Received a free tx770p.... Now what?

Title says it all. This thing was bought back in 2006 or so and it still works nicely....

Previously I owned an Asus Eee PC 1000ha that I finally gave away to a friend in NC who really needed a little something like that (long story).

Anywho, I was given this out of the blue a few days later!

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Although I must admit that this little creature runs much better than the Asus 10000ha Eee PC in many areas. For example, the Eee PC could not load some BB software sites in the Firefox browser (i had to use Google's Chrome browser instead), while the Sony can. This is good for me as I am a Firefox fan.

Perhaps part of that is due to the cpu ... the Eee PC has an 1.6 ghz Atom N270, while this one has a Pentium M 773 / 1.3 GHz ULV.

The Eee PC has 2gb of ram while the Sony has 1.5gb - both are ddr2.

Sony tx770p

The Sony is lighter (2.7 lbs) and a little larger (11.1"), has a dual-sided dvd burner built in and a 1366 x 768 screen res; the Eee PC is smaller (10.1"), heavier (3.2 lbs.), no optical drive and a 1024 x 600 screen res. Both get the same battery life - about 7 hours maxed out. Both also have larger, "extended" batteries one could purchase that will double the battery life. Sony also comes with bluetooth and built in WWAN for Sprint, Eee PC has neither. Both have wireless G. I must say that the trackpad and mouse buttons on this little thing are the best I have ever used on a laptop, though! It beats the Eee PC hands down in this category.

Asus 1000ha

The Eee PC has the nicer keyboard imo, being the "chicklet style", but the Sony's keyboard is still fairly good. The overall build quality of the Eee PC is MUCH sturdier, though, in the area of the screen especially ... you have to be REALLY careful with the Sony. Port selection on both is about the same, and the internal video card (Intel 950) are the same as well.

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I could see the Sony as a sort of "high end netbook" selling for, say, $550-600 today - largely b/c of the built in optical drive, bluetooth and WWAN card. But absolutely NOT for $2000, which is ridiculous.

Alternately, the Eee PC model is selling for about $330, which is about right imo ... there are newer models which have better components and such available for around $420 or so.

So in general I am kinda pleased with this "new" machine (it is three years old) - it will function quite nicely as a semi upgrade to the Eee PC I gave away. The higher screen res is a wonderful addition! My ONLY complaint about the Eee PC was that the 1024 x 600 screen res was just a little bit too small. 1200 x 800 or 1366 x 768 is about my minimum, and this one has the latter!

So then - do you all think this thing could run Windows 7? Ubuntu? Would it be really worth it to make a switch considering the very simple things I use it for?

 

Windows 7 should run as well as XP on it maybe even better.
Since Windows 7 was "made" on the basis that it will run perfectly on a netbook specs.

Would load faster into windows than XP does too. A cut down version of any linux distro without all the extra stuff, would do the same also.

 

Interesting comparison, thanks. I was looking at something similar - my eee1000h has been very handy but is a bit heavy (if well made, as you say) and the right-shift key layout is unforgivable. I'm very used to the battery life though, but like yourself 600pixel screen height is too cramped. Do asus have anything yet to compete with the timeline? I don't trust Acer as a brand.

 

May be try W7 and see what you think; some will say that XP is still the ideal OS for these older ultraportables and some seem to think that W7 is just as good. If you can make sure you make some restore discs first.

That is a 2006 laptop and i agree with your preception of what you think these are worth now. The TX has long since been replaced with the TXN, TZ and now the TT which has been discontinued in North America. Anyone that tries to sell the TX for $2,000 is a bit of a chancer and best of luck to them lol. $2,000 is what some TT models retailed at. In 2006 the TX though it probably was worth closer to that price tag.

Also, sometimes when stock levels of very old models are very low the prices go up, it doesn't mean that the laptop is actually worth as much as it may appear.

The TX7 also does not have Sprint built in. Unless the person that gave it to you upgraded it with Sprint (The TXN were sold with Sprint WWAN) it will come with a Egde Cingular modem.

The TX7 can be upgraded to 2GB of ram.

I own a TX EU model with a CS processor. This model improved on the battery life of older models. It is virtually the same as the TXN minus the built in WWAN. If i decide to keep hold of this much longer i don't know if i will upgrade to W7.

I do think that these make good travel laptops though and that is the reason why i bought mine. I don't know if the Asus can take more knocks etc but looks wise to me anyway the TX is in a different class.
I also do prefer traditional keyboards and the TX's is really nice to type on.

