New Sony Vaio Z speculation/news thread

Yes, that is good news. That they didn't dumb it down to a 2.4 GHz only card, like so many manufacturers do is welcome, and significantly increases the chance of my buying one.
Another must for me is a 1394A port - let's hope that hasn't gone away, like it did on second generation Z models in some regions.

All in all, and given that this is Sony, I just hope the new Z won't be dumbed down and features I currently depend on disappear.

 

The 6230 would be consistent with the idea that the Z isn't just an ultra-light configuration for a 13.3 laptop aka an MBA competitor, but is intended as (and will doubtless be priced as) a top of the line machine.

I like the idea of a laptop that's more capable than an MB Pro but lighter than the new MBA.

 

release the dame thing please, i beg you sony

 

You are right!

Your cat looks familiar...

 

then you probably know me ahah!

 

then you probably know me ahah!

 

This thing can't come soon enough. I have plenty of customers waiting to get new laptops and there just isn't enough competition for the Z.

 

ok, there are 2 models, one with wwan and the other hasn't wwan.
The 2 models has "class 1 laserproduct" on the FCC sticker. sooooo....
they will have dvd/blu ray drive?
what about the speculation of you guys saynig that the new vaio z consist in 2 partas?
one is the notebook itself,integraded gpu(intel),ssd,no optical driver and the other part that has dock,dvd,dedicated gpu, that woul be another model in FCC?

 

^the new Z2 will consist of 2 parts for sure.

 

2 models = 2 parts of the new Vaio Z. The main body + the external ODD/GPU part.

That's how i would see it.

 

I think so, but I hope I can buy a separate system. dont want the dock

 

Oh man that would suck... divided in 2??

 

How much will both parts combined weight?

 

It's supposed to be about 2.5 lbs + 1.5 lbs for the two pieces.

 

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO it is 4 pounds noooooooooo!!!

 

OMG guys the 2nd part is supposed to be a DOCK! its meant to stay on a desk, not to be carried around. It has an external GPU so that when ur SITTING AT YOUR DESK doing intense gaming or video editing, you have access to it. If your just walking around with it, you can use the integrated graphics. sandy bridge graphics are GREAT. good enough for whatever you will be doing.

 

Yes but current Z has all integrated so I understand people deception.
In my opinion, if the concept of separate GPU was an idea, why the hell did they build an external device with one or two more cable(s) that you will plug/unplug hundred of times ? Couldn't they just build a REAL dock system where you just plug your laptop ? And with battery charger included in ?

 

^^ The sandy bridge WEI graphics score is like 5.1 :| (Len X220, i5-2520m, intel hd3000.) We'll have to mod the new Z to make it go faster

 

Beaups, any chance for matte screen? Thanks!

 

I'm almost certainly going to buy the new Z as long as I can get it by the end of August so I can go off to college with it.

 

Referring to beaups it's a bundled package. You have to get the "dock" (actually it is no dock) as well, whether you need it or not.

 

Can we buy it separately??

 

I think you probably can buy the dock separate, in case you lose it or it breaks. But I doubt they will sell you the notebook by itself.

 

Damn, then this doesnt seem too hot now, I will probably wait for macbook air refresh... I wanted a 2.5 lbs gaming capable machine not a 4.0

 

^If you don't want to play the newest games at highest settings, the sandybridge graphics should do the trick.

 

and you think a MBA can perform better? imagine the thermal constraints of sticking a discrete gpu in a space that small. I wouldn't ever game on my lap or on battery power which makes the additional GPU/ODD less concerning. Also, the HD3000 by Intel's a pretty good chip (equivalent to a 310M)

 

Yeah I read a lot about processors and gpu Im a geek of some sort. Just wanted to say that my silly hopes of having a 6xxxm gpu in a 2.5 lbs laptop with a mainstream processor were broken . Also, how come the 11 inch MBA has a discrete GPU and Sony cant do the same!!!

 

^Hey GPU geek, the MBA doesn't have a discrete GPU....

 

haha, thanks, mmd!

 

Really? I thought the gt 320m was discrete! . Hey but why did they move from a one-piece laptop (VPCZ) to a 2 body one?? I think the VPCZ just look sick!

 

^ Because now we got 1 kg machine instead of 1,4 kg in VPC-Z1. Ultraportability matters.

beaups, would you recall what we'll have on the right side of Z2 in terms of I/O. VGA is 100% there. What else? USB and card reader? Expresscard?

 

I thought VGA is on the external dock thing... But there should be more USB ports on the other side I suppose.

 

I figure I'll need an ODD maybe once every week or two, the GPU less often. They're capabilities I need to have, at least for the ODD perhaps for the GPU, but won't use most of the time.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of the Z2's modular design, particularly since the lower power consumption and weight from not having a built-in ODD/GPU are benies I get all the rest of the time.

 

I think it's an awesome design and I won't be surprised if more PC manufacturers follow suite, including Apple.

Thunderbolt allows all kinds of interesting things.

