Screen for s560 is really dim

I try to buy the s580, but i want to see it before I order it. So i went to the local store to check out the s560. I notice the screen of s560 is really dim (i did max the brightness) compares to the FS, A or other vaio. the view angle is really small, if i move about 40 degree and all colors are gone, and screen getting darker and dimmer. And not just that, the screen brightness is not balanced. the center is brighter then the side edges. and you can tell at the four corners is really dim and have "shadows" (not enough light). I thought it might be causing the screen is small. but there is a s460 and TX at side. for s460 is better(still dimmer than FS), at least no "shadow" at foour corners. but still brighter at center.

I have read hunderd's reviews on s460,s560 and all the people said the screen is really bright or super bright and good. i just want to know is there some kind turbo bust software or switch can turn it on to make it super bright or is the one i am seeing is defacted?
i really want to buy the s580, but if the screen is so dim like the one i have seen in the local store, it will be a pain to look at the screen under room light condition(may be ok under completly dark envir will be ok).

 

I saw an S570 next to a TX670 at a Sony store and the screens were equally bright. I wouldn't have complained about either of them. Maybe the one you saw did have a problem.

 

i think so too, i will go to sony store at tyson tomorrow and double check it. where did you see the s570? you said it is bright, do u mean it is as bright as a FS? the tx i saw at my local store is very good no complains, but i need a bigger screen. thank you.

 

I've always noticed this on every 'S' Series VAIO on display. It's pretty much known that the LCD in the VAIO S is inferior to what we all know as the perfect 'XBRITE' display from Sony. It's especially noticeable when compared directly next to very bright LCDs found on the FS and A series and other brands.

I've also noticed that the colors aren't as deep (less contrast) and the already dim screen is not evenly lit with edges of the screen a bit darker than the middle area. I don't think it's an issue of 'one bulb versus two' in various VAIO models - since most Fujitsu 'glossy displays' are superior to the VAIO S while using one backlight.

Of course, like every other manufacturer Sony may use random LCDs from several makers for the same exact model, so brightness, evenness and color saturation may vary from one unit to the next.

 

TX screen is too birght sometimes. I put mine 3/5 on brightness setting.

 

I saw these computers in the Sony Store in Paramus, NJ. I just looked at the S and TX; I didn't compare any other screens. On their own I found both nice and bright, but like you I preferred the size of the S-series screen.

 

I checked the sony website and they state the S series as having the XBRITE screen so why would it then have a dull screen as compared to the other Sony models?

 

Just because Sony uses the term 'Xbrite' on each model line doesn't mean the displays will be identical across the board.

Sony (like all others) use different LCDs in different models which would make one series look better than the other. Sony doesn't make LCD panels. They apply their 'Xbrite' technology (and or collaborate) to other manufacturer displays. As we all know, 3 different panels can have the same specs on paper, but can all look different (depending on the manufacturer) in terms of even backlighting, brightness and colors.

Dell also lists 'TrueLife' on their 9300 and 700m models, but the 700m display while not as bright as the 9300 is much clearer, smoother and richer than the 9300.

I am sure there are people out there with nice LCD displays on their S Series VAIOs, but I personally have yet to see one. The ones I saw at various stores have all looked a bit washy, unevenly bright and noticeable dimmer than the 'budget' FS series. Just go and see for yourself. If you like the display on the S Series, don't worry about what other people comment on and go for it!

 

I agree Sowelu. So it comes down to what screen Sony is using in a particular model, for example, LG, Sharp, Samsung etc just like with Dell. Im a newbie when it comes to Sony as i've never liked Sony designs nor cared for Sony customer care which is extremely important to me, but i've seen the recent Sony notebooks and they seem to be really nice although i've always preferred thinkpads and the Apple powerbook.

