VAIO Z Core i7-11375H Review: The Laptop for CEOs and Executives
Unlike Lenovo, Dell, HP, and other major players in the laptop space, Vaio focuses on just a small handful of flagship models internationally targeting upper-class office workers and business users. The 2019 Vaio A12 detachable retailed for over $3000 USD at launch and this latest Vaio Z clamshell is no different with SKUs reaching almost $4000.
Our test unit comes equipped with the Core i7-11375H CPU, integrated Iris Xe graphics, 16 GB of RAM, 14-inch 4K UHD display, and 1 TB SSD for about $3800 USD. Other SKUs are available with varying RAM and storage capacities, but the Core i7 CPU and matte 4K display remain fixed across all options in North America. Core i5 and FHD options are planned for a later date.
Competitors in this space include other high-end subnotebooks like the Dell XPS 13, Dell Latitude 9410, HP Spectre, HP EliteBook 1040, Asus ZenBook, and the Lenovo Yoga 940.
More Vaio reviews:
potential competitors in comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Height | Size | Resolution | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 83.8 % v7 (old) | 02 / 2021 | VAIO Z VJZ141C11L i7-11375H, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1 kg | 16.9 mm | 14.00" | 3840x2160 | |
| 87.4 % v7 (old) | 12 / 2020 | Dell XPS 13 9310 Core i7 4K i7-1185G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1.3 kg | 14.8 mm | 13.40" | 3840x2400 | |
| 82.6 % v7 (old) | 02 / 2021 | Dell Latitude 14 5411-WJ40N i7-10850H, GeForce MX250 | 1.5 kg | 21 mm | 14.00" | 1920x1080 | |
| 89.4 % v7 (old) | 12 / 2020 | HP Spectre x360 14t-ea000 i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1.3 kg | 17.2 mm | 13.50" | 1920x1280 | |
| 84.2 % v7 (old) | 01 / 2021 | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i 14ITL5 i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1.3 kg | 14.6 mm | 14.00" | 3840x2160 | |
| 84.2 % v7 (old) | 09 / 2020 | Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs | 1.2 kg | 13.9 mm | 14.00" | 1920x1080 | |
| 86.3 % v7 (old) | 12 / 2020 | Huawei MateBook 14 2020 Intel i7-10510U, GeForce MX350 | 1.5 kg | 15.9 mm | 14.00" | 2160x1440 |
Case
The system is very light at just over 1 kg to be several hundred grams lighter than almost every other 13.3-inch or 14-inch laptop as a result of its unique all-carbon fiber skeleton. The LG Gram and Toshiba Portege Z series are notable rivals to the Vaio in terms of weight.
Note that footprint is somewhat large due to the thick top and bottom bezels.
Connectivity
There are no integrated USB-A ports meaning owners will likely have to rely on USB-C adapters. At least there is an HDMI port which is more than what we can say for the XPS 13 or Spectre x360 13.
Communication
Webcam
Maintenance
Unlike most other laptops, the bottom panel is attached to the keyboard base with ribbon cables which makes servicing more difficult. Users can upgrade the SSD once inside while the WLAN and RAM modules are soldered. An extra M.2 slot is available for WAN support, but such SKUs are not available in North America.
Accessories and Warranty
A velvet cleaning cloth is included in the box alongside the AC adapter. The standard one-year limited manufacturer warranty applies.
Input Devices
Display
The Vaio Z is the first in our database to carry the 4K UHD BOE NE140QUM-N62 IPS panel. It's a high quality panel with excellent contrast but just average black-white and gray-gray response times.
