New Sony Vaio Z speculation/news thread

I already got Z1....i'll have to wait for Z3 as Z2 is not that impressive

 

if you check side picture, there are rubber feet just below a/c connection, so why having ones on screen lid as well? Is this meant to support screen and minimize pressure/impact on hinge? Or maybe it's there for better airflow, slightly raising top part?

Any word on actual dimensions?

Cheers,
Miki

 

maybe sony's engineers are so far ahead of our time that we just can't see the genius of their design..............

ill be waiting for a video explanation of why they chose to design it the way they did

if they don't have one, ill have to assume they cheaped out on design

 

yeah i honestly can't comprehend why you make an ultra portable, and then make large gaps around the keypad and screen. just dumb.
I'm sure the laptop will be a beauty to own, but it makes you wonder.
I feel it has a lot to do with trying to make it thin, so just for bragging rights.

i wonder if one of the reasons trackpad is so small is because they've actually run out of room due to the way the lid opens. The lid actually takes up a bit of the depth of the laptop, so the base of the laptop is shorter than the lid.

but good point about how do you have the screen at different angles. the feet seem to have a flat spot for a certain angle.

question to the previous z owners, what was so great about the barrel hinge?

btw despite the huge bezel, i think this laptop looks friken hot

 

question about the usb and thunderbolt port/s, does the thunderbolt port use the same slot as the usb3? how does that work again
I'm wondering how you connect a an external hard drive (usb3) at the same time as the egpu. you can daisy chain thunderbolt, but not usb3. very confused

 

Looks that kill

 

I like the look of the SA & new Z. They look classy and not over the top. I'm sure whatever spec Sony opts for, they will meet 95% of users needs.

If I was in the market for a new laptop, I'd certainly want the 2011 Z. But I have a Z from 2010 which for me is still the best laptop ever made, it's just so perfect. There's absolutely no reason for me to change it at the moment.

 

I'm going to wait for it to be released and for someone to take it apart before I make my final ruling.

 

I think this looks pretty fantastic. Sure it's not going to do it for everyone, but to get that sort of power into a machine with a great display and at just over a kilo is quite something.

I'm still concerned about the graphics/outputs though, although not for sheer grunt as I'm not a gamer, but re the external displays that the new Z (docked) can or cannot drive.

According to the AMD website...

AMD Radeon? HD 6700M/HD 6600M Series Graphics

...the 66xx/67xx chips have a max resolution of 2560x1600 over Dual-link DVI or Display Port only. So large external displays (and dual external displays?) will need one of these connectors on the back of the dock.

I see HDMI on the notebook chassis, but even if docked to the external GPU, the max resolution over HDMI for this GPU is given as 1920 x 1200.

So, any info on the connections available on the back of the dock yet?


S

 

Yea im not sure what all the fuss is about, I dig this new design a lot. We're lucky that a laptop like this even exists.

 

+1000000

 

pretty understandable, when you have such a brilliant laptop like last years Z, and you litterally butcher it, you can't expect everyone to be happy.

i.e. remove ODD and discrete graphics, and wow look everyone it's 0.68kg lighter!
and hey lets make the screen a smaller size so we can make the bezel wider
and while we're at it, lets make the trackpad smaller, you know the whole minimalist theme...

 

so how is the external gpu unit going to be better than something like Vidock, isn't it the same idea minus the customizable card?

 

it's not better, it's just the way Sony designed it.

 

The external GPU can drive the internal display, while a vidock can only drive an external monitor.

 

The screen is not a smaller size, it's exactly the same 13.1 panel as the previous z

 

true facts

 

so we can expect a Z quality screen? lol I'd laugh if Sony decides to put SA's screen on the new Z and screwed with everyone

 

Yea a bunch of reports are stating vaio premium display

 

really? so that means the laptop is wider than the previous model... hmmm agree with previous comment about sony taking 3 steps forwards, one step back.
They really need to walk away from the marketing BS that is: "hey mine is thinner than yours!"
size of a laptop requires at least three dimensions yo!

 

what sony needs to realize is that they are not going to win the fight against apple(im by no means an apple fan) in terms of thinness if it still wants to keep the identity of being a mobile powerhouse. So I agree with the previous comment, being thin while sacrificing the small footprint of Z is a big mistake in Sony's part.

 

So, from what I've heard the 6630m is not the best GPU... so I take it it won't be able to drive a 27" 3d-screen?

Because if so, I'd need an additional vidock :S

 

unfortunately one of the reasons apple is so successful is that they target the "general" population. and by that i mean the people easily sold by clever marketing of simple products and simple advertising...
and as business is all about being in it to win it, so to speak, other manufacturers are having to deal with this brainwashed i-this i-that society, and as a result they often stoop to the same level

 

It's funny. I wonder if the same people whining about the fact that the next Z "might" be a half inch or so wider than the current Z are the same people who complain about the flex of the current Z's panel.

Has it occured to anyone that perhaps there's a correlation between the 2?

The bezel to me still looks far smaller than pretty much every other laptop out there, especially the giant bezeled MBA and MBP.

 

Time will tell. there is a reason why we Z enthiusiuasts are a marginal sliver of the marketshare. Our tastes are particular, and Sony if they're smart, won't be wanting to cater to us, but rather a broader market.

If sony's goal is to provide an ultra premium portable challenging something like the MB Air+ or lenovo x220 , then i think they've achieved that goal.