It was interesting reading your thoughts about the processors.

 

@ Rachel: Your words are very kind Rachel.

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@ Zendar: The Asus Ul30a has caught my eye lately ... maybe take a gander at that model?

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In general: For those of you who have more recent versions of the same basic laptops by Sony (that is the 11.1" portable creatures) ... would you say in retrospect that the more recent versions of the machine are a worthwhile long term investment?

In terms of reviews I have read many people who complain about the extreme fragility of them, in particular regarding the start button on the right screen hinge.

Thoughts?

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Mycanid, i read your first post again. The Asus actually has a GMA950 graphics card it may be a bit of a crippled one though that is used in some netbooks. The TX models in the US though use the 915 chipset, GMA 900.

The TX was not immune to hinge problems either. I think the TZ has a better build but looks wise i'm not so keen. Some people also do argue that the TZ has got a better build than the Sony TT series.

A few members have reported about the integral weakness around the power button area but as a few would suggest most owners don't appear to have a problem with it.

Upgrading depends on your needs. The TZ/TT have core 2 duo ULV processors. If the TX was just a second laptop it is fine i think. If you were going to use this as your main laptop i would be looking to get a TT series or another laptop. You can get TZ's models with SSD drives for about $1,000 from Clearance Club. The problem is that now at a much lower price you will find 11.6 notebooks that offer similar performance, 4GB ram options, offer a HDMI port and are sub $500.

The TT can be had for under $2,000. You can get one with the latest SUXXX ULV processors. I myself am seriously considering buying one. For a travel laptop i prefer the smaller form factor and fit and finish just cannot be compared to a $400-$500 netbook/ sub notebook.

Take a look also at the 11.6 offerings from Asus the 1410 and HP. Samsung have also released a x120 and Gateway have also.

The TT is now going to be replaced with the X series. There is a high chance of probablity that the X series will have an atom processor. It will weigh 700g and is reported to have 15 plus hrs battery with an extended battery. The processor though does not appear to be really any better than what was in some TXN models.

 

Now what?!?!? I suggest that you use it? No?

 

i guess you should wait for awhile if you wanna start investing to high-end model for 11.1" VAIO. at least until their official release on Windows 7.

i was about to buy the TT before, but end up with Z since the size and weight is abit similar and its balance in term of lightweight and performance. ive play few TT at store, from the built its quite sturdy. not sure about the hinge. but for TZ, there was a recall where the hinge melt due to heat..iinm.

by him a VAIO Z lol

 

Yes, Sony have/has a recall going for the TZ series. Some of these laptops being sold now have been reworked though by Sony and had these problems sorted out. Really, any TZ you buy now from a store really should be reworked.

 

Thank you very much Rachel. That helps me.

I have been using it! I used it to begin the thread with, for example.

Ah ha ... good to know about the latter Miyabi ... heat issues would indeed explain why a hinge could be a little more prone to breaking.

Got it!

 

The following threads might be helpful to you if you decide you want to upgrade your TX.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=325045

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=342801

 

Sorry - been gone the past few days.

Many thanks for the links Rachel. "Little Miss SuperMod" you are, it seems!

 

So I have been looking over the tz and the tt 11.1" series of laptops - and am impressed.

Any tt users out there that can give me some feedback on whether or no a tt would be a good investment? On eBay I can find them for about 1300-1400$....

 

Well ... unfortunately the hard drive on this machine is going through its last throes and is currently in the "click of death" mode.

A replacement hard drive (with no operating system, mind you) goes for around $250!

Pity ... I really liked this machine too.

Any suggestions from other folks out there on this?

 

You can get a zif 1.8 HD which are probably cheaper than the IDE Pata type now. You can get a 1.8 convetor on ebay and these work well. Others have used them in their earlier TX's. You can even go for a 1.8 5400 zif HD but that will be a tight fit. Someone did this upgrade on this forum.

 

Thanks ma'am! So this would be a 1.8 zif 4200 rpm hard drive then and the converter would be from zif to pata?

Just trying to get the names straight before looking for something....

 

You need one of these.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1-8-ZIF-to-1-...uting_CablesConnectors_RL?hash=item45eeffd349

 

Hey guys do you know where can I buy a TX? I don't see any on ebay or sonystyle.

 

I have seen them available on amazon.com actually ... might try there.

 

Ma'am, you totally get rep for being generally awesome and helpful to the poor ole fungus.

 

Okay - in browsing the various hard drive replacements I have come across a lava of options.

