| | |  | | Home » Sony VAIO VPC-Z214GX/L 13.1-Inch Laptop (Blue) | | | | | | | Description: | | Sony Vaio VPCZ214GX/L I7-2620M 2.30G 4GB 128GB BD-ROM 13.1IN W7P 64BIT | | | Features: | |
• Intel Core i7-2620M processor (2.70GHz) Turbo Boost Technology up to 3.40GHz
• 4GB of RAM
• 128 GB Solid State Drive (SSD) (RAID 0 x 2 storage technology)
• 13.1" (1600 x 900) LED, Intel HD Graphics 3000
• Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
| | | Product Details: | | | Product Length:
| 9.26 inches | | Product Width:
| 13.43 inches | | Product Height:
| 1.43 inches | | Package Length:
| 19.1 inches | | Package Width:
| 11.15 inches | | Package Height:
| 8.0 inches | | Package Weight:
| 5.52 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 6 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 6 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 31 found the following review helpful:
 Very powerful, but I'm not sure who it's for... (-1 Star for Sony Support)Sep 21, 2011
By I. R. Smart.
"Tzu Crazy"
The Sony Vaio VPC-Z214GX/B 13.1 notebook is very powerful, there's no question about that. This review is going to focus on the pros and cons of this PC in an easy-to-read list:
Pros:
1.) Extremely quick, with a standard-voltage Core i7 processor running at 2.7Ghz dual-core, or single-core 3.47Ghz mode on demand.
2.) Two Solid State Disks (SSD) in RAID 0 configuration. This essentially "stripes" the data across two internal disks for extremely fast performance.
3.) High resolution 1600x900 16:9 13.1" LED-backlit display.
4.) Extra sheet battery for the word travelers among you. This slips under the notebook and screws in by hand in seconds.
5.) Power Media dock with external Blu-ray drive and AMD 6650M 1GB video card.
6.) Extremely light-weight, at just over 2.5lbs without the sheet battery attached.
Unfortunately, there are some cons to this machine, and some of them are extremely frustrating...
Cons:
1.) Sony is using two different types of Solid State Disks in their Vaio Z2 series notebook. It's completely luck of the draw if you get a Generation 2 or a Generation 3 set of disks (Sandy Bridge notebooks like these are ALL 6Gbps compatible). If you get Generation 2 (3Gbps) disks in your Vaio Z, you can expect around 450MB/s read speeds, and 370MB/s write speeds, very respectable numbers indeed! However, if you have the Generation 3 (6Gbps) disks, you can expect up to a whopping 950MB/s read speeds, and anywhere from 450MB/s-850MB/s write speeds depending on the disk. If you bought this notebook, you can check this in the "Intel Rapid Storage Technology" application pre-installed on your Vaio, and go to the "Manage" tab. Then you can see if you have 6Gbps SSDs or the slower 3Gbps SSDs. Either way, for this kind of money it should be consistent 6Gbps across the board (I got 3Gbps drives, sadly).
2.) I don't really understand the Power Media Dock. The video card isn't very powerful considering it's an external device, and it MUST be plugged into the wall to function, therefore you can't use Blu-ray on the go unless you're near a wall plug or car adapter. And Blu-ray on a 13.1" display just isn't as impressive as on a big TV, and if you can only watch Blu-rays when plugged in (i.e. at home or at work), wouldn't it be simpler to just buy a dedicated Blu-ray player?
3.) The screen is fairly good, but at 16:9 you don't have a lot of vertical resolution at all. I find there's simply not enough height to the screen, especially by comparison to a 13.3" 16:10 MacBook Air/MacBook Pro. The really unfortunate part of the LCD, though, is the terrible viewing angles. You have to get the screen "just right" to not experience washout/darkening of colors. This is most noticeable on a white background. If you tilt the screen a small amount toward you or a small amount away from you - the whites change incredibly. For comparison, the MacBook Air 13.3" display has no such issue with such small movements.
4.) While the unit runs very quietly when you're doing more menial tasks, once you tax the system with a game or processing images in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, the computer sounds like a vacuum cleaner. Very loud and distracting.
5.) The speakers are the absolute worst I've ever heard on a laptop of any sort. They really are terrible. My wife thought they were broken, but they are in fact working "correctly," but they're not worth using for any music. Use the included noise-cancelling earbuds instead. There's a reason Sony put them in the box...
