Quick Initial Thoughs on new Vaio SR

Just received my CTO SR that i bought for my g/f and am currently typing on it right now for these initial thoughts:

Note: we returned a XPS M1330 and opted to keep the Vaio, my g/f liked the Vaio more from a style standpoint and also a few more things i'll get into below.

Pros:
- runs quiet and cool, XPS ran a little hot and was noisy BUT it also had a 7200rpm drive verse the 5400rpm of the SR but imo experience modern 7200s don't run THAT much noisier/hotter than a comparable 5400rpm
- keyboard is nicer imo with better tactile response and better reminds me of my T40 thinkpad (my laptop)
- much better screen, the XPS had an LED as well but it was flickering and also you could see some vertical lines when the brightness was low
- Large touchpad, more than twice the size of the XPS

Cons:
- some keys are very loud and have poor tactile response, especially the tab/caps/lock/shift button, they feel like i'm going to break them and i don't type hard either
- the page up/down/home/end keys are only accessible via the FN key...BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I am a Financial Analyst by profession and live in Excel, i could not use this laptop to work on. I use these keys a lot and my productivity would suffer BUT i guess it isn't too bad considering it's her laptop and she isn't the power user i am.
- Volume is only available via FN key, this is highly annoying since most laptops these days have separate buttons for them

thats all i have for initial thoughts from using it for a couple hours. As i modify it and uninstall some of the bloatware and change some things i'll expand on my review.

quick config options:
P8400
2gb of ram (1gb for free)
160gb 5400rpm (upgrade for free from 120gb)
Integrated graphics
free upgrade to 2007 Microsoft office home and student version

With the discount SonyStyle was having on the SR bundled with an extended warranty and two accessories plus the $150 credit i'll get on the SonyStyle card i used to purchase it, the SR only ended up being $80 more than the XPS we returned (which had a 30% off coupon).

 

congrats on the new laptop!

I'm with you on the loud keys... the mouse buttons are extremely loud too..especially when I'm in a library.. that's why i bring a mouse with me wherever i go

 

I found that if you position your finger on the bottom of the mouse button and push your finger forward firmly and gently, you can practically silence your presses.

 

That withstanding, it shouldn't matter. I type between 90-100wpm and i should not have to slow down to consciously learn how to hit a key different. As i said above i don't pound keys either.

 

Oh I didn't mean the keyboard, I meant the mouse buttons!

 

my SR came with a 7200rpm 200GB drive and 4GB RAM

 

Ah my bad...

 

How loud is the fan and how much heat does it produce with that hard drive (7200rpm) while jus surfing the net. And yours has the ati graphics i take it?

 

i havent even noticed the fan (maybe because i work next to my AC and Desktop)

There is some normal heat when doing some heavy tasks but nothing extreme

I havent really put the ATI to work yet but i will test it soon with FIFA09

 

When you do test it with Fifa09 will you please post the results on My Gaming Thread..for the SR