Product Listing

Sony Vaio Z (2011) - Z For Luxury

By Leo Boon Yeow - 19 Sep 2011
Launch SRP: S$3999

Battery life and Portability index

Battery life and Portability index

When you have something like the Sony Vaio Z, that packs incredible specs into a small package, sometimes you’d be wondering where does it's battery go. Well that is a valid query because it is engineered from the inside out, and outside in, the Sony Vaio Z is remarkably small. Its interior architecture is designed to fit in as much as possible, and hence, another compromise is introduced. It has to be able to fit all of its components, and yet leave enough space for its integrated battery.

Specifications / Notebook Sony Vaio Z (2011) Apple MacBook Air (2011) Lenovo ThinkPad X1
Processor  Intel Core i7-2620M (2.7GHz) Intel Core i5-2557M (1.7GHz) Intel Core i5-2520M (2.5GHz)
Chipset  Intel HM65 Intel QS67 Intel HM65
Memory  8GB DDR3 4GB DDR3 4GB DDR3
HDD  256GB SSD (RAID 0) 256GB SSD 160GB SSD
Video Intel HD 3000 / AMD Radeon 6650M (PMD) Intel HD 3000 Intel HD 3000
Battery  4000mAh Integrated battery 50 Whr 38.4 Whr 
Dimensions  330 x 210 x 17 mm 325 x 227 x 3 - 17mm  337 x 231 x 16.5 - 21.3mm
Weight  1.165kg 1.35kg 1.7kg

 

Battery Life

Battery life for the Sony Vaio Z isn’t abysmal, but it isn’t at the top of the pack either. To keep the entire unit tiny, we’re pretty sure Sony had to compromise on how much battery they can squeeze into the machine. And judging from the minuscule appearance of the Sony Vaio Z, we’d have to say that there’s not much battery in there at all (4000mAh integrated battery). However thankfully the batteries that they did manage to squeeze in, were utilized fairly well. The Vaio Z lasted for about 165 minutes, or just a little under three hours in our continuous video looping test. This result is something you would expect from a modern day notebook so it’s really nothing out of the ordinary. You also have to consider that it’s got a power hungry Core i7, as well as a bright, full-HD screen to feed. So perhaps it didn’t fare too badly after all.

 

Battery Consumption

The figures you see here are an indication of how much power a machine uses in our battery life test. Here, the Sony Vaio Z has a pretty average score of 16.36 watts, which is quite acceptable. This is a pretty straight forward difference in battery life when compared to the MacBook Air, and the ThinkPad X1, given the fact that it’s on a Core i7 processor which is of the full powered mobile variety. Factor in it's also got a bright, full HD screen to support with a tiny 4000 mAh integrated battery, and you'll know why the results are such. For reference, you might want to check how multimedia notebooks fare and you'll realize the Vaio Z is all right in comparison.

 

Portability Index

The portability index that we use here in HardwareZone is basically a mathematical formula that tells you if it is worth your time to carry a particulate machine with you with regards to other notebooks of a similar class. The elements that make up this formula are the weight, volume and battery life. The Sony Vaio Z didn’t fare better than other ultra-portables here, only because it doesn’t have a battery that is as big to support its superior specs. We mentioned before that it packs a full powered Core i7 processor, and not a watered down low-voltage version, so you’d have to choose if you want a more powerful processor when you’re on the move, so that you can work harder, or would you prefer a longer battery life so that you can work longer. Sony recognizes this and and takes the chance to sell you an optional sheet battery that effectively doubles the battery life of the Vaio Z. This sheet battery adds approximately 500 grams and will cost you S$249 should you choose to get it. We can't exactly say if it's a good deal or not, but if you need the extra juice, you know where to look.

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9.0
  • Design 9
  • Features 9.5
  • Performance 9.5
  • Value 7
  • Mobility 9
The Good
Good design
Extremely light
Has a Power Media Dock
Full HD screen
The Bad
Build quality - very bad flexing
Expensive
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