6.) The trackpad is quite sub-par. It's not very large, not very responsive - especially two-finger scrolling, and the mouse buttons are on the exact same plane as the trackpad, causing my fingers to wander too low onto them and think the trackpad had completely stopped working.
7.) I removed the Windows 7 Pro installation and reinstalled a completely fresh copy to get rid of the "bloatware" and to install just the required drivers and software from Sony's esupport website. When I was done (which took around 2 hours and was a complete pain!), I had only 92.6GB free out of a total of 119GB usable space. That's crazy if you ask me. To have only 92.6GB free on a $2.5k machine is once again, extremely questionable... And if you want a 256GB version or a 512GB version of this notebook, you'll be paying quite a bit more.
8.) The trackpad buttons are glossy and made of slimy-feeling plastic. They also had some hairline scratches on them out of the box, disappointingly. I'm sure they will pick up more scratches with use being that they're glossy plastic!
9.) Quite a bit of flex to the chassis for a $2.5k computer.
Overall, I'm really not sure who this computer is for. If you're a gamer, you could buy a dedicated gaming PC AND a MacBook Air for the same price as this Vaio. Sure you don't get Blu-ray on a MacBook Air or a "dedicated" video card (that really is mediocre in all senses of the word), but on a notebook do you really need Blu-ray player that you HAVE to be connected to the wall to use? It just seems that this computer is trying to appeal to too many people at one time, and ends up not really being completely useful to anyone in particular.
That said, it's VERY fast, the LCD (resolution-wise) is excellent, the keyboard is pleasant (if a tad shallow), and if an ultra-light notebook really is in your future (and this puppy is lighter than a MacBook air by 0.4lbs), I'd suggest a cheaper Vaio Z model without the Power Media Dock. $2.5k is a huge amount of money, and I'm just not sure this particular model is worth its asking price.
3 stars out of 5.
*EDIT September 21*
After using it some more, there are a few more issues I wanted to point out:
1.) The backlit keyboard is nice, but unfortunately it's not something you have any control over. It comes on and stays on for 10 seconds when you type on the keyboard in a dimly lit location. The most you can adjust is for it to stay on 60 seconds after the last key-press. But then it turns off after that maximum 60 seconds until you press another key. This is really annoying if you watch a short YouTube video in bed at night and then you can't see what keys to press when you're done watching! I just hit the spacebar to get the keys to light back up. Sony, why can't we leave the keyboard backlight on at all times?
2.) The computer (palm rests and lid) is a total smudge magnet because of their "plastic-y" material. I find myself wanting to clean it all the time.
3.) The thermal management isn't particularly subtle. If the computer is under any stress for even a few seconds, the system fans speed up quite audibly. And as soon as the CPU stops working hard, the fans spin down. What this means is the fan can jump up and down in rpms over and over, which is definitely distracting. This is I'm sure due to a higher voltage processor being in this notebook over competing computers.
4.) This is not a laptop. It's a small notebook. It gets quite hot in your lap. Unfortunately, the way the rear hinges work it's also very, very uncomfortable in your lap as the screen is actually part of the base so the computer does not sit flat when in use. So when you open it up it has these plastic legs that dig into your own legs. Owie! Thankfully, with the sheet battery attached the notebook does sit flat, and also helps keep the heat away from your legs if you work with it on your lap!
*EDIT September 22, 2011*
My Vaio Z's display has developed some very strange shadows/patchiness in the LCD, so I took a trip to the Sony store in Seattle. While the tech lady there tried her best to help me, they don't do any repairs in-house, and so I will be without my 2-day-old laptop for approximately 7 business days. It needs to be mailed off to San Diego for repairs, and then sent back to my house. Any repairs, no matter how new the system is, have to go through their warranty system, which means being without your laptop for 1-2 weeks. With Dell doing on-site repairs, and Apple Stores doing repairs in-house, where is Sony's repair system? If you depend on your notebook and can't afford to be without it for 1-2 weeks if it goes wrong, this is NOT the computer for you.
For those wondering what the display malfunction looks like, I added an image to the product description so you can see. I'll update the review when the laptop is returned to me, hopefully in the condition it left in....
(Edit: Since then, I have been informed the laptop actually went to a local service center in Redmond, WA, about 15 miles away. The closer, the better!)
*EDIT September 30, 2011*
I called my Sony Store in Seattle, to find out what is going on with the repairs to my notebook, after having been told on September 28 that "it's difficult to replace the screen which is why it's taking so long." From that I took it that the repair was in process! Friday, September 30, I call the store to find out that the service center is in fact waiting on the LCD panel, so work hasn't even been started on it, yet! So the Vaio Z sits, gathering dust, for over a week so far. Bear in mind this was a brand new computer, less than 2 days old. The Sony Store and repair center have no idea when the LCD panel will be in so they can replace my panel.
