[Merged] Sony VAIO Z Series Notebooks

[entatlrg]

No, thank you! I just went into VAIO Control Center, and for some reason Automatic Brightness was still turned on, even though I had previously disabled it. Now the screen on the Z is just as bright as the MBP, and I've corrected my statements in my overview. Thank you again!

Thank you too! I also just went into the Vaio Control Center and checked the Automatic Brightness. It was also still turned on even though I previously disabled it?

Now my screen is as bright as my MBP too.

fr4c - you haven't returned your Vaio yet? Maybe a need for a 15" MBP and a Vaio for extreme portability? lol

 

[Zadillo]

Very nice thread - I'm also one of those people who have been deciding between a 15" MBP and a Vaio Z (although I'm looking at the base model Z with a Core i5 and 128GB SSD, which is currently on sale at MicroCenter for $1699).

The appeal of the Z to me is definitely the combination of power and size/weight. I've mentioned it before, but I wish Apple didn't feel the need to keep such rigid pricing differences, to the point that they won't make a 13" MBP with higher specs - I'd gladly pay more for a 13" MBP with an i5 and GT330M and even higher res screen option).

I definitely prefer OS X, and the fact that an MBP can easily run OS X as well as Win7 is a definitely plus. I do like Win7 to some degree - it has become more usable to me, especially thanks to "Aero Peek", which I like almost as much as Expose.

I'm a bit surprised about the comments about the screen - I've only tried out the Vaio Z at my local MicroCenter and SonyStyle store, but the screen looked pretty good to me - although I guess I didn't experiment a ton with viewing angles. I don't discount it though, I've seen other people point out these issues too.

I still haven't really quite decided, but I think I am realistically leaning more towards the MBP - but I do wish Apple would make a more Z-like machine (and again, I don't even want/expect them to make a 3 pound machine with the specs of a Z - just the current 13" MBP with the same price range and specs as the Z would do it for me).

 

[kasakka]

Good review and it does ascertain what I've been saying for quite some time: many PC laptops can have better specs than the MBPs on paper, but they fall flat when it comes to usability. It doesn't help that the VAIO Z looks really thick in one of the pictures.

It's a shame nearly all PC manufacturers don't go the extra mile to make their machines better. Still the same crap trackpads, silly VGA ports etc.

 

[Abstract]

So the biggest complaint in your review of the Z was the screen brightness, and that was an error?

The Sony is simply a marvel. It performs nearly as well as a 15" MBP i7, but is more the size and weight of a 13" MB Air. Apple has a hard time even cramming better video into their 13" MBP. The Sony Z so amazing that just thinking about that boggles the mind a bit.

I'd take the Apple 15" over the Z, but deep down inside, what I really want is a Vaio Z with OS X installed.

 

[entatlrg]

I've made my decision and it was easier than I thought.

First, FAR more important to me is 'user experience' over spec's. Spec's are important so I can work quickly and efficiently. Otherwise, I don't care ... if I don't like the keyboard, screen or trackpad what's the point of drooling over what's inside.

To address the Sony Z first. Even though I've adjusted the brightness I find the 2010 Z screen sub par to recent years, high resolution yes, but grainy and dull and surprisingly reflective to how I recall my last Sony Z. The 13" MBP I'm typing on now is FAR easier to read text and view web pages etc.

Not only because of the screen, also the Sony trackpad, it sucks, a mouse is a solution to that, but for portable use, I'll take the Mac trackpad. Finally the Z keyboard is nice, better that most pc notebooks for sure, but not quite as nice as the MBP. OS wise I was so anti mac at one point and Windows all the way, I'm shocked myself that I like OSX so much more than Win7. I won't go on about OS's, it's personal preference.

15" MBP
It's a heavy, bulky trade off to get the spec's of the Sony Z for sure. If I had to buy a high spec'd machine and choose between the Sony Z and 15" MBP I'd probably take the 15" MBP and bitch about the weight and big footprint. The screen, keyboard, trackpad - user experience is better for me on the 15" MBP. I can't choose the Z even though it's small and light if I don't like using it.

MacBook Air
If it had the spec's of a Z there would be no 13" MacBook Pro. I love my Air but short battery life, lack of ports and ram make it a machine I'm passing on to one of my staff.

The Winner - 13" MBP
I realize this is a Sony Z / 15" MBP thread ... I came into this thread with both those machines, but I'm leaving with the 13" MBP and thought it may be of interest to others who can't decide what to do.

