Review: Sony Vaio SA

Argh... If only this review came up a day earlier...

They just shipped the SA today...

Can't even cancel this daimned order.

Oh well, back again I go to boycotting Sony products.


Regardless of my every growing hatred for a the failing Electronics department of Sony,
Thank you for the review, much appreciated.

 

at sonystyle.com, put 'vpcz1290z' in the searchbox. I checked this morning too and they had 5. Ordered one Dont have the direct link, my work proxy is blocking sonystyle.

 

Always abide by lesson number 1: Phone reps don't know any more information than what's out there for the public.

 

you might as well check it out yourself...if you cant stand it - return it for refund. Or you could deny the package and not worry about shipping costs. I would advise you test it out, since its really based on the eye of the beholder.

 

Are you going to upgrade the SSD? That was the thing that turned me off as I figured a 64GB SS (128 GB Raid 0) is way too small for normal use.

I also don't believe that they are getting snatched up but sony is selling off inventory. The inventory off all laptops is down about 60% or so from the end of May

 

I canceled my online order and picked up a base model SA. Our shops had a 640GB WD Scorpio Blue as opposed to the 500GB 7200RPM drive my online purchase had, and I ended up getting the i5-2410 instead of the i7 that I originally ordered.

We have a vpcz1290x in the house with a 1080p 13.1" screen, and I can definitively say that the SA is clearly inferior with color saturation and just general quality (I bought this even after doing a side by side in the store).

Currently loading the SA up with 8GB of RAM and a 120GB OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS that I got a steal on. Not looking forward to the fresh install since all Sonys feel like such a pain to do so.

I will say, I do like the build quality and feel compared to our Z. It just feels more solid (except for the LCD hinge, the Z actually feels more solid, although the display itself is more wobbly).

 

Aren't CTOs final sale?
The phone rep I talked to mentioned that, and the SA I ordered is a CTO.
(sony site at the time of my purchase did not have a bloody pre-assembled model)

I have no choice but to cut my losses and use this thing till I get too bothered
by the panel they use.

I should have guessed, when Sony parted ways in producing LCD Panels with Samsung,
they would up; since Samsung was the only one pulling weight.

 

sepffuzzball - you have the old Z and you've seen the new SA...you still recommend the new SA over the Z?? or do you like the old Z better? I'm deciding between the two.

 

im like 95% sure you can turn all customized laptops within 30 days for a full refund.

 

My fiance has a Z (i7-620m, 1080p, 256GB SSD (2x128GB Raid 0)) and it's gorgeous...we paid $2200 for it new almost a year ago.

My SA is just about finished loading updates, and it's alright. I mostly went with the SA over getting a refurb Z13 (even though the Z is cheaper) because of build-quality and feel, which is reasonably important to me (I'll be carrying it alongside my beastly HP probook, and I want it to be reasonably durable, powerful, lightweight, and can do code compiling and light gaming). It doesn't have to be uber-performance as I have a 16-core ESXi server waiting for a PSU on my floor.

It was a really hard decision for me though, as I do like having a nice screen...the resolution was my primary concern, however, as coding on the bs resolution of the 15.6" probook (1366x768) is a PITA.

If I could get a 1080p Z12 or Z13 for ~$1300, I'd go for that. And the Z13 base for $900 on Sonystyle is really convincing. But USB3, better GPU and build construction won out in the end.

 

I believe CTO orders are refundable within 30 days, however, any ingraved products cannot be returned.

 

If you're a gamer, you'll change your mind when you see the Sony PS Vita.

 

I can get a new Z (1600x900) for like $1550 + tax or a refurbished Z (1600x900) for like $900 on Sony outlet...I think that is what you are referring to...im just not sure if i should trust a refurbished laptop...they scare me. Yeah SA does seem a little stronger and does have a few new features....hmmm display vs newer technology...this is hard...

 

Thanks for the initial review requiem86.

Anyone else going to do a review? I'm curious to read what other people think of the SA?

 

lol looks like i waited to long - the last refurbished VPCZ1290X on Sony Outlet was just sold....i had it my my cart for like 2 hours...trying to decide whether to buy it or not...i guess someone else made the decision for me. lol

 

And what do you think about the screen if you see both the z and the sa together? i´m currently on a old z21 and can order the sa as replacement. is it a good deal?

 

You snooze, you lose.

lol

 

I blame you for not doing your research properly. Why would anyone spend that sort of money on a machine that has zero reviews?

Grow up a bit...

 

Dang it, missed out on the refurbished Zs as well. Anyone know if refurbished Vaios are any good? I'm typing this on a refurbished HP that was just plain crud.

