New Sony Vaio Z speculation/news thread

^ I don't remember if it was Beaups or a review but I read that there's no difference in flex with Z1 and Z2.

 

^
Never really noticed before but the Z1 does flex a bit...

 

Watching the three videos posted earlier, and one review from a few weeks ago where the reviewer purposely tested the screen's wobbliness, it looks exactly the same as the Z1.

I'm sticking to my guns and guessing that the only reason the bezel is bigger is because Sony had the guideline of making a computer "thinner than the Air" which resulted in the "guts" exploding out the sides. This left us with a larger surface area on the base which meant that the screen area had to be made bigger to match.

 

Ok I'll see. What would you want that though?

 

does anyone have a link to that Z review that goes over the temperature and noise levels?

 

If I'm not wrong, I read about 150°

 

The only one I remember off-hand is from Laptopmag.com -

Sony VAIO Z (2011) - Benchmark Test Results

Hope this helps.

 

It felt pretty similar to the Z1 to me.

I must say, I'm apparently not as particular as many of the other users here.

 

Well, the funny thing is, if we take the best aspects of the SA and the Z2, we get the Z1. Makes you wonder what Sony are really doing, eh? After all, in the last generation, we had the X, Z and S series models. They were very clearly defined. In this generation, Sony have retired the X, made the Z2 a half-clone of the X and the Z1 and the SA the child of the Z1 and the S.

Too many letters. Darn, Sony's naming scheme is confusing.

 

Hey, the engadget review is out: Sony VAIO Z review (2011) -- Engadget

 

Some times when doing a presentation using a projector, it is kind of annoying to have the screen in the way when you are working across the conference table with someone. Also, if connected to an external monitor, max tilt allows easy viewing of the monitor while still being able to type on the notebook's keyboard.

 

Thanks for the link.
One of the pics showed lots of scratches on the lid...

 

^ yeah but it seems that they use the laptop with their feets, not hands -,-

 

Sure, but they also got rid of a lot of the guts that the previous Z had (the internal discrete GPU, the ODD, one of the SSD boards, etc). I think the real key is that the Z2 is the first of the Z series to ditch the cylindrical battery pack in favor of the flat battery pack, which of course makes for a thinner device, but also means less space to fit a sturdy hinge mechanism (and frame to hold the display secure). I think the Z2 design team simply took a lot of what they learned from the P, X, and SA/SB series (all of which use flat battery packs, and all of which have not-insignificant bezels).

Also remember that thickness and footprint isn't merely about cramming all the components inside, but also about managing the heat distribution, especially since the standard voltage CPU has always been the hallmark of the Z. No doubt some millimeters could have been shaved off with a smaller heatsink and maybe just one fan, but it might result in unreasonably high temperatures given how short the heatsink has to be to fit in such a thin device.

 

@fhsieh, thanks for the reply. That's a good point about how they took knowledge from their P, X, and S lines into building the Z2. It's minor annoyances like these that makes me want to be a designer (what I'm currently studying for).

Thanks achu for posting the Engadget review. It's a shame that they only netted 4:15 of battery life in their real world usage and 8 hours with the sheet battery. That's only 1 additional hour to Sony's initial claim for the internal battery (7 hours).

 

Sandy Bridge battery life is very easy to swing. You'd get 7 hours on the battery if you sat it there doing nothing. But as soon as you start using it, you'll find the battery life will drop like a rock.

Same thing the x220 users are seeing.

 

From the Engadget review:

Sony favored durability over a handful of people who think that laptoip displays should break instead of flex. Shocking.

 

The engadget battery test is video loop with wifi on. thats a very grueling test. If ur doing basic web browsing, ur gonna get a lot more.

 

Macbook Air 13" gets 6h 50m in wifi web browsing at 65% brightness against 7h declared. In video playback with wifi it gets 4h12m which is a very good performance.

Z21 gets 5h30m in wifi web browsing at 65% of brightness, this means that in this kind of load, it consumes nearly 0,7wh more then macbook air 13" (i5 ULV). In video playback with wifi it gets 4h15m which is really really good with that battery (this means it consume 1.5 wh LESS then macbook air 13").

Performance in web browing are not as we believed, but it's true that Sony never mentioned about wifi web browsing, but they mentioned 7 hours of office work or something similar.. so pdf, excel, word and something similar.. and I think that in that case, it would reach 6h30m or 7h.

 

After reading the engadget review i´ve mentioned the following things:

- fan is very loud - also on normal use
- screen is wobbling
- red color if looking from right or left on the screen in some angels
- machine is running hot
- fast boot is possible

 

I imagine the chance of spinning the fans up is less likely if you go for the i5 option? Less powerful but should be cooler.