First, I considered spec's - what notebooks will do the tasks I need to do 'lighting fast'. The Z and 15" MBP meet the criteria of course, for me the 13" MBP, with max'd out spec's, including 256ssd and 8gb ram does as well. Gamers and video editors may need more power.

Next I wanted the thinnest, lightest option available and from a user experience point of view I had to ENJOY using it in all or as many situations as possible. The 13" won over the 15" MBP because I find the 15" not as good to "take everywhere" or use on my lap on the couch, airplane tray or coffee shop. The 13" is small and slick to pull out of a bag and start working on. With the 15" I found myself thinking twice if I should bring it, or I'd consider bringing the Air - lacking battery life, or my iPad - lacking a lot. When I need more than a 13" screen I have my 24" ACD, best of both worlds I think.

That's how I made up my mind. The 13" will easily replace my 15" MBP, my Air and iPad too for that matter. It's small enough to take and use and when you open it up you know it's got the power to do the work, a great screen and keyboard, and the battery life too. win - win - win. I'm happy to be going back to a 13" MBP and very glad to see the Sony Z go back.

 

[Pavia]

Fanboy much? Or are you like 14?

I need an i7 in a 13" laptop. Period. And for you, just keep laughing, but out of this thread. And oh, try to be more respectful to other forum members.

No, I apologise for not being as articulate as others.. And be more respectful? I just said my opinion.

 

[gordonyz]

VAIO Z has the kind of masculated GT 330M, with slower running clock. I wonder what the i7 MBP has the standard clock or not.

 

[Libertine Lush]

VAIO Z has the kind of masculated GT 330M, with slower running clock. I wonder what the i7 MBP has the standard clock or not.

Someone in the Game Benchmark thread said he thinks it's underclocked. Don't recall if it was in reference to i5 or i7 though.

 

[SaaGua]

Thank you very much for the comparison.

I've been on the fence between the Z and the MBP. Your review was very enlightening but I'm still on the fence (Arrrgh!)

One thing, I know you were being as unbiased as possible, but when you compared the power cord, shouldn't you have included Apple's 3 prong extension cable as well? (Or does Apple force you to buy that as an option now?) You made it seem like Sony's cable is two pieced and more bulky, if you include Apple's extension cable, the bulk would be the same.
By the way, if Apple does NOT include the extension cable with your notebook, then how long (or short) is the power cable? I find that my Powerbook power cable is really short and have to carry around the extension cable.

If only the 13" had anti-glare and i5, life would be so much better... sigh

 

[fr4c]

Thank you too! I also just went into the Vaio Control Center and checked the Automatic Brightness. It was also still turned on even though I previously disabled it?

Now my screen is as bright as my MBP too.

fr4c - you haven't returned your Vaio yet? Maybe a need for a 15" MBP and a Vaio for extreme portability? lol

Stop tempting me . I've been using the VAIO Z exclusively for the past 2 days, and hope to add some more information to my initial post. It definitely is a beautiful machine, and I feel Sony definitely hit a home run with this one. As many have commented, it boggles my mind on how Sony was able to fit all of that inside such a light and compact body.

So the biggest complaint in your review of the Z was the screen brightness, and that was an error?

The Sony is simply a marvel. It performs nearly as well as a 15" MBP i7, but is more the size and weight of a 13" MB Air. Apple has a hard time even cramming better video into their 13" MBP. The Sony Z so amazing that just thinking about that boggles the mind a bit.

I'd take the Apple 15" over the Z, but deep down inside, what I really want is a Vaio Z with OS X installed.

Yes thats was my primary complaint, but we now know it was a user error on my part. Even though its not as bright as previous panels on the Z, this just shows how amazing the VAIO Z is, assuming you're willing to work with Windows 7 and the MS environment.

I'm keeping my eye out on whether or not OS X can be installed on the Z, but so far no luck

Glad it's ok! So you're keeping the Z now?

For now

Thank you very much for the comparison.

I've been on the fence between the Z and the MBP. Your review was very enlightening but I'm still on the fence (Arrrgh!)

One thing, I know you were being as unbiased as possible, but when you compared the power cord, shouldn't you have included Apple's 3 prong extension cable as well? (Or does Apple force you to buy that as an option now?) You made it seem like Sony's cable is two pieced and more bulky, if you include Apple's extension cable, the bulk would be the same.
By the way, if Apple does NOT include the extension cable with your notebook, then how long (or short) is the power cable? I find that my Powerbook power cable is really short and have to carry around the extension cable.

