Sony SA Series Discussion Sony's next new 13.3 laptop

$2500, that is a little rediculous. I don't see people paying it. Although given that no specifications are offered it is hard to tell from this.

 

this SA does not look like it will sell well at all

 

Do you guys think it's likely that the prize of the current Z drops as the SA comes out?

 

Lol there's no way that will be the official price

 

no. message is too short.

 

I think, this time around, the new models being created are not through Sony Japan. Instead these models are being ODM (i.e. apple macbooks) through contract manufacturers in Taiwan. Can't really tell right now where the Z and F (sony's high profile laptops) are originated but I am sure as time progresses there will be more transparency. Anytime Sony has released a new Z there has always been a nice lecture interviews from its engineers and designers and in the past they were all Japanese.

In conclusion, that is why I see such a depart from sony current Z and the new concept Z but I could be wrong at the end.

 

The only thing we can have from that is that it´s not taking that long to be released. The rest is misleading.

 

Yeah, $2500 is too expensive. Maybe that one has 256GB SSD and BD?

I thought SA were supposed to start around low $1000's with the HDD model. Anyone know where these are made in? I heard some time ago Sony is outsourcing cheaper models, but for higher end, they will continue building in Japan. Is SA a high end or a Vaio for the mass made in China or such?


I'm waiting till Summer for the next Z.

 

According to PCMAG the HDD starts at 1250 USD. Probably it will not be Japan made because I believe one of it´s main selling points is price. So they will probably choose a cheaper country.

 

I am pretty sure the Z is still made in Japan, with CTO models in North America being assembled in Souther California plant.

 

The design is still done in japan. The SA fits the new design trend of the VAIO laptops, check the X, the new F, and the current E line.

 

The use of nVIDIA graphics indicates that this laptop is business oriented luxury laptop. This is an advantage giving you many features as CUDA which is important for some professionals. Also I'd like to see some kind of hybridization between SSD and HDD on selected models!

 

Yeah, that is the F-model, which is (in my opinion) much more media centric rather than business oriented.

 

I heard the CTO factory in San Diego is closing...

 

I agree completely, a hybrid ssd/hdd (either separate or integrated) would provide most/all of the ssd performance but keep costs under control.

 

Sorry for this, I was quoting for VAIO SA since I was excited to see GT540 in small laptop! . I realized now, there are no official specs for VAIO SA till now unless the rumored AMD graphics.

About Vaio F, yea it's a multimedia premium laptop also it could be used as a powerful workstation on the go.

 

I wouldn't know. But, I would think they would CTO out of Japan still for devices like the Z and P.

 

Don't you realize these are fake pictures?

 

As I don't trust the Windows XP screenshot as well , the rest of the material is authentic. Here are two pictures of the new F Series, going into the same industrial design direction as the concept notebook discussed here:





Well ...

 

Based on that article on an earlier post, it did mention that the price for the SA is around $2499.99. Coincidentally, that's the same price shown in that screenshot. IMO, the price is somewhat realistic if you have preconfigured Z's priced in and around the same range of $2499.99. I'm sure when SonyStyle has their CTO up, the starting price for the SA will be lower when offered with a HHD.

 

I hope Sony USA do offer us the option of HDDs in the VAIO SA series & not ignore the US market like they do with the HDD-only options of the current VPC-Z series....

 

^They will, I posted that already. Nice bonus is the HDD units get to keep the ODD.

 

No, PCMAG article says it starts at 1250 USD.

 

Why is the screen so thick?!

 

So HDD model starting from $1250, and this is not a premium laptop.

Since you probably had hands on already, does this model have a good build quality? Do you think it's durable like Thinkpad X series durable?

I hate flimsy cheap plastic finishes and wobbling keyboards and such. I actually prefer the MBP13's rigidness (but too heavy!), but I also really liked Sony Z1290.

 

The J&R site looks like it is just a placeholder. Why would both models be the same price?

 

In one word: No.

For business use, you want Quadro (or for ATI, FireGL) branded graphics cards that can run optimized workstation drivers that make modeling software run 2-10 times(!) as fast on the same hardware. GeForce branded cards are prevented from running these drivers, and have optimizations for games instead.

A business laptop will also have support for multiple monitors, and real docking stations that add functionality like serial ports, not just port extenders.

Make no mistake, this is a consumer laptop, and not a business laptop.

 

because it's a consumer laptop

the side-view picture confirms many of our suspicions that this is a consumer laptop

as put by sony japan, the letter "z" is reserved for their flagship model, it is obvious that they deliberately didn't use "z" for this model, i suspect that they did not have enough time to design and manufacture an SB based z, so they decided to introduce the SA so that they continue to sell in the 13" market (from the looks of it, it doesn't seem like they spent much time trying to make it compact)

i guess we can expect the next z to be announced within sony's regular update cycle

 

So what is happening to Vaio SA now that the CES 2011 is over? Was SA ever officially announced?

