Looking to buy SZ680, M1330 or other?

So I have been reading all of the comments all over the place about which thin and light laptop is the next big thing, trying to decide which one to buy as my next big investment.

I recently had it narrowed down to the SZ6xx or XPS M1330 (I was even keeping the Latitude D630/830 in mind, but I think the 13.3 is what I need to go with), but each has their own set of pros and cons. And after the whole Dell production fiasco I thought I was set on the new SZ6. But more and more people on NBR are reporting small glitches or screen defects, etc...is it worth deciding on one over the other at the moment?

I was ready by the end of this week (payday, of course...) to drop a couple g's on an SZ6 but I wanted to get some feedback from the rest of the group before I drop a lot of money on a possibly faulty system. So, my questions are:

1. Is the SZ6 that much better of a machine overall than the XPS M1330? (I don't game often enough to really need the extra onboard memory for the GPU, but battery life, build quality and overall performance are important to me)

2. Is it worth spending the money now with some small difficulties in both systems, hoping that there will be fixes or updates in the near future? (I know that the screen could be just production issues, but what about the other glitches?)

3. As far as hardware goes, with the price increase and limited choices now with the M1330, the Dell comes out (even with university discount) anywhere from $300-600 (depending on options) more than the SZ6 from Portable One.

I was looking at the SZ680 with the T7500 2.2ghz, 4gb RAM - P1 offers for $300 v. $150 for 2gb, 160gb 7200rpm HDD...$2300

The M1330 I was building up with the T7500 2.2ghz, 2gb RAM, 160gb 7200rpm HDD...$2600 Both with Vista Business, Bluetooth, fingerprint reader, etc...all equivalent equipment.

So if any of you would like to add your two cents worth of assistance before I drop my two grand's worth of paycheck, please help me out. Thanks for your time and help.

 

I'd definitely go with the SZ. Many who've used both say that the SZ feels better built and overall sturdier than the M1330. And I think you're fine spending now, because if you get major difficulties in either system you can have it replaced, and small glitches will likely be worked out (and even if some remain, remember that practically every system has small glitches unique to itself).

 

To be honest i've heard of much more problems with the 1330 then with the SZ. Though they are both nice machines, i'd say the later is a much safer buy right now. I think the SZ scores better on battery life (because you can switch of the dedicated graphics) and build quality.

I'm not sure what you want/need the 4Gb RAM for btw, if you don't have any specific reason for taking that i suggest you safe yourself some money on it, you can always upgrade it later for atleast half the price Sony is charging you for it. Same with the 7.200 rpm hdd, it will give you a better performance but also uses more battery. If you're not a hard core gamer or relocate huge amounts of data on a daily bases i'll doubt you'll notice the difference in speed compared with a 5.400 rpm.

 

well, sony's CS is pretty... uhmm... bad. dudes i talked to got mad at me for breaking my computer. eh... other than that, to me, they are pretty even. but if you're going for 13.3", those two options are top notch right now. w7s is weak and thick, and the asus u3s is doesnt have an integrated cd/dvd drive and is super expensive at base. the sz's nvidia card only has 64mb of dedicated memory, btw, half of that on the same card on the m1330. basically, the sz's video card is crippled. other than what ive just said, i dont think i know anything else.

 

From what i have read on this board the SZ can only support up to 3GB of ram. It lists up to 2GB on the Sony website but i have read it can support up to 3GB. 4GB i have read is not supported in the BIOS.

The xps M1330 can support up to 4GB of ram and it also has HDMI support.

The one thing the US model has going for it is the hybrid graphics but how much battery life the integrated graphics will save you over the dedicated card i don't know.

The W7S i have seen in store and i didn't find thick at all and in terms of looks it looked better than the SZ to me. The W7S looks better in real life than in any photo that i have seen online.

The W7S is missing some of the features though that SZ and M1330 offer but on the other hand it is also priced lower as well. The W7S can also only support up to 2.5GB of ram and it has 512MB on board graphics. If you are not a gamer then the 8400M G graphic card could do you fine.

