Sony vaio z series 2011 gaming

When powered off, the Web button lets you get online without starting Windows. Measuring 2. Pinch-to-zoom, two-finger scrolling, and three-finger flicking all worked well on this touchpad; there's just not a lot surface area here.

You can click on the center of the touchpad to make selections, or use the integrated buttons, which provided decent feedback. Bright, sharp, and sporting an anti-glare treatment, the VAIO Z's inch display is one of the best we've seen on an ultraportable. The starting configuration of the VAIO Z features a display with a x resolution, but our higher-end model came with a full HD x panel. Some might appreciate this level of detail, but we found it overkill for a inch system; we had to zoom in on websites and documents constantly.

In fact, we dialed down the resolution to x to be more productive. We could easily make out the reflections on a wood table as a snake slid over it. Ironically, engaging the Dolby Home Theater enhancement technology buried in the sound settings resulted in harsher audio at maximum volume. The right side of the notebook houses the power connector, USB 3. It was a very tight fit.

The other caller said he could make us out just fine, even though we were in a dimly lit room. Voices came through loud and clear on both ends, but the audio and video were sometimes out of sync which we blame on the service. Under the hood is Intel's 2. These components teamed up to deliver the highest score we've ever seen from an ultraportable on the PCMark Vantage test: 10, What Sony's ultraportable lacks is fast resume from sleep. While the Air and Series 9 let you go back to work almost instantly when you open the lid, the VAIO takes about 5 seconds to awake from sleep.

The resulting transfer rate of 49 MBps is better than the typical hard drive The inch MacBook Air On 3DMark 06, the laptop scored 4, Gaming on the VAIO Z while on the go is possible, but we'd stick to less demanding mainstream titles. On this notebook's native resolution of x , we saw a playable 29 frames per second.

Still, we'd suggest dialing down the resolution for the best results. Using Intel's high-speed Light Peak technology, you connect the notebook to the dock using a proprietary cable that connects to both the power jack and USB 3. Yup, Sony somehow managed to deliver Intel's Light Peak throughput over a USB connection, though the company wouldn't provide an exact data rate.

After you plug in the Power Media Dock cable, you'll see a dialog box that reminds you to press the Undock button on the end of the cable, which is backlit, when you want to disconnect. Doing this is paramount. On two occasions. When connected, the Power Media Dock's graphics and gaming scores dramatically improved. And on World of Warcraft , the frame rate increased from 29 fps to 49 fps on full HD resolution.

Still, the Power Media Dock couldn't handle the game with the settings on max, mustering only 20 fps. We encountered one issue with the slot-loading Blu-ray drive where the VAIO Z wouldn't recognize it after connecting the dock. Rebooting fixed the problem, and we enjoyed crisp and smooth playback on both the notebook's display and on a larger display via HDMI.

Overall, the dock adds a lot of versatility, transforming the laptop into a powerful workstation when you're back at your deck. However, the dock is a little awkward to carry because it weighs 1.

That runtime is better than the Samsung Series 9 and ThinkPad X1's standard battery but below the overall ultraportable average Sony also offers integrated mobile broadband, and the Z Series features Sony's Share My Connection technology, which turns the laptop into a mobile hotspot for up to five PCs or Wi-Fi enabled devices.

Additional shortcuts can be added by dragging them onto the Gate. Connectivity is simply superb. Wi-Fi N, Bluetooth 3. This does mean that many third-party devices may be incompatible, at least without the use of another adapter if one even becomes available.

You see, not only is the dock a thing of beauty, it brings a heck of a lot of features to the table. Only slightly larger than a regular 2. That Sony managed to cram all this into such a slim enclosure is an impressive feat, to say the least. And style is certainly not something it lacks. At the front we have a slot-loading optical drive with eject button. Hidden behind a flap at the top or side, depending on orientation is a single USB 2. The main reason for this is that, while the chiclet keyboard is nicely laid out and keys are well-spaced with a nice click and nary a hint of flex, travel is so shallow that the typing experience is inferior to the cheaper VAIO S.

Like the keyboard, the touchpad is good but not best-in-class, with that honour still going to the Samsung Series 9 X3A. To differentiate between the two the sensitive area is lightly textured while the buttons are smooth gloss, and though this looks nice they do pick up annoying fingerprints.

In use the multi-touch pad is responsive but, like the keyboard, feedback on its buttons is too shallow. We really do wish Sony would stop making the letters for this pink though. The Web button is rather boring if you press it in Windows, where it merely launches the browser. Horizontal viewing angles are very good, though verticals still suffer from a significant degree of the contrast shift problem that plagues most TN laptop panels.

Though there is a hint of light bleed from the top and bottom of the screen, backlighting is otherwise even and there are no unwanted artefacts like banding. Last but not least, the small dot pitch ensures impressive sharpness, ensuring even the smallest fonts are legible. Under its hood the Z is also impressive. Our sample sports an Intel Core iM. This 2. As an example of the performance boost you can expect with the dock hooked up, our Stalker: Call of Pripyat score on p at medium detail went from an unplayable So yes, gaming is definitely an option on the Z, though there are a number of disadvantages compared to integrated solutions.

Disconnecting the dock, meanwhile, requires you to exit any applications using it and press a physical disconnect button, otherwise your laptop will crash when you unplug it. The Z uses an In our non-intensive test with wireless radios disabled and screen brightness set to 40 percent, the Z managed five hours and 36 minutes, beating many rivals though not the Samsung Series 9 X3A.

In addition, just like the S you can buy a battery slice to double your time away from a socket. Installation difficulties aside, it makes the Z one of those all-day or transcontinental flight machines that are so frequently valued by its target audience. There are only two real flies in the ointment. The second, of course, is price. Unlike other sites, we test every laptop we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly.

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