Review: Sony Vaio SA

For everyone commenting on the price increase of roughly 300GBP for the SA model, I have spoken to a Sony online rep and they have said this price is a mistake and that it should be corrected back to the original price by Tuesday morning at 9am.

I was planning to order one until I saw the price hike, so I will wait and see if this reduction actually happens I think.

 

this must be a joke, if it´s a 300 GBP mistake they would correct it in minutes, and not take a week to do so. Even when it´s 300 GBP more (and not less, in which case they would correct it in SECONDS).

 

I had an IM chat with a Sony sales rep who was just as surprised and confused by the new price as I was - he advised for me to check directly with Sony Service number (0208 412 9551 if anyone wants that info) about it all. I haven't called yet - I'll maybe wait until tomorrow and see if the original price returns. Seems odd that the new hiked price for SA and SB is "a mistake" - how can a mistake like that be made, affecting all the ordering system and product line? And across large swathes of Europe too! The suspicious part me of thinks Sony was perhaps chancing their arm and testing consumer reaction to higher prices - and the avalanche of negative comments in forums etc might have convinced them to return to normal pricing... here's hoping anyway.

 

You're complaining about the price? You should see the price here in Norway.
Cheapest I can find online is still over $4000!

Too bad you can't order withouth Blu-ray, as I want a cheap optical drive
which can be replaced with an SSD or battery.

Brianho1337: $920 for the cheapest iphone 4.

 

yea I feel the pain for you Norwegian people lol. iPhones start at $1700 right?

 

if i want to fresh install windows, what driver/software do i need to install? i read a topic with drivers to be installed and in wich order, but i can't find it anymore. i'm switching to an ssd and win7 ultimate (vaio came with home edition).

thank you

 

Thanks for this review. I was in a Sony store over the weekend, and was really impressed by the SA. Somehow after all the anguishing over the screen, I was expecting a really disappointing experience. On the contrary, everything looked great - the display and the general build quality. Perhaps I am lucky not to have been spoiled by owning a Z in the past.

One question - are you attaching your monitor using the HDMI port? Does this verify that the HDMI connection can handle more than 1080p?

 

max 1920 x 1200 is suported

Does anyone knows what kind of ssd disk uses sony 4 vaioSA in combination 2x 128 gb?!

 

I had a similar experience at the Sony store. I think I will get the SA after ditching the Samsung Series 9 because of the wireless problems. I am also interested in knowing what SSD Sony uses in the SA for the different capacities before I buy.

 

I've got a brand new VPCSA2BGX/BI still sealed in the box if anyone in the SF bay area is looking for a deal. Send me a PM if interested.

Link for specs.

 

It's proprietary. If you open the SA up you'll see 2 IC boards at the HDD compartment.

 

MY REVIEW OF THE VAIO SA


I just got my Vaio SA yesterday, and I've upgraded with an OCZ Agility 3 and additional 4gb RAM (total 8gb), so I'll give my impressions below.

Firstly, the OCZ Agility 3 needed to be upgraded from firmware 2.06 to 2.09 to resolve any problems of stuttering.

w/ the SSD, i boot Windows in 10 seconds, even after installing my anti-virus and all my applications. I uninstalled VAIO Gate coz I think it's obstructive and uesless. The fingerprint reader is good and quick, i just need to swipe my finger at the Windows login page and it does the rest. I got the sheet battery free with the student promotion. I also went to weigh the SA, it's 1.65kg only. I'll try to cut things short here:

Good:
Sheet Battery
USB 3.0
Wireless N
AMD 6630M
1.65 kg
1600x900 screen
Sandy Bridge CPU w/ AES-NI
Keyboard + backlight
Dholby Home Theater (good w/ earphones)
Matte screen (6mm thick)
Ambient Light Sensor
Fingerprint reader
22mm depth
Blu-ray reader
Multi-touch trackpad
Magnesium Chassis, aluminum palmrest

