Pics of my TZ inside the Pelican 1080 hard protective case

Hey Guys,

I mentioned in another thread about cases that I had bought this case for my TZ:

http://www.pelican-case.com/1080-laptop-cases-by-pelican.html

A few guys expressed interest in seeing pictures when it arrived, so I thought I'd start a new thread.

Obviously the benefit of this case is it gives awesome protection, it's waterproof, dust proof, crush proof shock proof. The downside is it adds a fair bit of size, which fine for me because I want to put it in a backpack with other things, but I think for other people it will defeat the purpose of having the TZ in the first place.

The foam inside is perforated into cubes, so you can cut out a hole that's the right size for your laptop, which is great, you get a perfect fit and it could take a variety of laptops.

I'm have to say I'm very happy with it, it's great to be able to cart it around and not worry at all about whether it's gonna get bumped and damaged.

Sorry the pictures are quite poor quality, but you get the idea.

 

looks pretty awesome does it fit other laptops or just jour one

 

The foam surround in the base of the case starts as a solid piece of foam with a perforated grid. So you can puck out the size and shape you want. So yeah, it can take bigger and smaller laptops. It's supposed to support up to a 13" laptop, but the case is quite thin, so you couldn't fit anything much thicker than a TZ in it.

 

can we have a pic of the side w/it closed to see how thick it is Please...
Very James Bond'ish

 

tz looks good... case looks good.... foot looks baaadd...

 

haha... I really like the case and how it perfectly protects the laptop.

 

Very nice! mind if i ask how much it set you back? I'll usually carry mine in a sleeve inside my briefcase, which is ok protection, but i might look into this for when i don't want to take my bc.

 

It cost 139 AUD here in Australia, but pelican-case.com have it listed as 69 USD if you're in the US.

I'll post better pictures of it side by side with the laptop from a few angles so you can get a better idea of the size and thickness of it.

 

Hey Guys,

I'm considering to get one of these for my SZ. Can anyone confirm that it would fit (guess it should, if I compare the data of the box and the notebook) or that it would definately not fit?

Cheers

 

thanks for this BMOC. i'd love to see some side by sides, like you described. did you have to cut out those little squares to your own notebooks specifications?

 

Dunno if this will still be relevant to you ninjavsjippo, sorry I took so long to provide said pictures, but here they are for what it's worth.

Not very good quality shots but you can get an idea of the thickness difference between the laptop and the case.

I'll also add that after using this for a few weeks, I'm so glad I bought it, it's fantastic.

 

Wow, impressed with this white TZ!

Are you satisfited with this colour? What about dust and scratches?

 

Do you have the Model # for this case that fits the TZ?

Thanks!


Sorry! Got it 1080 ... did not read the Header carefully!

 

So, does the foam material feel rough against the Vaio TZ? Does it feel like it may scratch the Vaio TZ at all?

Also, thanks for replying to my topic on case suggestions. In your post, you said that you trimmed the upper foam in the case. Wouldn't this reduce the amount of protection the case provides?

 

Armadilo:

Initially I would have preferred black, but in Australia the base model TZ only comes in white. Overall I didn't really care about the colour to be honest, the white looks really nice, and now that I've owned it for a while I wouldn't swap it for a black one. No problems keeping it clean at all, but I take pretty good care of it, wipe it down with the supplied cleaning cloth fairly regularly, try to never use it with greasy or dirty hands. I haven't scratched it at all, like I said, I take good care of it. I kind of think it's a good thing for cleanliness if it's white, a laptop shouldn't be getting any dirt on it anyway, at least if it's white I'll notice any dirt or grime straight away.

Gazelle:

No the foam isn't coarse, I highly doubt it could scratch the laptop. Mine lives in the case every day and it hasn't been scratched by it.

I suppose trimming the foam naturally did reduce the amount of foam between the laptop and the lid, but there is still plenty there. I really only trimmed a small amount and didn't feel at all as if there wasn't heaps of protection still there. You just have to use your own judgment I suppose, but rest assured I bought this case because protection was my highest priority and wouldn't have done anything that I felt compromised the laptop's safety.

I really don't think you can go wrong with this case gazelle. The fact of the matter is there really isn't anything else out there offering the kind of protection you're looking for. I scoured the internet for months before making this purchase, and I couldn't find any other hard laptop cases that were small enough to be worth considering. The opportunity is there for someone to manufacture a form-fitting, hard case specifically for the TZ, I think they would sell a heap of them. I haven't heard of a TZ owner who doesn't love their laptop, but it seems like most of them have concerns about safety and protection, especially of the slimline screen.

