Review Sony Vaio SV-Z1311Z9EX Notebook

Our SV-Z1311Z9EX test model comes with a Quad-Core-CPU of the Ivy Bridge generation, 8 GB Ram, and a fast RAID-0 mass storage solution. Sony PCGA-BP2T battery With the respective configuration, the provided Power Media Dock can improve the graphics performance with its AMD Radeon HD 7670M. Can the configuration deliver what it promises?
Case

For the elegant and timeless black casing Sony uses carbon fiber and aluminum. Since the materials are so light, the laptop weighs less than 1.2 kg. Fortunately, the matte surfaces are less sensitive to dust than high-gloss surfaces and feel fantastic. Sony PCGA-BP3T battery Fingerprints are only easily visible on the shiny touchpad buttons, which have a little bit of a sticky haptic.

While there is nothing wrong with the processing, the stability could be better. The casing creaks no matter if it is being held on one corner of the main unit or the screen. The area above the fan unit gives in considerably under pressure and the torsional stiffness of the screen case ought to be better as well. The weight reduction definitely comes at the expense of stability. Sony PCGA-BP2V battery

The hinges at the underside of the main unit do a good job. When opened the display lid pushes itself underneath the main unit and raises it at an opening angle of more than 90 degrees, which slightly tilts the keyboard.

Connectivity

Sony PCGA-BP4V battery In comparison to the predecessor, there have only been slight changes to the interface equipment (Review Sony Vaio VPC Z23N9E-B). Unlike other slim subnotebooks, HDMI and VGA are available on the Notebook and useable without any adapters. The RJ-45-Port (LAN) is located behind a flap on the left side edge. The front edge not only accommodates a SD-card slot but also a Memory Stick PRO-HG compatible slot with Sony´s MagicGate function.

Sony PCGA-BP2R battery Unlike the predecessor, the notebook has two USB-3.0 interfaces now. The rear interface is simultaneously the plug for the provided Power Media Dock. The Media Dock offers a Blu-Ray burner and an AMD Radeon HD 7670M as external video card. Furthermore, the manufacturer expands the interface by two more USB-ports (1x USB-2.0, 1x USB-3.0), RJ-45 (LAN), HDMI and VGA. The VGA-signal is good via the docking station as well as when connected directly.

Sony PCGA-BPZ51 battery The array of the interfaces on the notebook works for left- as well as right-handers because Sony has consequently placed its ports towards the rear on both sides.

Communication
The communication equipment is excellent. Ethernet-connections can be done via Realtek RTL8168/8111 Gigabit-LAN (10/100/1000MBit) in gigabit speed. Due to Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235 (abgn), internet surfing with standard-n via Wi-Fi Hotspot is possible. Sony PCGA-BPZ51A battery A broadband modem, which supports LTE, is also on board. The accompanying SIM-card slot is on the underside. Unlike the predecessor, the laptop has Bluetooth 4.0 + HS now.

Accessories
The scope of delivery is extensive. Besides necessary accessories such as the power supply unit and the battery, it comes with a few information brochures, a cleaning cloth, and the Power Media dock with tripod and a bigger power supply unit. Sony PCGA-BPZ52 battery Furthermore Sony offers various accessories at extra charge. For example, a docking-station for the independent docking-port at the bottom costs between 400 to 500 Euros. A bigger battery costs 130 Euros.

Maintenance
On the underside, the battery can be changed after unscrewing 8 screws. Maintenance openings are not available.

Warranty
Sony PCGA-BP51 battery Ex works the warranty contains a 24 months bring-in service. Warranty extensions are possible against a surcharge. For a 3 year standard-warranty you have to shell out 149.90 Euros and for a 4 year full coverage even 349.90 Euros
Performance

The SV-Z1311Z9EX is based on the HM77 chipset of the Ivy Bridge platform and was equipped with a Core i7-3612QM four core processor from Intel with 2.1 GHz base clock. Eight Gigabyte main memory is provided for the processor. Sony PCGA-BP51A battery The notebook itself only uses the integrated Graphics 4000 chip for the video display, which causes parts of the memory to be put aside for the graphics memory. To enhance the graphics performance, our test device additionally has Sony's Power Media Dock (PMD) with external AMD Radeon HD 7670M and Blu-Ray drive. For mass storage Sony uses a RAID 0 system with two Samsung MZRPC256HADR-000SO SSDs. Sony PCGA-BP51A/L battery

