Sony S580 Questions and Opinions

Hello, I am in the market for the s580. You might not believe this but I am sort of fed up with my z70va. Its alright and I think I got one of the cooler ones from a reseller out there but I have many issues with it, mainly the size, resolution, aesthetics, and fan noise, which I've tried lowering to some success but it turns out it just gets hotter. I guess I was pulled in by hype for it and ignored the fact that the pictures of the z70va were not my taste and that it was too big. I think 13.3" would be right for me and the only other contender was fujitsu S series which aren't widescreen, have crappy graphics, and are kind of ugly too.

From what I've gathered, the s580 fixes problems from the older series and I should be expecting the following:

1. Sony grade **glossy** XBRITE screen 1280x800 which is supposedly great.
2. Its a p-m. Every other notebook has a p-m. Not much. Don't care about mhz too much
3. Decent keyboard.
4. Decently quiet fan.
5. Less heating issues.

Now whether some of these are true or not remains to be agreed upon. I have some specific questions I hope some s580 owners can handle. I would gratefully appreciate it.

Questions:

1. What is your average battery life on a standard battery? I am content with 2 1/2 to 3.
2. How loud is the fan and is it distracting? How often does it come on? **Can you turn or reduce the fan with sony software or use speedfan**? Which one?
3. Does the keyboard or palmrest get uncomfortable to type on heat-wise? Do your balls (men only) burn when you use it on your lap for an extended period?
4. **Build quality, is it good or bad? Decent? Feel sturdy? I don't need carbon fiber but I would guess they have some in the Sony to keep it so light, unless its just less plastic...
5. Are the memory and hard drive user accessible, as in it won't void your warranty?
6. The ULTIMATE question. Would you recommend it?
Thanks again.

Edit: One more question. If I order the basic configuration, what brand and what rpm will the 40(?)gig hard drive be?

 

1. I’m trying to learn something about undervolting, anyway my average battery life is 3h with the standard capacity battery (screen brightness: Level 1, power saving mode enabled, normal browsing via Wireless LAN and running standard office applications); I get around 5-5.5h sometimes near 6h with the high capacity battery.

2. The fan doesn’t bother me at all. When AC is offline it’s barely noticeable, right now the fan is really quite; I guess Sony power management adjusted it to the lowest level because I’m running through battery power and CPU temp is around 46-47°C-115°F (I read 21°C in the room where I’m typing from) sometimes it goes completely off. Personally I use Sony software to manage the fan, and I’m really happy with it, so far. Yes, you can customize the fan settings or you can let the system decide what the best option/compromise is in terms of noise and CPU temp.

3. This issue has been recently addressed by the latest BIOS revision. The palmrest never gets uncomfortable to me, but this is very subjective, I mean someone could complain about the heat but it’s definitely not a problem for me. When you’re running on batteries the CPU stays pretty “cool”, when you’re plugged in and/or running some intensive applications it gets warmer especially the right palmrest area. You can definitely feel much heat when you use it on your lap, but, again, nothing unbearable. I played both Age of Empires III and Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer 5 without any problem. I guess you have to accept that so much power (CPU and dedicated graphics) packed in a slim case could produce some heat.

4. Build quality is very good, the screen backlid is made of magnesium alloy and the rest of the notebook is made of some alloy as well, typing on the keyboard is a pleasure. Overall it looks the best compromise between weight, dimensions, power, sturdiness and portability.

5. S-580 comes with two separate memory slots: the first is located on the bottom of the computer, the second under the keyboard. Replacing or updating memory is easy when it comes to unscrew the panel on the bottom of the notebook while it gets a bit tricky for the slot located under the keyboard.

6. I’ll definitely recommend it, these notebooks aren’t cheap stuff but in my opinion it’s worth spending the extra money.

7. I don’t know about the 40GB HD drive, mine is a SATA 120GB 5400rpm Seagate Momentus.

GO AHED and pull the trigger, this is the right one!

 

1. What is your average battery life on a standard battery? I am content with 2 1/2 to 3.
>>level 5 screenbacklight, surfing, watching movie, 2-2.5 hr bat life

2. How loud is the fan and is it distracting? How often does it come on? **Can you turn or reduce the fan with sony software or use speedfan**? Which one?
>>IMo those that come with BIOS rev 1030 or so the latest one, have not much problem. infact i am nopw using it.. dead quiet and only comes on when u r playing games or load applications that r heavy like adobe PS

3. Does the keyboard or palmrest get uncomfortable to type on heat-wise? Do your balls (men only) burn when you use it on your lap for an extended period?
>>I guess surfing, running light app won't burn your lap for a short period. It will only get hot when u do extensive and heavy work.. in which the hot air willbeblown to the right side so ur mouse might feel some hot air but other than that palm rest etc is cool for me.

4. **Build quality, is it good or bad? Decent? Feel sturdy? I don't need carbon fiber but I would guess they have some in the Sony to keep it so light, unless its just less plastic...
>>I would say above average build. Not the best, but well good enough to stand mild shock etc

5. Are the memory and hard drive user accessible, as in it won't void your warranty?
>>Upg. my ram to 1.5gig.. never meddled with the hdd before.. as I don't need a faster or bigger capacity yet. 80gig is more than sufficient for me..

6. The ULTIMATE question. Would you recommend it?
>> Yes. Do not look elsewhere.. neither the fujitsu S series nor any other lappies in this 13.3" class can rival the sony S in terms of aesthetics and functionality.