Wifes New Sony Laptop + Vista = CRAPPED OUT!

[PhotoByLeal]

So, here's a little story I got to tell, about a Sony Laptop with Vista that crapped out!
The wife has not even used this thing a dozen times or has not even installed anything on this laptop and it crashed after the 2nd system update!
Called Sony and they gave me the go around and to call back on where I bought it. So, I called Sears and they told me to call Sony!
What a bunch of LOSERS, no one wants to take the blame!
The Sony Customer Techs tells me, that they can do a system restore but can not guarantee that this problem will be fixed!
Then they tell me not to do a system update on my wife's laptop!
By this time I was ready to open a CAN OF MexiCAN WOOP A$$ Ranch Style Beans!

QUESTION: I have not messed with Vista at all, do you think I should upgrade to XP PRO or Ultimate Vista? (Which ever one I can)


thanks,
angel m leal jr.

[prncfarquad]

I take all my vista machines back to XP Pro. I do however have two vista machines (business version) that have run really well. The problem is if you have a hardware issue XP won't resolve the issue.

If the LT is still under warranty take it back to sears and tell them to fix it or give you a new one.

[Rson]

Sad and I would never do this......Buy a new one, return the old one with the new receipt keeping the new.

[cooltouch]

Yet another instance of the end user being QC for mfgrs that can't be bothered with that sort of thing anymore. You'd think that with the premium you had to pay because the LT said Sony on it, this wouldn't be an issue. But it doesn't seem to matter who the maker is anymore.

I'd call Sony Customer Service and tell them to fix it. I've had to deal with this defective-out-of-the-box problem on an eMachines laptop I bought several years ago, and a Canon DSLR I bought a few months ago, and in both instances, the customer service folks I talked to were prompt and courteous. And more importantly, my stuff got fixed.

Sounds to me like, at this point, you don't know if its a hardware or an OS problem or maybe a combination of both. Doesn't matter. They installed the OS and probably "optimized" it for your LT, so they bear responsibility for it working as promised.

[Joe_Lorenzini]

Honestly, when I got my Vaio I dumped Vista without ever booting into it and replaced it with XP Pro. It has worked flawlessly since.

That said, I would suggest installing Windows 7 RC (build 7100) which is free and available now from Microsoft's web site. Microsoft will provide you with a key to activate the RC as well.

I've done this on my Vaio and only have one compatibility issue that I have to deal with (regarding a PCMCIA card). Other than that, the system seems to run faster and with much better power management. The RC, on my VAIO is so stable it (or any program I run on it) has yet to crash once.

Just my two cents.

Joe

PS. If you do decided to install a different OS, make sure you first go to Sony's site and download all the drivers you'll need for your specific system.

[kenw]

I love Sony stuff, as long as it is a television. We've had horrible luck on Sony anything else: phones, walkmans, stereo receivers, cameras.

[groovyone]

My Father in law loves his Vista running FW VAIO. I am holding out for Windows 7 before I replace my old Compaq clunker.

Windows system updates jacked my XP running desktop back when SP2 came out. Did you have any virus software running? I don't think you can blame Sony for this one since it seems like the good ole Vista culprit.

[joedanger11]

that's very odd. I have a Vaio running vista with no probs. I actually like it better than XP.

I agree with Kieth, I wouldn't blame the crashes on Sony, but rather the Vista and the system updates. What I do is install only a hand ful of important updates first. Restart. Then continue with other system updates... Don't update recommended updates.

[kenw]

actually, it likely IS a Sony issue, their drivers are very likely the issue. They are responsible for testing all of their units with not only the OS that it ships with, but also for updating their drivers as new OS is released by MS (they get them way in advance for this very reason).

It's not MS's job to make sure every hardware maker does the right things for compatibility. If it was a MS issue, it wouldn't work on anyone's hardware.

[RussFrost]

What a pain. Whatever solution you go with will cost you time and effort. If you can still return the laptop to the place of purchase with no restocking fee or anything, then I would go that route and then start over with a different laptop.

That being said, if you are going to stick with the current laptop, I would reinstall everything yourself. That way you know for sure what has and has not been done to your laptop and you don't have to deal with tech support run around. Generally speaking, XP is going to be more stable than any flavor of Vista. I use both XP and Vista every day and both can run very stable, but it really comes down to what hardware and drivers you have. In my experience Vista drivers are still more flakey than XP drivers. Vista Ultimate will not necessarily be any more stable than Vista (whatever) since you will have the same drivers either way.

Your system should have come with one "restore" disk of some sort that will allow you to reinstall the system to the factory settings. If that is what you have, then you may not have a choice which operating system that you re-install unless you want to go spend more money and buy a different version. For a while some vendors included disks for both XP and Vista so that you could choose, but I don't know if this is your case or not.