*EDIT October 3, 2011*
I called the Sony Store in Seattle this morning, and was informed that the LCD panel is on back-order but should be in stock October 4, and overnighted to the repair center. I *should* have the Vaio back by the end of the week. If I do, that will be just over two weeks without the notebook. Will update further when I know more.
*EDIT October 6, 2011*
Called the Sony Store once again to see if I'd really have the Vaio back for the weekend, and was told the LCD panel was still back-ordered! So that's now exactly two weeks since I dropped off this computer, and nothing has happened. As a result, I've dropped my rating for this laptop from 3 stars to 2 stars. What's the point of a warranty if there are no parts to fix it with? Sony has offered no replacement laptop, - nothing. Just a "Sorry, hopefully the part will be in soon, but we don't know when." I do not recommend this notebook at this time. Not one bit. A 1-year warranty isn't much use if there are no parts to fix problems!
*EDIT October 17, 2011*
Finally got a message from the Sony Store today telling me my Vaio is ready to be picked up, which I did. The LCD was replaced, and the new one does not exhibit the problem I experienced with the first LCD. Aside from some superficial scratches on the lid and underside of the system and a nice red stuck pixel on the new LCD panel (which is, of course, not exactly ideal, but is admittedly minuscule), the system works fine. If I had paid for this computer, I'd be a lot more upset about the situation than I actually am. As it stands, this saga is over for now, but I simply can't recommend the Vaio Z as a notebook to own if you can't be without your computer for a while if something goes wrong.
7 of 8 found the following review helpful:
 Fast but Flawed NotebookOct 19, 2011
By J. Perkins
I really like this computer. I use it primarily for working from home (document intensive work) and browsing the internet so I haven't tried out its gaming or other entertainment features yet. As other reviewers have covered the specs and technical aspects, I'll just give my top 5 pros and cons:
Pros:
1. Very, very fast. I do a lot of work from home via a Citrix connection with my office. The Sony VAIO toggles between my remote desktop and home desktop in the blink of an eye, a task that takes several seconds to several minutes on my other laptop and has actually crashed my netbook on more than one occasion.
2. Very long battery life. After attaching the external sheet battery, I get over 16 hours of use. Inconceivable! The automatic battery saving features are great. For example, the brightness of the screen automatically adjusts to the level of light in the room, but it is easily fine tuned to personal preference.
3. Flat keyboard. Other reviewers have mentioned that they don't like the shallow keyboard, but I love it! From the moment I first started typing, I thought it felt great. Just a small amount of pressure on each key does the trick. I can type super-fast on this thing!
4. Very nice LCD screen. Text is clear and sharp. Pictures and video are vibrant. This is my first HD device, and I'm looking forward to streaming HD videos (too bad the speakers stink). The BluRay player on the Power Media Dock is a nice extra...I don't own any BluRays, but perhaps I'll get one just to try this out.
5. Very thin and very light. If, like me, you've never owned an ultra thin notebook before, you'll be amazed! The screen is so thin that it seems to just disappear when you close the computer.
Cons:
1. Not a great touchpad. The textured touchpad does feel a bit reptilian, but I could overlook that issue if it consistently performed well. I've experienced quite a few glitches with cursor movement -- the cursor will freeze up causing me to have to repeat my finger movement only to end up with a cursor that jumps across the screen. Two-fingered scrolling is also tricky -- I often end up in a continuous downward scroll without intending to.
2. Terrible sound quality. It seems to be the general rule that notebook computers have poor speakers. I had hoped a higher end notebook like this one would deliver a more enjoyable listening experience, but unfortunately that is not the case. It's ok for playing the occasional youtube video or newsclip, but don't waste your time setting up a mp3 playlist unless you plan on using headphones.
3. Loose power connection. The DC power jack on the computer does not seem to be a great fit for the adapter plug. A few years ago my old laptop's DC jack became loose and stopped working after a year or more of use so I'm concerned that the DC jack on the Sony VAIO is loose right out of the box. Keeping my fingers crossed.
4. No built-in DVD drive. I would like to play and burn DVDs straight from the computer without having to connect to the Power Media Dock.
