Sony VPCZ11FHX/XQ - Unboxing. movie, comparison to old Z-690, etc.

Hi all,

well my signature series Z11 with everything but the kitchen sink was delivered today. A little over 6 weeks from order to delivery but I'm not complaining as it is here right now !

So, without too much further ado, here are some pics and opinion and what is supposed to be the ultimate new Vaio Z!

First, the box.


The content description shows all the goodies in the machine. Note that even the sticker (and the Vaio as a whole) is manufactured in the US, contrary to Zoinks system where the sticker was printed in Japan, etc...

 

ok, some images of the Vaio itself. Quite a few people wanted to see what the Glossy Premium Carbon looked like so here you go. All of these pictures were taken without flash and you can see that it is still pretty shiny







Actually, the flash doesn't even really do it justice as it kinds of kills the shine. Here's an example, first without flash and then with flash:



Honestly, I really like the look of it. It reminds me of the Piano finish on my Definitive speakers, it looks very cool. Of course, massive drawback: it is a fingerprint magnet like no others !!!

 

Here are some comparison shots of the Premium Glossy Carbon shell with my 'old' z-690 Premium Carbon.





I think the following 4 shots really show the difference between the two shells. Both do show the Carbon fiber (long fibers I guess Drvec if I remember your post correctly ) but the shine of the glossy version really has a premium look to it imho

 

Some pictures from the bottom. it WAS manufactured recently obviously (3/2010 !!!!)




View of the battery compartment. It looks like the slot for the SIM Card on the Gobi is present in the shell (even though the SIM connector is likely missing from the Verizon locked Gobi itself). I'll open it and confirm this tomorrow

 

Some views of the keyboard and screen (which are not very different from all the one already shown as the screen is currently off )




And the forest of stickers to be removed from the palmrest.... which sucks: you pay premium and you're like a billboard I always want to remove these but most of the time don't for fear of damaging the palmrest...

 

More comparison to my old Z690, this time the screen (off) and the keyboard.

Yes, the palmrest is a slightly different tint than the rest of the body. It is also a smidge shorter than the old one. It still blends really well and is really conformtable.


The keys do not travel as deep (and in fact are shallower than the old one.) It has a slightly weird feeling initially but you quickly get used to it and it is just as nice a keyboard to use than before (in fact nicer thanks to the backlit: I'm typing all this on it in a pitch black room right now). Also, the bottom assembly being a tiny bit smaller (as well as the bezel of the screen), the open machine is roughly 1/6" shorter...


And while the bottom plastic shell is a tiny bit taller, the overall assembly is actually a tiny bit smaller than before


Couple more shots to show the color differences between the two models.



As you may notice, the new keyboard sits a tiny bit lower than its predecessor.


Face to face keyboards...

 

ok, that's it for tonight. I have some videos as well (full unboxing, first boot, some video test for font size, comparisons of the two resolutions, some color/TN testing, etc...) but it's all in AVCHD format and I have to figure what to convert it to and where to host it...

I also have a video of the SD card with all the videos (about 1GB worth) copying to the SSD... and it is pretty darn impressive

So far, I'm pleased. I don't like all the bloatware but I plan a bunch of re-installs anyway so I'm just playing now. I might be able to help Nautis with his final tests on Optimus as I don't need to switch machine over right away (although I really want to switch of course !!!)

If you've got anything you'd like me to check/test/take picture or video of right now, please let me know and I'll try to help. Thanks

 

thx you for share us

 

Shiny!

Thank you.

 

Looks nice. Remind me to AR, always love piano black.
Thanks for sharing the unboxing photo !

 

Thanks Treofred for sharing these. Any comments on the design or construction when comparing the two?

 

Thanks! I'm interested in this

 

Ok, this is just a test to embed an unboxing movie in the post.
First, I've never done any unboxing movies before so sorry for the pace.
Second, I shot it with the Sony camera I bought yesterday at Best Buy so I had to convert it. Since I didn't test the converter before, it is a trialware (with a massive watermark you'll see ) I WILL register it and re-upload but this is just a test.
Third, I wanted it to be streaming so people don't have to go through a massive download to see this lousy stuff So, anyway, bunch of apologies to say 'This is just a test'.

Thanks

<embed width='600' height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid740.photobucket.com/albums/xx44/fredo9/00000.flv">

EDIT: OK, here's a reconverted version with the registered software (no more watermark, yeah !)

 

Your test works fine from here.

 

Thanks lpx, I re-uploaded with no watermark

Ok, here's a quick 'fly over' the new and old Z to try and compare the Carbon outside. Not as obvious, the shine can be subtle !

<embed width='600' height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid740.photobucket.com/albums/xx44/fredo9/00001.flv">

The new Z is on the left.

 

Here's the first boot ever on this system so you have an idea of how long it takes before it becomes available (answer: not nearly as long as on my previous Z when I first booted it with Vista !!!!)