 

In theory, yes. But:
1) Both are still 35W TDP parts, so they should have similar power envelopes (I wouldn't expect the i5 to be extremely cooler than the i7)
2) An idle i7 will pretty much be as cool as an idle i5
3) Depending on circumstance, an i7 might be able to complete a task and return to idle faster than an i5 (which itself might take longer, heat up a little more, and in turn speed up the fans).

So yeah, the i5 is technically a cooler-running chip, but it will depend mostly on how you use it. Remember that the main distinction between dual-core i5 and i7, aside from speed difference, is the size of the L3 cache (which really doesn't affect operating temperature).

 

In my opinion, i7 2620M is not so useful. Performance improvement against i5 2540M is very very little, often there's no improvement (3DMark CPU and Cinebench are examples).. we can see an improvement in cache pro application of 3-4%, not more. It's completely different the jump we can see from i5 2410M to i5 2540M. In addition, with i5 it keeps a little cooler.
The fan is loud, but as I understood is less loud then Z1 (and it wasn't a difficult task..)

 

U are right. Singlish at work. lol

actual rejection / cancellation messaage:

Thank you for your recent order at Store.Sony.com. Unfortunately, we are unable to authorize your purchase at this time because of a recent change in shipping policies we are no longer able to ship to freight forwarding companies.

You may still see an authorization on your account but no charges will appear since the order was canceled. You can contact your bank to see when the funds from the authorization will be released back to your account and made available.

If you can provide a valid US ship to address that is not a freight forwarding location you may replace your order. To replace your order, please visit Sony Store USA | Sony VAIO® Computers | Sony Consumer Electronics or call our Customer Service & Sales Department at 1-800-571-7669.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your support of Sony Style. If you have any additional questions regarding the cancellation of your order please contact the Consumer Protection Department at 1-866-301-9749.

 

Where did you see that it was loud during normal use? Engadget only said it was loud when it was playing COD...

Yes, but saying that ur laptop has an i5 instead of the i7, the fastest dual core chip, docks you down some cool points

 

I had thought about this as well, but was too lazy to post. All SA's have this "slight give" within the tension hinge when you open the lid to about 70 thru 90 degrees - a sense of looseness. The SB and SC is tight and fitted all the way through. Not sure why? But I thought, maybe, this SA hinge design may be similar to the Z2, even though, externally, it looks different, which may cause the screen to wobble. This seems to be an issue for the SA and has been mentioned throughout the threads, perhaps may be an issue for the Z2 as well from what's been written.

 

It looks like Sony has a shortage on Wireless Broadband components. On the US site, if you custom order a system the ship date is Aug 12 until you add Wireless Broadband, then it goes to Aug 23.

Hopefully this won't affect already existing orders.

 

Maybe this means they're clearing out inventory for LTE mobile broadband cards?

 

good thing i didnt order/dont need wwan!

 

that would be nice

 

Maybe there is a chance to change the mobile broadband card later to an lte version?

 

The Z1 also has that red tint on the screen when looking from the sides.

 

I've been searching through this thread to no avail.

Awhile back, someone in this thread posted pics and links to the cases/sleeves available from Sony.jp

I'm specifically looking for the leather case with the blue velvet interior. PLEASE help and link me to that post!

thanks!

 

^
This case?
¤•i‚̎ʐ^ | VGP-CKZ3 | »•iî•ñ | ŒÂlŒü‚¯ | VAIOƒp[ƒ\ƒiƒ‹ƒRƒ“ƒsƒ…[ƒ^[ | ƒ\ƒj[

 

yes, thank you!!!! I just really LOVE the tailored fit and matching blue interior. I have a CKZ2 and know it would fit the Z2190X, but i'm so hooked, that i've already listed the CKZ2 for sale and then let Sony gouge me again on the CKZ3 once it's released state side.

Logically it seems like a complete waste of money and a poor value, so I do hope it looks as good if not better than in pictures.

I'd like to hear from other Z110 owners that plan on upgrading to Z2190x and also own a CKZ2 case.Reuse the CKZ2? Sell it to move to the CKZ3?

 

I love that case. I hope it's for sale up here.

EDIT: HOLY SH*T. That's a lot of money for a case.


Can you order your custom configuration in the Sony Centre stores or is that only possible online? The custom configuration site is now up on the Norwegian site aswell, but the only problem I have is that Norwegian doesn't show up on the list for Language & Keyboard.

I understand that the configurator is identical worldwide and prolly hosted in the US, but still, it wouldn't really make sense to only offer custom config machines with international keyboards?

I've emailed around about it but nobody seems to be able to answer me. Would be nice to go i5+8GB RAM+G3 128GB SSD.

 

^How much is it? I personally would like a memory foam sleeve (like teh be.ez) more than the leather case. It makes the Z look a little fat.

CTO is usually online, over phone, or over chat. I've never heard doing one in store.

All Z2's are manufactured and configured in nagano japan

 

that sleeve retails for close to $200USD from those other foreign countries. Maybe those prices are due to poor currency exchange and VAT.