The only other thing I would recommend taking a look at are pistol cases. Here are two that I was considering before I discovered the Pelican 1080. Both are smaller in length and width than the pelican, but they are both thicker. Had I not discovered the pelican case, I would definitely have bought one of these. I'm still tempted to get one anyway, for times when I just want to travel with the laptop and nothing else, as they have a handle.

http://www.exploreproducts.com/guardforcegds-6226c-handguncase.htm

http://www.exploreproducts.com/handguncase7701.htm

 

Hey,

I just wanted to share my experience, maybe its helpful for someone.
I received the Pelican HardBack 1080 case today. The Sony SZ650 (and so, every kind of Sony SZ, I guess) fits into it. Theres about 8mm room on the sides and 10mm in front and behind the notebook when it is placed in the center. It fits in heightwise, too, but the foam for the top that came with the case has to be replaced, as it seems to apply quite some pressure. With some soft padding from scratch instead of the supplied one, this should be one of the smallest tough cases you can get for your SZ.

 

thats one gangly foot - are your toes webbed? can you outswim most people?

 

I wish I knew about this WAaaayyyyy before I bought my SOnySZ! I could have saved me someX2 scratches!

 

Can a Vaio TZ with an extra large battery fit into this case?

 

I have two Pelican cases specifically designed for laptops; the smaller 1470 and the larger 1490, both with the inserts rather than the foam (the "CC1" models).

 

yes, with the removal of some of the top foam. i did that.

 

When you say removal, do you mean by physically cutting the foam with a knife or something?

 

very cool, thanks for the follow-up bmoc. this would be great for me when I fly, as my stuff tends to get banged about some

 

Yeah, I removed a bit of the top foam tips with scissors, and cut away a bit of the bottom thin foam on the bottom so the battery sits in the dip in the case.

 

Sorry for bringing up this old thread but will it fit the Vaio Z? Looks like the perfect tough case for it as well.

 

Here's the specs

 

12.6 inches by 9 seem to be a very tight fit for the z. A friend of mine said the size is just perfect for the 13 inch Macbook though. Anybody tried to put a Z into one of these?

 

On paper, it looks like a perfect fit. I might look for a Peli case dealer near me so I can actually see if it fits.

 

If you could be bothered it would be great, we don't have the 1080 in the local stores and the only way I could find out if it fits the Z is if I actually buy it online.

 

Sadly, it looks to be the same for me. Some local shops (kayak equipment and camera equipment sellers) stock Peli, but sadly none of the places I contacted had the 1080, or any intention of getting one. So I would also need to buy it.

 

I am getting mine in 3 days, I will see if it fits the Z, take pictures and post them here if it helps.

 

Thanks JClaude, that would help a lot!

 

I have the case, and photos, this forum does not allow me to post images until I have 15 posts.... :-(

 

Sony Vaio Z on a Pelican 1080 Case.
I have tried and took some photos to show to fit a Sony Vaio Z on the 1080, with both the standard and extended battery.
The Z with extended batter will NOT fit in this case, with or without paddings, it will just not fit.
With the standard battery it will fit if you remove the "plucking" layer, you can keep the very bottom thin foam layer, and keep the top "egg box" foam layer. If you keep the eggbox layer, closing the is very tight, you can cut it at the back and you get a nice snug fit. Of course, if you have the extended battery it is easy, just take the batter out before putting it in the case.


The case


The batteries


Standard battery model,with eggbox top foam layer, case does not close on it's own, you need to push with some strength in order to close the case, the spring action of the top foam layer will make opening the latch quite difficult after closing.



As you can see, with extended battery there is not way to close the case of the top eggbox foam layer is kept.


Standard battery, both top and bottom layers of foam removed, case closes ok, but there is no padding at the bottom and just a little at the bottom, not a good solution.


Extended battery, case does no "give" to try to push the lid down.



This is the Vaio Skin, brown, it is really cool, protective and easy to apply, recommended to spend a few $, it is quite worth it.


So, this case does work, but it is not ideal, the bottom foam layer cannot be use in any way since the case is not wide enough.
In order to use this case I would recommend the following, remove bottom "pluck" foam layer leaving the bottom thin layer, keep the top eggbox foam layer but cut some of it at the back and, remove the battery when carrying the laptop, I will be cutting this top layer later and report on how it goes.
Also, sorry for the dust, I used one of my macro lenses and not much escapes it hehehehe

 

Excellent mate love ur TZ now, white one ? so WoW!. Where can i buy ur TZ in best price ? i dun care new or used, thank

 

Wow thanks for the pics and the review of the Pelican and how it fits the Z mate! I was looking for a post like your for months!

 

You are welcome, I too was looking for one, not finding it I just went ahead and bought it, not that much anyway and now I know
Being a laptop case, I would say Pelican made VERY POOR research to build this case, just a few extra mm and it would reach a much broader market of laptop users...the model over, in size, is just too much for a Z, this one, would it be just a tad larger, would be just ideal.