Decide which OS you are going to install and then go to the Sony web site and download all of the appropriate drivers for the video, network card, etc. and put them on a USB flash drive so that you can get to them later. Everything on the system hard drive is going to be lost, so double-check that you don't need to backup any personal files or anything. Install the operating system from your recovery disk. Install the drivers from your USB flash drive. Now you are back to square one.

[Flea77]

I have taken all my machines to Vista, glad to be rid of that ancient XP. With 20+ machines on my benches every day we see far more problems with XP machines that are virus/spyware related, and far more problems with Vista machines that are driver related (usually people have Vista 64 and install 32bit drivers, or the other way around, or install XP drivers and try to force them to work).

My opinion is it probably is a driver issue as I have yet to see a Vista update issue outside of drivers. I would probably reinstall from the original discs, update all drivers to the latest versions, then install Vista SP1, then the rest of the updates (including recommended ones).

Allan

[ndsimm]

I would check Sony's web site to see if there are any driver updates available and install those first, then allow Windows updates to run. I know on my Dell laptops, I used to have the same issue and it almost always was a driver that needed updating that windows hadn't found yet...

[herenaustin]

I would wait for Win 7. It may be available free right now but I believe that is a beta/user testing version. As far as MS not responsible for others' drivers - that is correct, however they do have certain API's and standards that they use so other manufacturers can certify their drivers, etc for Windows. Sometimes there are glitches, sometimes it is a MS problem sometimes not.

I work at a major manufacturer and was a Corporate Svc Manager for a long time and can tell you that if the system is new and you haven't introduced any wacky S/W on it you should insist on Sony assisting you. When you call into their Tech Support and don't get the assistance you reasonably feel you should (do check the small print on the service terms and limitations) request that your case be escalated (key word - escalated) to the next level of support. Be polite, be patient and try to make the front line tech feel like you understand he/she is doing everything they can. This will make them more inclined to help you. It is the nice and reasonable folks that the techs remember and go out of their way to try to help. The unreasonable or rude folks get no more than the small writing in their service contract allows. And why should they?

Sorry for the long message - but this is something I have 25 years experience with. Be nice but persistent.

[Bob_S]

REally though it sounds like a hardware problem. It could be drivers and that is a good place to start but as quickly as it failed, my guess would be memory.

[PhotoByLeal]

Originally Posted by prncfarquad

I take all my vista machines back to XP Pro. I do however have two vista machines (business version) that have run really well. The problem is if you have a hardware issue XP won't resolve the issue.

If the LT is still under warranty take it back to sears and tell them to fix it or give you a new one.

Sears don't want to take it back and Sony just wants to restore it and tells me to take it back to Sears!

Originally Posted by Rson

Sad and I would never do this......Buy a new one, return the old one with the new receipt keeping the new.

Yeap, I wouldn't neither! So, I went in to several Sears and talked to the Department Manager and gave them my spill, very nice & all said sorry there loser and can't help!

Originally Posted by cooltouch

Yet another instance of the end user being QC for mfgrs that can't be bothered with that sort of thing anymore. You'd think that with the premium you had to pay because the LT said Sony on it, this wouldn't be an issue. But it doesn't seem to matter who the maker is anymore.

I'd call Sony Customer Service and tell them to fix it. I've had to deal with this defective-out-of-the-box problem on an eMachines laptop I bought several years ago, and a Canon DSLR I bought a few months ago, and in both instances, the customer service folks I talked to were prompt and courteous. And more importantly, my stuff got fixed.

Sounds to me like, at this point, you don't know if its a hardware or an OS problem or maybe a combination of both. Doesn't matter. They installed the OS and probably "optimized" it for your LT, so they bear responsibility for it working as promised.

Sony is saying that the update was done by the LT, and it was an update from windows 2000 and I should be doing the updates not the LT! I told the crazy lady, why is Microsoft going to send out a Windows 2000 update to a Vista OS? Lady said that MS can do that!

Originally Posted by Joe_Lorenzini

Honestly, when I got my Vaio I dumped Vista without ever booting into it and replaced it with XP Pro. It has worked flawlessly since.

That said, I would suggest installing Windows 7 RC (build 7100) which is free and available now from Microsoft's web site. Microsoft will provide you with a key to activate the RC as well.

I've done this on my Vaio and only have one compatibility issue that I have to deal with (regarding a PCMCIA card). Other than that, the system seems to run faster and with much better power management. The RC, on my VAIO is so stable it (or any program I run on it) has yet to crash once.

Just my two cents.

Joe

PS. If you do decided to install a different OS, make sure you first go to Sony's site and download all the drivers you'll need for your specific system.

Isn't MS 7 free for a year and then you have to buy the full version?

Originally Posted by kenw

I love Sony stuff, as long as it is a television. We've had horrible luck on Sony anything else: phones, walkmans, stereo receivers, cameras.

Me too, I mentioned it to my wife, we need to get a MAC! Oh well!

Originally Posted by groovyone

My Father in law loves his Vista running FW VAIO. I am holding out for Windows 7 before I replace my old Compaq clunker.

