Sony SA Series Discussion Sony's next new 13.3 laptop

I too have a SA on order. Called Sony as when I bought the laptop I was told it was the same screen as out of the old Z as Sony was not brining the new Z to the US. Talked to five different people and finally got sent to tech support who said the part numbers between the old Z and the SA were different. No one could say if the screen on the SA is the same tech as on the SA but it sounds like it is just with a higher resolution.

They did say however units were shipping.

I have been lurking on this site for a while and wanted to say thanks to everyone.

Now the big question, do I cancel my SA and pull the trigger on the Samsung Series 9? This laptop is simply for school and doing homework and papers on. I have a gaming rig hooked up to my 70XBR2 for games. With the current rebates the series 9 is around 1500 including next day delivery. The biggest downside I see is the small SSD but with the new iCloud I don't need to haul around all of my music now.

Any thoughts?

 

Well you've already got the SA on order. I'd say just wait until you get it to see if you like it. If you don't, just return it.

 

Are you allowed to return CTO Orders in the US? Mine is still being built, I'm not sure whether to cancel it or not.

 

Yes you have 30 days for a full refund. You pay return shipping though.

 

Why cancel an order based on one users review of the screen? No harm getting the laptop and trying it out for yourself first....in the US anyways.

 

I don´t believe sony would charge a lot more for SA for having the same low quality screen as SB. that would be a joke...

 

it's also 150/200g lighter, and a bit thinner, so it finally has to use some other materials

 

nah, since they are using a lower capacity (and weight) battery, I´m not conviced anymore of better materials.

 

OMG Yes! this is exactly what we need. please take pics / make video of display screen comparison. that would be ideal. Thank you so much! =)

 

Isn't that because they've dropped the blu ray player and it's now just blu ray writer or DVD writer?

I notice that the SB now no longer offers the i7 or the 6630. Looks like I'll have an unusual SB when it arrives.

 

yes, sony adjusted the lines accordingly to the SA introduction

SC - plastic, good offer

SB - magnesium/aluminum, medium range

SA - carbon fiber, premium line up with all the bells and whistles

 

Is it ok to assume, everyone here likes the new hinge design. The way that hinge sticks out and not flushed to the case is not exactly aesthetically appealing.

 

From what i can remember the BD player was a £50 upgrade and the BD writer was a £100 upgrade or something close to that anyway.

They could have brought other prices down like the ram but well £350 is quite a steep upgrade.

Lack of preconfig models will mean that people will need to pay Sony prices unless they may be can import and get it a bit cheaper. I hope that we can expect to see some preconfig models, i know some model numbers are floating out there.

 

FYI - I just called my local Sony Style Store..and they said they just got the Vaio SA today and will put it on display either today or tomorrow. I'll go check it out sometime this week and tell you guys what i think.

 

I bought my pre-configured VAIO VPCZ13KGX/X notebook online. I was lucky to find one new when I bought mine. A few days after I bought mine, that particular model was "officially" discontinued & sold out everywhere. Maybe there are people like me who helped to clear out those stock? In that sense, you can probably say that I'm very, very "lucky" to be able to get one before they were all gone for good.

Maybe a higher resolution (1600x900) screen is worth forking out the extra money for some people?

At least you will be able to buy it with just 4GB of RAM & add in an after market 4GB RAM module to it. Based on what had been discussed in another thread & if I remember correctly, I believe that the upcoming VAIO Z series has got both RAM sticks soldered onto the motherboard, so even if Sony charges "an arm & a leg" for 8GB of RAM, if one wants it bad enough, one will just have to s**k it up & show Sony the money.

 

@requiem86

Location?

 

This is my local Sony Style Store..about 4.5 miles away from me. I'm sure a few of the other locations have it as well now.

7864 Tysons Corner Center
McLean, VA 22102
(703) 356-6396


The guy said they are putting it on display today or tomorrow....i might just go in today and tell him to open a box!! lol.

 

why are you still not there and back yet? xP

 

lol im about to leave work right now...i might or might not stop there....DC traffic is the WORST.

 

I understand where you guys are coming from with the £350 BR upgrade but look on the bright side: base config is decent and it costs £1049 inc VAT. For reference, the closest equivalent Sony Z CTO in the past year cost ~£1800 (and believe me I've been through that CTO customizer many times in the past year to shave £££s off the thing with little success). If the screen turns out to be "not crap" then this would make the SA a damn good deal. I was expecting £1300 or £1400 for this config.

 

Thanks I will check out my local SonySytle. I'm really hoping that it has a proper display otherwise I think I will go with Samsung 9. SB/SC's display was really not acceptable.

 

We live in the same proximity to Tysons Corner . I might stop by the Sony Style this weekend and give the SA a looksee. When you post, could you give your impression of the screen size? When I first saw the SB, I thought the screen looked pretty small as opposed to the Z.

Also, for anyone else, do you guys think that SA is worth it over the HP Dv6t quad? For me its portability/design/moderate power of the SA versus the the raw power of the Dv6t quad (not too crazy about the design).

 

Hi all. I just called two Sony retail locations nearest to me, Santa Clara, CA and Palo Alto, CA and they both now have the SA model on display for our touching and gawking pleasure. Hopefully I can make a trip to see this beauty in person soon! Anyone know when the blue SA version will be available? Judging from the pictures I've seen online, the blue one seems to be the better color. I really wished that they would offer it in white though I may have to just grab the Jet Black one

 

I would love to see Sony offers the VAIO SA series in white too. I had thought that I am the only oddball who loves it in white, but I guess I'm not the only one who do.

 

lol nice. I live in Fairfax, btw..near Vienna Metro Station. =)

SB/SA screen size is 13.3" vs. Z's 13.1" ....so im not sure why it looked smaller to you. weird.

