Great TZ Deal

Hey guys,
I have been reading a lot about TZ models on here and decided to get one after playing with one in a store I definitely "fell" for it. Anyways I have been trying to find the best deal, and today I scored one from Sonystyle.com and thought I would pass it along to those who are interested. I would think that this deal will not last long on their site as I bought one for $1150! Model: TZ180N/RC it is a limited edition in Bordeaux (Red) color. It is a refurb model, however it got the title refurb because Sony is selling TZ200 series now. So the price that is currently posted is $1277 and with a 10% Discount code: AFFB10 you will get it for much less plus FREE SHIPPING! Original price of that baby is $2799! If you search more you will see that the lowest model TZ150B is listed there for $1899 so before they catch the pricing error get that VAIO while it lasts. I got a shipping confirmation today after ordering it this morning!
Good luck!

 

Wow, very nice. Are you sure it's not really refurbished, though? I didn't know Sonystyle labeled their older models as refurbished, if that was the case.

 

O MY GOD
i really want to buy this
i friggin hate it , because every decent DEAL is in AMERICA
and no1 ships to HOLLAND
where are the deals in europe
OMG>?

 

Great deal only thing that concerns me is it comes with only a 90 day warrenty. The non refurb models have a 1 year warrenty. I got basically the same system, the TZ170N/N at frys on clearance for 999. The 180 has a faster processor but thats the only difference. Great find though!

 

I have a business on the side to help out fellow EU folks to get some deals here in the States, if you are interested PM me, I may help you get it if it's still available.

 

I have bought a number of Refurb stuff from Sony and usually I get brand new merchandise, just stripped out of it original box and a label Refurbished placed on the back of it.

 

thanks for the tip, vaiofreak. i'm becoming a vaio freak myself. lol. i just ordered my second TZ, which will be the third vaio i will have owned! i'll be selling my tz150 on ebay.

 

What do you guys think about the color? Be honest.

 

i love the color. can't wait to see it in person!

 

Honestly, I believe all of the Vaio TZ colors look great. Personally, though, I'm very attracted to the plain black Vaio TZ. It's that blend of beauty and modesty. Not too showy or flashy, but a subtle beauty. That's what I like about the plain black Vaio TZ.

 

Have you received your TZ yet?

Thanks for the info. I ordered it the morning after you posted. It was supposed to ship yesterday, but I called Sony and it won't be shipping til Monday. I don't like the red too much, but for the price I don't mind, and I'm a bit anxious to know if it comes in mint condition or if it's actually new.

 

I also orderd one on 3/12, with an estimated ship date of 3/13. I called them this morning to see what the status was, and it should go out today (3/14). They sure aren't efficient!

 

Yes, I got mine today! It is in great condition like brand new! It came in a big box, but I guess they had to use it to secure it during shipping. My wife bought TZ285NC model with SSD so now we have two TZ brothers. I am currently getting rid of all the bloatware on both computers. The TZ285NC came with a Windows XP Pro downgrade disk. I ordered a couple of accessories for them (carrying cases), and at some point need to find a great deal on extended battery. I noticed that SonyStyle.com has reduced it a little bit more, as they are running 10% of all VAIOs, and with another 10% off code I mentioned above one can save even more! VAIO UX390N with SSD drive comes down to $1190! My UX490NC is coming on Monday...another addition to my VAIO family of 7.
Let me know guys when you get your TZs...remember that color on it is supposedly handcrafted!
L8er!

 

Hey vaiofreak,

Did your TZ 180 come with any recovery software? The new ones have an Xp download disk. Did yours? Real close to ordering....Dan

 

vaiofreak,

I was so compelled to thank you for directing me to this deal that I joined this forum just to do so. My uncle and I went to Fry's yesterday to find a suitable laptop for him. Although the price was much higher than I was wanting him to pay, it seemed the most appropriate choice for him was the TZ250 at $2,199.00. We opted for the 5-year warranty for another $450 which put the grand total at close to $2,900 (after tax). Then I decided to do some research and stumbled upon your post for the TZ180. Essentially, they are the same machine. This fact is supported by the salesman at the SonyStyle store in Austin. The 180 used to be the high end, but has been discontinued and rebadged as a 250 to support their new numbering scheme. It is now considered to be mid-range. So, the bottom line is the notebook cost him just $1,080 plus $399 for the 4-year "break-it" warranty which apparently covers anything and everything. Your post saved him about $1,400. We appreciate it! Now I've just got to decide if I want one as well. Thanks again for turning us on to this. Richard S. P.S. Where did you hear that these were not refurbs? I asked the Sony sales rep (phone) and he said he was unable to ascertain that. Just curious. Thanks...

