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SINGAPORE: The latest Vaio Z line from Sony (picture) doesn't exhibit the extreme dimensions of some of the modern ultra-portables but it offers road warriors yet another computing alternative.
The Vaio Z does have a reasonably trim form factor, measuring 24.5mm at its thinnest point and weighing 1.48kg. Its outer finish is matte black, with the lid displaying the shiny Vaio logo.
The glossy 13.1-inch screen and the clean and a well-spaced layout of the keyboard are the other design highlights of this made-in-Japan machine. The fingerprint reader, usually tucked away in one corner of the laptop, is neatly placed between the trackpad buttons. One thing's for sure - it's all sleek and classy in Vaio land.
Our only gripe with the design is that the thin screen lid seems to flex whenever we use it. Perhaps adding slight reinforcements might help it withstand everyday wear and tear.
The Vaio Z has an ample array of ports for a laptop its size. On top of USB 2.0, there's a FireWire port, readers for SD cards and Memory Sticks, and an ExpressCard 34 slot.
Connectivity options are well-featured. There's Gigabit Ethernet, a built-in modem, Bluetooth 2.0 and WiFi (802.11a/b/g/n). If Sony were to add an option for 3.5G connectivity, it would sweeten the deal for those who need to work remotely. Of worthy mention is the Vaio Smart Network application, which lists all your connectivity features and allows you to configure them in a user-friendly window.
We're also quite pleased with the HDMI and VGA outputs on the laptop, which make it easy for us to hook up the notebook to a projector or a high-definition display.
The Vaio we reviewed (VGN-Z17GN/B) was preloaded with Windows Vista Business and has an Intel Core 2 Duo processor running at 2.53GHz, 320GB of storage and 4GB of memory. Interestingly, the laptop relies on two graphics processors. It uses the Intel GMA 4500MHD when it wants to conserve battery power and the Nvidia GeForce 9300M GS when it needs visual horsepower. You can switch between Stamina and Speed modes using a switch above the keyboard. You won't need to restart Windows, but you'll need to close your applications before you do the switch. Note that some applications will not render properly if they are left running.
Sony has included a suite of its own software, including Vaio Media Plus - which replicates the familiar XrossMediaBar seen on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable consoles - and Vaio Movie Story, a movie-making application.
As a show of how much this machine can take without losing a beat, we ran a high-definition movie trailer, played a song via iTunes (with a spiffy 3D visualiser displaying eye candy in-sync with the music) and ran Vaio Movie Story. It was snappy enough. If you turn down the details a notch on your high-end games, this laptop can handle them, too.
The absence of a Blu-ray drive is notable. The Sony-led format beat the competing Toshiba-led HD DVD format this year and one would think the technology would start making appearances in Sony's products.
The Vaio averaged four hours in Stamina mode and 2.75 hours in Speed mode.
As with most computers from Sony, expect to pay a premium for that added touch in design and branding. At S$4,299 for the VGN-Z17GN/B model, it's worth as much as a high-end laptop that can be used for video-editing. - TODAY/fa
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