Review: Sony Vaio SA

it's alright. i just needed a second opinion on the screen quality, besides myself. I think i'm leaning toward getting an old Z now.

 

Also, it ws fairly dark in the Sony store and the screens were at max brightness under incandesent (sp?) lighting so I don't think they would hold up under outdoor lighting, which seeing I have a couple of classes that back up to the waterfront will probably be tought to see. Like I said before, I think coming from my current laptop I don't want to take a step back in screen quality. I almost remembers of my first work toshiba. shudder....

 

If i can ship it to you in a pm and you can downsize you can try and post it

 

My sb19 looks exactly like the one featured in the youtube video

 

and out of curiosity (seems like i am asking everyone) how do you like the screen quality on the SB? ever seen a Z in comparison?

 

thanks for sending the video gstrips...it refreshed my memory...the image/display really changes quite a lot as soon as you start tinting the screen, even the slightest bit...

 

Just FYI, I bought the refurbished VPCZ1390X from the Sony Outlet Store for $999 ($1,050 after tax). Need to cancel my SA order tomorrow.

There are now 10 refurbished VPCZ1390X left (or that's the max i can add to my cart)...theses are the last Z's at under $1k anywhere online....

Cheapest price I've seen for a new Z is $1,699 (before tax/shipping) at microcenter...

I think im ok with refurbished as long as everything works..and it's not banged up to much. I also passed on Sony warranty...i figured if i need it..i might just use the cheaper SquareTrade warranty.

I'm an all or nothing guy...it was either the Vaio SA + OEM SSD + 3 Year Sony accidentally + tax (cost around $2,200)...or pay as little as possible for the old Z for $1,050....i went with the latter

 

Submission from gtrips07:

Though the videos below show a general sense of the screen/display quality, viewing angles, colors, and contrast on the Vaio SA - video quality should be taken into account. Also, a bit of video quality was lost on the "Flipped" version, hence why I uploaded both.

Vaio SA Display Screen Video (Original)
Vaio SA Display Screen Video (Flipped)

 

Honestly that video shows nothing bad or nothing. I guess it seems clear it is no Z display, but you need to consider the very few really good displays out on the market. Semi-matte is a pro already on SB/SA and colors also. In my eyes, if the SA is like the SB, it is a medium matte display. Much better then thinkpad, hp elitebook and alike business screens, much better then those glossy screens everyone has, except mbp and the hp envy radiance screen that is no more.

So, go with the old Z or wait for the new Z. Too bad the SA doesn´t have premium, sure. But it is not a bad display either.

 

Yes, it is.
Just because others don't do better doesn't mean it's a good display.
A display which changes so much as soon as you move your head a bit is very bad.
Very common, but still, very bad.

 

Just curious, is the 1600x900 VGN-Z screen same as the VPC-Z screen?

 

Both are exceptional. Hard to tell them apart.

 

Not sure..but VPC-Z is the newer 2010 model.

 

I just checked and both seem to be made by Toshiba, maybe Sony went cheap on the SA and got a screen from China lol

 

yes, sony is grease now... they had a bad comercial year...

requiem, I believe you did good, I was going to say that you better buy the 999 one since it´s old tech. that way you save money for an upgrade sooner. I wish you good luck with that Z.

And today I received a great news... my SA shipped 4 days ealier, it was supposed to ship 14 and has shipped today. Estimate delivery is 15. I´m very happy

 

Laptop is here
Screen still bad
Anybody want to buy?

 

Is the screen really that bad? Compared to SB/SC, is it better?

I went to Best Buy the other day, and I took a look at the SC, the screen is bad. I'm not sure whether the screen is just for display unit. It said on the unit that screen is just for display.

 

i lol'ed @ how you wrote that.

 

what do you guys think about the Lenovo X220 compared to the old Z Series?? it seems to be the only Thinkpad with a good display...tho it's 1366x786..but a very solid build quality.

there really seems to be like no options for good quality screens between 13-14"

 

There is the envy 13
Nope gone
There is envy 14
Nope radiance screen k'od
There is Mac air
Nope no DVD or Blue ray or backlighted keys
There is series 9
Nope no optical drive and cannot increase memory without voiding warranty

 

Seems like SB with more pixels
Going to Try messing with advanced controls in a out twenty
Will forward video to requiem to post

 

cool. yeah im interesting in seeing if u can make the screen look better by tweaking settings.

 

Can we get a video of the rest of the laptop too? The case, keyboard, lid and touchpad keys etc. Thanks in advance

 

If nobody answers... I *may* get one for work in a week or two's time, I do a comparison then...

 

Thanks - im interesting in see how good the IPS display are on the x220. Does the T420s have a good display as well? I know they have 1600x900...or is the x220 the only thinkpad with a good display quality?