<embed width='600' height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid740.photobucket.com/albums/xx44/fredo9/00002.flv">

Couple of notes:

- I booted on battery, which was a mistake. It would have been even faster (and would have used the NVidia out of the box) if I had booted plugged in.
- The weird scan refresh on the screen was partially due to this, some weird behavior with the brightness sensor, some battery saving feature, etc. Interestingly, it was *NOT* noticeable while looking at it directly but messed up the camera good !
- The last screen is the Sony registration screen. The system is effectively fully booted there (and proceeds to ask you next about Norton Antivirus, MS Office and other trial/bloatware)

 

Here's (kind of) a comparison of the 1600x900 Z screen and the 1920x1080 Z. I've gone to the same webpage (this forum, Z owner thread ) on both machine using the same browser Firefox. Both machine are now scaled to 100% as far as dpi go. The new Z is the very bright screen on the right this time.

<embed width='600' height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid740.photobucket.com/albums/xx44/fredo9/00004.flv">

Couple of things again:
- I plugged and fixed the back light on the new Z. Notice that the vertical scanning effect is gone.
- The screen is ultra bright but you have to tinker with the sensor to make it do what you want (and it's a bit of the same with the keyboard back light in my experience so far).
- Having resized the video for streaming and smaller screens, it is hard to get the beauty of the HD. I'll take some pictures too... At least, you get an idea of how much real estate you gain (which is why I try to align posts between the two machines in the video.)

Cheers !

 

Ok, this one I will definitely redo as soon as I get the time because there are way too many artifacts. I'm posting it anyway just to remind me to redo it

Basically, the idea is testing the vertical viewing angle of the HD screen by changing the angle of the screen while keeping the camera static. Due to the fact that this is still a TN panel, the vertical viewing angle is where we have the most limitations.

Kudos (as usual) to Arth1 for suggesting this test using his avatar.

Now, unfortunately, due to some other setups, there are a lot of digital noise and moiree effect that was introduced (and not present in reality). Moreover, the down conversion of the resolution interpolated and exacerbated those patterns

Again, I'm terribly sorry for this and I will shoot this test again soon (in better conditions). In the meantime, try to forget about the picture itself (none of those artifacts were REALLY present) and try to focus on the color shifting which is really what I was trying to go for. Looking how the avatar (which should be grey) shifts from almost solid green to almost solid red.

<embed width='600' height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid740.photobucket.com/albums/xx44/fredo9/00005.flv">

Cheers

 

btw does sony include the invoice with the laptop?

how the blu ray burning.

also a few details on the gps and wwan would be nice. more pic of those.

 

The reason that this model is assembled in the U.S. & not Japan is because this signature series model is still considered a CTO model. It's just that this is a pre-configured CTO or as the sticker on the box says, a CTOQS (CTO Quick Ship). Furthermore, the box design is a standard U.S. CTO box unlike the model Zoinks tested out, where the box design is slightly different.

Anyway, does it matter? This is one hot notebook IMHO. I just wish I have the money to buy one.

 

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences. I've been considering the Signature Series to get the 1920x1080 screen, but I've been put off by the prospect of fingerprints on the glossy finish. How easy is it to clean?

 

how is the power connection port? does it feel wiggly?

 

The power plug fits in securely (it's not going to fall out) but there is a fair amount of wiggling possible if you poke and prod the connector. This may be by design though, since something completely rigid might be more likely to be damaged.

 

I was comparing Zoinks' Vaio Z with this one. Does the gray aluminum on this one look much darker, esp next to his old Vaio Z? Or is it just lighting?

 

It is dark, I posted some pics in my unboxing thread.

 

Pretty easy with the included cleaning cloth (bundled for the HD screen )

 

Are you talking about Zoinks 'temporary rental from Sony Style' or is new Z? Because his new Z is the same as mine (Signature Collection with HD screen I believe) so it is the same shade.

On this post I have some comparison shots of the new Z signature and my Z690 CTO from about a year ago. Yes, it is significantly darker than the old one (and the new aluminium one looks closer to the Macbook look I guess although I didn't put too side by side either.) The pics in my post were done without flash but with typical interior lighting so color are "somewhat" accurate at least in trying to see the shade difference I guess.

 

Any news on this?

 

Thanks for the clarification. I was referring to the signature series - glossy premium carbon fiber. I guess in some pictures the aluminum looks more grey and in others it looks more closer to black. So I am confused. I wish I had a Sony Style store so I can see in person but I live in the middle of nowhere. Which would you say it is closer to? Thanks in advance.

Is this pretty accurate?: http://s740.photobucket.com/albums/xx44/fredo9/Sony Vaio Z/?action=view&current=DSC00043.jpg

Or, is this more accurate - here the new Z and old Z look nearly the same dark shade of grey?: http://img687.imageshack.us/i/dsc00957b.jpg/

 

Do you have the wavy diagonal lines, esp noticeabley when you tilt the screen or move your eyes across the page?

If you don't see it, don't bother looking for it. If you see it, it'll really bug you. I just want to know if Sony has fixed this problem from the last year's Z's.

 

Hi Treofred,

I am interested in the blu-ray drive. Would you tell me what the model number is?

Thanks in advance.

OzB

 

The problem is still there, even on the Full HD screen.

 

Haven't opened mine yet (got busy ) but Zoinks has the same, did open it and it looked like the SIM card area is definitely missing.

 

It's definitely darker !

 

need VPCZ11FHX/XQ recovery cd(s) , whom may upload to any shared portal. ? Thanks