VAIO Z Sleeves, bags and cases thread

I kind of want to buy this.. but so expensive.. 200$

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Why is that so expensive? Kinda looks like a $30 case to be honest.

 

Where'd you find it for $200? Conics told me they could get it for me for about $400 :\

 

I don't know what country you guys are in but in the US the case is $150 at sony style. You may be able to find it from other retailers for a few bucks less. And why so expensive? Well for one, it's a Sony product. And secondly it is actually very well constructed. The leather is very good quality and all the sides seem very rigid. There is plenty of padding to protect the laptop and it fits perfectly. Sony probably figures that if you can afford a $2k+ laptop, you can afford an extra $150 for a case. Sucks but like i said before, very classy case and a good piece of mind knowing the Z is protected.

 

"leather"? It's ballistic nylon. It looks like ballistic nylon and it even says so.

 

Yeah, link please. Couldnt find it on sony style.

 

I think he is referring to the VGP-CKZ2 leather case.

 

Wow, they're charging a 100% import fee? Thats a bit.. sketchy. I goto Japan pretty often, so it's fairly easy for me to pick one up.

 

Wow that's a very expensive nylon man-bag.

S

 

The case I've been referring to is the VGP-CKZ2:

VGP-CKZ2 | VAIO® Z Series Leather Carrying Case | Sony | Sony Style USA

It's definitely leather.

 

yes, it's leather, but it's not the bag the conversation was about. we were referring to the nylon sleeve

 

Has anyone tried out any of the SGP screen / case protectors?

 

I bought the Tamrac 1703 sleeve for my Z12: Tamrac 1703 Superlight Computer Sleeve 13 170373 - B&H Photo

 

Dell is blowing out the Mandarina Duck 13" sleeves for $10 with free shipping.

I bought one. It may be big for the Z. Someone who got one for his Macbook says it's big. These were built for the Adamo.

*CLEARANCE* Mandarina Duck 13in Computer Sleeve ? Designed for Dell : Laptop Accessories | Dell

 

I had a VGN series Z and always used a neoprene sleeve and a computer backpack. Unfortunately, as the back pack got full the screen must have been pushed against the keyboard and got marred slightly. Nothing too noticeable, but annoying nonetheless. The laptop was otherwise in pristine condition after 2 years of travel.

Just got a VPCZ1 and wanted to avoid this fate, so I looked for a hard case that resisted pressure. The only truly hard case I could find that does not sacrifice the Z's natural portability is made by the Mach 3 Composites. I got the 12.1 inch case and it turned out to be exactly what I needed. Very strong carbon fiber case, weighs a little over a pound, small enough external dimensions to fit into a 15 inch laptop bag compartment, and big enough to fit the Z (with a little room to spare, standard battery only), and checkpoint friendly. It is on the expensive side, but I could not find anything cheaper that matched its protection.

Mach 3 Composites - 12" Carbon Fiber Laptop Case

VPCZ1290X

 

dude, that's awesome. have any pics with the z inside?

 

+1 More pics of the awesome looking case please

 

I will take some pictures tonight and post.

 

OMG.................. it is a must-have..................... i am addicted to CF

BTW, I was thinking about getting REALSSD 1.8" 128gb or 256gb X 2....

instead of the notorious 128gb x 2 TOBA inside of this Z12...

Could u guys share some thoughts on this?

 

PLZPLZPLZPLZ

the laptop case looks awesome...

I have had, MANDARINA, incase, caselogic, n sony's......

But, this one..... can't help being impressed...

please let us know how it fits and please post some pics of the gap between the case and laptop - whether the case can cause some scratches on the laptop.

thanks.

 

Holy crap, that carbonfibre case looks like it is a must have. I would LOVE to see some pics of the inside with the Z in there. I've been looking for a hardcase for the very reason you mentioned. The centre of the lid pushes way too much for my taste to trust it in a regular laptop case.

$150 is nothing in the grand scheme of things. Some custom-made bags are that much.

Edit:

Did some more searching because their website is a little sparse, which always worries me but...
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mach-3-Composites/359910845117

 

yes I second that... I am strongly considering this case as well

 

The case is fully lined with good material, so I don't anticipate any scratching. There is about 1/2 inch extra room side to side and 1 inch front to back. May be a 1/4" top to bottom, but this one is hard to measure. Here are some pictures with the Z inside.

 

The pictures are now in the previous post.

 

Does the extended battery fit the case? It raises the depth to 1.84"

 

doubtful, the dimensions for the case say 1.5" max

 

I have both batteries. The laptop with the extended battery installed will not fit.

 

if you email and ask for a back to school discount code, they'll give you one. 20% off just placed my order

 

bummer... as I use my z12 with the extended battery most of the time and I dont think the 13" case will work either. but I think i will order it if I get the discount.

 

that carbon fiber case is awesome. i would almost be more afraid about that getting scratched and dinged than the notebook!

 

The carbon fibre case is beautiful and the owner of the website is very responsive. I don't know whether I'll add yet another case as I already have the leather Sony carry case and a SF sleeve. Both the latter work with the extended battery which is what I use most of the time too.

 

I ordered late wednesday 4pm EST, was shipped today. I should have it tomorrow I don't know if anyone saw it on their website, but you have the option to order the case made out of carbon kevlar instead of carbon fiber. Should be stronger but ever so slightly heavier. After you order, you just email them your order number and your request to have yours made out of carbon kevlar, comes out to the same price.

I was interested, but my impatience won out, esp since i'm going on a road trip this weekend, so I got the carbon fiber overnighted.

 

got my case in it's a perfect fit for my messenger bag, very happy about that. The messenger bag didn't offer a lot of protection which is why I wanted a nice hard case, fits the bill. The case itself comes with a little soft case/bag, which was a nice touch.