 

I'm writing up a Vaio SA review right now! Almost done!

 

Hurry up.

Bronsky

 

Exactly. And don't forget the pictures!

 

What's taking so long requiem86? Don't forget to post the infamous notorious photos.

 

sorry no pictures.. i didnt have my camera on me (i dont have a iphone either!). But I am writing up a detailed review! very close of being done.

 

do you have an SA in hands? how is that?

 

nope, i went to the sony store to see it.Review ill be up in 5 minutes.

 

are you creating a new topic?

 

Enjoy! http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/584506-review-sony-vaio-sa.html#post7577496

Yes, I did - I figured it would be easier for everyone to find and view. If admin feels it's should be relocated back here, I'm sorry. I was just trying to make it easy access for everyone.

 

nah, it´s perfect, thank you for the review

 

man how much a display cost for manufacturers? 100 USD??? how can sony put a ***** display in SA with that high price?? are they dumb??

 

I just checked it out in local SonyStyle as well. Overall it looks nicer compared to SB and SC however screen is exactly the same horrible panel with just higher resolution. Terrible viewing angles, no contrast at all. I'm really disappointed. I'm ordering myself a samsung series 9 tonight.

 

i've bought an acer 3820TG with 6550 and 2.6ghz core i5 processor for 630 USD. Now I don't think the fu***** 1500 USD SA will have a better display than the acer. I'm very pissed. really.

 

you dont know that. stop acting like that you are giving brazilians a bad name

 

a so-so display is always a so-so display and is equal to another so-so display. A premium display would be above. SA doesn't have a premium display. I will let you take your conclusions.

 

sighs in disbelief, looks at his own age, thinks that he is getting too old for this

 

MM i'm younger than you and i agree.. i did not bother to say something like you because i too think i'm too old for this...



I wonder if there is any Display panel out there we could buy and replace the on that comes with the SA/SB.. The Z's would be perfect if it was the same size, 0,2mm seems like a really big insult to cause this...

 

Can i get some advice guys? SA (new tech) or old Z (better display)? need a little push - if someone wants to chime in.

 

Lurker, been drooling for the SA long time and this post was my lifeline Got a chance to check it out today in the Dallas Sony Style (they even said they have models ready to take; obviously I wasn't going around with that cash though). Didn't have an SB to compare to but had three refurb Zs next to it. Got a chance to take a shaky video too, found here: YouTube - ‪Vaio SA hands on‬‏ . Couldn't spend too much time filming though, the guy there was crabby enough already!

I agree with requiem86 on everything. Not a screen nazi myself though, and frankly I couldn't differentiate between the Z's screen and the SA screen. Viewing angles weren't THAT great in the SA or the Z (on Z's defense its apparently a store unit that was there for a year, was on sale for 1300) but definitely good screen though. I was more worried about the brightness however ( The Z's backlight was bleeding when at full brightness actually; I don't know if thats normal or just because the unit was so abused) since even at full brightness it was not all that bright (I had to jack it to full brightness to even use it without strain in the bright location there). Reflectivity is comparable to that of the Z.

Otherwise the laptop is just killer. Doesn't come close to the Z in sexiness though. The bezel really makes it so much more mundane in comparison with the Z sisters nearby. The copper heatsink exhaust is just below the hinge (which is amazing; extremely sexy feel; but looks almost barely attached to the unit, its only connected in the middle for 6 inches, a teeny bit worried about its longterm reliability).

Thickness is comparable to Z, width is more though obviously. But very light (comparable to Z). The sheet battery is again quite thinner than what I was expecting, and with it the laptop feels like it increased in weight by 50%. But its still very light compared to other monsters around, very handy even still. Performance, I guess there's nothing much to test or surprise there.

So yes. My call would be to probably buy it, but if I find the screen too inadequate after initial use might return it. So the return is 30 day full refund right? (Dont mind the shipping, but hopefull there's no restocking fee)

 

nice video. thanks for the upload! i guess we'll have to wait on some more reviews. For me, the old Z vs. SA/SB screen looked very different.

no restock fee, just shipment fee.

 

New SA over old Z. Sceeen is just one of the many factors. I value ergonomics also and so with my large hands, i can use the bigger palm rest on the SA. I've found the Z to be a bit cramped to type on, especially in the palm rest area. Overall i was disappointed that the SA doesnt have the premium display, but the other factors considered I am keeping the new SA that is on the way and giving the to a different family member with not so large hands.

 

Also, when I configure the sheet battery costs 150USD now, but when I add it to cart I see this option which costs only 120: SB SC Battery | VAIO® Extended Sheet Battery | VGP-BPSC24 | Sony USA ; is it the same sheet battery or does it only fit SB/SC?

 

Mr MM is trying to say that I'm being precipitate about SA's display quality. there are 2 users opinions who had SA in hands and concluded it's not better than average. So Mr MM critics like "you don't know what you are talking about" is pointless to me and no more than a direct agression.

 

i think i had a brain freeze....isnt the ATI 6630M (SA) suppose to be significantly better than the NVIDIA 330M (old Z) ?? According to notebookcheck...the old 330M is like 2% better...though I believe the 6630M uses less energy.

Mobile Graphics Cards - Benchmark List - Notebookcheck.net Tech

 

you do not understand what he is trying to say, believe me.

and yes, we know, SA/SB screens are average and not any above quality. they have poor vertical viewing angles, not so much contrast, colors or brightness.
If you do not count the Z good luck finding a better 13'' screen. When you do, please tell me.

Are you comparing the Nvidia 330M to the AMD HD 6630 ? check the PCMark06 and up and see the difference, it's plenty. and the Nvidia GPU always performe better on benchmarks than in the real usage when compared to similar AMD GPU's.. also i'd say just that first number(Pixel Shaders) and the directX11 support are completely worth it...