I'm wondering what happened to sites like engadget.com and pcmag.com's Vaio SA related articles. Why are they still pulled out? Maybe Sony didn't want the media calling it a Z replacement?

 

that would have been a great Z replacement at twice the performance and half the price!!

 

I quoted VAIO F by a mistake (I actually meant VAIO SA), so I agree with you. In case of VAIO SA there is no need for such graphics as Quadro since it's a intended to be a small high performer not a workstation. Some business users and enthusiasts would use some applications that take advantage of CUDA, so the use of nVIDIA sounds more professional for me.

True. This is common with Sony even with BZ. Users seeking portable workstation offering such docking must look for Dell Latitude/Precision, HP Elite Book, and Lenovo.

 

When's Sony's regular update cycle?

 

I agree with you. Sony usually associated Z with their flagship models like the Z505,Z1, SZ and VGN-Z/VPC-Z.

 

I don't know if anyone already posted this but Sony Japan has already updated all their models for the spring. The Z has been updated to z14. No sandy bridge. Considering how they always update every season, we will have to wait another 3 months at least for another change.


Nothing about the SA.


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EDIT: The biggest change I noticed is that you can get a 1TB SSD for 200,000 yen, more than 2 grand. And it now supports the high capacity SDXC memory card.

 

It's already supported in Z13.

 

didnt know that, thanks. Im thinking about buying the z13 at the sony outlet and that helps my decision.

 

How about Z12?

 

anytime

Previous models don't support SDXC. It's one of the new features added to Z13.

 

Would a firmware be possible to support SDXC in previous models?

 

No. SDXC is different by its hardware nature and requires a compatible card reader. The main advantage here in all Z models that the card reader chip is connected to PCI Express lane instead of crippled USB, this offers high transfer rates making the use of SD card as additional storage easier and more practical.

 

now PCMAG article is down!!!!!!!! what the hell, now this is starting to looks like a conspiracy... sony so secret about it, must be a good product.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2375136,00.asp

 

Or the opposite; an axed product.

Or, simply that there's shortage of parts, so the launch has been postponed.

 

Nah, a site would only remove an article if there's a threat by a company. Probably the SA's were under some sort of N.D.A. in CES, so Engadget and PCMAG were asked to remove.

 

^correct. Launch is far enough away they don't want to announce it yet.

 

Late february?

 

Well looks that Sony is waiting for Apple to commit on the 28 january before lauching their new line ...

Oh well, maybe the new Samsung series 9 for me ...

 

Beaups, can you tell us whether the SA will be a Made in Japan "premium" model or a Chinese/Taiwanese one? Thank you!

 

Or you could get a Z right now? I want to read the reviews of the Samsung series 9 first... looks like a lap warmer to me...

 

I could but I really dont need a graphic card since I do not do CAD or gaming on a laptop. Since why the new sandy Bridge video capability, frugal power consumption (17w) and good processing is on the top of my list for my needs. Also looking for a thin, light, SSD upgradable and long life battery laptop. The list is quite short Sony Z, MacAIR and new Samsung ... Sony Z have the thin, SSD, light but not the long battery life. As for Apple I dont like their OS. And yes I know I can put Win 7 on that but not interested...

Will wait to see the review on the Samsung which is SUPPOSE to be release at the end of the month before making my decision. My lap are already fried from my old XPS I'm even considering the HP DM1...

 

I was really thrilled with the new Samsung 13.3" until I noticed they will be using low voltage CPUs. I don't think it'll be a lap warmer, but will be a weak CPU. But since you are also considering Macbook Air, you probably don't care of the weak CPU.

news SAMSUNG
Key Specs:

• CPU: Second Generation Intel® CoreTM i5 Processor 2537M (1.40 GHz, 3MB; turbo up to 2.3 GHz)
• Operating System: Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64 bit) / Windows® 7 Professional (64 bit)
• Memory: 4GB DDR3
• Storage (max): 128GB Solid State Drive (SSD)
• Screen: 13.3-inch HD LED-backlit SuperBright Plus display (400 nit)
• Resolution: 1366x768
• Graphics: Intel HD GT2 Integrated Graphics
• Speakers: 3 watt (1.5W x 2) stereo speakers and 1.5 watt sub-woofer
• Battery: Lithium Polymer; up to 6.5 hours
• Wireless: 802.11b/g/n; WiMaxi
• Weight: 2.89 lbs.