If the SV-Z is configured freely in Sony's online-shop, an up to date Intel Core i5-3210M two core processor is available, as well. Data is always saved on a SSD. The options range from 128GB, over 256GB, up to 512GB. Concerning the main memory, 4GB or 8GB can be chosen. Finally, the Power Media Dock is also optional for this model. The PMD of our test device would cost over 450 Euros for the freely configured model. Sony PCGA-BP52 battery
Processor
Due to hyper threading, which provides one virtual core for every physical one, the Core i7 3612QM can work eight threads simultaneously. The Turbo-Technology allows a maximal overclocking of 2.8 GHz for four cores, 3.0 GHz for two cores, and 3.1 GHz for one core. We refer to our data bank for a more detailed description of the processor. Our benchmark list of mobile processors allows a performance based classification. Sony PCGA-BP52A battery

In the following, we test the performance of the Core i7 3612QM in our Sony test device with a few CPU-oriented benchmarks. In the tests with the Cinebench R10 64-Bit the CPU scores 2843 points in single rendering and 10031 points in multi rendering. In the Cinebench R11 it only reaches 1.87 points. These values are distinctly below average for the Core i7 3612QM CPU. Sony PCGA-BP52A/L battery A glance at the clock rates confirms that the CPU only clocks with a maximum of 1.6 GHz, which is noticeably lower than usual. Concerning the pure CPU performance our test device even falls behind the Z23N9E-B equipped with the Intel Core i7 2640M Sandy-Bridge processor.

If this problem only comes up on our test device or is series specific, cannot be found out with just one test device, though.
System Performance
For evaluating the overall performance and the interaction between all components we will use the usual two PCMark tests. Our test device scores 8545 points in the PC Mark Vantage, while the PC Mark 7 does not complete its run. Sony PCGA-BP52AUC battery With the Power Media Dock plugged in it is the other way around. The PC Vantage crashes and our SV-Z1311Z9EX gets 3161 points in the PCMark 7. In this case the fast mass memory solution comes in handy. Owing to the reduced processor performance due to the low tact rate (see chapter processor), our test device can obviously not use the full potential of its hardware equipment.
Storage Devices
Sony VGP-BPL4 battery Our test sample uses as mass memory a RAID-0 system of two Flash SSDs. This is called "striping", which means acceleration without redundancy by splitting the data on two memories. If one memory crashes, the saved data cannot be reconstructed.

The advantage of this solution is, as proven by the hard drive tools, a performance growth, which goes beyond the level of a single Samsung MZRPC256HADR-000SO. For example, our test sample reaches high 865 MB/s in the sequential reading test from AS SSD. Sony VGP-BPL4A battery The RAID solution gets 20.12 MB/s at reading and 62.94 MB/s at writing in the CrystalDiskMark 4K test. In comparison: the Vertex 4 scores 26.7 and 83 MB/s, the Samsung 830 14.5 and 53.1 MB/s and the Intel 520 29.7 and 91.2 MB. Subjectively, the loading time of programs is short as well. We refer to our HDD-SSD-Comparison for further performance comparisons.

Sony VGP-BPS4 battery In total the gross capacity of the RAID-0-system (and also the individual hard drive) is 256GB. 16.22 GB are reserved for the recovery partition. 213.90 GB are available for the operating system and user data.

The SV-Z1311Z9EX does not have an internal optical drive but the Power Media Dock does. The drive is the Optiarc BD RW BD-5850H SCSI CDROM Device, which can read and write Blu-Rays and DVDs. Sony VGP-BPS4A battery
Video Card
The graphic chip Graphics 4000 is integrated in the 3612QM processor. The chip is responsible for the graphics output when the Power Media Dock (PMD) is not used. When the PMD is connected, the graphics performance can be enhanced through the external AMD Radeon 7670M. You can find out more details about the video card on the respective sites of the Graphics 4000 and the Radeon 7670M. Sony VGP-BPL2A/S battery

Let´s take a look at the graphics performance of the system without PMD first: Due to the reduced CPU clock rates, the graphics performance of the integrated graphics processor comes in below average as well. However, it needs to be mentioned that one test sample is not enough to test if this problem is specific for the test sample or series immanent. Sony VGP-BPL2C/S battery

According to its configuration the graphics performance rises with plugged in PMD. The results of the 3DMark tests with HD 7670M fortunately rank at the expected level in the middle of all tested systems with AMD Radeon HD 7670M video card. The performance also ranges at the middle class level and is comparable to the Geforce GT 630M and GT 550M video cards from Nvidia. Sony VGP-BPS2A/S battery
Gaming Performance
Even though the Graphics 4000 would reach the common level concerning graphics performance, it is way more attractive to play with an independent middle-class video card. We have tested the gaming performance with three games. With plugged in Power Media Dock (PMD) the external AMD Radeon HD 7670M positions itself in comparison to other test samples with the same video card in the lower section on all three games. Sony VGP-BPS2C/S battery