If only the 13" had anti-glare and i5, life would be so much better... sigh

Apple does include the extension cable, but keep in mind many of us don't need to use it (which adds extra weight and length). The Apple brick adapter can be used simply by itself and it's length is plenty for most users.

The problem with the Sony charger is that its a 2-piece design, consisting of the brick and 3-prong power cable. You need to assemble the two pieces together to charge the laptop, and the angle of the cable terminations as well as the design of the charger makes its very bulky and awkward.

 

[entatlrg]

Stop tempting me . I've been using the VAIO Z exclusively for the past 2 days, and hope to add some more information to my initial post. It definitely is a beautiful machine, and I feel Sony definitely hit a home run with this one. As many have commented, it boggles my mind on how Sony was able to fit all of that inside such a light and compact body.

I'm curious to hear what you end up settling on Sounds like the Sony is still tempting you alongside your new 15" MBP.

Unless you need the Sony's power perhaps consider a 13" MBP as well? For me the day to day user experience was quite a bit better, again due to the screen, trackpad and also the keyboard.

Keep us posted.

Edit: For the Sony Z / Windows users out there if you prefer how Mac OS renders fonts compared to Windows there's a program called "Gdi + +" (search google), it will make the fonts look more 'mac like'. I find the mac fonts thicker, bolder and easier to read especially on that small screen.

 

[FrinkTL]

....
Yes, the previous Z screens looked much better. I don't know what they did, but it was definitely a downgrade in this update.

As an owner of the Z690 AND the Z11, I have the advantage of being able to compare the machines side by side with the exact same image file displayed. I can tell you that there is absolutely NO difference in the quality of the screens, either in their brightness (both can be used outside in direct sunlight (just barely) or in color accuracy (both are 95% RGB compliant).

 

[FrinkTL]

One more point of clarification regarding gaming and portable desktop. I'll address them in reverse order (just because):

Portable Desktop: I don't know what you guys expect or are looking for in a laptop, but I use my Z11 as a desktop replacement. I used it for probably about 10-14 hours a day, since I use it for work as well as personal stuff. I am slightly far-sighted, and yet I find the screen resolution of 1600x900 perfectly readable (unless the point size of a font is below 8 points). The screen is crisp and clear and very color-accurate for a consumer grade machine. If there was an issue with the display, you would think that after daily double digit hours across many months (this is my second Z) I would have encountered it. I have not.

Gaming: I can't explain other's experiences, but I can tell you that this laptop absolutely amazes me with it's ability to game, while remaining cool to the touch. Sure, the air coming out of the vent is HOT, but isn't that what the exhaust fan is SUPPOSED to do...evacuate the heat? I have played Bioshock 2, Oblivion and Crysis on this machine and it doesn't skip a single beat...not yet anyway. Of course, while it can play Bioshock 2 and Oblivion at high quality settings on native resolution, it can't muster that for Crysis - which is known to be brutal to machines...even my full tower 3GHZ FX processor with Dual graphics cards desktop...but, at 1368x760 resolution, it plays Crysis at high settings without dropping any visible frames.

I'd be interested in the test results of playing Crysis on the MBP.

 

[mark28]

Someone in the Game Benchmark thread said he thinks it's underclocked. Don't recall if it was in reference to i5 or i7 though.

it's underclocked to 500 hz for the MBP. But some guys have already found a way to overclock the GT330M back to it's orignal speed

 

[Zadillo]

As an owner of the Z690 AND the Z11, I have the advantage of being able to compare the machines side by side with the exact same image file displayed. I can tell you that there is absolutely NO difference in the quality of the screens, either in their brightness (both can be used outside in direct sunlight (just barely) or in color accuracy (both are 95% RGB compliant).

It is interesting, there seem to be a lot of mixed messages regarding the quality of the Z11 screen. Here we have people saying it is worse than previous Z's, and I've also seen a few threads over at NBR with people complaining about various aspects of the screen.

But in other places I've also seen people say the screen is excellent (notebookcheck's review goes into a significant amount of detail: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Sony-Vaio-VPCZ11X9E-B-Notebook.28704.0.html), and they cite it as one of the big reasons they went for the Z (people comparing it to the Alienware M11x make this point too, that the high quality of the screen is one of the big differentiating factors that makes the higher cost worth it).