5. I can't think of another Con...so the Pros have it!
4 of 5 found the following review helpful:
 OK if you never need supportDec 23, 2011
By christoph nielson
I purchased a vaio vpc-z computer two years ago. The first machine would spontaneously reboot every 2-3 weeks. The first onsite repair left the machine unable to start. Over the next year the machine was returned 4-5 times. Turnaround was very slow taking weeks to months. Sony finally bought the computer back. Foolishly I bought another. It has functioned better but the screen developed black lines several months ago. I was traveling and wasn't in a location for onsite repair. In view of the weeks required for a factory mail in repair, I called and asked if onsite repair would be ok in a month... which was shortly into the extended warranty. I was assured onsite would be acceptable. Two days ago Sony set up an onsite repair. Today Sony calls and adamantly refuses onsite repair. Not only is tech support incompetant but now it appears that one cannot rely on their committment. Be very careful with any verbal promise. The computer is OK but Sony service is simply nothing short of disaster.
5 of 7 found the following review helpful:
 Awesome power in a small package!Sep 20, 2011
By Raven A. Wind
First off, let me explain that when I say "small package" in my title, what I'm referring to is the size of the Sony VAIO VPCZ214GX itself, and not the size of the complete package you get for the price listed above. In fact, if I'm referring to the whole package, I'd have to say it's a pleasant surprise just how much Sony packs in the box!
This package includes:
The Sony VAIO VPXZ214GX laptop
The Power Media Dock
AC adapters for both the dock and the laptop
The external battery, which doubles the VAIO Z's battery life, and adds minimal bulk
Sony noise-canceling headphones (earbuds, actually)
Cleaning cloth and paperwork
This is a seriously nice package for the price.
So what can it do? Pretty much anything you'd like, I guess. It has considerable power-- Especially when connected to the Power Media Dock. I know what you're thinking, though. You're thinking "How does this thing do with games?"
Pretty darn good, actually!
I installed Deus Ex: Human Revolution (which is a current-gen game at the time of this writing) and was pleased to see that the Radeon HD 6650M in the Power Media Dock allows all the latest tricks: MLAA, Tesellation, DirectX 11, etc. It did great! I ran the game at 1280x720 and was pleased with the results. Solid frame rates, good response, and it looked gorgeous. I would say that if you're looking to play some games, you'll be about as happy with this computer as you would one of the current game consoles. In terms of power and graphics ability, the VAIO Z is probably a tiny bit more impressive than a PS3/XBox360, and WAY more impressive than a Wii.
This model comes with Windows 7 Professional 64-bit. It's a minor step up from Windows 7 Home Premium, but the 64-bit OS does take advantage of the 4GB of RAM in this system. Unfortunately, the VAIO Z series does not allow you to swap out RAM, so 4GB is all you'll ever have. On the plus side, the SSD can certainly be used for virtual memory if you're tricky, and on the front of the laptop are slots for SD and Sony Memory Stick, so you can pop those in and turn on Ready Boost to get a little more juice.
The Intel Core i7 is impressive. This isn't a standard wimped-out laptop CPU. This sucker is full power and really flies when the need is there. In combination with the SSD, programs like Adobe Photoshop and Handbrake just blast through their tasks. It's a pleasure to do work on this thing, and when docked you can get the added boost of the Radeon HD GPU to really add some zing.
The keyboard is okay. It takes a little getting used to, because these keys are flatter than the average chiclet keyboard, but they feel fine and I had no problems typing on them. It's also very nice that it's a backlit keyboard. The touch pad is a little weird, as it has a sort of "lizard skin" feel to it, but it works as it should and I've had no issues using it thus far.
The fingerprint reader is handy. It's nice to be able to log on to Windows without typing a password. The software is smart enough to register more than one finger, so if you have an unfortunate accident and lose a digit, you can still access your computer (of course, you could always type in the password, too).
The screen... Oh my stars and garters! The screen is GORGEOUS! Sony spared nothing with this display! LED backlit, 1600x900, absolutely a pleasure to look at. Even tiny fonts are crisp and legible. Graphics pop. Video looks fantastic.
The Blu-ray Disc reader that comes in the Power Media Dock is handy, though I would have loved it if it had been a BD burner, too. Still, it managed to make some very nice DVD-DL discs for me (restore discs, actually) and plays Blu-ray movies quite well.