 

I am glad this deal saved you a lot of money. I was surprised myself when I came across it, as Sony usually charges a lot even on some refurbs (e.g. TZ150 lower specs too), so I had to order it before it was gone, but apparently they have a bunch of them, so that's good. It is one of the best deals and it is worth it! Enjoy it. I also had a weird thought of ordering a second one, but I already have too many VAIOs.

 

Dan,
No it did not, the TZ200 are supplied with a disk, I was able to order a free XP Downgrade though, found a discussion about it in one of the threads here.

 

Thanks again, vaiofreak!

Mine arrived in 6 business days. It didn't come in the standard retail box, but rather inside a huge box packed inside another huge box. The notebook appeared to be brand new, not a single scratch or fingerprint on it, aside from a small "refurb" sticker on the bottom. Most importantly for me, the screen came with no dead or stuck pixels. The only big disappointment I had was re-installing Windows and some of Sony's software, it took 2 tries before I got everything working the way I wanted.

 

Great! Enjoy the deal! It looks like that model is Out of Stock now.

 

I guess, the deal is dead... Out of Stock

 

Just got my TZ180 in!!!! Thanks for the heads up Vaiofreak.. But I hate Vista1!! Vaiofreak, how did you get the XP downgrade disk....

 

There is a thread in this forum regarding XP downgrade CD and some guys posted the coupons to get a free CD, but pretty much all of the coupons are used now, I just got lucky. However you can still order the XP downgrade CD from Sony for a fee. Do a search here and see, if you can't fine it let me know.

 

Hey Vaiofreak,

Thanks again for the heads up on the refurbished... Appears to be a brand new one. About the XP downgrade, found the web site on SONY with the free downloads of drivers and applications.. Does the cd you are mentioning also have the XP operating system? Dan

 

Yes, it just downgrades to XP Pro version, including drivers and some apps.

 

FYI...the TZ180 is listed again on sony's refurb site. did vaiofreak ever mention how he found out that these were actually brand new units (and not refurbs).

second, can you buy an extended warranty (with accidental) for a refurb?

edit: nevermind. the 180 is just listed. no "add to cart" button. odd though, it wasn't listed a couple days ago. maybe the deal will come back? my questions still stand though. anyone?

 

I'm not entirely convinced that these Vaio TZs are new models. It seems like vaiofreak believes they are new because they appear new, and there seems to be no differences at all. I suppose this is good news, since it begs the question: if a tree fell in a forest, and nobody heard it, did the tree truly fall down? Is a laptop new if it looks and functions like a new one?

 

Maybe SONY ran out of the OEM boxes and could not make more in time so they were forced to sell at a deep discount. LOL. But ferreal this price had to have been a glitch considering it was cheaper than the TZ150 refurb by $600? Maybe sony didnt think the color would catch on. I bought one of them for my girlfriend and she loves it.

 

I guess I cannot truly guarantee you all that if you buy any refurb items from Sony, it will be brand new. In my experiences with it, I don't know maybe I was lucky, but I bought a number of refurb stuff from them and they all appeared to be untouched (some even came without any sticker and had original packaging). It could be that they had a number of them in stock, and since they moved to the TZ200 series, they had to get rid of that stock by selling as refurbished as they often do. However, according to Sony refurbished items could be customer returns as well. So one will never know what you will be getting.
L8er!

 

Hey Vaiofreak,

How are you liking your tz180 so far? Are u running Vista or XP? Any other comments/experiences?

Thx!

 

Hi,
Currently running Vista; I have not considered switching to XP yet. I have tweaked it and it runs just great. I like the fact that the bottom does not get hot and it is so light weight! Amazing screen like I would expect from Sony. I have a similar model with SSD and man it flies with that drive.

 

Thanks Vaiofreak,

You've been a great help....and thanks for the heads up on the deal