 

Hunt around on these forums and you'll find various complaints about the S screen versus whichever screen the author considers ideal. Of course, hunt around on these forums and you'll find various complaints about lots of things, as well as justified praise for lots of things. But certainly at least some users have areas at the left and right edges of their Vaio S screens which are less brightly backlit. Not everyone seems to encounter this problem; not everyone who does is bothered by it. It is just a characteristic of the screen they use. While some parts of the Sony website refer to the screen simply as an XBRITE others refer to an XBRITE 200 (or something like that) or to an XBRITE ECO. I have seen it said that these are sort of "XBRITE LITE", with only one light source used to save both cost and battery power. My understanding from looking at the fine print on the main Vaio site is that all XBRITE screens have two bulbs but that the bulb arrangement and details vary in different screen implementations.

On preview the S screens I've seen have been quite good. I'm happy to accept that there are superior screens out there, but the S is a lot better than a great many screens, and it's certainly better than anything you could have bought a few years ago.

Oh - one thing I forgot to mention. One of the two screens I saw at the Sony store (I forget whether it was the S or the TX) was set to a non-native resolution. I changed that and all of a sudden the screen looked much sharper. It is possible that such a misconfiguration marred some of the S screens Sowelu has seen. More likely his eyes just prefer a different sort of screen.

 

I am one of those people who tweak in-store displays as well. I always make sure the resolution is normal (and really, an LCD display only uses 1 resolution, if it's forced to another resolution, it's VERY obvious without even having to go into display properties as it will look heavily pixilated and distorted). I also reset the advanced color/brightness options to factory settings before making any comparisons.

Yes, each person has an idea of what a great display should look like. I am very picky when it comes to a good LCD. I personally prefer deep even blacks, sharp text, milky smooth whites, and rich deep colors. It must also be evenly lit. Pretty much what most people would want and expect out of a display, especially from a company that boasts it's LCD technology as one of the best. But yes, for just as many of us picky people, there are others who don't bother with all of that too much, or maybe they just don't have the eye to notice either way.

But, when looking at various S models when compared to the FS and A series sitting right next to it, it's usually obvious that it just doesn’t' fit in to the whole 'Xbrite' look. It just looks too dim, unevenly lit, with dark edges and was a bit washy on the colors/contrast in comparison to the other models. It just looks like an average LCD panel from any random notebook maker with a glossy film over it.

Like I said earlier, you don't need two-bulbs to have an evenly lit and bright display (though it's nice to have the extra brightness), nor should that matter when comparing colors, contrast and so on. It's like what I and firestarter stated above, it comes down to what LCD panel from which manufacturer Sony is using in a particular model, (LG, Sharp, Hitachi, Samsung, etc.)

It's ironic, when looking at the less expensive FS and the new FJ series, you say, WOW what a bright clear evenly lit screen! But for some reason, whichever panel they are using in the S Series, it just doesn't give have that same 'wow' effect (at least not for me).

 

I don't think there are a lot of 13" widescreens LCDs out there, which may be part of the issue.

 

I am also disappointed that my S series falls abit short compared to FJ or A series.. but heck it's onl;y 1.9 kg.. such lightweight compared to the monster FJ series. Look, those S-potential buyers have nothing to complain. granted it's not Sony's best so clled xbrite as some compromises have to be made to fit into such lightweight and slim notebook. Even the TX screen is worse than S. So ranking should be A/FJ/FS? > S> tx
of course we always want the best.. best display. solid etc etc. but have u given a thought abt how to implement all that in one? it's just impossible. Gorgeous multimedia machine like Qosmio can never be light, and puny Vaio TX or Fujitsu P can never have a good multimedia*(screen,speaker etc) system.
but rest assured, I have keen interest on display at heart - given what I do on my pc , photo editing so colour is of utmost importance. HP, acer, NEc dohave some nice glossy screen too.. but if u notice carefully the colour is not as vibrant as the sony S(do compare the same class notebook - <2kg and u will notice). In this lightweight class I daresay the sony S's screen comes out one of the tops..
usually I set the brightness full blast at max when at home. The colour vibrancy and white/bl;acks are still accurate. Once u dim it it's not vibrant and the blacks become like washed... trsut me on that. I don't know why even a step from max produces less than diserable output for me. The FJ screen is nice, but abit too bright if u r working for long hours. good for watching dvd from a distance thouigh.. really helps