 

How crippled would you say the SZ6 video card is? Becuase I have heard that it is not that much less powerful than the 128mb dedicated 1330 8400m GS. The 8400m GS cards can only process graphics within its limits, and even with dedicated or shared memory, it wouldn't get alot of gains from having more memory. I believe this is due to the 64bit memory interface that is on both cards. Therefore the memory bandwith between both cards will be more than half that of an 8400m GT. The extra 64mb's of dedicated memory will help a little but in the end with almost all GPU's it's how well the GPU can move information back and forth that will be the true test of a great graphics card. So in reality both the 1330 and the SZ6 have crippled cards if gaming is your main thing. The 1330 should be a little faster, but should not really play games any faster than the SZ6. If anything with the extra dedicated 64mb of memory, it should handle higher resolutions better. BTW this is purely my own feelings on this and is subject to inaccuracies. If anyone could correct me, please feel free to do so.

 

That sounds pretty much correct. All 8400M-GS cards perform pretty much equally in games.

 

The biggest difference I think is Battery life, and Weight. When you use a 6 Cell with the XPS 1330 it becomes hevier than the SZ6, and you need that 6 Cell battery to have any battery life at all. I haven't read any battery life tests on the SZ6, but the XPS only managed to get around 2.5 hours of video playback from the HDD, and that's awfully bad. And the XPS 1330 isn't a beauty either, by just looking at pictures you can tell it's just another pc like any Fujitsu Siemens, and it's really thick at the back too. Only thing it got talking for it is the HDMI port.

 

I was surprised when i picked up the W7S in store and felt how light it was. I had read on this forum comments about the weight of this product. Yes it was slightly heavier than the SZ but they were both still light weight notebooks and i would not notice any difference whilst transporting either of them about. The W7S is also slightly heavier than the XPS M1330.

Looks really is a personal preference at the end of the day.

 

Have you considered the Fujitsu S6410P as an alternative to the SZ and M1330, when it gets released in your region?

SZ5 (aka SZ6) has just been released in Australia, and there is only 2GB Max supported. Disapponting really.

 

Only thing im worried about the XPS 1330 is that it is as ugly as it looks in pictures That combinded with battery life not being great and the percentage of people with buggy XPS 1330s are a bit high. Since my brother is going to New York thursday this is my chance before spring to get a VAIO, since they are around half the price in the US compared to Sweden. If I choose the 1330 and get CPU whine or battery whíne or something they can't fix and I have to return it, then I lost my chance of getting a VAIO and i'll have to wait until May or sum.

Also, the Vaios have better battery life and I KNOW they are good looking, the Dell I only know looks ugly in the pictures.

 

stuff al this crud, if anything at all I'll buy a desktop with a USB flash drive to take to university so I can use their computers.

with the money I save I'm going to buy a car

cya

 

64 bit my ass

 

Originally posted by rachuk

I knew that Sony was only supporting up to 3gb (I've even heard some say 3.5gb) but P1 has the upgrade to 2gb for $150 and 4gb for $300, which sony would charge $450 so I thought it may be worth doing it instead of upgrading it myself later on, which would cost about the same.

Originally posted by xdz3r0

I new about this as well, as members have shown that 3Dmark05 they only get scores up to 2100 v. 2800+ from the XPS M1330, but like I said, I don't plan on gaming hardcore with it. If it gets me through the casual gaming, occasional engineering programs and music recording DAW, then I'm good with slightly less performance that a casual gamer as myself probably wouldn't notice off the bat.

...but I didn't think about how much juice a 5400rpm v. a 7200rpm would save. But I do work on music recording, and even though I have a custom built desktop for this purpose it never hurts to have the ability to use the laptop, either. How much does it really save? And is it worth going to the Hybrid HDD (160gb 5400rpm + 256mb flash), or is it just a gimmick so far like some people have posted?

Thanks guys for the quick replies. And I'll have to check up on the ASUS and Fujitsu laptops...any good places online that you like to use to shop for them?

 

the dell cant support 4gb of ram.

no 32bit OS's can. you can put 4gb in both the sony and the dell and they'll both read ~3.2

unless you upgrade to vista 64 or xp 64, they'll you'll be able to see all 4gb

 

The M1330 is not ugly or really thick to me:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=169314


Some things the M1330 has but the SZ doesn't:

Remote Control
Free carrying bag and Sleeve
Media Buttons
Free 10GB DataSafe Online Backup
Recycling Kit and Plant a Tree for Me

 

I think its pretty thick None of the things u mentioned are worth anything really Useless stuff. But the XPS 1330 has a HDMI port, so that is a pretty big advantage.

