new vaio sz680 +cr190 initial impressions

just received my sz680 t7500 3gb ram 160gb HD and a cr190 t7100 2gb ram 100gb HD a couple day ago.

here's a photo of the two along side the sz160p which has served me well for the past 2 years or so


initial out-of-box impression of the 680 was it feels a little lighter but more rigid/solid than the 160p. the black casing is very handsome as are the black touchpad and buttons. the only ugly part is the silver keyboard which i've grown to live with, but the notebook would be perfect if i had ordered the black keyboard (and saved $30). initial boot up with all the bloatware was unbearable. my 2y/o 160p with t2400 and 2gb of ram running XP pro with its 100gb HD 80% full booted up almost twice as fast...i was disappointed. performance for the CR out-of-box was similar. the screen did look notably brighter

first thoughts on the CR after removing it from the box was, "damn, this thing is pretty heavy." I've been spoiled by thin+light weight laptops with a s-series being my first and then the sz160. the CR190 felt bulky and heavy in comparison. it did feel solid though and the pink color with polished trim looked better than i expected--the CR is for my fiance.

after a semiclean install performance is pretty speedy. i'm still getting used to vista and starting to like it, but i can't help but wonder how much faster both the laptops would be if they were runnign XP. in retrospect, the sz with an extra GB of ram and slightly faster processor runs a bit smoother than the CR. the CR feels good, but the SZ is just a bit better. start up time on my usualy apps (outlook 2003, photoshop cs2, photoshop lightroom) is very fast on the CR and almost instant on the SZ680. compared to the sz160p which i was happy with, the difference is night and day.

i'm typing the post on the sz160 right now, and then i'm going to transfer the rest of the files over to the 680 and then it's going on ebay. to those of you runnign older model sz vaios and thinking about the upgrade, it's worth it! just get the black keyboard and save $30

 

Is the sz680 noticeably thicker? Any more comparison shots?

 

This post (which is in Japanese) shows some of the differences between the old and new SZ: http://kunkoku.livedoor.biz/archives/51120750.html

The text only describes the changes, and I am sure you can guess which one the Santa Rosa SZ is.

 

why would you have so many laptops?

 

Bought the SZ680 to replace the SZ160, and the CR is for his fiance.

 

Oh. Cool. Now it doesnt seem like so many hehe

 

One of the things I like so much about my SZ160 is I can dual boot XP and Vista. I had not used XP for quite a while but recently I went back to do some updates and found I actually like using XP which for some reason seems quite a bit faster than Vista. Can't you dual boot XP/Vista on the new SZ if you choose? Also how is the keyboard on the new SZ compared to the 160 (feeling wise) and how is the overall experience different?

 

both the sz's are pretty much identicle in size and as i said previously, the 680 feels just slightly lighter yet more solid. my fiance LOVES her CR and coming from a even bulkier 3 year old dell, thinks her CR is the perfect size and weight.

i haven't thought about dual booting, but over the past couple of days, vista has grown on me. boot up time is a bit longer than i'm used but it's not bad and opening and running my standard apps is practically instantaneous--click and up+running.

as for the differences between the keyboards, they do nto feel the same. as for which has the better touch, that really up to each individual. the 160 is a bit more firm and "springy" while the 680's keyboard is very light and has less feedback. personally i prefer the 160's keys and am thinking about an attempt to switch the keyboards around...but there does my warranty. i'm getting used to the silver color (the only mistake i made on my order....) so maybe i'll get used to the new lighter feel as well.