Sony Vaio Z13 Pre-Launch discussion

Z Serie : VAIO & weitere Computerprodukte : Models : Sony

 

But still no configuration available.

 

They should show up tomorrow.

 

Hopefully for the US site as well.

 

It was there yesterday, when I tried it. No price change for the same full configuration that I was trying for the z12, but with the 640 processor. No other changes, apart from a few additional colors like bordeaux.

 

Z13 can be ordered in France !

edit : oops, only yesterday, Z12 today...

 

Patiently waiting for the Z13s to show up on the USA site ...

 

The Z13 CTO is now up on the Canadian site with everything "backordered". This only showed up in the past 4 hours.

VAIO Z Series PC | Sony | SonyStyle USA

Here's the base config @ $2016.99

* Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor (2.53GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 2.80GHz
* Microsoft Windows® 7 Home Premium
* Black
* 4GB (2GBx2) DDR3-SDRAM-1066
* 256GB (128GBx2) Solid State Drive with RAID 0 Technology
* CD/DVD Player/Burner
* NVIDIA/N11P-LP2/1GB + Integrated (SPEC00090005115)
* 13.1" VAIO Full HD Premium Display (1920x1080)
* Standard Capacity Battery

Estimated Ship Date 10/05/2010

Only real new options (while taking other cheaper options away) are:

# [Backorder] Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor (2.53GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 2.80GHz
# [Backorder] Intel® Core™ i5-580M processor (2.66GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 3.33GHz [add $90.00]
# [Backorder] Intel® Core™ i7-640M processor (2.80GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 3.47GHz [add $150.00]

As a side note, if you configure the Z12 that's on clearance at $1090 base, to the exact specs (approximate for the CPU of course) of the Z13, it's roughly the same price or more! The 1080p option on the Z12 really bumps up the price.

EDIT: I assume the reason my link to Sonystyle.ca shows up here as SonyStyle USA is because the US division now runs the Canadian site as well.

 

I kind of read MM's statement of " maybe, more storage", that he was saying the storage is fine. That unless it could hold 2TB, there would be no point in having more storage?

 

That's about as minor a speed bump as it can be.

I didn't want the hi-resolution on a 13.1" screen so the over $800 I saved getting 8gb ram, 512ssd and blue ray was a smoking hot deal - thank you Sony.

Now the wait for my new Z12 to get here ... it will be worth it ...

I've got so tired of Apple's ultra portable line up, if you want to call it that ... a 3lb MacBook Air lacking everything except thinness and how does thinness dictate that price? To the 13" MBP that's 50% heavier, two usb ports jammed close together, no hdmi, mirror gloss screen, edges sharp enough to cut your wrists ... what the hell? ...

And, people drink that crap like spiked kool-aid ... I know I did, but finally I've sobered up
(rant over)

 

Is this deal available in the US? I couldn't make it work. Thanks.

 

Doesn't work, Sonystyle Canada will only ship to a Canadian address.

 

Wow, so you can order a Z1290 with i5-540M for only $1220 from SonyStyle.ca right now. That's incredible. The same machine was $2000 only a few months ago.

 

Sure you can order it but I'd say the chances of them canceling it are pretty high... they canceled tons of orders for the Vaio Y a couple days ago too.

 

I REPEAT it's an ADVERTISED SALE!

Thank you.

 

got a link? where is the advertisment?

 

Where are they, I cannot find them on Sony Style USA | Sony VAIO® Computers | Sony Consumer Electronics, it still shows the Z12

 

I'm ready to bite on the Canadian store but I really do like the higher resolution screen but not enough to drop $500 for it. Has anyone had a chance to compare the two screens. Just how much more nicer is the high def screen? Whats the likely hood of enjoying it from other sources without a blu-ray drive?

 

I just can't make a decisione either... In Germany it's 100 Euro...

I've just configured the z13 with the biggest ssd (512GB 8GB RAM blueray ...)
4.359,02 EUR almost 6009,25 CAD

The same model in Canada costs only $3551.99 (2576.55 Euro)

????????????????

 

Actually the same model in Canada right now is $2905 not $3551.

 

How come the United States always seems to get updated/refreshed last?

I need to learn Japanese and move to Japan.

 

You don't need to. Just make a friend in Canada. The Z13 CTO and all the options are now in stock on the Canadian site.

 

In deutschland there are now loads of colors available, even red.
Is it true what they say about the refreshed CPUs? Their "stepping" (what does that actually mean?) is higher, so they are less power consuming?