 

I am typing on my SZ680 now. It is so sexy. Designwise it is in a different league than Dell in my opinion. The black premium carbon makes it look very distinguished. I have not seen any pictures that really do it justice.

 

Nice. You got any battery life figures? Like max time for video playback from HDD and stuff?

 

No not yet. I haven't even charged my battery as I like to preserve it aswell as possible. The battery is in the fridge right now

 

On the M1330 it may be easier to get to compartments for upgrading things like Turbo memory or adding a Penryn processor, since Dell illustrates its manuals very well.

 

Yeah, might be useful for some But not for me I buy a computer, if I want something new I buy a new one. Don't like fiddeling around in it.h

 

As noted a 32-bit OS is not going to show you a full 4GB of RAM. For that you need a 64-bit OS. Even if you have 4GB installed the computer will only 'see' ~3GB, give or take. The Sony supports 4GB.

A note about comparing battery life. The following statement is not correct "Laptop X gets 3 hours of battery life on a 6-cell while Laptop Y only gets 2.5 on a 6-cell". That's not a good comparison - there is more to batteries than the # of cells - much more. The mAh rating is most important and should be used to compare battery life/power consumption and not the # of cells.

I'd agree with this statement - the SZ is an awesome machine with excellent build quality. The Dell feels plasticky in comparison in my opinion (no offense to M1330 owners). I think everything about the SZ is either a step up or at least at the same level as the XPS. The Premium especially.

The extra 64MB of dedicated video memory as noted doesn't help the XPS much. Nvidia's TurboCache shared memory system is excellent and a 64MB + 64MB card has near identical performance as a 128MB card.

-a) the remote isn't part of the notebook itself, and b) I wouldn't even consider it part of the buying decision.
-You can buy an SZ through PortableOne and get a free case + sleeve.
-In my opinion media buttons are over-rated. I have them on my Sager and I never use them. So it's personal preference.
-Online backup is so cheap these days. Not that getting it for free is a bad thing but . . . it's not much of one. And it's also not a part of the notebook.

 

The amount of RAM shown in the BIOS isnt dependent on the OS you install. Thats why users have gone into the BIOS to see the actual amount reported, and so far its not good news for Sony SZ6 users. I am going to go on Monday and test out the new SZ5 series that has just been released in Australia, and report back on the GB and VRAM issue.

 

Yes the SZ all black model does look business like it looks good but it also looks quite bland to me. It all depends what you like really.

About the Dell's battery life in the review forum i have read that you can get about 3 and half hours on battery doing standard web browsing etc now i think that is quite good. I got about the same life from my MBP.

 

Thats the idea I got from the pictures. In real life it is a different story to me. The pictures don't show the premium carbon front.

But yeah, if someone thinks the red Dell 1330 looks good they may not like the distinguished look of the SZ680.

 

The problem here is that the MBP is a different category. The XPS 1330 is supposed to be a ultra-portable, but it lacks in battery to be that. In tests the 1330 gets around 2 hours and 35 minutes of video from HDD, compared to 3 hours and 30 minutes from the Macbook, and 3 hours from the Macbook Pro. In my point of view you should ATLEAST be able to watch 2 full movies (1.5 hour movies) without charging. Something that you cannot on the Dell. I know this will annoy me when I take it with me traveling or in school and stuff like that.

Yeah, I want a attractive notebook. And quite truthfully, the Dell XPS 1330 looks lik a acer.

 

the sz also has a dock, which the xps doesnt

 

i don't have video playback battery time for my sz 680, but using it for school, browsing the web, powerpoint, word and using excel for lectures and school work, i get over 5 hours of battery consistantly with brightness at 3-4 bars of 8. Later on ill try to get a DVD playback battery life. my friend in the same 2 hour lecture with the xps 1330 shows a lot less battery life at the end than mine.

 

Damn, 5 hours, thats great Thats in Stamina mode or whatever the thing is called?

 

Oh wow just read back a few pages. The SZ is far superior. You don't have that annoying laptop wobble and the system is build rock solid and dead sexy. I'm also not a huge fan of the colors. Plus you can have it next week instead of in 2 months. And all for cheaper!