Amazingly enough, Sony doesn't give you a ton of bloatware to take up your precious storage space. The SSD, at 128GB, is an impressive, fast piece of hardware. However, 128GB is peanuts these days, and so you may find yourself investing in an external USB hard drive. At least you can be happy that both the Power Media Dock and the VAIO Z itself support USB 3.0 for fast transfers. What this means is that a nice 1TB external USB 3.0 drive would be fine for storing your games and other space-intensive media, and you won't miss a beat in performance.
I did have some trouble with the Power Media Dock, though. In trying to disconnect from the dock, I was met with a warning that said "can't eject the dock because such-and-such is still in use", and the "such-and-such" in this case was the optical drive's driver software. No programs were running at the time, but the dock refused to let go because the optical drive was allegedly being accessed by something. I finally had to relent and shut down the computer to undock. I hope this sort of thing doesn't happen often!
As for the slim/light aspects of the computer, it's very impressive. This sucker is THIN and it doesn't weigh much more than an iPad. That's just plain impressive, considering all that's packed into this thing.
I have to say, I love this computer. It's ridiculously sleek, powerful, and full-featured. This is truly a case of "you get what you paid for."
UPDATE 12/02/11: I still love the VAIO Z, but I have to say I've become a bit disenchanted with the audio quality from the built-in speakers. It's tinny, and hollow. I would dock a star off the review if it weren't for the fact that this VAIO comes with high quality noise-canceling earbuds that are meant to be used with the computer. This balances out the speaker's shortcomings. Having Bluetooth and being able to use my wireless headphones also steps around the speaker's weaknesses. In short, if you want to play music on this computer, be sure you have an external speaker solution because the built-in speaker is just for the basics.
Rating stays the same only because Sony's pretty generous with the pack-ins. If those noise-canceling earbuds weren't included, this would be a 4-star review.
3 of 5 found the following review helpful:
Wow, this is a seriously amazing laptop!Sep 21, 2011
By KindlePad
09-22 Update
After using this laptop a few more days I am really happy with it. It took me a while to figure out you don't need the "sheet" battery is it's called - you can just use the base laptop. Initially I had connected the sheet battery and thought it had to stay on. Imagine my surprise when I found out you could leave it at home. Without it, even tho it's not very thick, this makes the Vaio amazingly thin - almost to the point of it looking like a dept store dummy display. The bag I have is way to big a roomy for this thin little gem! I need to find something smaller for it I guess.
Speed is amazing, very fast. I have installed a few games like Portal 2 and WOW and run them both at full res, full fps and it just cranks. My only regret is still that the BluRay / DVD drive is separate but you can't have everything I guess.
---------------------------
This is a pretty spectacular laptop. Not only do you get the laptop which is fairly thin, you also get a 2nd battery plus the "power media dock" which includes extra USB ports and a blu-ray reader. Also I think the dock has extra video memory? Wow.... just... wow.
So the laptop:
Pro's:
Very thin and light, not macbook air thin but still pretty thin & light.
Stunning screen, very crisp and bright.
Blazing fast performance. I installed Office, Photoshop and Portal 2 and each was very responsive.
Battery life is amazing. I connected the external battery - I dunno why you wouldn't just leave it connected and I test drove it at a local Panera and I used it for hours and couldn't get the battery to drain even a little.
Very flexible machine, it can be as light as you want if you disconnect everything. This is a total replacement for a desktop system.
Backlit keyboard rocks, you don't think about it but once you use a backlit keyboard you can't imagine doing without one.
Fingerprint scanner for password entry! How awesome!!! Works like a champ!
Con's:
It's a complicated set up, you have the laptop, the power media dock and the external battery. Why not just have everything built into the laptop and have it be a little thicker.
I wish the dvd / blu-ray was built in. I travel a lot for work and I often watch netflix movies while traveling. I'd have to carry not only the laptop but the media dock and the separate power cables. That's sort of a lot.
The Sony failed the "creak" test, I picked it up by the corner and it was pretty flimsy and plasticy. I would have liked it to be more substantial.
The SSD hard drive is super fast, but 128GB is pretty small. Office, photoshop and Portal 2 took up 25gb of space. I am going to have to be very careful with loading apps and data.
I hate to compare apple and sony's, but my 13 in MBP is about the same size and thickness as the Sony but it is all inclusive. The DVD drive is built in, a single piece of tech to slip in your bag and go.
I think you need to carefully consider if you need a laptop system like this. There are several parts and pieces and if you want a single laptop with no docks, etc then you might want look at a different Sony or brand.
Finally, I took a star off because of the small hard drive, the flimsiness of the construction and not having the bluray / dvd internal to the laptop.
See all 6 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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