 

I'm not sure about the T420s... I don't think the Z1's screen is IPS though, I'm expecting the x220's IPS to beat the Z's screen (besides resolution). How significant the difference is I'm going to find out...

 

sorry to budge in, but a lot of the talk here is comparing to the Z screen which is probably one of the best if not THE best laptop screen. But what about compared to other *normal* laptop's MATT (can't compare to glossy, glossy always tends to look better but the reflection's a killer) screen?

i read from an Aus forum that the SB/SA screen is a lot better than the old S series (S11 i think) screen.

Anyway I had the opportunity to see the laptop in Singapore and it actually costs S$3199 which is US$2600. Insane but that particular model was top-of-the-line with 256gb SSD. I snapped a few pictures but nothing to compare the screen =(.

From my amateurish point of view the screen looks okay.

 

It's a pity, but the T420 has a crappy display as well, see this review @ notebookcheck. Don't think there's a big difference in screen quality between the T420 and the SA.

 

New Video/Picture submitted by gstrips07:

I think this is a good example at how sensitive the view angles are...there is def a certain point at which the colors look the most vibrant/best...and as soon as he changes the angle...it gets washed out. Today's laptop display market is sad....though i think SA screen is quite standard like the Vaio SB.

Vaio SA Display Screen Video (Original) (submitted by gtrips07)
Vaio SA Display Screen Video (Flipped) (submitted by gtrips07)
Vaio SA View Angles (Video 1) (submitted by gtrips07)
Vaio SA View Angles (Video 2) (submitted by gtrips07)
Vaio SA Keyboard Video (submitted by gtrips07)
Vaio SA Case Video (submitted by gtrips07)

 

More pics to come. Cannot adjust keyboard backlighting; its either christmas tree vibrant or off. I think that is a bad decision especially when trying to extend battery live.

Sent some videos to Requiem to shrink showing keyboard and sides. Going to plug into my HP2310e and see how it looks

 

That last pic actually isn't bad in terms of how the screen looks. color background looks better than black/white like you mentioned.

So what's your overall opinion on SA? Keep or return? is the screen ok enough or you can't stand it?

 

Steve Jobs will say that we're looking at it wrong

The Z1's screen is semi-glossy (or semi-matt, depending on whether you think the glass is half-full). I think it's better than most of the matt ones, in terms of the depth of black, clarity and vibrance of colors (that's subjective too). But since it's not an IPS screen, its viewing angle isn't as good. There's also that metric about RGB range or something, it covers 98% or something of the color range, which supposedly is good.

 

The case looks gorgeous in that one pic. Just how shiny are the touchpad buttons though? They look pretty matte in that pic

 

another thing i noticed is the grid-lines on the SA screen...do you know what i mean?? i don't think the old Z had that.

 

One thing I notice too is like with their TV sony overdrives the red color. If I look at the close button (red x) on the laptp screen it looks like a hooker's lipstick, but when I look at on my HP2310e it looks fine. I tried to find a color adjustment and cannot find one, which sucks. Also the computer cannot push out 1080p to my monitor and have my screen on it native resolution at the same time. I forces the monitor to mimic the laptop. Maybe because I have it connected through HDMI but I was under the assumption it was the best way to connect to the laptop.

Love the keyboard though, and I have fat fingers.

 

Pretty shiny and cheap looking. You can see your reflection in them. Did not realize this came with built in fingerprint reader between mouse buttons. No finger control on mouse pad with external mouse plugged in and logitech mini receiver sticks out and about 1/8 inch from side of computer and you can seel the metal. Do not like that.

Now if I could only see an Envy with the radiance screen... 13 or 14 would do.

 

There seems to be some banding due to the matting that is imperceptable to the nake eye but the camera really picks up. I don't see any verticle lines where the screen is held in place or any horizonal banding.

I think you hit it on the head earlier. Go with the newer tech of the SA or the better screen of the old Z. Also the case does not appear as I belived it would. I think the mac air is sturdier. Plus it feels like plastic. Maybe it isn't but it feels that way. A lot of flex the screen as well when grabbed.

 

Just got mine also. I agree the mousepad buttons are shiny and don't fit with the rest of the laptop. I have mine hooked up to a external mouse and both work at the same time fine. no VGA issues like people with the SB had. The lid opens up very nicely, still a little wobble tho. Pretty much exactly like the SB, the display is the same for sure. Still has the grid lines on pure white backgrounds but its less noticeable here than in the SB. The screen is just as bright, and blacks look a bit better than the SB. I would have to say the keyboard is absolutely fantastic to type on. dunno what else to say about it, I'm happy with it, we'll see tho if the upcoming air makes me second-guess

 

Problem w/ air is no optical drive and no backlighted keyboard. The keyboard is very nice I concur.