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Brightness Distribution: 90 %
Center on Battery: 368.3 cd/m²
Contrast: 1674:1 (Black: 0.22 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 3.27 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.88, calibrated: 2.33
ΔE Greyscale 2.9 | 0.5-98 Ø5.1
99.5% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
76.8% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
86.4% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
99.5% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
95.7% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.2
| VAIO Z VJZ141C11L BOE NE140QUM-N62, IPS, 14", 3840x2160 | Dell XPS 13 9310 Core i7 4K Sharp LQ134R1, IPS, 13.4", 3840x2400 | Dell Latitude 14 5411-WJ40N AU Optronics AUO463D, IPS, 14", 1920x1080 | HP Spectre x360 14t-ea000 LG Philips LGD0663, IPS, 13.5", 1920x1280 | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i 14ITL5 B140ZAN01.7, IPS, 14", 3840x2160 | Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA AU Optronics B140HAN06.8, IPS, 14", 1920x1080 | Huawei MateBook 14 2020 Intel TV140WTM-NH0, IPS LED, 14", 2160x1440 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | -8% | -53% | -18% | -5% | -16% | -17% | |
| Display P3 Coverage | 95.7 | 80.2 -16% | 37.43 -61% | 65.8 -31% | 87.4 -9% | 68.6 -28% | 67.1 -30% |
| sRGB Coverage | 99.5 | 100 1% | 56.2 -44% | 98.2 -1% | 99.9 0% | 98.3 -1% | 99.1 0% |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 86.4 | 78.9 -9% | 38.67 -55% | 67.9 -21% | 81.1 -6% | 69.8 -19% | 69 -20% |
| Response Times | -35% | 42% | -37% | -18% | 0% | 20% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 46.8 ? | 59.2 ? -26% | 31 ? 34% | 62 ? -32% | 48.4 ? -3% | 49.6 ? -6% | 37.6 ? 20% |
| Response Time Black / White * | 28 ? | 40.4 ? -44% | 14 ? 50% | 39.6 ? -41% | 37.2 ? -33% | 26.4 ? 6% | 22.4 ? 20% |
| PWM Frequency | 2137 ? | 59520 ? | |||||
| Screen | 5% | -60% | 8% | -16% | 3% | -4% | |
| Brightness middle | 368.3 | 508.7 38% | 256 -30% | 443.5 20% | 475.8 29% | 375.1 2% | 458 24% |
| Brightness | 361 | 479 33% | 236 -35% | 394 9% | 463 28% | 371 3% | 448 24% |
| Brightness Distribution | 90 | 84 -7% | 86 -4% | 78 -13% | 89 -1% | 91 1% | 89 -1% |
| Black Level * | 0.22 | 0.3 -36% | 0.23 -5% | 0.17 23% | 0.44 -100% | 0.34 -55% | 0.25 -14% |
| Contrast | 1674 | 1696 1% | 1113 -34% | 2609 56% | 1081 -35% | 1103 -34% | 1832 9% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 3.27 | 2.72 17% | 5.76 -76% | 2.7 17% | 3.81 -17% | 1.79 45% | 3.4 -4% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 5.43 | 4.7 13% | 20.65 -280% | 4.36 20% | 6.96 -28% | 3.05 44% | 6.7 -23% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 2.33 | 1.92 18% | 2.61 -12% | 2.55 -9% | 1.79 23% | 1.7 27% | |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 2.9 | 3.4 -17% | 4 -38% | 3.4 -17% | 4.1 -41% | 2.3 21% | 4.9 -69% |
| Gamma | 2.2 100% | 2.11 104% | 2.52 87% | 2.09 105% | 2.14 103% | 2.29 96% | 2.16 102% |
| CCT | 6071 107% | 6245 104% | 6182 105% | 6144 106% | 6564 99% | 6405 101% | 7704 84% |
| Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 76.8 | 70.7 -8% | 36 -53% | 62.1 -19% | 72.4 -6% | 63.9 -17% | 63.5 -17% |
| Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 99.5 | 100 1% | 56 -44% | 98.5 -1% | 99.9 0% | 98.8 -1% | 99.1 0% |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -13% /
-3% | -24% /
-45% | -16% /
-3% | -13% /
-14% | -4% /
-1% | -0% /
-3% |
* ... smaller is better
Gamut covers all of sRGB and approximately 77 percent of AdobeRGB. The panel is rated for 99.8 percent DCI-P3 coverage which extends beyond AdobeRGB in green, yellow, and red colors as shown by our color spaces below.
X-Rite colorimeter measurements show a decently calibrated display out of the box. Color temperature, however, is slightly on the warm side. Our own calibration addresses this small shortcoming to improve the average DeltaE values of colors and grayscale to just 2.33 and 0.7, respectively.