 

Only itsy pitsy thing that annoys me. No DVI/HDMI. How am I supposed to play FULL HD from the laptop without it?

 

get the dock for the sz, it has a dvi port

 

Carrying a docking station with me kinda defeats the purpose of a ultra portable

 

whats the point of playing full hd movies out to a tv with an ultraportable?

if you're going to be doing that anyway, it'll be at home, when a docking station would be valuable, way easy to dock, have an external monitor and keyboard connected already, then undock and leave when needed, instead of plugging **** in and out. like you'd have to do with the xps

 

Nah, I'll be playing full HD much about anywhere. At my moms, at my dads, at my friends house. So I would need a DVI/HDMI port on my computer. VGA is outdated too, havent used it for like 4 years.

 

I'm typing this on an SZ160 and I played with a Dell XPS M1330 yesterday at a Dell kiosk. The Dell is definitely much flashier looking than the SZ, the current SZ being all black (mine is grey with silver trackpad) is even more conservative looking but still looks good.
The keyboard on the M1330 is very different than the SZ, somehow the keys look very chunky (does that make sense?) but they feel ok, less mushy than the SZ keyboard. The display was beautiful and it wasn't even the LED display. The mouse buttons felt better to me than the SZ mouse buttons. To tell the truth I'd be happy with either.

 

I would like to know from any SZ6 users whether anyone has a perfect screen for this laptop ( no yellow patches). I just initiated a process of returning my SZ680 because of this problem.

 

Thanks guys for all of your comments and details about the SZ6. After long consideration over the weekend I decided to go ahead and buy one from P1 (just submitted my order a few minutes ago) and hope for the best.

I talked with Ivan about all of the different problems (it's truly a great thing to have customer service that works with you) and he said that he knows of one or two that they have received in with the bands, but that for the most part they haven't gotten too many complaints so far. He also answered a lot of my questions (I'm sure he's glad I finally stopped bugging him and just bought the laptop, lol) and I feel confident between both P1 and NBR that I made a good decision.

Here's the specs of what I bought:

Sony SZ680N03
T7500 2.2GHz 4MB L2 800MHz FSB
1GB (upgraded to 4GB Corsair DDR2 667, bought from newegg.com and on it's way too. Although P1 had a great price of $300 for the 4GB I figure saving $70 and having a spare 1GB around won't hurt)
160GB 7200rpm upgrade
6 cell battery (I may upgrade to the 9 cell but I've heard the 6 holds quite a charge so I'll save my cash up for later)
And pretty much everything else standard on the SZ6's...
plus Free Shipping, Sony Slim Case and $50 off, complimentary of P1.

I'll let you know how everything goes, and post a review and photos after I have the 4 gigs installed and all. Thanks again guys.

 

After lots of research I came to conclusion that till date no one got a perfect screen SZ6. The extent of banding varies, and how far it annoys people vary too. But when shelling out 2 grand on a machine, I want it to be near perfect, atleast no obvious problem with the screen and keyboard. Otherwise, SZ has everything what need to be perfect laptop of this size. Let us know how your experience goes.

 

I handled a SZ680 and SZ691 at a Sony Style store, and I was a little disappointed by them. I think that's because I had such high hopes for the notebook though. I went back a couple days later, and it wasn't as bad as I thought at first.

I spent more time with the SZ680. The notebook is definitely lightweight, and the case looks very nice. I like the all black look of the premium SZ6 series. The screen had relatively good viewing angles, and it was quite bright. I didn't notice anything wrong with it. The lid is flimsy, and it actually bends with force, but the screen seems to be unaffected by the bending. Typing on the keyboard was neither pleasant nor unpleasant. I definitely do not like the keyboard though. The key shapes are ugly, and the letters and symbols appear to be stickers (yes, stickers). I don't know why they didn't use the TZ / Macbook key style instead. It looks nice, separates the keys, and it delivers solid keystroke. I really like the way the WAN antenna is implemented. It is a stubby, rubbery antenna that lays between and against the lid and the base when the notebook is closed. If it weren't for the horrendous keyboard, this notebook would be at the top of my list.

The SZ691 didn't seem very different in feel. The only obvious difference is the casing, but it's not even that different. The carbon fiber weave is accentuated more on the SZ691.