 

definitely excited using this computer. mainly use it for school and gaming in class so the 6630 will come in handy there the graphics at 13inch really was the driving factor for me getting this

 

screen looks nice on the 2nd pic.

 

Will the grid lines go away if you fiddle with the screen frequency settings (if that can be fiddled with)?

 

I was wondering what the screen would be like. With all of the comparison with the Z, I was getting the impression that it would be atrocious, but for me (whose only experience with laptop screens come from a 3 year old budget Acer) the screen will be fine.

Does anyone know what the battery life is like? Someone had said the battery was smaller than the SB. According notebookcheck the SB gets about 8 hours-40 minutes with no WLAN and min brightness, 5 hours with WLAN, 4 hours of DVD, or 1 hour with a load (speed mode, max brightness). How does the SA compare?

 

The laptop display market is just fine.

It's just Sony that's draggin their .

My 6 year old Samsung Q20 and my $900 Asus UL20 looks to have a better screen than the bloody SB/SA.


When the SA arrives, I'm going to see what the Sony policy is on returns,
and if I can get a full refund, I'll just go get myself a Samsung 9 series.

Gaming was an issue, but after experiencing the SB screen, I'd rather just
game when I'm at home on my PC, and just buy something that'll be easier
on the eyes on-the-go.

Somebody before mentioned gaming in class.
Well GL.
If your are in a lecture hall comprised of 700-1000 students (most major Universities 100 levels do),
you might pull it off.
If not, GL trying to hide the sound of a jet taking off.
(May I suggest the back of the lecture hall )

 

6 years ago many laptops had MVA panels, so it's not surprising your old laptop looks better than a new one.

Fact is, most all laptops have bad displays these days.

 

Hello,
I have been reading this thread and I see that some people got their laptop already. Could fit an Intel 310 series SSD on the Sony Vaio SA? It's an mSATA SSD but may be it's not small enough. As far as I know the laptop can be bought with 2x256GB and Toshiba has those Blade X-gale SSD but they are a lot larger, slimmer and with less width:
Toshiba Introduces High Performance Blade-Type SSD Modules With Capacities up To 256GB
Width: 24.0 mm
Height: 3.7mm
Length: 108.9 mm

Intel 310 Series: Intel® Solid-State Drive 310 Series - Overview
29.85 mm
4.85 mm
50.80 mm

I don't know if they put in an X-Blade or an SSD like the Intel 310 or what. I just want to know if the Intel 310 would fit in.

 

Be aware that the Samsung is having a wireless issue.

 

SA screen is ok..not atrocious, i think the 1600x900 probably helps a little also. But the Z is clearly better....compared to your budget Acers you won't miss anything...SA screen quality isn't going to bother you unless you've seen something like the Z tbh.

 

Could someone further expand on the screen on the SA?

I thought I'd hit the Jackpot, The Sony SA has EVERYTHING I wanted: Anti Glare Matt Screen, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD, Good design/build, lots of ports, not a Mac, built in 3G, etc.

AND NOW, now I find out it has crappy viewing angles and bad screen contrast/colours?? Arghhh! If it's something I can't stand it's glossy screens and bad viewing angles.

I know people say "But you only watch the screen from the front ", yes sure, BUT: A laptop is often moved around, I might change the position I am sitting in and don't want to have to tweek the damn screen every time I want to move my head. Nor do I like washed out colours, I like a sharp crisp, colourful, MATT screen, is that TOO MUCH TO ASK?

Are there any new VAIOs coming out soon? Or any other similar laptops to this? I checked out the Samsung 9 series but.. it didn't really appeal to me.

The only other option I have is to buy a MacBookAir.. (Can't buy a 13" MacbookPro because of the damn glossy screen)..

Grrhh

Maybe I'm just spoilt with my immensly overpriced 2007 20" Dell Matt high-res with perfect viewing angles, it still looks perfect from 170 degrees!

The thing about bad viewing angles is that.. I don't mind a bad viewing angle from 170 degrees.. but it's not like that. You get a worse picture from ANY angle that isn't "just the right spot"... such a shame Sony had to do it..

Edit: The only positive thing I can think of is that you'll have slightly more privacy when using in a public place.. but at the same time.. you get a ty screen whenever you're not in a public place..

 

old Z = very portable (3.0) + 2010 hardware + amazing screen + can be found for $1k today
new SA = portable (3.65) + 2011 hardware + ok market standard screen
upcoming Z21 = super portable (2.5?) + 2011 hardware + amazing screen (we think) + external GPU/ODD + $2k minimum cost

the new upcoming Z is the best machine overall...it should be released in like 5 or 6 weeks...the only cons are that its expensive...and the gpu/odd is external (might be a pro for some).