 

well, i think s series is ok, as long as i can see the screen. but i just wondering why it is so dim and unevenly bright display. dim is ok for me, but i can't stand the unevenly birght. I know s series have xBrite 200, so is TX. at least TX is evenly bright.

so if sony is using different manufacturer, who do you think is making a good lcd?

 

I dont believe the FJ series is that big to be called a "monster"

 

The S580 weighs 4.3 pounds. The FJ180P weighs 5.3 pounds. That's a big difference if you're looking for portability. 5.3 pounds is plenty portable for some people, but not for my purposes. The FJ looks like a nice machine (and I like the colors) so if it suits your needs, enjoy it!

 

yep 1 lb will make quite a big difference for those who carry their laptops around all day.. and FJ is BIG.. 15" screen definitely not 'portable' in my book.
I don't ubnderstand the unevenness.. my S58gp is even all except at the side where there's the so called 'bleeding'. I don't understand the fuss about it.. coz 90% of the time u r doing your work or spreadsheet in the middle and not looking at the side where there're toolbars.
Maybe the US production model has uneven lighting, I don't know.. but the S series in Asia doesn't suffer from that I can vouch for it. When I went down to buy my Sony a month ago it was fast sold out on the shelves leaving with only 1 unit which I grabbed without second thought. Wonder why this S series is sucha hot seller?

 

Size has nothing to do with it. In terms of color and even backlighting, the tiny TX beats the S (from what I have seen) - and you can't get much smaller than that. Same goes for the rich and bright displays found on the Fujitsu 10", 13" and 14" Crystal View Displays. Like mentioned countless times, it all comes down to the particular panel Sony in using in this model. If your S is fine, then you got a good one - doesn't mean there aren't any duds out there. This is the way it goes with OEMs and ODMs. It's a gamble and you never know which parts you're going to get - even on the same model.

 

As a user 'upgraded' from an FS 570 to S56GP..

It would not be fair to compare the two screens since they are apples and oranges.
The FS X-Brite was much more superior to the S X-Brite.

The FS was dead silent as well.

However... In terms of portability, the difference is tremendous. I never get bothered when I am carrying my S with me. The FS was huge. I bought it for all the bells and whistles of a large screen but now I can see that S is the optimum choice for a Vaio (for my needs I should say). I also used a TX recently but the size difference is not worth the lack of power.

Anyway... I think I am getting a bit off-topic. The bottom line for me is. Take an FS screen, divide it's performance by half, then you get an S. However it is well worth for the size.

 

For those that want to know: the lcd panel in the S series is made by Toshiba.
I have experienced two S-series, one S270 and now the S580.

The S580 is considerably brighter. Both have a toshiba xbrite panel. Now the S270 is a year old and looks good on its own but put it against the S580 and the 270 looks like it has a yellow tint. I dont know if that happens as it ages or that I got lucky with the 580 having a panel from a good batch.

Both panels do have a defferent part number though and there are two panels listed on the parts websites.

 

I just bought an S560P and all I can say is this thing is incredibly bright, I have it turned way down right now.

 

actually the pre S5 models had perfect screens, just a little dim on the sides, didnt have the super uneveness of the S5, im guessing its not cost effective to make good lcd's anymore.

 

and where did u get the fact that most S5 series have uneven lcds?
those I've seen in the stores in SG all have perfectly even lcds... I don't think it's about cost-effective. Surely they've driven the cost low due to the S series using the same chassis and lcd all the way(economy of scale). Infact it can now be produced cheaper, while still retaining the same barebones.. just different components like cpu hdd etc.

