VAIO Type S - Page 7

wow, that sounds terrible
now they don't even have a "premium" product to go along with their overly "premium" price tag

yet another reason why i will NEVER buy a sony.

woah, that doesn't sound good at all, I'm now feeling a bit better about not waiting for the S-series (which is 50% more expensive here in the UK than the Acer 2012WLMi that I finally settled on.)

- Odie

Oh well... Sony blew it. Hopefuly somebody else will take Sony's route and develop a notebook similar to that.

oh, i'm sure others will... in time.
sony engineers have some great notions, but good lord, some retarded development/production if you ask me

they've all been out chasing the dragon, i'm sure! *cue the "puff the magic dragon" song* lol sony does have some pretty decent ideas (just take the TR as an example, and don't they have a watercooled pc now?) but they're pretty faulty ones too (watch them get sued for the h2o cooler breaking ).

I just checked it out at Circuit City.

Yes the keyboard flexes in the middle.

No it is not as bad as the above person posted.

The sides are fine, the flex is comparable to the TR5 and DELLS, but there is no clicking/rattling loose noise. Its just a slight bend. No missing keystrokes. No problems.

Yes the case is plasticky but no where near as cheap as the DELLS. No creaking no shoddy finish. It flexes yes but thats what lightweight plastic does. Lightweight aluminum does the same thing.

The only problem I saw was the DEMO model did not seem as bright as my A190. It was next to a Toshiba Crystal View 15inch display and they were comparable. HP Bright clear view is also the same technology.

I would still buy it if they only released a 9700 version.

that's probably the only reason that anyone here would get an s series over, say, a larger performance-oriented notebook or any other notebook that is comparable in size but not price (as in costing less :P).

Ok, going to Circuit city right now to see it for myself ...

i like compusa more, the salesmen seem to know what theyre talking about more than at the other electronics stores. it was there that i had my first discussion with a computer salesman that moved beyond "Are you lost, young man?", "These here computers shore do cost a pretty penny. I don't think you can afford one of these with your allowance. *wink and chuckle*", or "Yes, whatever you say about [insert computer part here]'s [name intricate component of that part]. Now why don't you head off to your parents and ask them if you could get this for your birthday? Or maybe sell some of your...uhh...pokeyman, yeah thats it, pokeyman cards and you can buy that new PuttPutt game! I hear it's mighty fun!"
note: the last one was a bit exaggerated (the game part) if you didn't already guess it, but the rest was fairly true.

I can't speak for the Dells, but I was looking at it next to a TR5 and I would disagree with you there. As for what lightweight plastic and aluminum feels like...as I said, I compared it side-by-side with several models (listed in my post) that are the same or even lighter in weight and none of the felt like the S.

No, it doesn't creak or rattle and the finish is fine, with no loose fitting parts or trim. I never said it had any such problems.

After reading my post, you may get the impression it's worse than it really is. I wouldn't have had such a bad impression if it had at least a similar feel to the TR or old V505. My point was to encourage people to go see it for themselves.

I haven't entirely ruled it out if the 9700 makes it here, but I'm definitely having second thoughts and considering a wider range of alternatives now that I've seen it in person.

Possible Radeon 9700 upcoming! If you do a google search for VGN-S170, you'll find a page which points to a new S-series models for the states which will have a DVD burner built in. Surely this points to an upgrade in GPU too?

http://www.vaio.net/models/notebooks/comparison/

I'm really tempted to try to import the UK model S1XP...anyone know of any gotchas on using a European model in the states?

Slightly different keyboard layout
Probably no warranty from Sony USA in case of problems
Price (?)

Have you guys looked at the latest version of PC mag? Sony has an ad in it about S170, which is configurable.

Build to order VGN S170.
Intel Pentium M Processor 735 (1.7 GHz, 2MB L2 Cache)
256M Memory
40GB Hard Drive
XP HOME edition
Integrated CD-RW/DVD Combo

At Price 1899.99

Upgradable: 60GB Harddrive for USD 50
Integrated Wireless Lan 802.11 b/g for USD 50

says nothing about the graphic card though.

Wow, smaller HD and less memory than the S150...yuck. Sony just mystifies me. They take out bluetooth for no apparent reason of the TR, and now the S. And the ONE thing that makes this notebook stand out from the pack, the 9700 Radeon, is nixed. Argh!

CompUSA, Best Buy, Circuit City... the salespeople there IMHO aren't that knowledgeable. Out of all the retailers, JandR had a few smart guys that knew what they were talking about.

well i just find that in general the CompUSA guys are just more knowledgeable, but like you implied i wouldn't trust too much. Even so, CUSA is better in my eyes because they give you alot more info about the products that they're selling than the other stores (and they have way better products BTW, IMO).

I just went to Comp USA to look at the S series. The xbrite screen is really great, but as others have posted, the middle of the keyboard flexes. I asked a salesman about it and he said it's a problem with most notebooks and the S series doesn't flex because they just opened it brand new from the box and all this other BS. I was also considering a powerbook but the screen seemed subpar after viewing the xbrites and too small even though the keyboard is great and it is well constructed. Maybe I'll just go after a desktop replacement since there doesn't seem to be a "perfect" subnotebook out there.

have u looked into the acer 1517 ? its 17 pounds but its a real dsktop replacement notebook. its a notebok that uses desktop compnents from the lcd to the heatsink lol

While certainly arriving late to this thread, will have to echo the former and current Vaio users who have reported their dissatisfaction.

Will offer a quotation from a recent thread found here:

"Just a brief caveat emptor for prospective buyers: one would be hard pressed to find a more poor example of customer service than what most desktop/laptop users receive through Sony (on other electronics-related product lines, their service seems to be at the very least acceptable). Couple said service with proprietary, low performance, high failure-rate parts, and it can often be a difficult road for an end user. I do however conceed their displays (including the new XBrite models) are some of the most eye pleasing in the market today.

A bit of research on the web will find more than one would ever wish to know regarding customer service. With the inherent complicated nature and usage habits of a notebook, it is to be expected that, on occasion, parts and products fail; and when this occurs, you will want to have purchased from a company who not only (1) knows the hardware in their machines (technical support from Sony is typically limited to information only found in the user manual. And only for the first year. After such time, $19.95. Per call, mind you.), but (2) is willing to stand behind what they produce - or in the case of most notebooks, what other manufacturers produce for them.

I unfortunately waded through the Vaio world once (actually, more than once, as the original machine was replaced four times), and would hate to see another discover that neither of the above two statements apply to Sony."