I'll play devil's advocate here about some early impressions. The latches don't require much resistance to unlatch, I would have preferred them to be on the firm side but I don't foresee it being a real problem in the end. Again, the latches I read somewhere are powder coated, and while i do know that doesn't mean the paint won't ever come off from normal wear and tear, mine came with a slight scuff already. Also, while it is TONS better than a traditional sleeve when it comes to crush protection, it does have a little bit of flex in the center, but that's just the nature of carbon fiber in general not truly a fault of the case itself.

Had looked for alternatives before i ordered, strongly considered the following
Tough, Hard Aluminum Laptop Case for Apple MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, MacBook & PowerBook - Protect your Apple Notebook with MacTruck
just figured i could remove the handle. It would offer even more crush proof protection, but didn't believe it was worth the weight penalty (4x the weight over the feathery carbon fiber case)

It loves finger prints, but then again, anything glossy does.

Very happy overall, could maybe want an once more firmness, but in the end probably wouldn't like the extra weight. We're human, we just want it all, even when it's not possible Super light case for our super light laptops

If it was 1/2" smaller in L x W it would almost feel like it was custom made for the Z.

 

wonder if the kevlar version would be less flexy. thanks for the review!

 

awsome!!!... thanks for the review... I think I may go with the case. But since I use the extended battery, I guess I would have to take the battery out.

I have the leather sony case. Will that fit with the labtop in the case?

 

if you have the case in a backpack where books are applying pressure or a similar scenario, i doubt the case would actually flex, don't get me wrong. the corners would take the weight easily. this would only be an issue if somehow whatever was pushing down on the case was putting all it's weight dead center, which would be unlikley. Despite it's light weight it's not flimsy. Although, if you do order the carbon kevlar version, please do let us know how it works for you

 

i have a feeling it won't, but saturday i'll find a sleeve and see if it fits with it on.

 

thanks

anyone have any codes for the 20% off?

Also from the pictures, i noticed that there is some extra space on the sides, does the computer slide in the case?

 

The idea is that Mach 3 Composites case spreads out focused pressure applied at the center of the case to the rigid sides of the case while flexing minimally so as not to put focused pressure at the center of the laptop screen itself. Also, the rigid sides should protect against unfocused pressure (i.e. too many books in a messenger bag) very well.

By the way, I discussed the Kevlar/CF case with Mach 3 Composites and they say that there is no strength benefit to using Kevlar. They are using it for looks only.

Here are some pictures of the new case variants:

 

PILOT1 is what they emailed me, dunno if it's a one use or what they gave everyone. If it doesn't work, email them, they'll give you one within a work day.

the Z11 does slide around if you turn the case around, but it's very little and the case inside is very well padded. So much so that I don't use the velcro straps it came with to further secure the laptop if you feel the need.

In thickness the space is probably just under 1/4" which is actually a good thing, since as i stated before, worst case scenario you have something apply 100% of it's weight on the center of the case, it does flex in a tiny bit. That 1/4" will actually provide a little bit more safe space for the laptop

 

You got velcro straps with yours?

 

not built into the actual case, just 2 straps that connect to the interior fabric and each other.

 

THanks.. the code works! I just ordered mines. The shipping was a bit on the expensive side though.

 

yup, i agree :\ i wish i had the patience to have ordered ground, lol

 

lol... I am hoping my leather sony case fits with the z12, inside the case, as I dont want to carry the carbon case if I'm at starbucks and just want to order more coffee.

Also, is the case waterproof or water resistant?

update:
some water resistance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlVAK0-_A5o

 

I did not get any straps with mine, bummer. Were they inside the case or inside the shipping box? I doubt I would use them, but just wondering why I did not get them

The case is certainly not waterproof (see the youtube video posted earlier). Water resistance is such a relative term. I would not have any issues carrying it outside in light rain. I would not risk it in a southern downpour and I would never dunk it in water.

I don't believe it is advertised as either water proof or water resistant. If water resistance is your top priority, you may improve matters with some silicone gel in strategic areas. Have not done this, so can't comment on effectiveness.

 

I would be curious, if they would be able to make matte one. I got matte case (Mystery Black) for mu iPhone from this site and it looks sooo much better than usual glossy carbon.

btw...could someone pls measure dimensions of the actual case (not the internal space), if it'll fit my bag.

 

They may make custom finish cases. E-mail or give them a call.

My case is around 14"x10.8"x1.8" outside. It fits inside my 15" laptop carrying case (which is what I used to carry the Z in anyway). I am including the hinges and latches in the measurements.

 

just noticed they raised the price by $12, must be bc of everyone using the 20% off coupon hope you got in before the price jump!

 

I was looking to get a sleeve or case for Z12 since I ordered it. I spent many hours looking online, even ordered a sleeve from WaterField but later canceled it because I needed a case that will protect the screen from scratching since usually I am carrying my Z in backpack or my Samsonite bag along with 10s other items like screwdriver, external HDD, network toner/tester etc. I use to scratch my old Vaio's screen (11.1" LED LCD VGN-TXN29N) with keyboard's keys exactly this way - when the bag was full with stuff, it was pressing the screen toward keyboard and finally left marks on the screen surface.

Finally, I spoke (and ordered) a 12" case for my VPCZ1290X from Mach3. You can still get 20% discount using the code posted earlier in this thread.

The only case with Kevlar is the one with yellow finish, and the weight/durability is the same as for regular Carbon Fiber cases. There are total 3 different Carbon Fiber finishes available, you can see them on pictures earlier on this thread.The case is not cheap, but it looks great, it is light and will protect your Z well. For an additional price, you can have your own logo (but not somebody's else log like Microsoft) on the case.