Some of the bad I've been hearing about the SA/SB and my opinion:
Fingerprints - The black SA does leave some fingerprints, but not in as ugly as some glossy/plastic chassis.
Flimsy hinge - It's quite true. I heard that there are screws to tighten it, but I can't find any. It is especially flimsy when it is directly vertical, which is annoying coz that's the position i usually put it at, and it sometimes vibrates while I type. However, it is still acceptable to me for such a thin screen.
Poor Viewing Angles - Vertically, the angles are quite poor, colors wash out or invert. However, the horizontal angles on my screen seem to be pretty good. It just darkens abit at the sides, but the color doesn't invert or wash out.
Poor Contrast - This is largely due to the poor black level of the screen. When displaying a full black picture the screen is actually grey. Color reproduction, I feel, is on par with or better most other TN screens, good especially considering it's a matte screen. I am not looking at this screen coming from a Vaio Z or an IPS screen (they're in their own league), but rather from a Samsung XL2370 (one of the best TN screens out there).
Trackpad - True, the buttons are stiff but I haven't misclicked it yet. What I find good is that there's a button (FN-F2) that disables the trackpad so I don't accidentally move my cursor if I'm using a wireless mouse.
1-year warranty (costs a hell lot to extend warranty)
Home/End buttons - Yes. Irritating that they're not dedicated.
Noisy Fan - I find that the SA is absolutely silent (can't hear the fan) when doing normal processing like Microsoft Office. However, play games or otherwise use CPU and it will become very noisy. However, it is not something unexpected or avoidable, since it is a mainstream CPU. I will play with the power settings (min/max processor state), and it will definitely help with the noise.
Lousy Speakers - Just use headphones.
Yielding chassis - The feel of the chassis seems top quality to me (except the flimsy screen)
Flicking when changing graphics - Irritating, but acceptable. How often are you going to change it? To be honest I probably prefer a physical switch to Optimus, since on battery I will almost always use Stamina and I don't want the dedicated GPU to kick in anytime I'm using battery.
Bloatware - Not much, take your pick and uninstall the rest.
Pixel lines - Didn't notice anything wrong with the SA screen with regards to pixel lines
Warm base - It is important to point out that the computer is warm at the right side and cool at the left side. It seems like a good design to me, as if I'm using a mouse, my left hand will be on the cool aluminum palmrest on the left while my right hand will be on my mouse.
Keyboard backlight - Some people have reported that their backlight is uneven, however for me it is perfectly even and lovely.
"HD" webcam - This webcam is total nonsense. In no matter what kind of lighting, bright or dark, the picture looks almost like a grayscale and it is so noisy. Looks like it's iPhone Skype for me.


Overall, I am extremely happy with my Vaio SA, and all the bad stuff that's said about it, I've found to be either not true or acceptable for me. As a college student I would say this kills the MBP for its price.

About Battery Life:
I'm certain that you'll only get the advertised 7.5 hours if you have 0% brightness, WiFi-turned off, BDROM turned off, 40Hz refresh rate, 50% or less maximum processor state, etc and every other power-saving option. Currently with my WiFi ON, my BDRom OFF, 50% brightness, I am getting an estimated 5 hours 30 minutes of battery life.


Some benchmarks (without SSD/4GB RAM upgrade, speed mode):
ATTO (Original 500gb 5400rpm drive): Max Read/Write is about 80MB/s
3dMark06: 7396
3dMark Vantage: P3808
3dMark11: P965

 

Wow, the sale rep was right, in the few stores I checked this morning the price dropped again

my search for SA continues

 

The French, Dutch, Italian and German have partly been updated. Still show the 300+ higher price on the frontpage but when you configure one it shows the lower price.

 

The UK site is still showing the £300 extra both on the S-series front page and when you configure it. I'm trusting that Sony UK will eventually get round to reverting to the lower more acceptable prices. And if not they won't get my business...

 

With all that free oil flowing up within your borders, making your country the richest in the world, you should be glad that high priced electronics is the only draw back. Other countries has been invaded for less

I mean seriously, you have so much money that you have to lend them out to other countries. If you would to keep it all within your borders your economy would go bananas. Probably trafic would collaps too because of all the notes and coins that would lay around in the streets..

 

Back to the trackpad..

It seems somewhat counterproductive to have such a large trackpad in which you can only scroll using the edges of the thing. I tried it briefly at a Best Buy to try to get a feel for it and it just seems somewhat awkward to use such a large trackpad that has limited functionality.

Of all the Windows based computers I've come across so far, this is the only one I have any interest in, but this trackpad has been somewhat of a deal breaker for me. Is this something I'm placing too much value on?

 

I finally got to check this system out at the Microsoft Store at Mall of America in Minnesota. The SA is beautiful, and while I agree that the screen isnt fantastic, I had the benefit of comparing it side-by-side with several other big players (xps 15z, samsung 9, etc...) and it compares perfectly fine. Unless you're really nit-picky, you'll be happy. one BIG question....