Also, since the SA is occupying this price point, is there no chance of the new Z making it under the $1500 price line? I would totally even buy it without the external GPU if I meant I could hold a quality machine. T___T

 

I ordered a VPCZ1290X from the Sony Outlet at 10:33 today. This may have been the last one because I tried upping the quantity in my cart to 2 and it said it was out of stock. Plenty of VPCZ1390s are available right now...

 

I've ordered one of the last Refurb Z's from the Sony Style website. If I decide not to keep it, I will probably be putting it on ebay for sale and the NBR Marketplace if anyone is still interested.

 

just as a heads up, these are the specs I ordered:

Product: 54028609/BSTOCK
AntiVirus Software: Norton Internet Security™ 2010 (30 Day Trial)
Operating System: Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit
OS Preinstalled: Genuine Windows® 7 Pre-installed
Wireless Local Area Network: WiFi: Intel® Centrino® Advanced-N 6200 (802.11abgn)
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-540M processor (2.53GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 3.06GHz
Chipset: Intel® HM57 Express Chipset
Optical Drive: CD/DVD Player/Burner
Graphics Card: NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 330M GPU (1GB VRAM)
Backlit Keyboard: LED Backlit Keyboard
Battery: Standard Capacity Battery
Office Software: Microsoft® Office 2010 Starter (Click More Info for details.)
Adobe Software: Adobe Bundle (Free - $448 value)
iLink: No iLink
Bluetooth: Stereo A2DP Bluetooth® technology
Color: Black
Keyboards: Keyboard
Felica: No Felica
Security Chip: No Security Chip
Finger Print Sensor: Biometric Fingerprint Sensor
Wireless Mobile Broadband: No Mobile Broadband Built-In
Camera: Built-in MOTION EYE® camera and microphone
Country: US (USA)
Language DestinationCode: EUS
Common: Common
Headphone: Noise-reduduction Ear-bud Headphones
AC Adaptor: AC Adaptor
Memory: 4GB (2GBx2) DDR3-SDRAM-1066
Display: 13.1" VAIO Display (1600x900)
Market: Modelname0
Hard Drive: 128GB (64GBx2) Solid State Drive with RAID 0 Technology
Recovery Disc: No Recovery Disc
Software Optimization: No Fresh Start

 

@rgrossman: You just got the one that I was calling to order right now. Mark my words, I shall have the next one!

 

lol that's the same laptop I had in my cart this morning but didn't hit buy...but i don't feel bad...i mean...SA is a damn good laptop also....im just so split...new tech or better screen? I can still get a Z with the i5 480 for $999 (refurb) or a new Z for like $1600 at microcenter.....or just stick with a new SA....or wait for new Z (tho i dont like the idea of external hardware)

 

I believe that for gamming SA has the lead, because the better GPU. otherwise, a Z with a good price is a great deal.

 

Curious... why is everybody snapping up the 1290x refurb and not the 1390x refurb. Is the 1390 inferior to 1290 in any aspect?

 

1290x has a slighty better cpu..i5 520 or something. 1390x has the i5 480..it's pretty much the same thing.

hmm..i need to google the performance difference between an i5 480 vs an i5 2520...

 

Because they are the only ones left in SonyStyle outlet. On the other hand, 1390 has TPM but starts with i5-460M, 1290 uses i5-520M but no TPM, so the bare minimum 1390 is somewhat inferior for personal use.

 

does anyone have the source saying the new Z will have external GPU or is that just speculation

 

it´s confirmed. Don´t have the source tho. There´s a thread about the new Z with a lot of info.

 

Where are the guy´s SA´s that were supposed to arrive today?

 

Which benchmarks would you folks recommend for reference? I looked at the dhrystone, whetstone, superpi and passmark on cpubenchmark.net and notebookcheck.net and in 5 out of the 6, the 460 came out better than the 520.

 

Found a thread which delves into the details. http://forum.notebookreview.com/hardware-components-aftermarket-upgrades/529137-core-i5-460m-vs-i5-520m.html

 

I played with the SA at a SonyStyle store just now. I tried calibrating the screen, including ClearType, but what bothered me was that I couldn't get the letters to appear... solid, and sharp. They look like the screen couldn't quite tell if a pixel is supposed to be black, kind of like the case when the screen is not at its native resolution. The screen looks washed out.

The more pricey version (~$1900) came with 2x Toshiba SSDs in RAID0. The ATI card has a WEI score of 6.7.

 

we are doomed with that poor quality screen.

 

Do you know which model SSDs are in the SA?