Personally, I can only speak from having seen the Z11 at MicroCenter and the SonyStyle store, and in both cases the screens seemed quite excellent (especially compared to other Sonys like the CW and Y which seemed to have considerably terrible screens with awful black levels).

It does make me wonder though, for the people who are finding the Z screen to be that much worse, what the issue is.

 

[mjoshi123]

It think comparison here is still little bit flawed. We are comparing here 15" form factor against 13" form factor. Also people who think OS X is superior to Windows 7 offering, probably they need to realize that you are comparing two different OS and there are things that Win 7 does better than OS X and vice-versa. One of the most ardent fan of Apple - Walt Mossberg himself noted in his review of Windows 7 that Microsoft has closed gap between OS X and Win 7 and it is more of a toss-up between two rather than clear advantage for OS X and Microsoft should be thankful to Apple for that because everything here is evolutionary.

The only reason for me buying Apple hardware would be because OS X is not avaliable on non-Apple product as per infinite wisdom of Steve Jobs (although Hackintosh is an option and I've done that with Dell Mini9 in past), on contrary you can still run Windows 7 on Apple Hardware because Microsoft kept their product less tied down to particular hardware as opposed to Apple and that definately earns some brownie points. There are disadvantages to this approach as hardware companies are crippleing down Windows capabilities by puting their own crapware on top of it. But still at the end of day - end user has a say in what they want on their machine unlike in OS X world.
Apple started as a company that was anti-establishment, company that beleived in providing alternative and freedom of choice but as it happens to everything that grows out of its roots, it has turned out to be company that only worries about its bottomline and you can see in the direction in which it is moving with regards to making its products more and more closed systems.

 

[Zadillo]

Apple started as a company that was anti-establishment, company that beleived in providing alternative and freedom of choice but as it happens to everything that grows out of its roots, it has turned out to be company that only worries about its bottomline and you can see in the direction in which it is moving with regards to making its products more and more closed systems.

You do realize that that Apple, in terms of freedom of choice as it relates to hardware, hasn't existed since the launch of the Macintosh, right?

It's amazing to me to see people say that the Apple of today has somehow changed from what it once was, as if this is some new revelation. The original Mac was an incredibly closed system; it was one of the whole points of it compared to the Apple II and the PC.

-Zadillo

 

[mjoshi123]

okay boys to add little more fuel to fire here is link to test article for MBP 17 with i7. Keep in mind that MBP 17 is bigger machine with more space to dissipate heat and this is what happens when it is taxed to the max.

http://gizmodo.com/5524473/core-i7-macbook-pro-could-make-water-boil

 

[Zadillo]

okay boys to add little more fuel to fire here is link to test article for MBP 17 with i7. Keep in mind that MBP 17 is bigger machine with more space to dissipate heat and this is what happens when it is taxed to the max.

http://gizmodo.com/5524473/core-i7-macbook-pro-could-make-water-boil

I think there's something wrong with their test unit..... look at the fanspeeds in their screenshot:

Only running at 2000 rpm, never faster than 3000.

I'm running my current Santa Rosa MBP at 4000 RPM fanspeed (using smcFanControl).

It doesn't seem shocking to me they're seeing those temps with the fans not ramping up.

The question I'd have is if this is a defect or something wrong with the fanspeed in general on these MBP's.

 

[mac2x]

It think comparison here is still little bit flawed. We are comparing here 15" form factor against 13" form factor. Also people who think OS X is superior to Windows 7 offering, probably they need to realize that you are comparing two different OS and there are things that Win 7 does better than OS X and vice-versa. One of the most ardent fan of Apple - Walt Mossberg himself noted in his review of Windows 7 that Microsoft has closed gap between OS X and Win 7 and it is more of a toss-up between two rather than clear advantage for OS X and Microsoft should be thankful to Apple for that because everything here is evolutionary.

The only reason for me buying Apple hardware would be because OS X is not avaliable on non-Apple product as per infinite wisdom of Steve Jobs (although Hackintosh is an option and I've done that with Dell Mini9 in past), on contrary you can still run Windows 7 on Apple Hardware because Microsoft kept their product less tied down to particular hardware as opposed to Apple and that definately earns some brownie points. There are disadvantages to this approach as hardware companies are crippleing down Windows capabilities by puting their own crapware on top of it. But still at the end of day - end user has a say in what they want on their machine unlike in OS X world.
Apple started as a company that was anti-establishment, company that beleived in providing alternative and freedom of choice but as it happens to everything that grows out of its roots, it has turned out to be company that only worries about its bottomline and you can see in the direction in which it is moving with regards to making its products more and more closed systems.