One of them is even for a SSD, like this: http://www.amazon.com/64GB-1-8-inch...ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1257712666&sr=1-1

I have also seen other hard drives which are 5mm and 8mm ... will 8mm be too big? Also, is the tx770p able to recognize hard drives bigger gb wise than the 80 they sold with?

 

You know the 1.8 5400RPM zif drive i mentioned before that is 8mm and forum member Metsn used that drive to upgrade an older TX. Like i said though before it was a tight fit. It should be able to take up to at least 120GB no problem.

Edited to add:
I'm now a TT owner and this laptop is perfect.

 

Excellent ... thank you very much!

 

Just a little heads up on this ... I just came across a 80gb 1.8 80gb 4200rpm zif slot hard drive on amazon.com for a decent price, finally.

Elsewhere on the net these drives are selling for anywhere from $250-300. The one on amazon is available for about $115. So i finally went ahead and bought it.

It is a Toshiba drive and if you do an amazon search for "MK8007GAH" you will come up with the product in question. Here is the link of the item I purchased (don't know how long it will be active though): http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-MK800...3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1264886862&sr=8-3

 

Okay - I have received the hard drive and it is the EXACT same model the unit originally shipped with! (Sans the OS and apps, of course.)

The problem now is actually swapping out the hard drive. This little creature is very difficult to take apart. I have briefly looked on the web for diagrams of how to do it and have come up blank.

Anyone else know of a good link showing how to take a tx770p apart?

 

Ah ha! I am in luck! I found a site that has a description very very similar to what it takes to undo the tx770p ... here it is:

http://www.r3uk.com/index.php/tech-tips/34-disassembly-guides/47-sony-vaio-vgn-tx2xp-disassembly

 

This guide is as good as you will get.
http://home.comcast.net/~nw_systems/vgnTX.pdf

Good luck with the HD replacement. I thought the TX North American models came with a 50 pin PATA drive and not a lif/zif drive.

 

Thank you for the link Rachel. You are as awesome as ever I see ... nice to see some thing consistent in the universe.

Unfortunately with the space available in the tx770p chassis the adapters available out there won't fit. What a bother! Talk about proprietary hardware!

Grrrr ... am not too happy with Sony atm....

 

So you're using an adapter, keep on trying forum member Metsn and others have used the Pata-Zif adapter in the earlier TX's and described it as a tight fit.
I just sold a 50 pin PATA 80GB drive like new for $110. If only i knew you were looking. I don't have anymore. I was parting out something.

I hope you can get it to work.

 

Argh....

Just my luck!

I will keep at it ma'am ... thanks again for all your help in this.

 

May be PM Metsn if you feel you come to a dead end with this.

 

Ah ha ... also a good idea. Will do.

 

Well, I returned the other drive and was refunded and I got another hard drive that is a replica of the one the unit shipped with.

So I replaced the hard drive. Everything seemed in good order.

However, when I reassemble everything the machine turns on (both with and without a battery) but no image appears in the screen. It is not booting into the BIOS. Bizarre.

The cpu is running, although it stops after a time (indicated by the cpu light). The battery light shows it is recharging.

Do you think I broke something?

This is turning out to be a major pain....

 

Rachel PMed me to help you out here...I'm sorry I didn't see this thread before. Also try to understand my Czech-Japanese Engrish

First of all I have to say...unfortunately I don't know how to help you. You already got the guides you need (I recommend the official one) and I didn't have such problem as you got.

Also, I can't recommend you to use any cheap SSD, good HDD will be better. My first attempt to swap the HDD wasn't successful. I used adapter bought from eBay with Samsung HDD 5400 rpm (there's only one type). I'm not sure, if I pressed the HDD too much while closing the nb, but the HDD collapsed while I was installing Windows. But anyway, I don't think it was a good choice, as the HDD was vibrating with the whole nb and producing quite a lot of heat.

Today I believe the main problem was, that I was trying to fit that HDD with the metal frame which hold the original HDD.

My second try was with Toshiba HDD 120GB, I believe it was MK1214GAH. And this adapter from DealExtreme. Somehow I found the quality of this adapter better. I would recommend to order two to be sure.

All I did was putting it together without the metal frame and turning it on. You got to be sure everything is connected well, so the disk will show up in the BIOS. I put the adapter the same way as the guy here.

If your nb doesn't work, take out the battery and hold the power button for 30s. Than put the battery back and turn it on. If it doesn't help, do the trick with power button again, disassemble the notebook, maybe try to exchange the adapter for different one and put it back together...be sure everything is well connected. Than check BIOS, that your nb recognized your new HDD.