Warning: This link may contain german text!
Sorry for providing this, but it is my only source for that power consumption improvement statement and i can't find it in their english version.
I know what most people said about their i5 vs. i7 power consumption comparsion, but maybe this time the are right?
Test Intel Core i3/i5/i7 ?Arrandale? CPU Refresh - Notebookcheck.com Tests

 

US SonyStyle must be overstocked on Z12. Z13 launch date was 9/26...all the other new models EB,EA, F, etc. launched on the 26th. Z13 is available at many retailers/etailers in the us now.

 

I have to agree with you. They must have a lot of overstock processors. If you notice, FHD screen is on backorder at the US CTO site. I suspect it shoudn't be very long for the Z13 to available for sale.

btw, which retailers/etailers are you talking about? I can't seem to find any.

 

The 1080p screen is nicer and crisper, but i guess it would cause a lowered batt life, tax your graphics card more(lower fps's when gaming) and could take getting used to the really small font. Also, with the fact that it has about 30% more pixels, the 1080p has a higher chance of dead pixels (and sony only exchanges the screen if there are > 10 stuck pixels). Most people get a blu-ray drive, but they never use, and if you want more storage space, you're probably going to want to replace the optical drive anyways, so no more blu-ray drive.

 

To stay on topic, i think it's a real bummer that there is a $900 discount on the vaio z12 in canada only and not anywhere else because i don't live in canada...
Now, to answer, I think one should expect a $2000 laptop to last more than 2 years. I'd rather it to weight 1.7 Kg instead of 1.38 Kg and use it for 5 years. it's not a weight contest, to see who has a lighter laptop. i just want a durable laptop with a reasonable weight. but the only other durable laptops i found weight more than 2.2 Kg, which is too heavy for me for daily use. there is the T410s, 1.8kg, but it has a really crappy screen. the envy 14 weights 2.5 Kg. too much. btw, the dell e4310 has same weight as the z and the r700. but low resolution. so, to sum, no other laptop with resonable weight and z features. it doesn't mean that the z can't get a bit heavier, but still reasonable, and last 5 years instead. that would be a great improvement, in my opinion.
hope it makes sense.

 

Here's one: Micro Center - Sony VAIO VPCZ133GX/S Laptop Computer - Silver VPCZ133GX/S

 

Thanks Beaups, good looking out. Although I think I'm gonna hold off for the CTO from sonystyle US

 

I hope at least one 4x Raid0 option appears on the US site with the refresh. Before you had 4x128gb as an (albeit pricey) option, now there is no way to get one (other than ordering off shore).

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but arn't the current 512gb SSD versions essentially Quad SSD... it states 2x256gb on the CTO website but each of those 256gb have two 128gb pancaked together, therefore 2 physical drives, but 4 logical.

Refer to this thread for clarification..
http://forum.notebookreview.com/6078967-post1.html

 

That is correct, edwordsigh.

All 512 GB SSDs are Quad Raid so far.

 

Then don't buy a Sony Z, there are lot's of other heavier laptops to choose from.

The Z's weight is one of it's key features, 3lbs. Add even half a pound to that and it's noticeable.

Please people, leave our three pound Z alone.

A notebook to last 5 years, really? How many people do you know using 5 year old notebooks, not many. That's because they get outdated fast ... so everyone upgrades sooner, of course....

 

I don't know. I'm still using my 4 year old Asus A8Js. I'm happy with it except it newer games chug a bit and no LED backlit screen. My wife would have continued to use her SZ680N (upgraded to 4GB RAM and T9300) if it wasn't the potential implosion of the stupid 8400m.

Regardless, I jumped on the Z12 deal as my upgrade.

 

yea, I know what you mean, 5 years is a good goal. Just to let you know, this Z is my 3rd Vaio. All three were ultralight-weight. My first one was from 1998, my second from 2004, my third from 2010

So far all 3 are working great. The 1998 unit (z505sx) is too slow to run anything but if the topic is reliability, there are no problems there (it weighs 3.5 pounds, no dvd though). The 2004 (TX770) unit weighs the same as my Z (but with an 11.1" screen instead of 13.1"). It still has the same lightweight built-in dvd drive that you-all are complaining about. Even got dropped a couple of times. Guess what: still running great, still gets used regularly. The screen on the Tx is LED and super thin (like the Z). I've read a couple of people complaining about those things being TOO thin. Guess what: the screen on the TX is still just fine after more than 5 years.

I bring this up because a number of folks seem convinced the Z is going to die in 2 years because of its construction. Based on my experiences with these ultralight Vaios, it should do just fine.

