Technology Sony VAIO Laptops

[chicamedica]

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Are Sony VAIOs any good? I'm trying to decide between it, Dell, Toshiba, or HP. Which ones are better, which worse as far as laptops go?

 

[John Deere Gree]

I liked messing around with my roommates, but for the price and what you get it was not worth it to me.

 

[Retinamark]

I bought the PCG-Z1VGP. It definitely was more expensive than an equivalent featured Dell, but Dell didn't make an equivalent sized machine at the time. I don't know whether they do now? I wanted a small, lightweight Centrino laptop & the Vaio 'Z' was significantly smaller & lighter than any of the Dells.
I have been thrilled with it so far. 😍 😍 I haven't had a single problem & it really is a beautiful machine. In my humble opinion, it is the closest thing to a PC version of a Mac Powerbook. The other really nice top quality PC laptop is the Fujitsu lifebook, but they are even more expensive.

The most annoying thing was that a couple of months after I bought it, the new model with DVD burner arrived 😡

My girlfriend last year also bought a Vaio, one of the bigger less fancy ones. She also has been happy iwth it & hasn't had any problems.

 

[Careofme]

I've had a Sony Vaio Laptop PCG-F290 since my sophomore year in college. Although I realize that its not an "old and outdated" model, it still works great for me for what I have to do (ie. check email, write reports, etc.). Its running Windows XP Pro and has been running it quite well without any problems. My only reccomendation if you do buy a 'puter like this one is to make sure that it gives you plenty of space to upgrade, upgrade, upgrade. Unfortunately, I realized too late that the 6.4GB fills up VERY fast and have not been able to expand my hard drive cost-effetively.

Take care and PM me if ya have any questions about this model!

care

 

[canadagirl]

I had a Sony Vaio Z505 until I bought a new laptop last summer. It was a really sweet machine, fast and gorgeous. 😍

I think it was about four years in when it started shutting off spontaneously, though. I could probably get it fixed, but the problem isn't reliably reproducible, and also I was ready to get a newer, faster computer. But certainly for the length of the warranty period it was reliable, and always a gorgeous little machine. The only thing that sucks (imho) is Sony's insistence on using stupid memory sticks in everything instead of a more useful CF slot, say. Or maybe they've changed that; I haven't been looking at computers in the last year or so. Good luck with your decision!

 

[Yosh]

Mine spontaneously shuts off too...did you ever find out what was causing it?? I am thinking maybe my cooling fan is shot..

Just curious....

I can't imagine getting another laptop...

 

[Careofme]

Hey guys...

I had the same problem a looong time ago with mine. I actually found a post on the internet somewhere detailing the instructions on adjusting the BIOS (very carefully!) so that the computer shut-off settings were correct. Also, I believe that when I upgraded the OS the problems resolved.

care

 

[canadagirl]

I think that there are multiple reasons why the spontaneous shutoff happens. Mine, I think, was something to do with the CMOS battery needing replacement, or else with some sort of connection being lose. The thing with mine was that when it would spontaneously turn off, it would not turn on again for about a week. No idea why. But as you can imagine, it is impossible to rely on a computer that may not work for the next week or so at any time. 🙄

But really, a very cute machine. They don't make real 505's any more, which is a shame. 👎

 

[daisygirl]

I love my vaio 😀 . I have a z series, and I bought it about 6 months ago. It weighs less that 5 pounds too. Sony makes some really tiny vaios. I decided to buy a regular sized vaio (dimension-wise) since I thought that my hands would cramp up from using such a small keyboard (the smaller vaios are really compact).

I had purchased an hp before I started my first year of med school. I hated that damn machine. It was too big, too heavy (~9lbs), and it made too much noise (the fan was ridiculously loud). I never had any problems with my hp in terms of 'technical' sorts of things. I decided to buy a vaio since I was sick of having a really expensive laptop that I loathed taking out of the house.

I love my vaio 😀 .

 

[docmira]

I have had a Sony Vaio NVR23 for two years and I absolutely loved it till about 3 days ago. I kept it running well. I never downloaded crap and always used antivirus and spyware.
3 days ago the screen started to get messed up. The font would all blur and the stuff on the screen eventually started to shake and would want to shut down. I stll don't know what the problem is. I think it may be the video card or the fan. I hope it's just the fan because if it's the video card, i'll need a new computer.
Honestly, I really loved my vaio and I hope i get it back all healthy, but there are some other computers out there that are better for their money.
My sister has a vaio as well, and just 165 days after buying it it needed to be reformatted and they refused to replace it because the 15 days return policy expired. So what I recommend to you if you have your heart set on a vaio is to make sure you get the extended warrenty so you can cash in on that if you ever need to.
good luck

 

[ShawnOne]

Just got the VGN-S150. Weighs 4 pounds and has a 13.3 wide screen. OMG, its awesome!!