Screen quality will be better with a full volt cpu, they've balanced power against thermals for the same footprint. External optical drive with some awesome extras, (though the footprint will be bigger, you'll also get a little boost in graphics).

I'm sure we all have our own selfish reasons for wanting things to be one way or another... for the marketplace at large we'll have to see how competitive the pricing will be... are people willing to pay more for a full volt 1080p screen? how much more... it'll be a balancing act.

 

The bezel on the 13inch macbook air, I doubt is greater than the new z.

But I'm not complaining. I don't think sony made the bezel bigger for no reason. Either like beaups said its for added strength or maybe it contains antennas .

 

There are some design compromises in the new Z I'm not crazy about and if there's a better full-power sub-4lb notebook with a quality FHD display, SSDs, etc, available in the next month or so, I'll probably get it.

If not, I'll probably get the Z even though I'll have to buy extra bezel for it.

 

some says here that in the bezel you can put antennas,like 3g and wifi antennas to have more wide range of signal

 

Yeah, I am not so bummed out about the bezel as I am about the weird lid design. It looks like little thought was given how to elevate the notebook to let the heat dissipate. Moreover, it will probably create some ergonomic issues (i.e. using the laptop on one's lap) and structural issues (weak hinge). Aside from that, I like the laptop. Reminds me of a bigger version of the X. But, the lid design is a deal breaker. More thought and engineering should have been put into something that will prob cost ~2$k!!! =)

 

Maybe more people would like the new Z if Sony added some bling to their bezel.

 

I'm happy about everything so far except the external GPU which hasn't been confirmed but the rumors aren't boding well.

Another thing I'm not sure about is the availability of the 1080p version. So far it seems the launch models are all 1600x900.

 

I don't think so.
As I almost exclusively use my laptop on plane trays and my lap, I know that an extra 3/4 inch is significant for me (I actually wish that Sony had continued the TT). And I love that the screen flexes; the tree that bends in the wind doesn't break.

 

probably it woul be the press release on 28th june





according to this page

techbang

 

The size of a screen has nothing to do with whether a card can drive it or not. The signal that goes to a 17" 1920x1080 display is no different than the one that goes to a 60" 1920x1080 display.
3D? As far as I understand, the new Z can only pass on the signals from a 3D Blu-Ray disk, but does not support 3D gaming or modeling. It's just not powerful enough.
It's also not an nVidia, so there's no nVidia 3D Vision support, and the only AMD models that support 3DHD for gaming are HD5730 and HD5830. So no.

 

since this one can drive the internal display, i.e. have a mux to change the I/O of the signals, I dont see why it wouldnt work with the sonnet egpu

AMD uses third party software to control the 3d part, and no there are a lot of other cards that can do 3d

 

Indeed. TUESDAYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I can't wait for any of those massively "glorified & influential" videos (if available) from the engineers who created the new VAIO Z series, talking about their inspirations & reasons for creating the new series as these new notebooks are eventually made into their final form.

 

In which time zone 13:30? Thanks!

 

Probably Japanese

 

That would make it 12:30am Tuesday EST here in the US

EDIT: Or it might be China/Taiwan, which would make is 1:30 am. Either way, we will be waking up to some very good news!

 

Translation (to the best of my ability):

Sony 2011 Summer Season Vaio machines announcement/press release

the best of the breed amongst notebooks; carries an air of a king
VAIO's new top grade machines overcome its limits once again
peerless efficiency and power, sophisticated/intricate and perfect design
will appear with a bang

date of activity: 2011 june 28th
time of activity: starts sharp at 13:30 (media is allowed entrance at 13:00)

 

I guess the "Freestyle Hybrid PC" won't be announced as only press images of the Z has leaked out.

 

Well according to the translation above it says "machines" as plural so maybe we'll hear something.

 

It there a smaller vaio with a z premium screen quality? Any info on upcoming models with such screen?

 

Um I have to apologize here. In mandarin there's no such thing as pluralization - those plurals were introduced by me (by habit I guess).

Edit: I agree with dannisan though. The chinese text does sound as if it's talking about the Z, or rather, the new Z, because it said "Sony's top grade machine overcomes its limits ONCE AGAIN". The freestyle hybrids are rather new...definitely not what the text was talking about. So the freestyle hybrid may not show up in the press release.

 

anyone comment on when preorders will open for the preconfigured models?

 

I'm not really getting the point of the new Z at all. All they really needed to do to make it better than the current Z was add simultaneous out for 2 monitors and try to make it a tad thinner and lighter. If the new one had a much smaller bezel and they decided to throw in a 1080p 14" display it might have been a tolerable design change.

I think I'll wait until next year and hope they really go back in the right direction next time around.

The rediculously wide bezel reminds me of the old Zenith laptops from the late 80s.

 

I doubt they will make a new design next year, just a little refresh with an upgrade to ivy bridge.

 

No built in ODD is the way of the future. The same for an end to separate GPUs except for hard core gamers and a few other specialized purposes. With the original Core i series chips, going with the onboard graphics wasn't practical for a fair number of applications. With Sandy Bridge it is. When Ivy Bridge is rolled out next year there will be even fewer instances when a outboard GPU is called for. The new Z is Sony's way of getting ready for the future. If I wasn't planning to get a laptop pretty soon, I would wait for the Ivy Bridge Z which should be quite cool and on market relatively soon after the chips are released.

 

The point of the new Z is that it's moving to a different segment. If you want the features of the old Z, you'll have to now get an SA. (which many would agree is not comparable, but it's the closest you can get aside from actually getting an old Z)