I hate how the volume up/down/mute and screen brightness buttons arent dedicated (e.g., like on an macbook/macbookpro) and that you have to hold function key to lower volume, etc. Does anyone know a fix to "reverse" this, e.g., so that if i just press F3 (as an example) it lowers the volume, and if i press function-F3, it actually implements the "F3" command. It just seems to me that i'm likely to adjust the volume far more than I am likely to press the F3 button so i'm wondering if theres a way to reverse the functionality? Any thoughts would be much appreciated!

 

My first post! (Hi everyone.) Sharing my experience and first impressions (VPCSA25GG).

What I was looking for: a Windows 7, 13" thin and light, with backlit keyboard, 5 hours on one battery charge, full power processor if possible, discrete graphics card if possible, doesn't break the bank. Should either come with an SSD or the HDD should be easily replaced with an SSD. (My previous laptop was a LG P300--which came with Vista and lacking an official upgrade path to Windows 7, and fail several other criteria.) It hasn't been easy to find something that meets all of the above criteria. Even considered getting an Air and installing Windows, and played with the Samsung Series 9 at a shop (came close to buying it). Both the Air and the Series 9 feel distinctively less powerful than I would have preferred.

Then I essentially chanced upon the VPCSA and quickly realised that something like this is what I've been looking for. Briefly weighed the SSD vs. HDD version--that's a SGD$1,000 (Singapore Dollars) difference in price. Upon confirming that changing the HDD to an SSD is a very doable thing, went for the HDD version (VPCSA25GG). Came with a free upgrade of an extra 2GB RAM (total 6GB) for a total of SGD$1,999 (incl. tax). The Intel 320 160GB SSD cost another SGD$420 (incl. tax). The total was roughly what the Series 9 costs (SGD$2488), but with a better CPU, additional discrete graphics card, built in optical drive, larger SSD (160 vs. 128GB), higher resolution screen, additional USB3.0 port. On the flip side, the Series 9 was lighter and is capable of longer usage under a single charge, and the screen seems of better quality. I think the trade off was worth it for me.

My impressions after using the notebook for a few days now.

1. The Intel 320 160GB SSD works well with the notebook (given the Intel chipset). Was able to get 148GB of usable space.

2. At about 1.7kg, it's not exactly an Air or Series 9; but it's otherwise very comfortable. Overall build quality is good, even classy. The Z series will be even better, but also quite a bit more expensive. The screen wobbles/flexes a bit if you make it, but otherwise does its job well. Once nice design feature: lay the laptop down on the table; life the lid up without holding down the lower assembly--it works as the pressure on the hinge is just right. A bit of a fingerprint/grease attractor given the semi-glossy jet-black finish but not a deal breaking for me there. The built in speakers are average (remember to turn on the Dolby enhancements). Not bad; but not your boombox either. The fan cranks up when you expect them to (CPU/GPU intensive stuff) else very quiet.

3. The screen is servicable, though I've seen better. Roughly average among 13" notebooks. Horizontal viewing angles better than vertical ones. Nothing to write home about really except for the fact that 1600x900 resolution is not exactly common for 13". Prefer the matt finish to, say, the super glossy Macs (try working in day light). Average for media playback or photo editing, but I have a Dell 24" Ultrasharp to do those things. Definitely not as good as the Z series, but you get what you pay for. Works just fine if most of what you see on screen is text, text and more text.

4. The keyboard: If you like 'chiclet' style, low travel keyboards, then the Sony Vaio SA should not disappoint. But if what you want is Old School Thinkpad Industrial Strength, then this is not going to make you happy. I like the former and can type pretty fast on it. The backlighting works well.

5. Booting into Windows, going to sleep, awaking from sleep, hibernating, resuming--all very snappy as one ought to be able to expect with an SSD. Actually, it was already quite snappy with the 5400rpm HDD that came with the thing.

6. The switchable graphics thing is a nice option to have though I suspect that I will be able to get by most of the time with "STAMINA" mode (i.e., Intel integrated graphics) since I don't game on the machine. But does come in handy now and then.

7. Battery life is good but one could wish it to be even better. About 3hrs 40mins projected on 80% charge (battery care mode), STAMINA mode, 50% brightness, balanced power plan, balanced thermal control mode, a full suite of desktop gadgets running (time, calendar, CPU, network, drive, battery monitors). Should not be difficult to squeeze more than 5 hours out of a full charge with more spartan settings. I like the fact that the system is able to intelligently power off the optical drive when not in used. Not a lot to complain about all things considered.