Yes, but thanks to Unix, OS X offers infinitely more open source software choices than Windows.

 

[entatlrg]

It think comparison here is still little bit flawed. We are comparing here 15" form factor against 13" form factor. Also people who think OS X is superior to Windows 7 offering, probably they need to realize that you are comparing two different OS and there are things that Win 7 does better than OS X and vice-versa. One of the most ardent fan of Apple - Walt Mossberg himself noted in his review of Windows 7 that Microsoft has closed gap between OS X and Win 7 and it is more of a toss-up between two rather than clear advantage for OS X and Microsoft should be thankful to Apple for that because everything here is evolutionary.

The only reason for me buying Apple hardware would be because OS X is not avaliable on non-Apple product as per infinite wisdom of Steve Jobs (although Hackintosh is an option and I've done that with Dell Mini9 in past), on contrary you can still run Windows 7 on Apple Hardware because Microsoft kept their product less tied down to particular hardware as opposed to Apple and that definately earns some brownie points. There are disadvantages to this approach as hardware companies are crippleing down Windows capabilities by puting their own crapware on top of it. But still at the end of day - end user has a say in what they want on their machine unlike in OS X world.
Apple started as a company that was anti-establishment, company that beleived in providing alternative and freedom of choice but as it happens to everything that grows out of its roots, it has turned out to be company that only worries about its bottomline and you can see in the direction in which it is moving with regards to making its products more and more closed systems.

There is mixed reviews about the screen I agree. Maybe I have a notebook with a bad screen, it's quite possible.

I'm not comparing to a 15" MBP, I compared the my Z to a 13" MBP and a MacBook Air, finding the Sony to be the worse of the three.

It's not as nice as the screen on the Sony Z we bought last year, if our local Sony Stores have a Z in stock/on display I'm going to bring mine to compare then go from there.

The feature of Mac's is the 'closed OS' to a degree isn't it? Which supposedly results in fewer problems ....

 

[RedReplicant]

Yes, but thanks to Unix, OS X offers infinitely more open source software choices than Windows.

Not without some messing around, and I'd imagine that if Apple could, they'd prevent this stuff from happening.

The feature of Mac's is the 'closed OS' to a degree isn't it? Which supposedly results in fewer problems ....

Fewer problems, yes, because there are no third party drivers being used, all of the hardware is known ahead of time, etc. If anything that makes it much less of an excuse for Apple products to have software problems. It really does say something for Microsoft that they have Windows 7 extremely stable given the VAST range of hardware it runs on.

 

[mac2x]

Not without some messing around, and I'd imagine that if Apple could, they'd prevent this stuff from happening.

[...]

Examples, please? Any Unix command line stuff (Fink, for instance) can be used with no hassle. I have Wine up and running on my Leopard system; compiled it myself from the source code.

 

[RedReplicant]

Examples, please? Any Unix command line stuff (Fink, for instance) can be used with no hassle. I have Wine up and running on my Leopard system; compiled it myself from the source code.

What? Fink ports software, it doesn't run dead stock.
edit: I guess I should elaborate. Running applications through fink is kind of like running Windows through VMware.

 

[fr4c]

There is mixed reviews about the screen I agree. Maybe I have a notebook with a bad screen, it's quite possible.

I'm not comparing to a 15" MBP, I compared the my Z to a 13" MBP and a MacBook Air, finding the Sony to be the worse of the three.

It's not as nice as the screen on the Sony Z we bought last year, if our local Sony Stores have a Z in stock/on display I'm going to bring mine to compare then go from there.

The feature of Mac's is the 'closed OS' to a degree isn't it? Which supposedly results in fewer problems ....

Do Sony make the screens... or?

Today I went back to my local Sony Style Store, and played with a new demo unit (the base $1899 model). The screen was beautiful, and actually looked more "crisp" compared to my MBP. Viewing angles didn't change much, but the color quality of the screen was definitely a lot better than the unit I had (I bought my USB flash drive containing photos and wallpapers which I had previously used for testing). I have a feeling theres a variation of panels out there, with some exhibiting poorer qualities than the rest, just like on our MBP's.