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 28 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 17.2 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 10.8 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows relatively slow response rates in our tests and may be too slow for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 69 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (20.8 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 46.8 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 23.6 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 23.2 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 79 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (32.6 ms). | ||
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM not detected |  | ||
In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 8560 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | |||
Outdoor visibility isn't as good as the competing systems from Dell, Lenovo, Huawei, or HP because the display on the Vaio is dimmer. It's too bad that the manufacturer doesn't offer brighter options a la the HP EliteBook series where 1000-nit panels are available.
Performance
Processor
Multi-thread CPU performance is only marginally better than most Ultrabooks powered by 11th gen ULV Tiger Lake-U CPUs despite the higher 35 W TDP. More benchmarks and technical information on the Core i7-11375H can be found here.
Cinebench R15: CPU Multi 64Bit | CPU Single 64Bit
Blender: v2.79 BMW27 CPU
7-Zip 18.03: 7z b 4 -mmt1 | 7z b 4
Geekbench 5.5: Single-Core | Multi-Core
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2: 4k Preset
LibreOffice : 20 Documents To PDF
R Benchmark 2.5: Overall mean
Cinebench R15: CPU Multi 64Bit | CPU Single 64Bit
Blender: v2.79 BMW27 CPU
7-Zip 18.03: 7z b 4 -mmt1 | 7z b 4
Geekbench 5.5: Single-Core | Multi-Core
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2: 4k Preset
LibreOffice : 20 Documents To PDF
R Benchmark 2.5: Overall mean
* ... smaller is better
System Performance
| PCMark 10 Score | 5268 points | |
Help | ||
DPC Latency
| DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
| Dell Latitude 14 5411-WJ40N | |
| HP Spectre x360 14t-ea000 | |
| Dell XPS 13 9310 Core i7 4K | |
| Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i 14ITL5 | |
| VAIO Z VJZ141C11L | |
| Huawei MateBook 14 2020 Intel | |
* ... smaller is better
Storage Devices
Only one internal storage slot is available. The system is one of the first in its size class to support PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs to be much faster than the more commonplace PCIe 3.0.
| VAIO Z VJZ141C11L Samsung PM9A1 MZVL2512HCJQ | Dell XPS 13 9310 Core i7 4K Micron 2300 512GB MTFDHBA512TDV | Dell Latitude 14 5411-WJ40N SK Hynix PC611 512GB | HP Spectre x360 14t-ea000 Samsung SSD PM981a MZVLB512HBJQ | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i 14ITL5 WDC PC SN730 SDBPNTY-512G | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AS SSD | -57% | -34% | -31% | -37% | |
| Seq Read | 5533 | 2144 -61% | 2681 -52% | 2188 -60% | 2068 -63% |
| Seq Write | 3289 | 1389 -58% | 1430 -57% | 1320 -60% | 1414 -57% |
| 4K Read | 72.5 | 49.77 -31% | 49.22 -32% | 53.5 -26% | 46.99 -35% |
| 4K Write | 213.7 | 105 -51% | 118 -45% | 123.7 -42% | 211.9 -1% |
| 4K-64 Read | 2128 | 855 -60% | 1139 -46% | 1010 -53% | 1027 -52% |
| 4K-64 Write | 2032 | 1660 -18% | 1488 -27% | 1808 -11% | 978 -52% |
| Access Time Read * | 0.039 | 0.058 -49% | 0.057 -46% | 0.055 -41% | 0.057 -46% |
| Access Time Write * | 0.06 | 0.272 -353% | 0.031 48% | 0.076 -27% | 0.066 -10% |
| Score Read | 2754 | 1119 -59% | 1456 -47% | 1282 -53% | 1281 -53% |
| Score Write | 2574 | 1904 -26% | 1749 -32% | 2063 -20% | 1331 -48% |
| Score Total | 6629 | 3570 -46% | 3895 -41% | 3970 -40% | 3243 -51% |
| Copy ISO MB/s | 2235 | 1929 -14% | 1644 -26% | 1891 -15% | |
| Copy Program MB/s | 796 | 1012 27% | 920 16% | 604 -24% | |
| Copy Game MB/s | 1652 | 1737 5% | 1725 4% | 1422 -14% | |
| CrystalDiskMark 5.2 / 6 | -50% | -46% | -45% | -44% | |
