my desktop I went with Kingston memory as addons to my Samsung chips that were included. I don't know who Sony uses as their memory vendor however so I would pop the chips out and just get 2 additional of the existing chips for compatibility in all likelyhood although multiple modules are compatible.

 

Thanks arth1 for that explanation.

@adamj023, I agree about RAM and storage for most computers. However the Z's drives are essentially proprietary (assuming it doesn't have the 2.5" drive which all of them in North America don't). So your only option is direct from Sony.

 

So, when we boil this down, the SA will be available in March and is a slightly different form factor + sandy bridge + unknown other diffs.
The Z14 is out in Japan and looks identical - the sole difference appears to be 1TB SSD vs. The Existing Z13 maxing out at 512Gb.

Is that the only difference (I presume the 512GB Z13 is the same quad SSD as is described overseas?)? If it is then the only question is Z13 vs SA...right?

s.

 

(accidentially double posted)

 

If I recall that right from another thread, it should be out early summer? Or am I mixing that up with the release date of the current Z's upgrade?

 

you're correct, he was referring to all new (redesigned) Z.

 

Vaio SA is quality. VAIO SB is not. Vaio SA is heavier and has more power and a larger screen than the Z replacement.

I am going SA with the best display option available and an SSD RAID Config. Should be super fast. Was going to wait for Ivy bridge but the built in GPU isnt worth much considering I can get discrete right now.

Vaio SA is the one to get if the weight and size are acceptable to you. I will wait for reviews before I buy it and compare it with its competitors but if it does well, it will be the one I get.