ThinkPad T520 or wait for new Z

As many other users I need a new laptop (don't really need one, I just found a couple reasons to get one). Currently I have VPCF11 i7-720 with 6GB Ram and Intel SSD drive and second bay drive. Everything's fine with the F series except:

Screen - really suck. it was glossy so I had to buy matte film. Viewing angle is terrible and the colors are weird. I tried already different color profiles.

Battery - I got regular slim battery now. When I read school books and work with VS2010 battery lasts maybe 90min. With AutoCAD or VM's it lasts 40min. Screen brightness is at 70%. I don't really want extra battery or even bigger battery.

Trackpad - is the worst pad on any laptop I ever owned. I'm not sure if I got dry hands or what but the pad doesn't register every finger slide. I adjusted the sensitivity and movements already. I played with couple other Sony laptops and they are totally different.

Those three things bothering me to the point where I want to get rid of it. Here's the features are important to me in new laptop:

- graphic card
- still portable (small size)
- good FHD screen (ideally IPS) and matte ofcourse, 13''-15''
- good battery life, at least 3-4h on more intensive apps

To keep the thread short, at first I was thinking about Sony Vaio Z13 but then I saw ThinkPad T520. The new Vaio S has only 720p screen. So the question is should I get Z13, BTW they still pretty expensive or maybe I should go with T520 or ....... maybe I should wait for new Z. I read briefly all those long thread about new Z. What do you think? I've never owned Lenovo nor IBM.

 

I'm wondering why you want the T520 anyway. Ok it's latest gen but it's like 2 times less portable as the vaio z13 (2,5kg vs 1,5 of the Z), it's also in a different size category (15 vs 13,1).

Although i read the battery life of the T520 would be 11 hours (advertised), so say around 9 hours (real life), that's a bit better than the Vaio Z13 with 9-cell (around 7,5 hours wifi usage, around 5,5 with some more ''intensive'' stuff aka vmware).

So you really have to sort out if weight it important to you and you don't want to compromise resolution or performance ... pick the Z13.

If not and you seem to be willing to buy an 15incher, i'd say buy an Dell XPS15 with the 1080p screen, which is one of the best on the market currently.

 

I think a VAIO Z13 will be a good choice for you.

Good luck.

 

I know they are in different weight category but it is not really that important to me. I want comfortably grab my pc without charger and go to beach, coffeebar, park and work/study there for a while without worrying about my battery. Here's my negative comments on models I considered:

thinkpad x220 - no dedicated GPU, no FHD screen res.
thinkpad t420 - no FHD screen res.
sony z13 - no FHD screen res., still pricy for outdated tech.
sony sb - no FHD screen res., don't really like it.
sony t520 - bulkier than sony Z still smaller than my sony F.

Maybe I should stick around my F series for a little longer and see what will come up in near future.

 

I should got myself Z12 year ago and I wouldn't have that problem today. I think it's too late now because Z's been discontinued.

Keep in mind that F11 dissapointed me a bit. In addition to three issues, Fan whines, which is really annoying in a very quiet enviroment and feels very plastic. So now I'm considering if I still want to stick with Sony Brand.

 

No, it's not too late at all. You can still order the VAIO Z13 from the SonyStyle online store:

VAIO Z Series PC - SonyStyle USA

Unfortunately, as you know, the FHD screen is not offered anymore. But hurry before it's all sold out this time.

Good luck.

 

I wish I could go to the store and compare Thinkpad's before purchase. Does anyone knows one near Tampa Bay, FL area?

I think I'll pass on Z13 (BTW I saw a couple old FHD Z13 on ebay).

 

There would be some Z on Sony's outlet that have a FHD display. They're refurbished though which usually means a returned new CTO.

 

Thanks all for help. Last couple hours I played with power settings on my F11. Somehow I managed to adjust them and now with just reading a book and wifi I'm getting almost 210 minutes. Didn't test it with VS2010 or CodeBlocks yet but I think I'll suck it up and just wait for Sony SA or new Z.

 

Discontinued hum hum... There is this new Z with external device coming, but otherwise, Z13 is still available CTO : after a few weeks of unavailability at all on the french site, it re-appeared suddenly as CTO (w/o FHD screen).

The fact it disappeared and slowly re appears is probably more due to the lack of parts (Japan problems and several Sony factory closure) than the fact that it will be discontinued. I think same about the FHD screen, it may just be that the production has stopped cause of Japan problems...
Ok that's just how i feel about it...

Anyways, why would Sony sell Z without FHD but availability (unless they want to keep their stocks for SA but it would make no sense...).

By the way, refurbs are not necessarily returns laptops. It may be some brand new CTO ordered by a company which have finally not been sent or for brand new CTO which have never been opened for some other reasons.

 

I agree, find a deal on a Z12 with FHD right now, this a great time to find a deal.
In your first post you mentioned waiting for the new Z but you know that one won't have a discrete GPU on board right? The GPU is an add on unit.

 

Which actually might be quite interesting. I like the battery sheet idea. I was in the Sony store the other day and played with the SB for a second. I think it has potential however the frame surrounding screen is a bit too wide for my taste, and of course screen resolution is too low.

In three months I'm moving to UK so I'll wait till June and see if Sony will release refreshed Z or SA.

I think same thing happend to F12. Sony started to offer F12 with HD screen only for a while and then they announced F13.

Japan's problem might postpone some of the releases but aren't some of the models coming from China. My F was made in China, not sure about internal components.

I'll wait till June and then worst case scenario I will pull a trigger on used i5 Z11 or Z12 with FHD as a second laptop however I hate the idea of synchronizing the files to NAS.

 

The unavailability of the FHD screens might be because those screens used in the VAIO Z series are manufactured in Japan by Toshiba-Matsua plus the fact that the FHD screens are so popular & production problems due to the earthquake aftermath in Japan.