| Write 4K | 236.7 | 86 -64% | 125.9 -47% | 82.2 -65% | 131.5 -44% |
| Read 4K | 78.6 | 40.11 -49% | 42.45 -46% | 45.7 -42% | 36.83 -53% |
| Write Seq | 3689 | 1738 -53% | 2064 -44% | 2000 -46% | 1614 -56% |
| Read Seq | 4340 | 1553 -64% | 1627 -63% | 2206 -49% | 2030 -53% |
| Write 4K Q32T1 | 646 | 454.9 -30% | 419.8 -35% | 451.2 -30% | 516 -20% |
| Read 4K Q32T1 | 717 | 385.4 -46% | 382.1 -47% | 351 -51% | 419.7 -41% |
| Write Seq Q32T1 | 4396 | 2784 -37% | 2729 -38% | 2982 -32% | 2705 -38% |
| Read Seq Q32T1 | 6804 | 3217 -53% | 3441 -49% | 3529 -48% | 3390 -50% |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -54% /
-54% | -40% /
-39% | -38% /
-36% | -41% /
-40% |
* ... smaller is better
Disk Throttling: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
GPU Performance
Graphics performance is excellent with 3DMark scores that are 11 to 16 percent higher than the average laptop equipped with the same integrated Iris Xe G7 GPU.
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 7606 points | |
| 3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 20177 points | |
| 3DMark Fire Strike Score | 5111 points | |
| 3DMark Time Spy Score | 1852 points | |
Help | ||
| low | med. | high | ultra | QHD | 4K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GTA V (2015) | 103 | 84.8 | 29.8 | 12.5 | 8.55 | 8.45 |
| The Witcher 3 (2015) | 97.8 | 63.5 | 45.9 | 15.7 | 11.7 | |
| Dota 2 Reborn (2015) | 85.3 | 87.4 | 58.4 | 54.6 | 26 | |
| Final Fantasy XV Benchmark (2018) | 47.3 | 26.2 | 18.7 | 14.1 | 8.01 | |
| X-Plane 11.11 (2018) | 32.1 | 31 | 28.5 | 17.6 | ||
| Strange Brigade (2018) | 95.9 | 42.1 | 33.5 | 27.2 | 19.5 | 11.3 |
Emissions
System Noise
Fan noise is always present at 29.9 dB(A) if set to the Performance power profile. Owners will have to set the system to Silent mode for a truly noiseless web browsing and video streaming experience.
In general, the Vaio is louder than most other Core U-series Ultrabooks when running higher loads like games as shown by our table below. This is perhaps the price to pay for having a 35 W Core H-series CPU in such a thin-and-light form factor.
| VAIO Z VJZ141C11L Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-11375H, Samsung PM9A1 MZVL2512HCJQ | Dell XPS 13 9310 Core i7 4K Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-1185G7, Micron 2300 512GB MTFDHBA512TDV | HP Spectre x360 14t-ea000 Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-1165G7, Samsung SSD PM981a MZVLB512HBJQ | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i 14ITL5 Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-1165G7, WDC PC SN730 SDBPNTY-512G | Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA Iris Xe G7 96EUs, i7-1165G7, Intel SSD 660p 1TB SSDPEKNW010T8 | Huawei MateBook 14 2020 Intel GeForce MX350, i7-10510U, Lite-On CA5-8D512 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noise | 10% | 12% | 5% | -1% | 2% | |
| off / environment * | 26.1 | 27.7 -6% | 25.8 1% | 26.7 -2% | 29.8 -14% | 29.3 -12% |
| Idle Minimum * | 26.1 | 27.8 -7% | 25.9 1% | 26.7 -2% | 29.9 -15% | 29.3 -12% |
| Idle Average * | 26.1 | 27.8 -7% | 25.9 1% | 26.7 -2% | 31 -19% | 29.3 -12% |
| Idle Maximum * | 29.9 | 27.8 7% | 25.9 13% | 26.7 11% | 31 -4% | 30.8 -3% |
| Load Average * | 36.3 | 27.9 23% | 26.4 27% | 34 6% | 35.6 2% | 35.7 2% |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 43.7 | 32.8 25% | 36.9 16% | 43.5 -0% | 37.4 14% | 35.7 18% |
| Load Maximum * | 55.4 | 37 33% | 41.5 25% | 43.5 21% | 40.8 26% | 37.9 32% |
* ... smaller is better
Noise Level
| Idle |
| 26.1 / 26.1 / 29.9 dB(A) |
| Load |
| 36.3 / 55.4 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Earthworks M23R, Arta (15 cm distance) environment noise: 26.1 dB(A) | ||
Temperature
Surface temperatures can be as warm as 39 C and 45 C on the top and bottom surfaces of the chassis, respectively, which is not unlike what we recorded on the Lenovo Yoga 9i. These hot spots are thankfully towards the rear of the laptop away from palms and fingers.