Anno 2070 stays playable with PMD up to medium graphics settings. Comparable samples with the same graphics equipment are between 1% (Dell Vostro 3560, 15.6") and 14% (HP Pavilion g7-2007sg, 17.3") faster.
The integrated video card is able to display the little demanding Fifa 12 on medium settings. Our test sample with PMD still achieves playable 37.7 fps even on maximum settings. Sony VGP-BPS2C/S/E battery Here our test device performs especially badly in comparison to other samples with the same CPU and video card. Dell's 15.6-inch Vostro 3560 is nearly one and a half times faster with the same settings.
Temperature

Due to the slim design, the surfaces of the SV-Z1311Z9EX get warm very easily even under load. In this scenario the body temperature is partially exceeded as well. Sony VGP-BPS2 battery Under load (stress test) the temperature rises on the underside as well as on the top. At the bottom the temperature even crosses the 50 degree Celsius mark. Fortunately the palm rest and touchpad stay cool.

We observe the core temperature for two hours with the help of the stress test (without PMD). Fortunately the cores only reach a maximum of close above 70 degree Celsius. Sony VGP-BPS2A battery In return the system starts to clock with 1.2 GHz shortly after the beginning of the stress test. The GPU clocks with 650 MHz (core) and 800 MHz (memory) during the stress test. The 3DMark06 run, immediately following the stress test, even delivers a slightly better result than the below-average cold start run with 3482 points.

Temperature
Stress test

Sony VGP-BPS2B battery Due to the slim design, the surfaces of the SV-Z1311Z9EX get warm very easily even under load. In this scenario the body temperature is partially exceeded as well. Under load (stress test) the temperature rises on the underside as well as on the top. At the bottom the temperature even crosses the 50 degree Celsius mark. Fortunately the palm rest and touchpad stay cool. Sony VGP-BPS2C battery

We observe the core temperature for two hours with the help of the stress test (without PMD). Fortunately the cores only reach a maximum of close above 70 degree Celsius. In return the system starts to clock with 1.2 GHz shortly after the beginning of the stress test. The GPU clocks with 650 MHz (core) and 800 MHz (memory) during the stress test. The 3DMark06 run, immediately following the stress test, even delivers a slightly better result than the below-average cold start run with 3482 points. Sony VGP-BPL2 battery
Battery Runtime

Our SV-Z1311Z9EX is equipped with a 45Wh lithium-ion battery, which allows up to 7 hours battery runtime according to manufacturer. A bigger battery that can increase the battery runtime up to 14 hours, according to manufacturer, can be purchased in the online-shop. Sony VGP-BPL2C battery

Our ascertained maximum battery run time, tested with the Battery Eater Readers Test with minimum brightness, energy-saving profile and turned off Wi-Fi modules, is nearly 6 hours. This is noticeably underneath the manufacturer's information we read off the configurable model. However, this information could apply for the equipment with Core i5 CPU. Sony VGP-BPS3 battery

The Classic Test of the Battery Eater Tools records a minimum runtime of 2.75 hours with maximum brightness, high-performance profile and turned on Wi-Fi modules. The practical oriented WLAN test with the energy-saving profile and a brightness of 150 cd/m² simulates 3.25 hours of web surfing with our standard script.
Verdict Sony VGP-BPS3A battery

Light, high-quality materials, extensive communication equipment, broad band modem included, Full-HD resolution, and sheer unbelievable specifications: A Quad-Core processor, 8 GB main memory and even two SSDs in the RAID-0 system in a small 13 inch casing sounds quite amazing. Owing to the mass memory solution, the device achieves excellent values in the hard drive tests and good values in usage performance. Sony VGP-BPL5 battery Sadly, we also had to experience that the Quad-Core CPU of the Ivy-Bridge generation in our device stays permanently underclocked even in the high-performance profile.

Another point of criticism is that the screen is less bright than the predecessor's one. Nevertheless, the high-resolution Full-HD display excels with its wide color space and good contrast.

Sony VGP-BPL5A battery The Power Media Dock is also part of the scope of delivery, which not only expands the offer of interfaces and adds a Blu-Ray burner but also improves the graphics performance with the external Radeon HD 7670M. However, the video card cannot fully keep up with other HD 7670M systems.

The overall design of Sony is, despite its weaknesses, quite appealing and should interest business clients, also because of its integrated safety features. Due to its weight and size, it can be transported quite easily and the Power Media Dock is a welcome supplement. Sony VGP-BPS5 battery

However it is uncertain, if the mentioned underclocking of the processor only appears in this test model, is series specific, or even was intended to improve the battery runtime and lower emissions. We will try to get our hands on another test device for control measurements. The evaluation stays reserved until clearance.

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