All in all, the VPCSA is a rather well-balanced laptop. An allrounder. Especially if your needs are like mine: mostly to do with text rather than graphics or video. And like all allrounders, it won't please everyone. Though it did at least garner one happy user here.

 

Hi STheory, I assume you buy your SA in Singapore? What types of SA are available there and how is the pricing? I am planning to go to SG this month and may buy an SA there since there's none in my country.

 

The two main models seem to be the VPCSA25GG (SGD$1,999) and the VPCSA26GG (SGD$2999)--they are essentially the same except that the latter comes with the 256GB SSD instead of a 640GB 5400 HDD, and has 2GB more RAM. Compare the two:

VPCSA25GG : S Series : VAIO Notebook : Sony Asia Pacific
VPCSA26GG : S Series : VAIO Notebook & Computer : Sony Singapore

(Not sure why but the VPCSA25GG is not on the Sony Singapore site; I think it's because it is very newly released here. Bought mine at MC2 Sim Lim Square. But prices seem pretty consistent at different outlets.)

I figured that if you are comfortable installing the SSD yourself, buying the VPCSA25GG is the better deal.

Add: Forgot to mention--the prices include sales tax. If you are a visitor, you should be able to get that bit refunded. But you probably know all that already.

 

Hi STheory, thanks for your info. Yes, I've been wondering why the SA25GG is not on the Sony SG site. I already bought 2 SSDs from Fuwell, so I agree with you, the 25GG is the better deal for me.

Yeah I can get more 'discount' from the GST refund at Changi airport.

 

Hi All, I posted this earlier, but no responses yet...I got the SA, cant stand that the volume up/down/mute and screen brightness buttons arent dedicated (e.g., like on an macbook/macbookpro) and that you have to hold function key to lower volume, etc. Does anyone know a fix to "reverse" this, e.g., so that if i just press F3 (as an example) it lowers the volume, and if i press function-F3, it actually implements the "F3" command. It just seems to me that i'm likely to adjust the volume far more than I am likely to press the F3 button so i'm wondering if theres a way to reverse the functionality? Any thoughts would be much appreciated!

 

Thats exactly what I posetd too! But no-one seems to know.

 

This really would be better placed in the SA/SB....owners thread.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...al-sony-sb-sa-sc-sd-series-owners-thread.html

 

I think I will buy the SA in the near future. What exactly does it take to replace the HDD with an Intel 320 Series SSD? If I am new to this, am I better off just getting the Sony upgrade to a 128gb SSD? Or is there a good tutorial somewhere on how to do it?

 

There is a link to replacing the HD on the first page of the owners thread. It requires removal of a total of...8 screws and one small data cord. Very easy..two or three minutes total. I highly reccomend buying your own SSD and not going through sony. You will save a bundle and get a better product for it.

 

The physical part of the operation is trivial. Detailed instructions are available here: http://www.docs.sony.com/release/989202617_VPCSB_series_HDD_CRU.pdf

This is from the first post of the owner's thread at http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...al-sony-sb-sa-sc-sd-series-owners-thread.html

What you want to do is to ask yourself whether you prefer to (1) spend SGD$1000 for the 256GB SSD and peace of mind, -or- (2) take a bit of trouble (not just the physical, but also the software installation*) but end up with both the SSD and a backup HDD, and save a few hundred dollars in the process to boot.*

*Need to work through the owner's thread for yourself. But briefly, I would suggest cloning the HDD that came with the laptop to the SSD, or using restore media (DVD/USB) to install the SSD, rather than do a clean install (more tricky), then delete stuff you don't want unless you are adventurous.

*How much you save depends on which SSD you get. Again, it's in the owner's thread but I'm getting the sense that the Intel SSDs (510, 320) give the easiest fit (given the Intel chipset). No need to upgrade SSD firmware, etc. The Intel 320 160GB retails for about SGD$420, and the 300GB, for about SGD$750 at Sim Lim. Not the fastest SSDs out there, but still very fast, and very reliable.

 

The original price (from £1,049) has now been restored on the Sony UK site, although you have to click through to "Configure" for it to be displayed.

 

Sony haven't increased the price of the SA on Amazon.co.uk:

Sony VAIO VPC-SA2C5E 33,7 cm (13.3 inches) Notebook, Intel CoreTM i7-2620M, 2.70GHz Processor, 6 GB SDRAM, 640GB HDD, DVD drive, Win 7 Professional, with WWAN, black, silver, brown - special edition: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

£1,139.00

Sure it's not configurable, but if I had bothered to check there I may have bought one instead of the Lenovo W520 that is on its way...

