Official VAIO FW Series Owners Thread

[dwagner88]

Alright, I got the new disc drive, but I still get the noise so idk what to think since everything is working fine. Maybe some of you can check to see what noises your disc drives make. At least right after pressing the button to open the tray and after closing it.

I just got my new FW490CTO this week (so far it is the best computer I have ever owned by a mile!) I notice that when coming out of sleep or first turning the computer on there is a slight vibration that lasts for maybe 2 seconds as the optical drive spins up to check for a disk (if I have left a disk in the drive it lasts a bit longer) but the noise is not very loud, and the vibration is minimal. It isn't really something that I could classify as a "buzz" so you may be having a problem.

On an unrelated note, I am amazed by how cool this laptop stays without having a loud fan spinning up all the time. I copied roughly 50 gigs of music and videos to the hard drive the night I got it, and it was only slightly warm. I was deciding between the FW and a Dell Studio XPS. I decided against the XPS because of the heat complaints. Seems like I made the right decision. This computer is scary cool.

[Speeedy6]

I just got my new FW490CTO this week (so far it is the best computer I have ever owned by a mile!) I notice that when coming out of sleep or first turning the computer on there is a slight vibration that lasts for maybe 2 seconds as the optical drive spins up to check for a disk (if I have left a disk in the drive it lasts a bit longer) but the noise is not very loud, and the vibration is minimal. It isn't really something that I could classify as a "buzz" so you may be having a problem.

On an unrelated note, I am amazed by how cool this laptop stays without having a loud fan spinning up all the time. I copied roughly 50 gigs of music and videos to the hard drive the night I got it, and it was only slightly warm. I was deciding between the FW and a Dell Studio XPS. I decided against the XPS because of the heat complaints. Seems like I made the right decision. This computer is scary cool.

I guess it's possible I'm making too much of it, and since it all works great it's probably nothing to worry about.

I have the 2yr of protection on it so even something does come up I should be covered.

I agree on the laptop, it's great and does stay cool under pressure, lol.

[MidtownHD]

I want the Core i7 in the FW series...

[dwagner88]

What do you guys use to clean your screens? I tried some screen wipes I bought at Walmart, but they left a nasty film over the screen that took me almost 30 minutes to clean off with a damp paper towel. Are there any LCD-safe screen wipes that actually work?

[foldertree]

re: cd drive noise:
Someone on this forum has described the sound as a burping noise, I think it characterizes it perfectly!

[rjairam]

What do you guys use to clean your screens? I tried some screen wipes I bought at Walmart, but they left a nasty film over the screen that took me almost 30 minutes to clean off with a damp paper towel. Are there any LCD-safe screen wipes that actually work?

I use a microfiber (the yellow ones from costco) and ROR.

I bought a bottle from B&H in NYC for cleaning camera lenses. It works great and is safe for cleaning LCD screens.

[Speeedy6]

re: cd drive noise:
Someone on this forum has described the sound as a burping noise, I think it characterizes it perfectly!

Yeah, I would say that is quite accurate.

[vaiofwwfoiav]

i've had my fw for a couple months now and occasionally my computer will freeze when playing graphics intensive games. this has only happened on very rare occasions (only twice). i think it has something to do with the video card and its driver. i updated the driver for my video card (ati hd 4650) through the vaio website, but i cannot remember if this happened only after i did this or before. anyone else have this problem? has anyone updated their video card as well? should i try the older driver?

[J&SinKTO]

What do you guys use to clean your screens? I tried some screen wipes I bought at Walmart, but they left a nasty film over the screen that took me almost 30 minutes to clean off with a damp paper towel. Are there any LCD-safe screen wipes that actually work?

I use OmniCleanz, comes with a micro fiber cloth - can purchase from Radtech.
Have tried other products, so far like this one the best. (concur on the nasty film some wipes will leave behind...)

[Derrida]

I guess it's possible I'm making too much of it [the noisy drive], and since it all works great it's probably nothing to worry about.

I have the 2yr of protection on it so even something does come up I should be covered.

I agree that the drive should not be making noises when empty on boot-up. Who is the manufacturer of the drive (available in the Device Manager)? If it isn't SONY, call the manufacturer and describe the sounds and the environments in which it occurs. If the manufacturer states that such noises on an empty boot-up are not normal (and I doubt that it should be considered "normal"), then get a reference number/name from the manufacturer and contact SONY again.

Note, however, that Sony will likely ship your computer to the Depot if it takes two actions onsite that do not resolve the problem. So far you've had only one onsite repair, correct? You could try a second and compare the sound of the two drives while the tech is there to see which is the better of the two.

However, remember that the first year of the warranty is the charm because that's the manufacturer's warranty. The subsequent years are outsourced to ServiceNet, even though right now Sony techs do the work. What that means is that in the subsequent years of your warranty after the manufacturer's warranty expires, the service provider is keeping track of the cost of the repairs against the total of what you paid for the laptop. Once that total has been reached, that's it. I mean really it. The end of the service contract.

So, go for the gold while you're under the manufacturer's warranty. And BTW, if you're in the States (but I'm not sure you are), call Sony Tech Support during U.S. "off-hours" (i.e., nights, weekends) so that you get the Philippines group. Many of us have found them to be superior to the American techs both in knowledge and in customer interaction/satisfaction.

Good luck!