Official Sony VAIO F Series i5/i7 owners thread *Part 3*

[Joe Bleau]

...As an owner of the "black" F, I am a tad worried about the discoloration. If it appears, I may have Sony_fix it. Otherwise I think that a little bit of metallic spray paint might do the trick....

The paint is extremely thin, it would be difficult to DIY paint it & obtain a similar look/color. Maybe if enough of you guys complain to Sony_USA, I could get them to mail me an EU/Asia rubberized palm rest? I would like that.

[Tanis.7x]

The paint is extremely thin, it would be difficult to DIY paint it & obtain a similar look/color. Maybe if enough of you guys complain to Sony_USA, I could get them to mail me an EU/Asia rubberized palm rest? I would like that.

Difficult yes, but better than nothing if the spots really bug you (not you specifically, but, well, you get the idea).

I didn't even think of the rubber palm rest. You've taken the F apart before, so is the palm rest removable? If so, that is definitely a good solution. At the very least, they could send out replacement "black" palm rests.

[Joe Bleau]

Difficult yes, but better than nothing if the spots really bug you (not you specifically, but, well, you get the idea).

I didn't even think of the rubber palm rest. You've taken the F apart before, so is the palm rest removable? If so, that is definitely a good solution. At the very least, they could send out replacement "black" palm rests.

I did not try it but my guess is that the palm rest is removable. Searching Sony_parts US with Model Prefix Starts with: VPCF & Description contains: palm, I found this. Looks pricey!



Seems like GM stands for Gun Metal & SLV for silver.

An other DIY solution would be to remove all the rest of the paint so it would be black for a similar EU premium color scheme. Now for a paint remover that does not melt plastic? Or spray rubbery paint? Or 1 week before end of warranty ask for a replacement? Or forgetaboutit?

[John_WA]

As an owner of the "black" F, I am a tad worried about the discoloration. If it appears, I may have Sony fix it. Otherwise I think that a little bit of metallic spray paint might do the trick.

For those looking to get a backpack for their laptop, Costco currently has an incredible deal on one (see here). The pockets designed for the AC adapter are a little tight for Sony's behemoths, but there are plenty of pockets and it fits 17" laptops. The bag is very well made and feels very sturdy. Only $50 (USD) right now!

EDIT:
Newegg also has the 320GB Momentus XT for only $105 +free shipping with promo code EMCYWZN43. I am very tempted to pull the trigger on this one...

There are paints made specifically for plastic which may last a little better than others.

Thanks for posting the info on the backpack and the Momentus XT......very tempting indeed!

[John_WA]

I've been quietly following this very active thread for some time now and I am about to buy the F12 that's currently on sale in Costco. Some of the features are not exactly what I would have gotten had I ordered a CTO unit but the price is hard to ignore and it likely is still way more computer than I need for my purposes.

I read a lot here about "clean installs" and can certainly see the benefits of doing that on a new computer. The question I have is that as a relative non-computer-techie type compared to you guys (I have not even ever performed a system restore or gone into bios for any reason) I am concerned that I'd do something to really mess up my new $1k+ laptop. Do you think this is something an average Joe could do without messing up? I have looked briefly through Joe Bleau's guide and it does appear pretty technical to me at first glance and I remember thinking that I would instead just try uninstalling the bloatware that I wouldn't use.

[Joe Bleau]

Actually I did both: first uninstalled the unwanted software then tried my recovery discs trick. The later takes less time. Anyway, if you mess up, you can always return your machine to the exact state it was out of the box with either pressing F10 when booting & using the easy steps in the recovery partition or use the recovery discs. It's fool proof & very easy.

I've been quietly following this very active thread for some time now and I am about to buy the F12 that's currently on sale in Costco. Some of the features are not exactly what I would have gotten had I ordered a CTO unit but the price is hard to ignore and it likely is still way more computer than I need for my purposes.

I read a lot here about "clean installs" and can certainly see the benefits of doing that on a new computer. The question I have is that as a relative non-computer-techie type compared to you guys (I have not even ever performed a system restore or gone into bios for any reason) I am concerned that I'd do something to really mess up my new $1k+ laptop. Do you think this is something an average Joe could do without messing up? I have looked briefly through Joe Bleau's guide and it does appear pretty technical to me at first glance and I remember thinking that I would instead just try uninstalling the bloatware that I wouldn't use.

[anseio]

I've been quietly following this very active thread for some time now and I am about to buy the F12 that's currently on sale in Costco. Some of the features are not exactly what I would have gotten had I ordered a CTO unit but the price is hard to ignore and it likely is still way more computer than I need for my purposes.

I read a lot here about "clean installs" and can certainly see the benefits of doing that on a new computer. The question I have is that as a relative non-computer-techie type compared to you guys (I have not even ever performed a system restore or gone into bios for any reason) I am concerned that I'd do something to really mess up my new $1k+ laptop. Do you think this is something an average Joe could do without messing up? I have looked briefly through Joe Bleau's guide and it does appear pretty technical to me at first glance and I remember thinking that I would instead just try uninstalling the bloatware that I wouldn't use.

Bring it over and I'll do it for you.

I had never done anything like it, the first time. It makes much more sense after some practice.

Oh, wait. Olympia is a abit far to come from for something like this. Read my supplement to JB's clean install, in my sig. It might help it become a bit more clear for a first timer. But, like Joe said, you can always do a full restore and start over if you absolutely need to.

[John_WA]

Bring it over and I'll do it for you.

I had never done anything like it, the first time. It makes much more sense after some practice.

Oh, wait. Olympia is a abit far to come from for something like this. Read my supplement to JB's clean install, in my sig. It might help it become a bit more clear for a first timer. But, like Joe said, you can always do a full restore and start over if you absolutely need to.

I was in the process of typing this reply and taking you up on your offer but then you posted your edit!

But I may just get brave enough to try it myself.

Joe Bleau, thanks for the encouraging words.....it made me braver!

[anseio]

I was in the process of typing this reply and taking you up on your offer but then you posted your edit!

But I may just get brave enough to try it myself.

Joe Bleau, thanks for the encouraging words.....it made me braver!

Give a try, or two, and you'll be ok. Worst case, you can bring it up to here and watch me give it a try, or two.

[mangosango]

I was in the process of typing this reply and taking you up on your offer but then you posted your edit!

But I may just get brave enough to try it myself.

Joe Bleau, thanks for the encouraging words.....it made me braver!

Yep - software changes are almost always reversible . You should only start to get worried about irreversible changes when you start to fiddle with the hardware settings