 

if you look closely at the specs the S series screen is a different variation of the xbrite, simlar to xbrite eco but its called something else, theres alot of varitations of the xbrites not just 2. perfections means different things to a lot of people, and the S screens are not perfect, they are nice but it is not evenly lit as you suggested. You wont see an evenly lit lcd screen if you live in america unless you get a qosmio or something, its just the way it is. As proven by you most of us cant decipher the difference between perfect lcd's and flawed ones so what does it matter to introduce mass produced eco screens to the market if no one can tell the difference.

 

I'm totally aggree with you

 

So you imply that S series have uneven lcds due to the position of the tube light at the bottom of the lcd, and as we know the law of physics the further u r the less bright it becomes. Fine. This is perfectly sound and logical. But then in the first place, when the first S generation was introduced, didn't they have already come up with this design? If you don't believe, go check out sony S38GP-sony's insight/interview with the designers at the end of this reply.
This has nothing much to do with the xbrite eco or not - they r just names to say that the screen r less bright but more power saving than the bigger FJ/A series but dim is not = uneven.When you talk about bright or dim it's the overall but uneven there's a gradation of bright to dark or vice versa. It's the design of the lcd itself. So u said previously that all pre S5 models didn't have this uneveness, I think you got them mixed up. ALL S series have inherently this 'flaw' if u were to call it.. so I see no big fuss over why the S5 series now suddenly have uneveness problem surfacing..when all along they are sharin the same design as their older S brothers.
let's just say the author of this thread got a lemon. fair enough?

ref:
http://vaio-online.sony.com/prod_info/vgn-s38gp_b/index.html?sg <sony S38 interview>

 

hi Zerodivine, i think you are right, the one i saw at Micro Center was defected(or they have the bad brand as other people said). i went to CompUSA next day. and their S560 seems ok. It's dimmer than FS or FJ, but is still bright. and for the uneven issue, I find out if i stand back get a distance like 1m or 1.5m from the display, the uneven bright problem is gone. i guess it might be the view angle problem. So i think after i brought it i will put it little bit far away from me.

 

nice to hear that tttttaa(hard to spell ur name LOL!)
the S is definitely inferior in terms of screen compared to the bigger A/FS/FJ counterpart. But in its own class it still commands superiority over most other thin and light notebooks.
The unevenness or 'more light at the bottom' scenario only happens at some viewing angles as u have observed. For my normal viewing, ~ 0.5m away from lcd and angled at such. I can't detect any unevenness.. infact opebning up an empty white background application like microsoft word I see even spread of backlighting

let us know how u feel abt it once u have bought the S
enjoy!

 

As I mentioned before, mine is dimmer considered to my FS as well. The difference is really noticable.

On the other hand it is not 'that bad', in other words, it does not bother me.

Could it be that the NVIDIA applet settings were low? I can really mess up my display if I tweak the NVIDIA settings.

 

S series has the smaller view angle, but as long as you face it straight. and have some distance, then the screen should be fine. you don't want other people to see you screen any way. This is not like the big screen you want using to watching DVD with your friends.

if i can get the display they have in CompUSA i will be satisfied.

"No That Bad" that is perfect to describe under this condition. well i almost brought it, then my mom told me to write a $4000 check to my Stock account. because she brought some stock for me.

while waiting my next paycheck. i saw Dell has $750 off on $1999. so i configure a 700m
Pentium M 755 (2.10GHz),
1GB memory,
80GB Hard drive,
8x DVD-/+RW drive,
one 4 Cell & one 8 Cell battery,
and a spare AC power adapter.
S-Video out to TV (Wish S580 has this)
for only $1259, with half of the same config, the price will go 2k

really hard to let this deal go. i really want to get 700m, but i know 12.1" is small for me. so right now, the reason that i am stick with sony is 13.3" and a video card.

I wish Sony will give some deal like this on Christmas.

 

Trust us... Buy a Type-S

6th notebook in three years. This one is the best I've ever seen.