My take on the SZ160 after a few days

I’ve been using my SZ160 for a few days and I thought I’d just post what I think of it so far. First of course other than size and weight the display is the star here, there are no notebook LCD displays that equal Sonys Xbrite and this one is just beautiful. It is so sharp and bright I have to use it at half brightness, otherwise it’s like looking directly at the sun! After the display the looks, size and weight of the SZ are amazing. The carbon fiber case has a very professional and understated look yet it also looks cool at the same time. I was going to do the semi reformat of Windows XP I read about on this forum but opted to just uninstall all unnecessary programs and everything is working nice and fast with no problems. Another great thing is it runs nice and cool unlike the new Apple MacBook which can get downright hot on the bottom. The fan though it does run often is pretty quiet and unintrusive.
The one letdown on the SZ has to be the keyboard, if you’re used to Apple Powerbook and Thinkpad keyboards this one doesn’t even come close in feeling, it’s also pretty noisy. I don’t know if this is because the SZ is so thin but at least the keys are full size and I don’t feel any flexing at all. It seems at least so far this unit is not plagued by the space bar problem, it works even when pressing on the very end of both sides. Hopefully it will stay this way.
One last thing, the display/lid is so thin it doesn’t inspire confidence as far as durability and robustness is concerned. I’m not saying I’ve had a problem but it’s not the kind of notebook you feel like you can toss around, I hope it’s more durable than it looks. I did purchase the 2 year accidental extended warranty just in case something happens to the display.
I hope this gives anyone thinking of purchasing an SZ notebook an idea of what you can expect. So far I'm happy with it, if the keyboard was better and it winds up to be durable, well then there is nothing else like it on the market.

 

Its durable. Mine has been knocked around in my backpack going to and from campus and still has absolutly no defects. I've even come off a pushbike at high speed with this in my backpack and it survived unscathed.

I think there was a story of a guy who stepped on his lid while closed, and it still worked fine. Thats if it was true I guess.

Edit: See personally I am used to desktop keyboards. The SZ keyboard reminds me of them, and I love it. I dont understand how people can rate keyboards objectivley - when it is such a subjective impression we use. What I love in a keyboard, somebody else is garunteed to hate.

 

Thanks for the review. Although I can't seem to approve of the higher priced 160 your words have swayed me more toward the SZ140 or the SZ2XX now up on the Sonystyle website. The lids are probably a little more durable too on these models, but that's just my guess.

 

buddy- if you can afford it, the screen alone is worth it. trust me. if you can put the sz160 next to the 140, you WILL see a difference. Remember, the screen you will be using 100% of the time. Its the biggest factor next to gpu and battery life for me.

 

I have the SZ18GP/C. That is an Asia/Pacific Premium model. I cant comment on the durability of the non-premium models as I have never used them. Based on what I know of the materials involved (did a couple of units at college on materials) the premuim should be significantly more durable that the non-premium. CF is much, much more rigid than magnesium.

Edit: I also agree with star about the screen. When I am in a darkish room I am forced to run it at 5/10 brightness when reading text. If I set it higher it is just too bright for my tastes. The higher settings are great when you are in a brightly lit place.

 

thanks for the review..I'm planning on buying a SZ
Is the screen big enough to play games like WoW? Or do you think rocking with the FE is a better choice?