 

That sucks for me - I was so close to buying an SA and went Lenovo instead..

 

the Lenovi you mentioned is 15.6 inch and SA is 13.3 inch. isn`t that a big difference?

 

Anyone have any views on which is a better buy / better value (in the UK) - the CTO version at £1,050 or the Amazon version at £1,139 - which also includes Windows 7 Prof, free delivery, an extra 2GB of RAM and a 5400rpm 640GB HD instead of the 7200rpm 500GB drive on the CTO version?

In particular, which is the preferred drive - the faster, but smaller 500GB version or the slower but bigger 640GB version? Is there a big difference between the two in terms of real life speed or battery life?

At the moment I'm tending towards the CTO version as I also want to buy the extended battery and that's £70 with a CTO order or £150 when bought separately. CTO also means I can buy another 4GB of memory fairly cheaply and put it in myself, and I don't really need the Prof version of Win 7... but I'd be keen to hear what others think.

 

Go for the CTO version. The sheet battery alone is a great deal at the moment and concerning the HDDs. I'd always prefere a 7200rpm driver over the slower one if you don't want to add a ssd. The ram is easy to add so don't bother buying that directly from Sony.

 

Correct, but I realised I wasn't going to get the following without increasing the budget significantly:

Resolution 1600x900 or higher
Good battery life
~13 screen size

I shopped around with my new budget; max 8GB RAM maybe isn't enough for me anyway, so perhaps the SA or Z may not have been good. The W520 is a beast and if inconvenient, at least will serve for many years as my primary workstation for at least 1 year, then probably relegate to a test rig if something else significantly better or more portable comes along.

But without Sony's price increase/decrease I wouldn't have been looking at the W520; might have had a really decent value for money laptop that is way more portable than the W520 though. So maybe I should be thankful??

 

VAIO S Series

"VAIO S Series (SA) uses a carbon fibre top panel with a mesh design for a premium feel"

does your SA have carbon fibre top panel?

 

No Would love the brown.

 

what material is? plastic or metal?

so carbon fibre can be chosen as a CTO option i think....in Italy you can't...bah

 

Looks like Aluminium/Magnesium like mine; just more shiny.

 

thanks for your answers

 

Aside from the so-so screen, does the SA have any other major issues?

Heat?
Poor track pad?

 

If that's the case then that is a real plus point for the SA, it does also though beg the question as to why this isn't advertised on other Sony websites around the world.

The laptopmag review seems to sum up the general opinion here.
Sony VAIO S VPCSA290X (2011) Notebook Review | Ultraportable Laptop Reviews | Laptop Reviews

 

i think sony forgot to remove carbon fibre from the specs.....sincthe actual SA lid is metal hearing from the owners.....stupid Sony if that's the case!

 

I saw the version of the SA/SB with the carbon fiber top when I bought mine (chose the black one) (in Singapore). Didn't fancy the more shiny top lid (fingerprints!) and the metallic bronze keyboard palm rest though, so I didn't bother with them.

 

How would you know if it's a carbon fiber lid anyway?

@ STheory: You're talking about the brown signature edition.

Anyway the site doesn't make sense, at one part it says "The aluminium palm rest and magnesium body enable it to be thin and light while maintaining ruggedness for mobile use.", while right below it says "VAIO S Series (SA) uses a carbon fibre top panel with a mesh design for a premium feel, while VAIO S Series (SB) comes in a multitude of colour options for those who like to stand out. "

 

It's just saying that the SB lid/body comes in coloured aluminium/magnesium while the SA has the carbon fibre lid and aluminium/magnesium body.

 

i was just wondering how to tell whether the lid is really carbon fiber, coz it looks just like the SB's lid, so the website could be wrong. =(

But if it really is carbon fiber, it would be a nice surprise, considering i bought it =)

 

Now that I think about it, you have to be right. That was probably the brown (or bronze) signature edition.

My memory is a bit hazy but the salesperson did say something about the use of carbon fiber in the construction of the laptops. Need to dig a bit deeper.

 

The website indicates that the black SA is a carbon fibre model also.

 

the carbon fibre lid shown in the site is hexagonal meshed (common mesh for carbon fibre to obtain anysotropy). the actual SA il just brushed metal, so unless they painted the carbon fibre, the case is metal alloy.
by the way, for those with an SA, it's pretty simple to take a spoon/fork/something metallic, beat it on the lid and hear if it sounds metal or plastic... we would all appreciate your tests, i'm sure