Sony VAIO S15 (2012)
Intel Core i7-3612QM (2.1ghz, Turbo Boost up to 3.1ghz)
8 GB DDR3-1333 (4 GB soldered onto motherboard, 1x4 GB SO-DIMM)
Nvidia GeForce GT 640M LE w/2 GB DDR3 (see below)
256 GB Samsung 830 series SSD (replaced stock 500 GB HDD)
15.5" 1920x1080p IPS display
Blu-ray reader/DVD+CD burner slot-loading optical drive
720p webcam
Win7 Pro x64
For anyone who cares about connectors:
2x USB 3.0
1x USB 2.0 "Charge" port (actively charges devices through USB even when laptop is off!)
HDMI
VGA
SD card slot
Memory Stick Pro Duo slot (because it's Sony, LOL)
microphone jack
headphone jack
This laptop is <1" thick with the lid closed and weighs 4.4 lbs. The laptop itself looks very classy and stylish, with a conservative matte black finish. You can also get the laptop in silver and white. The shell is made of rigid magnesium alloy except a plastic strip at the top of the lid where the wireless antennas are housed. The inner frame around the screen and the palm rests are aluminum. Magnesium alloy is a popular component in laptops even though aluminum is cheaper because of it's rigidity, so this laptop exhibits absolutely no flex when picked up or prodded, except in the area of the backlit keyboard. The screen is extremely thin and does flex when bent or opened at the corners, though this is apparently an intentional design decision by Sony since a screen this thin would be too brittle if made rigid.
But enough about the laptop itself. This is GAF so I know you guys want to hear about performance in games. It's important to understand that this laptop's GeForce GT 640M LE has a stock clock of 500/900. If you want what I have, well first you would need to buy this laptop. But then you'll need to do what I did and it will almost certainly void your warranty. If you do buy this laptop, you'll need to go
here to download the hacked BIOS for the laptop. This BIOS simply modifies the GPU's default clocks. I'm using the 1000 BIOS that sets the GPU clock to 1000/1000.
Huhuhu~
Yes, I said
1000 mhz GPU clock. Remember, the stock clock is 500 mhz!
Here's how it looks after the mod:
So, what do the benchmarks say after this BIOS hack?
3DMark 11:
Not bad, scoring as well as a stock GT 650M here. For comparison purposes, the average score of stock GT 640M LE is around ~P1300 3Dmark 11's.
Metro 2033:
I remember when this game first came out and it used to crush the best desktop GPUs at the time. Now a laptop GPU can run it in DX11 mode. How times have changed.
Crysis:
7/18/2012 4:11:13 AM - Vista 64
Beginning Run #1 on Map-island, Demo-benchmark_gpu
DX10 1920x1080, AA=No AA, Vsync=Disabled, 32 bit test, FullScreen
Demo Loops=1, Time Of Day=12
Global Game Quality: High
==============================================================
TimeDemo Play Started , (Total Frames: 2000, Recorded Time: 111.86s)
!TimeDemo Run 0 Finished.
Play Time: 70.45s, Average FPS: 28.39
Min FPS: 20.59 at frame 149, Max FPS: 33.84 at frame 985
Average Tri/Sec: -25400614, Tri/Frame: -894677
Recorded/Played Tris ratio: -1.02
TimeDemo Play Ended, (1 Runs Performed)
==============================================================
<><><><><><><><><><><><><>>--SUMMARY--<<><><><><><><><><><><><><>
7/18/2012 4:11:13 AM - Vista 64
Run #1- DX10 1920x1080 AA=No AA, 32 bit test, Quality: High ~~ Last Average FPS: 28.39
The great granddaddy of all DX10 benchmarks. Running in 32-bit mode because the Steam version of Crysis doesn't come with the 64-bit executable. Derp.
Diablo III:
I can't exactly benchmark this. Well, loading the game up and running around seemed okay. With 1080p resolution, all settings maxed, AA enabled in game menu, I was getting a pretty solid 40-45 fps doing a quick test run of the first part of Act III where you're running around killing mob packs and lighting the signal beacons. I guess that's pretty okay for a laptop GPU these days and it matches results I've seen elsewhere on the Internet for D3 and a GT 650M with DDR3, not GDDR5.
Summary:
The basic Sony VAIO S15 is already a pretty good laptop with light gaming capability, but the BIOS hack which enables a ridiculous GPU clock really turns this laptop into a really nice gaming laptop which is also slim and light so you can take your games anywhere. The laptop itself is built very well, includes a gorgeous 1080p IPS screen, and has a keyboard which is actually nice to type on. I wrote this entire post on the laptop's keyboard without any problems. The touchpad on this laptop is pretty decent too as clickpads go, I can actually use it without wanting to kill myself and as PC clickpads go that's practically glowing praise. At 1/3 the price of a Retina MacBook Pro I feel like I made out like a bandit in terms of price/performance and sheer value for dollar.
Final outlay looked like this:
$1,241 + free PS3 + free Express shipping for Customized laptop
- $250 (sold the PS3)
- $140 in Sony Rewards points I've had laying around
+ $110 tax
+ $23 (4 GB DDR-1333 SO-DIMM from Newegg)
+ $190 (Samsung SSD bought during Newegg sale)
= $1,174
.