(±) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 40 °C / 104 F, compared to the average of 34.3 °C / 94 F, ranging from 21.2 to 62.5 °C for the class Office.
(±) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 45 °C / 113 F, compared to the average of 36.8 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 28.2 °C / 83 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 26.4 °C / 79.5 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(±) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 27.6 °C / 81.7 F (+1.2 °C / 2.2 F).
Stress Test
When running Prime95, the CPU would boost to 4.1 GHz for just the first couple of seconds before steadily dropping to 3.3 GHz over the next couple of minutes. Core temperature would also slowly fall from 95 C to a more stable 81 C as a consequence of the falling clock rates.
Running on battery power will not significantly impact performance. A Fire Strike run on batteries would return Physics and Graphics scores of 14582 and 5447 points, respectively, compared to 14491 and 5554 points when on mains.
| CPU Clock (GHz) | GPU Clock (MHz) | Average CPU Temperature (°C) | |
| System Idle | -- | -- | 31 |
| Prime95 Stress | 3.4 | -- | 81 |
| Prime95 + FurMark Stress | 2.3 | 950 | 66 |
| Witcher 3 Stress | 3.3 | 1350 | 62 |
Speakers
VAIO Z VJZ141C11L audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (88.4 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 25.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (10.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 4.2% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (6.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 3.3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (5.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (19.6% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 37% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 55% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 21%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 46% of all tested devices were better, 7% similar, 47% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Apple MacBook 12 (Early 2016) 1.1 GHz audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (83.6 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(±) | reduced bass - on average 11.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (14.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.4% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (5.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (4.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (10.2% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 6% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 92% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 19%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 4% of all tested devices were better, 1% similar, 95% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 24%, worst was 134%
Energy Management
Power Consumption
Power consumption is generally higher than Ultrabooks with the Core i7-1165G7 likely due to the more demanding 35 W TDP CPU in the Vaio.
Strangely, the Vaio will continue to consume between 8 W and 10 W from the outlet even when the system is shut off and the battery is fully charged. Most other laptops would draw just 1 W to 2 W at most when under the same testing conditions.
Running Prime95 consumes a constant 65 W from the small (7.8 x 4.5 x 2.8 cm) 65 W AC adapter meaning that the battery recharge rate will slow significantly if running very high processing loads.
