Sony Forum FAQ: find your answers here!

This thread is intended as a collection of questions that are asked the most in this forum. I will collect questions and answers as we go along, so it will be kind of empty initially.

Q: Battery keeps saying "charging" despite showing 100% charged already.
A: It's normal. Disregard it.

 

Q: My battery "wiggles".

A: This is not an uncommon problem among Sony laptops that slide battery to the back of the laptop. The degree of severity depends entirely on the luck of the draw. Putting some padding or tape on the side of battery that contacts the laptop will help.

 

Q: I want to upgrade the memory of my S150/170/260/270/360, how?

A:

You can find how to upgrade your memory in your user manual -- it is a help file in your computer. If you can't find it in your laptop, download it from Sony Support http://www.sony.com/pcsupport.

For the older S series that uses Dothan CPU, you MUST find the 172-pin MicroDIMM PC2700/DDR333 RAM for you laptop. These RAMs come in 256MB, 512MB, & 1GB sizes, such as listed in PortableOne:

http://www.laptopsinc.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=MEMUX

You can use any brand, but you should find a brand (and retailer) that you feel comfortable with. I think there are very few places that sell 1 GB MicroDIMM (above link is one of them, the memory maker's own page is below), but with the price tag you probably better off spend it on upgrading your HDD to a 7200 RPM one.

http://www.swissbit-shop.com/index.php?section=shop&catId=17

If you do need 2 GB memory, buy two of the 1GB RAM and put them in. You don't need to do any BIOS update for your system to detect them.

 

Q: How to turn off the sound and animation for the VAIO logo when booting up?

A: Press F2 (or F10 or one of the F keys in some older machines) immediately after the animation stops. You will get into BIOS and there is option to turn the animation and/or sound off. Sometimes you will miss it, so press the key repeatedly during the logo animaion to ensure you get in BIOS.

I have heard sometimes VAIO Notebook Setup will have the option to turn it off, but I have not seen this option in my laptops.

 

Q: Does hardware upgrade void the warranty?

A: It depends on the countries.

In US, any hardware replacement or upgrade does not void the warranty of other parts in the laptop. You would not have Sony warranty on the part that you put in (obviously) and you would lose any warranty on parts messed up by you during the upgrade/replacement process.

For example, you replace your 4200 RPM HDD in S360 to a 7200 RPM one. If you did a clean job, the only thing in your laptop that is not covered by Sony is that 7200 RPM HDD. If you somehow messed up the keyboard connections during the process (this is easily avoidable, with all the HDD upgrade guide laying around the internet), you need to cover any repair cost to the keyboard.

 

Q: Can I use generic memory to upgrade my Sony laptops?

A: YES, as long as it is the right type (DDR or DDR2, clock speed, number of pins) and you are comfortable with the memory manufacturer and the retailer.

 

Q: What are sold in the sonystyle.com clearance section?

http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INT...Name=cpu_Refurbished_Notebooks&Dept=computers

A: Sony has put in a FAQ on it. Please read it. Basically, you want to get the "clearance", not the "refurbished", because clearance models are brand-new and come with full one-year warranty.

 

Q: I need some help, but no one seems to know the solution or have heard of the problem.

A: With so many units and models out there, it is hard to cover them all. Even Sony themselves are not doing that great of a job. Here are some other forums that I still go for information when needed. Google may also help, and there is always Sony support.


http://www.notebookforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=95

http://www.siliconpopculture.com/sonytr/index.php

http://www.talkvaio.com/forum/index.php

http://www.dirtysoap.net/sony/

 

Q: I am trying to upgrade my S380/S4xx/S5xx, should I use DDR2 533MHz SODIMM or DDR2 400MHz SODIMM? I am confused.

A: S5xx uses DDR2 533MHz memory and S380/S4xx uses DDR2 400MHz memory. Using either one on the other will still work, the system will just limit the memory clock to 400 MHz.