The VGP-CKZ2 retails for $150 so it's feasible that they can bring the CKZ3 to the states, especially if that $200USD cost in foreign countries include VAT.

More importantly, i'm still navigating Sony's discount policies. I wish they'd bump EDU back up to 10%.

Right now to get 10%, i have to buy 2 accessories and a warranty. I had already planned on getting a sheet battery which is considered an accessory, but other than that, I see nothing else functional, compelling, or something I don't already own.

Plus, I predict Sony will start either slashing prices or having free/discounted promotional upgrades like free full HD lcd ($100 value).

The Z21 is more expensive than the Z110 series and I consider it a fringe product which means it will sell less than a niche product.

All in all, they'll be slashing prices on this one sooner rather than later.

 

They need to bring Gold to the USA

 

So does anyone know if you can add a WWAN card after the fact?

 

^ you can, but it is a super big pain in the butt, I have most of the parts except the antennas for the Z1

 

I guess that means Sony USA has blacklisted the shipping forwarding companies; i.e. they won't be shipping products to addresses associated with them. May I ask which companies you attempted to place an order with? Did you try MyUS.com? I was hoping to utilize the latter, and it'll be quite a bummer if it was not possible.

 

Is it me or neither of these test mentions about the 3. gen SSD raid performance? The last gen Z had quad ssd with a beastly performance. But seeing its pc mark vantage benchmark & boot times (38sec.) I think new Z isnt what I was hoping for. I'll wait for few more reviews until I decide whether to buy it or skip this gen..

 

^
The Z2 SSD (even gen 2) is supposed to be faster than the Z1 (with gen 1 SSD)

Check out the video here:
http://www.sonystyle.com.tw/is-bin/...oryID=HMYKAQuxcTUAAAEbtVUMjHGi#productContain

Sony Taiwan took off the video comparing the Z2 with gen 2 SSD vs Z2 with gen 3 SSD.
I guess the Taiwan Z2 comes with gen 2...

 

Went to the Sony Centrum in Stockholm to touch the big Z. It was light and sturdy. Almost no flex when using my normal touch. Got used to the keyboard after a few seconds. One problem, the lovely black color had a touch of blue in it (on the lid). A good screen to watch on, same as my F12.

 

AFAIK the tests in the reviews had the fast boot option disabled in the BIOS, that's why the boot time is pretty long.

 

@ota-con

Thanx for the reply.

At this link

Sony VAIO Z (2011) - Benchmark Test Results

It says 38 seconds but I think it is a typo or the second page of review has a typo because at the second page it says 28 seconds. Still its way slower than the 13second boot time at the link you shared(thank you for that also). I will wait a in-depth review of notebookcheck or a poweruser. And still usa gets the 3gen ssds or 2. gen ssds is not clear on their website. I'd love to see a user review because tech editors can make irrelevant comments on what they are not interested. So someone who desires this machine and actually pay for it could easily make more realistic comments about the new Z.Because I can easily skip this gen and wait for the quad core subnotebooks. I really like the performance of the second gen core i5 and i7s. So I think I can live with my Z1 and 15.6- i7 quad. for my everyday usage. My dream notebook was this until I saw the benchmarks. I was expecting something similar to VGN-Z to VPC-Z overall performance jump. External box is for those who'll use this pc as one and only I already got plenty... maybe another time. With quad core and a sweet IPS display maybe? Also better discrete graphics. Why am I interested? I dont know I always love the sony's top of the line products. They really are something. I dont know. They always has some feature that no other brand has.. So who knows.. Maybe I'll get one after the reviews.. 3rd. gen ssds get 500mbs Read/write rates. So for the raid it should be a little less than 2x500mbs. Thats what I hope for..

 

^
- to reach 13 seconds one must activate the special boot mode which avoid checking bios/periphericals. By default it's NOT activated (Sony rep told me)
- ssd 3rd gen (256GB) reaches 1000MB/s reading and 497MB/s writing
- forget of getting a quad-core in the next generation (Ivy Bridge) in Ultraportable laptop.. Ultraportable laptops usually gets ULV or LV Cpus, this means 17/18W or 25W. Sometimes 35W with normal Cpus like S or Z. Ivi Bridge quad-core will be 45W TDP.. so in a laptop as Sony Vaio S, which is a 13" with a discrete GPU, you will not see a quad core inside. The same for Z, which is really thinner and without discrete gpu, It's already at its limits in heat dissipation (being quite loud) so it will be NOT possible to get a 45W tdp cpu inside.

 

@noap_

Didnt know that thank you.

@Crystal1988

I tought ivy bridges TDPs will be lower because of 22nm but after checking for a few minutes sadly you may be right =) A 35W tdp quad core would be nice..
and that 1000mbs Read is amazing like a expected.. But 500mbs write is a little bit slow for the raid I think. I wish they didnt dropped quad ssd. The results would be amazing..