| Off / Standby | 8.3 / 10.1 Watt |
| Idle | 9.5 / 13.7 / 14.4 Watt |
| Load |
54.3 / 65.5 Watt |
   
| |
Key:
min: ,
med: ,
max: Metrahit Energy | |
| VAIO Z VJZ141C11L i7-11375H, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, Samsung PM9A1 MZVL2512HCJQ, IPS, 3840x2160, 14" | Dell XPS 13 9310 Core i7 4K i7-1185G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, Micron 2300 512GB MTFDHBA512TDV, IPS, 3840x2400, 13.4" | Dell Latitude 14 5411-WJ40N i7-10850H, GeForce MX250, SK Hynix PC611 512GB, IPS, 1920x1080, 14" | HP Spectre x360 14t-ea000 i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, Samsung SSD PM981a MZVLB512HBJQ, IPS, 1920x1280, 13.5" | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i 14ITL5 i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, WDC PC SN730 SDBPNTY-512G, IPS, 3840x2160, 14" | Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, Intel SSD 660p 1TB SSDPEKNW010T8, IPS, 1920x1080, 14" | Huawei MateBook 14 2020 Intel i7-10510U, GeForce MX350, Lite-On CA5-8D512, IPS LED, 2160x1440, 14" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Consumption | 31% | 2% | 40% | 21% | 41% | 16% | |
| Idle Minimum * | 9.5 | 4.3 55% | 3.1 67% | 3 68% | 4.5 53% | 4.8 49% | 3 68% |
| Idle Average * | 13.7 | 8.3 39% | 5.4 61% | 5.1 63% | 10.5 23% | 6.5 53% | 9 34% |
| Idle Maximum * | 14.4 | 8.8 39% | 9 37% | 6.4 56% | 10.6 26% | 7.7 47% | 11 24% |
| Load Average * | 54.3 | 46.2 15% | 84 -55% | 39.6 27% | 44.2 19% | 29.6 45% | 60.8 -12% |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 46.1 | 42.2 8% | 39.6 14% | 45.8 1% | 28.6 38% | 56 -21% | |
| Load Maximum * | 65.5 | 47.3 28% | 131 -100% | 56.2 14% | 61.9 5% | 57.8 12% | 65.6 -0% |
* ... smaller is better
Battery Life
Both battery capacity and runtimes are nearly the same as on the latest Dell XPS 13 9310. Users can expect just over 7 hours of real-world WLAN use when on the Balanced power profile.
For whatever reason, the recharge rate from empty to full capacity with the included AC adapter is very slow at 3.5 hours even when idling on desktop. Most other Ultrabooks take just 1.5 to 2 hours to fully recharge.
| VAIO Z VJZ141C11L i7-11375H, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 53 Wh | Dell XPS 13 9310 Core i7 4K i7-1185G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 52 Wh | Dell Latitude 14 5411-WJ40N i7-10850H, GeForce MX250, 68 Wh | HP Spectre x360 14t-ea000 i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 66 Wh | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 9i 14ITL5 i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 63.5 Wh | Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA i7-1165G7, Iris Xe G7 96EUs, 67 Wh | Huawei MateBook 14 2020 Intel i7-10510U, GeForce MX350, 56 Wh | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery Runtime | 1% | 20% | 67% | 55% | 85% | 81% | |
| WiFi v1.3 | 424 | 430 1% | 510 20% | 707 67% | 658 55% | 786 85% | 768 81% |
| Reader / Idle | 2185 | 2407 | 1554 | ||||
| Load | 145 | 118 | 194 | 117 |
Pros
Cons
Verdict
We're not going to complain about the price. If you think $3800 USD is too much for an Ultrabook, then this laptop wasn't made for you. The Vaio Z targets a specific kind of audience or business user who doesn't mind paying the premium for a luxury product.
The ultralight Vaio Z has the looks of a luxury laptop. However, users will sacrifice a lot in almost every other aspect just for the low weight and intricate design.
What we can complain about, however, is the laptop itself when compared to less expensive alternatives from Dell, HP, Lenovo, or even Apple. The system is average at best in many aspects. The hinges, for example, are weak and they teeter frequently while the entire chassis creaks significantly more than on most other flagship aluminum alloy laptops. This may have been by design as a consequence of the all carbon fiber skeleton, but the very presence of audible creaking screams low-budget instead of luxury.
The display is not nearly as bright as the Dell XPS, MacBook, or certain HP EliteBook models and the battery recharge rate is also two times slower. If you intend to use this laptop outdoors frequently, then the aforementioned alternatives might be the better bet.
Lastly, end-user servicing is not easy. Accessing the SSD or battery is a bigger headache on the Vaio in contrast to most prosumer laptops from competing OEMs.
The two distinguishing features of the Vaio Z are its high performance and low weight. There's nothing stopping other OEMs from using the same Core i7-11375H CPU, however, and so the strong system performance is not special to the model. The low weight is therefore the most impressive characteristic of the Vaio Z; it's just unfortunate that almost everything else isn't on par with competing laptops that are less than half the price.
Price and availability
The Vaio Z is now available for pre-order through the official Vaio online store.
VAIO Z VJZ141C11L
- 02/26/2021 v7 (old)
Allen Ngo
Price comparison
