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    Z2 mini-review.

    Discussion in 'VAIO / Sony' started by MikeYbarra, Sep 11, 2011.

  1. MikeYbarra

    MikeYbarra Notebook Enthusiast

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    Picked up my Z2 a few days ago and waited to post until I had a couple days under me. Previously I used a Z1190x.

    Specs are i7, 256GB SSD, HD screen, 6GB, etc. Some high level thoughts:

    * Screen is freakin amazing.
    * Weight is amazing.
    * Battery life is shockingly good.
    * PMD worked w/o any issues (removing, docking, etc.) - including having multiple USB hubs off it.
    * speed of the machine is second to none.
    * Keyboard takes some getting used to (shallow button press).
    * I realize how much I miss a 13 inch screen (vs. Z1)
    * I have always hated Sony drivers, and I hate the drivers in this unit as well.
    * Personally, PMD isn't powerful enough. It should be a much higher end GPU and the PMD should have audio out on it. It should also have DisplayPort or DVI to push 30" monitors w/o any hacking.
    * The thing looks very, very damn nice. It's the best looking notebook I've seen (and I'm a Mac fan so that's hard).
    * Even with i7, it runs fairly cool.
    * Hate Sony's software add-ons, spent 40 minutes uninstalling .
    * Needs a power button somewhere (on the PMD perhaps) for when you plug in the PMD and want to turn the unit on. Opening the lid to turn it on then closing it for external is stupid.
    * Dual SSD in Raid 0 makes me smile every single time I load anything.

    Only game I played on it was the Diablo 3 friends and family alpha - it ran fine both with and w/o PMD.

    Only 2 days, so lot of usage to continue to do before I give it a final grade. For me, in such short amount of time, going back to the Z1 doesn't even factor in.

    Mike
     
    MikeYbarra, Sep 11, 2011
    #1
  2. beaups

    beaups New Jack Hustler

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    What do you mean about missing a 13" screen vs. Z1? You have a 13" screen still, the same one.
     
    beaups, Sep 11, 2011
    #2
  3. MikeYbarra

    MikeYbarra Notebook Enthusiast

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    High resolution, 13.3 inch vs. 13.1 inch.
     
    MikeYbarra, Sep 11, 2011
    #3
  4. ota-con

    ota-con Notebook Deity

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    Both the VPCZ1 and VPCZ2 have the same size screens.
     
    ota-con, Sep 11, 2011
    #4
  5. TofuTurkey

    TofuTurkey Married a Champagne Mango

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    !!!!!!!!!!!!!


    How much better is the Z2 compared to the Z1?
     
    TofuTurkey, Sep 11, 2011
    #5
  6. beaups

    beaups New Jack Hustler

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    Right, Z1 and Z2 are both 13.1".
     
    beaups, Sep 11, 2011
    #6
  7. MikeYbarra

    MikeYbarra Notebook Enthusiast

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    Oh, and the speaker is the worse I've ever seen in a notebook. Including the Z1. Sony really biffed this one.
     
    MikeYbarra, Sep 11, 2011
    #7
  8. maven1975

    maven1975 Notebook Evangelist

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    Its about 30% slower with games than the Z1 with bios hack. If that's what your asking.
     
    maven1975, Sep 11, 2011
    #8
  9. lovelaptops

    lovelaptops MY FRIENDS CALL ME JEFF!

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    lovelaptops, Sep 12, 2011
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