 

Even if Apple does follow, Steve will say he thought of it first and being magical, they are therefore the innovators

 

With such two piece arrangement, what would be the expected battery life if the newZ if its taken apart from the dock?

 

The articles from march stated 8-16.5 hours battery life. This is presumed to mean 8 hours with the normal battery and 16.5 (total) with the sheet battery attached. The 2nd GPU/ODD component would charge the batteries, presumably.

 

I'm currently a Mac person for laptops but Apple's been dripping out technology as slow as they can while keeping sales up. So I'm looking at the rumored Vaio Z and it sounds great to me. I don't really need the dock devices as I don't do anything graphics-intensive but being able to hook up a couple of monitors with only one plug would be attractive.

 

Hmmm.

How fast are the Sandybridge graphics compared to 330m GT, and 330m GT(downclocked) in current VPZ?

5200 in 3dmark 06 according to notebookcheck: Review Intel HD Graphics 3000 graphics solution - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

6400 for 330m GT in 3dmark 06: NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

and vaio Z: 5500 in 3dmark 06: Review Sony Vaio VPC-Z13Z9E (i7, FHD, Quad-SSD) subnotebook - Notebookcheck.net Reviews


So is there a chance that the main unit of this new Z is not that much significantly weaker than the current Z?

 

The way I see it, an external optical drive isn't much bigger than the case for whatever you want to put in an optical drive, and way smaller than the packaging for anything you might buy that comes on CDs/DVDs, so it's not much of an inconvenience for it to be external.

A GPU, on the other hand, isn't easily added and removed after the fact.
(Yes, I know about the external PCIe box you can hook laptops up to, but that's not really fast, and it's not portable at all. And so expensive that you might as well buy a second PC.)

 

Why is why I'm glad the new Z will have a fairly powerful GPU if I need it and not if I don't. The best of both worlds.

 

Can you change the GPU in the dock? Man that would be so sweet.

 

I couldn't agree more, but I think Sony assumes they'll sell enough of the companion sets for such outrageous profit margins it will be worth it, even at low volume. It's a shame that Sony is not committed to making high quality computers at premium, but not absurd prices. They make Apple look like a bargain basement supplier. Of all the computers they make, almost all are overpriced plastic crap except one or two models, that are priced at nearly double what they're worth, even as premium models. Only people for whom money is meaningless can buy a new Z and everyone else who buys Sonys are overpaying for plastic crap. IMHO.

 

Well... if you want a graphic card, I'd advice you not to buy the dock
Buy a desktop card like GTX 560 Ti or better and make a DIY Vidock (PE4H setup) hopefully the laptop will have a true PCI-e 2.0 bandwidth, then you can get with a DIY Vidock connected to the thunderbolt which turn the lappy into a very very machine, and you'll hit 20 000 easily with 3DMark Vantage. I can already manage P15776 with a GTX 560 Ti and my VPC-Z which has a twice as less as the supposed PCIe 2.0 bandwidth of next Z

 

It would be nice to be able to change the GPU but I imagine that the dock is built to be as small and light as possible so there may be power and thermal issues in changing it to something else. I really don't see myself using the dock that much - I think that SB graphics will be fine for me.

BTW, there's a tremendous void in the premium category - it seems to just be Apple at the moment and Sony ducking in and out. Hopefully they will stay in. It's amazing to see all of the other players leaving the playing field. I'm also amazed that Apple hasn't bothered to respond to the Sony Vaio Z - they have nothing like it. They must be making so much money on everything else that they don't want to bother.

 

Since the specs of the thunderbolt port are a pcie x4, what kind of bandwidth do you guys think it will have? (sarcasm)

 

Apple does have a gigantic war chest:
What should Apple buy with their billions? A carrier. - Apple

I would prefer that Apple not follow Sony, TBH. I think Steve has some idea of what to do next, and he should just spend his money doing it I do not think powerful laptops are part of the next wave in the future.

 

Oh my x4 ? it will be really great...
if that's true and if we can enable optimus, for it's secret bandwidth compression wether it is a true PCIe 2.0 true bandwidth or not, I'm sure it will match with normal desktop performance !
Usually a DIY Vidock require an external monitor to get high performance, but with a X4 PCIe 2.0 port, it may be very possible with internal LCD only.
I'll probably sell my current VPC-Z for next one if that is possible.
(And if it looks great, and with a great screen.)

 

While I agree with most of what you have said, the problem here is that Apples 13 inch lines suck donkey.

Sony's Z is the only 13" ultra portable laptop that has balls. It has a beautiful screen and a dedicated GPU. Game over Apple.

Now on paper and spec wise I know that the new Z will be an upgrade from the current Z. I just am not sure that I want the separate component approach. I'm sure that I will upgrade to it, but on the second revision at the earliest.

Now, if Apple made a 13" with a dedicated GPU, it would be hard to buy anything else.

 

yeah the 13inch MBP isn't much more powerfull than the upcoming sandy bridge MBA. Next year apple will do a complete redesign of their MBP range, so maybe things will change.