That's all I know...if you got some questions, post them here

I'm sorry I could not be more helpful

 

Thanks so much for your suggestion about the 30 seconds button and battery removal thing ... that was something I had not heard of!

Sadly, though, after trying this it still is showing no image on the laptop screen. Curiously I have also tried to hook up an external monitor to the notebook and no image shows up on it either ... hmm....

So I guess I will have to try the disassembling and reassembling of the notebook again, step by step, checking all the connections carefully.

And btw - your "Czech-Japanese Engrish" was perfectly understandable.
Thanks so much for your help!

 

OK, let us know how it's continuing...good luck!!

 

Well ... I took it apart and put it back together step by step twice and tried your suggestion about holding down the power key for 30 sec a few times. No dice.



Looks like I am going to have to give up on this one.

Nonetheless, many thanks to you all for your help in this....

 

Well I'm sorry I couldn't help more...just to let you know I had some problems with TX lately and this morning the screen finally doesn't turn on at all. As you said the nb is running but no picture (not even backlight) on the screen. It seems that it's clock just finished clicking...

 

Whoops!

I hope I did not infect your machine somehow!

*sigh* ... a pity - they are nice machines, eh?

Well ... again, thank you for your help in this.

 

Maybe if we would put both TX together it would be working ,) Right now it's on and running but it took about 20 tries to make it start. Anyway it's my wife's nb right now and it'll be replaced soon...most probably with EB.

 

Ah Metsn i asked you before if you got the HD upgrade to work and you said yes. I never knew that you switched back to a 4200 HD. Still, i think from memory and conversation there have been other owners who have used this drive. May be if you want to use this drive may be PM Robus to enquire some more. It seems that you found the cause of why Mycanid had problems getting it to fit.

Still, i have used the said drive in another ultraportable and for storage purposes it worked well but i could hardly notice any difference over the standard HD.

Mycanid may be the hard drive connector is not seated correctly or it is damaged. That it what it sounds like it could possibly be to me.

I bought a couple of those adapters from Ebay. I also bought some spare zif connectors from ebay and used those with it as they were just better.

I also replaced a standard 1.8 with 2 SSD's in these older ultraportables. One being a Samsung and the other a Photofast V2 50pin drive and I noticed a marked improvement over the standard drive so i would recommend it. It transformed these laptops. A number of these SSD's appear virtually identical.

If you don't demand that much space and don't leave the drive to near full pretty much any decent SSD should be an improvement over the standard drive. It's really in the access times where the SSD shines. I've not yet seen one that wasn't decent.

The 1.8 4200 HDs are not great really at all. You can get 128GB 1.8 zif/pata SSD's but really those are quite expensive and not many i imagine would want to pay out for one that own these older ultraportables.

I bought my niece a V2 Photofast 64GB drive and it works well in her P7230. With system restore set at 1.5GB in W7 she has over 30GB of space left after she installed and loaded everything she wants on her computer. Using an external also is a good idea.

 

Wohoo, my TX is on and running better than in the past year But after you'll see the pictures, you'll think that I got completely mad

I still felt that one of the main reason, why the notebook is dying is its weak chases. I felt like there has to be something metal which is touching something what shouldn't. That's why I took the nb completely apart and put insulating tape on every suspicious metal part. Maybe it would be easier just to take it out, but I felt somehow I want to keep it in it.

That seems to solve the main problem with the TX dying every time I took it from table.

Then I also took apart every part including the screen and cleaned the dust with pressed air and ethanol.

After doing so I put it back together and the notebook was....dead. Completely. It didn't turn on at all. After about one hour reading the service manual forward/backward upside down and taking the nb apart again and again...I got an idea to look at the cable which is connecting the power button (and other buttons) with motherboard.

As I was opening the notebook quite often, the metal contact on the cable got completely worn off. After some time trying to find some less crazy solution I finally took the ribbon which came with the adapter for ZIF/PATA HDD (the one which is blue on both sides) and cut it to be exactly the same as the broken one.

To tell the truth at this point I already told my wife to order a new notebook. But to my surprise it works. Starts with no problem and doesn't block anymore.

So when you will have a day off, you could try the same

Cheers,
eM.

 

Hard drive connector eh? Hmm ... okay ... I will take a look at it when I get a chance.

Hmm ... interesting about the tape ... perhaps there is a short of some sort somewhere ... hmm ... good advice. I will see about this too when I get a chance.