 

Maybe Sony is leaving its better screens for the Z. In the store, the SAs were right at the entrance, in front of the Fs. I guess they are the flagship laptops, for now.

No, I wanted to take a picture but not sure if I should do so (it's one of them uppity places). I lost interest after looking at the screen

I would guess that those are the ones in the Z12/Z13s, which are also Toshibas. If so, they should also be using mSATA ports.

Edit: Forgot to add: I believe the headphone jack is on the left, all the way to the rear, which is slightly odd. All the ports are on the right, only the headphone jack and the ODD are on the left.

 

To get rid of that pixel black that ur talking about..
u gotta get rid of the font smoothing and than it appears nice and crisp.

 

I think you may be right The thing is, I usually don't have to put in as much effort into making it crisp...

 

Fedex messsed up my delivery. It was on the delivery truck today, but for some unknown reasons, they have delayed this to tomorrow... as per their tracking info. Argh... was waiting at home for this

 

you want pictures?

I would upload them but they are too large in size so had to scale. One question is there a way to change contrast on the SA the clueless reps at Sony style had no idea. Everything to me appears washed out when there is sold black on the screen. Vibrant colors and the picture looks pretty good. Also text does not appear very clear. Also viewing angle all messed up. Very small angle before you cannot see much. I am coming from a Dell Studio xps 1640 so maybe I am expecting too much picture quality wise?

View attachment 66288

 

Thanks for the pictures! im thinking of going back to the sony store and trying out some other backgrounds, videos, etc....i really need to make a decision soon. it's really a question of how important screen quality is to the individual. im also going to stop by microcenter and check out the Z again....arg...

so gtrips - what's your final opinion...forget the SA? and go for a old or new Z? or is the SA build/features/newer hardware worth overlooking the weaker screen quality.

PS: i bet if one has the SA for long enough they eventually get used to the screen...unless they had owned a Z....

 

I cannot get over the washed out picture and viewing angle still. Like I said maybe adjusting the contrast and brightness maybe it looks better. Maybe it is the matte screen. The SA should be here Monday morning but I am thinking that I won't be happy with it. I will have to sit in class with it for up to six hours in a row and I don't think I can do with that screen. Like I said I am going from a sony XPS with 1080P with a really good picure (for a laptop). I have not seen the Z screen but remember the Sony F series I bought for a family member's desktop replacement and remember I pretty good screen. All of the web pages looked washed out as well. I am even considering an Envy 14 just for the screen quality. My XPS weighs a good six and a half to seven pounds so i was looking forward to cutting the weight in half. As an aside I could tell a difference in weight between the SA and SB but it was not a huge amount, just barely discernable.

 

If I have to decide and buy now, I would go for the better screen over tech anyday since technology is changing at such a blazingly fast rate that it's hard to keep up...a screen is something you stare at every second while the speed you won't notice that big of a difference(worse case scenerio, if you want to play hardcore games, buy a vidock). But then again, that's just my opinion.

 

Thanks so much for those pictures gtrips07! After seeing those pictures, IMHO, I don't the display quality is as bad as I've been reading in the forum (maybe because I have been on a 3yr old MBP)

 

thanks guys..i guess your right. screen quality is just too important...everyone values it differently...but for my purposes of daily use...i think screen > improved hardware.

...i guess im down to: old Z for $1k vs new Z for $2k....

i got the money...just not sure if the extra 1k is worth it to me....i wish we had more info on the new Z...i still feel a little uncomfortable with the external gpu/odd...until more information is released.

Also, what's your guys opinion on buying warranty? (especially on a refurbished laptop). There is the sony warranty and the much cheaper Square trade warranty (not sure how they work).

 

Like I said it is just certain material, like web pages with a lot of white or spreadsheets, etc. There is a picture of a flower in the default image library that the Sony girl pulled up (who looked like a young Melanie B ) that I had to ask if the SA she pulled it up on was a different computer. I have a video I shot but it is too big to upload

 

Square trade has been around for a while, I have heard pretty good things about them. Once again three in store reps today told me no Z in US and told them disappointed with screen and two of them told me they have heard that complaint from the majority of people who look at them. Funny thing is only one knew that higher resolution does't equal higher quality.

 

So you think the colors look ok? it's just the black and whites you feel were off?

For me..when I saw the SA in store..the screen looked washed with the default black background (like you mentioned)...the nature video looked ok...but nothing special. i didnt see any other pictures.

 

I think just black and whites, must be the lack of contrast. But I also don't like the matte finish and the very small viewing angle. If I could find a way to downsize the movie I shot w/ my iPhone I would upload it.