Windows system updates jacked my XP running desktop back when SP2 came out. Did you have any virus software running? I don't think you can blame Sony for this one since it seems like the good ole Vista culprit.

Some one needs to take the blame, and right now Sears blames Sony and Sony blames Sears and MS? Now all I have left is to call MS!

Originally Posted by joedanger11

that's very odd. I have a Vaio running vista with no probs. I actually like it better than XP.

I agree with Kieth, I wouldn't blame the crashes on Sony, but rather the Vista and the system updates. What I do is install only a hand ful of important updates first. Restart. Then continue with other system updates... Don't update recommended updates.

That's what I am going to do now!

Originally Posted by kenw

actually, it likely IS a Sony issue, their drivers are very likely the issue. They are responsible for testing all of their units with not only the OS that it ships with, but also for updating their drivers as new OS is released by MS (they get them way in advance for this very reason).

It's not MS's job to make sure every hardware maker does the right things for compatibility. If it was a MS issue, it wouldn't work on anyone's hardware.

Why sale a Sony LT with out the latest updated drivers, I now to screw people and blame everybody else!

Originally Posted by RussFrost

What a pain. Whatever solution you go with will cost you time and effort. If you can still return the laptop to the place of purchase with no restocking fee or anything, then I would go that route and then start over with a different laptop.

That being said, if you are going to stick with the current laptop, I would reinstall everything yourself. That way you know for sure what has and has not been done to your laptop and you don't have to deal with tech support run around. Generally speaking, XP is going to be more stable than any flavor of Vista. I use both XP and Vista every day and both can run very stable, but it really comes down to what hardware and drivers you have. In my experience Vista drivers are still more flakey than XP drivers. Vista Ultimate will not necessarily be any more stable than Vista (whatever) since you will have the same drivers either way.

Your system should have come with one "restore" disk of some sort that will allow you to reinstall the system to the factory settings. If that is what you have, then you may not have a choice which operating system that you re-install unless you want to go spend more money and buy a different version. For a while some vendors included disks for both XP and Vista so that you could choose, but I don't know if this is your case or not.

Decide which OS you are going to install and then go to the Sony web site and download all of the appropriate drivers for the video, network card, etc. and put them on a USB flash drive so that you can get to them later. Everything on the system hard drive is going to be lost, so double-check that you don't need to backup any personal files or anything. Install the operating system from your recovery disk. Install the drivers from your USB flash drive. Now you are back to square one.

Well we restored the Sony LT and took some stuff off and it is working faster and better for my wife!

Originally Posted by Flea77

I have taken all my machines to Vista, glad to be rid of that ancient XP. With 20+ machines on my benches every day we see far more problems with XP machines that are virus/spyware related, and far more problems with Vista machines that are driver related (usually people have Vista 64 and install 32bit drivers, or the other way around, or install XP drivers and try to force them to work).

My opinion is it probably is a driver issue as I have yet to see a Vista update issue outside of drivers. I would probably reinstall from the original discs, update all drivers to the latest versions, then install Vista SP1, then the rest of the updates (including recommended ones).

Allan

Its restored!

Originally Posted by ndsimm

I would check Sony's web site to see if there are any driver updates available and install those first, then allow Windows updates to run. I know on my Dell laptops, I used to have the same issue and it almost always was a driver that needed updating that windows hadn't found yet...

Done...

Originally Posted by herenaustin

I would wait for Win 7. It may be available free right now but I believe that is a beta/user testing version. As far as MS not responsible for others' drivers - that is correct, however they do have certain API's and standards that they use so other manufacturers can certify their drivers, etc for Windows. Sometimes there are glitches, sometimes it is a MS problem sometimes not.

I work at a major manufacturer and was a Corporate Svc Manager for a long time and can tell you that if the system is new and you haven't introduced any wacky S/W on it you should insist on Sony assisting you. When you call into their Tech Support and don't get the assistance you reasonably feel you should (do check the small print on the service terms and limitations) request that your case be escalated (key word - escalated) to the next level of support. Be polite, be patient and try to make the front line tech feel like you understand he/she is doing everything they can. This will make them more inclined to help you. It is the nice and reasonable folks that the techs remember and go out of their way to try to help. The unreasonable or rude folks get no more than the small writing in their service contract allows. And why should they?

Sorry for the long message - but this is something I have 25 years experience with. Be nice but persistent.

I have been nothing but nice to these people, both Sears and Sony!

Originally Posted by Bob_S

REally though it sounds like a hardware problem. It could be drivers and that is a good place to start but as quickly as it failed, my guess would be memory.

Did not install no SW or HW!
I hope it does not do it again, because I will fly up to Sony HQ and throw the LT threw a window, just like the old time commercial from Discount Tires and the old lady that is not satisfied with the tire! J/K..

later,
angel m. leal jr.

P.S.
Once U go MAC u never go BK!