 

Ah, thanks for the clarification, I thought this had changed after hearing the rumored 4x256gb (1TB) option coming in the refresh as the new 4x option.

Odd that Sony US doesn't promote their 4x raid option properly (or Raid 0 at all), it's rather dumbed down for the American market vs. Int'l sites.

 

So now i will order the z13 because my z12 has several pixel issues at the top left corner If Suse works well now on my Z12 i will send it back and order a Z13. Hope Suse will work fine cause i love the Z series and i nedd Suse too :/

 

Do you think the drive-caddy for the Z11/Z12 will fit into the Z13? SATA connector for the OD should be the same, shouldn't it?

 

It should fit! Z11 Z12 and Z13 are identical expect of the ZIF in the Z11

Sry but i have to leave this awesome community Suse and no other Linux distri will work properly on the Z12. Now i send my Z12 back and ordered a ThinkPad T410s for 1900€ :/ hate german prices. Hardware is so expensive in this country

 

Suse and other distros will work, it just takes some effort!

 

What part of Linux didn't work for you (I know others are running Linux on Vaio Z): http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/472559-ubuntu-vpcz1.html

I myself run Linux on it virtualized (using VirtualBox) and that works quite well.

 

I just pieced together a Z13 on Canada's Sony Style with i7-640m 256 ssd, 4gb, win7 pro, FHD, and it was only $2200. This compares quite favorably to the Z12 CTO i5-540m 1600x900 i ordered on US site 2 weeks ago and still hasn't shipped
(I was REALLY on the fence about 1600x900 vs FHD, but that new i7 will be a lot faster than the z12 i5..)

The SS U.S. representative I called today had no clue about Z13.

The wait is killing me, but at this point I'm tempted to cancel my order and pop on a Z13 CTO as soon as it drops. (when oh when?!) Or maybe I'll return my Z12.

Does anyone have any clue how the US Z13 CTO prices will compare to Canadia's?

 

The installation works fine but then i got weired colors. I read a Lot about Suse and Ubuntu on Sony vaio Z. Nobody has a working and stable solution. I searched a lot then my brother has shown me his thinkpad with full Ubuntu support. Because of that and the fact that i can ask my Brother i have chosen the thinkpad. I like the Z Series but the T410s is better for the university where linux is a must have. But if you have ja working solution you can tell me. Maybe i rethink about my decision!

 

If you have the funky colors you need to enable advanced features in the bios, set video switching to static, change graphics to speed mode, and install the Nvidia restricted drivers.

 

And is ist possible to disable the NVIDIA Card?

 

yes but getting linux working on the intel card is troublesome. It's easier with the nvidia drivers, although screen is stuck at 100% brightness. I think the goofy colors issue on the intel card is due to the displayport interface.

 

In other words, there is no way to get Linux to work on the Z12 without modding your BIOS to get advanced options.

I also got the funky colours in Linux w/ unmodded BIOS.

 

How about installing Linux on a Virtual Machine? Haven't tried it, but just had to ask the question... Plus screen wouldn't have to work at full brightness. Just a thought, however...

 

That will of course work, but then it's still running Windows with Linux in a virtual machine.

 

Works great. I run Linux (and OS2, and XP) virtualized all the time, using VirtualBox ( VirtualBox). If you remember to turn on the Vtx extensions as well as load the os extensions, it works seamlessly, no speed hit.

I often run Resource monitor just so I can see how hard the cores are working and it really doesn't feel like there is a penalty for using virtualization on the core i5/i7, with Vtx enabled.

Vbox has one other interesting feature, I don't know how it manages to keep it all straight, but you can tell it to remove the 'box' it runs in. At which point the Linux and Windows 'stuff' is all intertwined, Linux windows and Windows windows all side by side. That one still kind of blows my mind.

Sometimes I will be running a Linux 32 bit, a Linux 64 bit, and an OS2, in addition to the Windows native. Each is doing its thing and the Resource monitor will just show the the cpus themselves just loping along, hardly working at all.

Installing is a snap. I have installed various virtualized environments on the Z and have not yet had to do anything special with drivers, or bios, or anything else for that matter.

Another thing: if you have Windows Professional, then you can install the Microsoft Virtualization environment, VirtualPC (also known nowadays as Windows XP mode) for free ( VirtualPC). It runs Linux just fine. So that's another option.
Just don't try to run VirtualPC and Vbox at the same time (VirtualPC DOES NOT know how to play nice with the other kids ).

Another option is vmware, which some prefer: VMware Player