Sony Vaio S series
MSRP $899.99
“Vaio S series is classic Sony. It’s not the best value, but it makes up for its higher price with a premium design, some valuable options and a top-of-the-line model with a high-resolution display.”
Avg
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Attractive
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Excellent keyboard and touchpad
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Metal linings in the interior look luxurious
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The premium model provides class-leading screen resolution
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The plate battery offers outstanding durability
Against
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Lightweight screen cover
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Loud system fan while under load
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Unimpressive bang-for-the-buck
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Bulky with a plate battery installed
While much of Sony was reeling from the woes of its hacking crisis, unrelated divisions of the company were operating with the scars of that PR disaster. Given recent events, it’s easy to forget that the company was and remains focused on engineering great products. From its HDTVs to computers to phones, its products seem designed with enthusiasm, even when that enthusiasm doesn’t result in a superior product.
If there’s any laptop that gives Sony’s engineers a chance to flex their engineering muscles, both in aesthetics and functionality, it’s the Sony Vaio S Series. This machine boasts a 13.3-inch screen, making it part of the slim and sexy ultraportable category. While the extravagant Sony Vaio Z series may be the company’s flagship product, this more modest laptop really puts the design to the test, as it has to be attractive and fast, while also being affordable and portable.
To shape
Sony’s S series makes a solid first impression thanks to its subdued, elegant presentation. While the company’s laptops often look nice, some past models have used shiny plastics that betray their luxury aspirations.
Our review unit presented no such nonsense. Much of the laptop is made of plastic, but it’s a hard matte material, not a slippery sheen. In a brilliant move, Sony has made the entire interior of the laptop out of metal rather than plastic. This is the surface you’ll be touching the most while using the device, and it allows Sony to deliver a luxurious feel while keeping the price reasonable.
Unlike the metal interior, the laptop cover is thin and flimsy. A slight rotation of the screen created an audible screeching sound that seemed to be concentrated in the upper right corner of the screen. This could be a matter of durability, and the lid’s light weight allowed it to wobble while typing, an annoying feature when the laptop is used for word processing.
Hardware specifications
Our Vaio S series is equipped with an Intel Core i5-2410M processor, Radeon HD 6470M GPU and 4 GB of RAM. Unlike many laptops in this size class, the Vaio S also includes a built-in optical drive. All of this is packed into a chassis that weighs 3.8 pounds and is less than an inch thick.
Keyboard and touchpad
Keyboards have long been Sony’s strength, and the S series is no exception. The island-style interface doesn’t take advantage of every inch of available space, but it remains comfortable while also providing significant spacing between each key. The shift, enter and backspace keys are large and easy to find while typing by touch. Each individual key offers a crisp, solid feel.
Although there is some visible flex, it is only revealed when the key is pressed extremely hard. The keyboard surface is firm during normal use. Even better, the backlight makes the keys visible in dark situations. This is a feature that helps the laptop stand out from the crowd, as there are few laptops with a similar starting price that offer backlit keys.
Image used with permission of the copyright holder
The touchpad does not let the outstanding keyboard down. It is large, wide and has two individual buttons that are flush with the front edge of the case. Ergonomically, this is an excellent setup, making the touchpad comfortable to use for hours. The only problem – and a small one at that – is multitouch support, which doesn’t allow for two-finger scrolling, instead relying on the indicated (but physically unmarked) vertical bar along the right side of the touchpad. Scrolling is smooth but feels old-fashioned.
Display and sound quality
Gloss is a typical thing for consumer laptops, but the Sony Vaio S series surprises with a beautiful semi-gloss display. It’s not quite the matte you’d find on a business laptop, but it cancels out most of the glare issues.
Our base review unit comes with a screen resolution of 1366 x 768, which is about average for a laptop of this size. Prospective buyers should note that the Premium model comes standard with a screen resolution of 1600 x 900. As far as we know, that’s the highest resolution offered on any 13.3-inch laptop currently available, and only the 13.1- inch Sony Vaio Z with its 1600 × 900 screen is comparable. Those who crave extra pixels in their ultraportable can buy this laptop for the screen alone.
Image used with permission of the copyright holder
The image quality is average. Black levels are no better or worse than similarly priced laptops, and contrast is also on par with the competition. It’s a competent board that’s more than enough for most users, especially if gaming and video playback aren’t high priorities.
Audiophiles will be dissatisfied with the stereo speakers, which have little bass. Podcasts and most movies are enjoyable, but multimedia users who care about sound quality should plan to buy a pair of external speakers.
Portability
By the way, this Sony weighs 3.8 pounds. However, our review unit came equipped with Sony’s plate battery, a large flat extended battery that attaches to the bottom of the laptop. It increases the thickness by about half an inch and adds a little more than half a pound to the laptop’s weight. With the sheet in place, this is a chunky ultraportable.
Image used with permission of the copyright holder
In store, users get incredible battery life. Using Battery Eater, we found that the paper offered nearly thirteen hours of life in the Reader’s Test, which simulates using a laptop to view a document. Real-world use consisting of web surfing and document editing reduced the endurance to just over ten hours, which is also remarkable. These numbers are roughly double what a laptop can provide on its own.
Even better, this upgrade sells for just $75 on Sony’s website. That’s a great value, making the battery an easy recommendation for users who travel a lot. Detaching and reattaching the panel is easy, so the laptop can be more portable for shorter trips.
Cooling and connectivity
Despite the laptop’s small size, there are plenty of ports and plugs, all located along the right side of the laptop. A typical arrangement of two USB 2.0 ports and one USB 3.0 port is between HDMI and Gigabit Ethernet. Further forward, you’ll find an SD card slot and a more exotic Memory Stick Duo slot. The only port on the left side is the combo headphone/microphone jack, which is awkwardly placed on the very back of the case.
Physical ports are not the limit of this laptop’s connectivity. It also ships with Intel Wireless Display 2.0, which can be used to stream content from your laptop to supported HDTVs in 1080p resolution via Wi-Fi. Bluetooth 2.1 also comes standard.
Image used with permission of the copyright holder
While the right one is dedicated to the connections, and the left one to the optical drive, the rear one is dedicated to the exhaust of the cooling system. Performing simple tasks, such as browsing the web or editing documents, generates little noticeable heat and keeps the fan at a low, barely audible speed.
During more intense workouts, little Sony turned to the hair dryer, blasting air from the rear exhaust with hurricane force. Anyone who works in a quiet office will be unhappy with the noise this laptop makes when under stress, but at least it stayed cool and the bottom itself became uncomfortably warm.
Software
One immediately noticeable piece of bloatware is the dock that hides at the top of the screen. This bizarre add-on drops down from the top of the screen when the mouse hovers over that area and presents some icons that can be used to launch programs. It is completely redundant and less useful than the standard Windows 7 taskbar.
Antivirus software is also pre-installed and is more than happy to pester users with pop-up notifications asking for subscriptions and warning of dire things that could happen to those who opt out.
Along with the bloatware, there are a few worthwhile apps. Evernote, Adobe Photoshop Elements, and ArcSoft Webcam Companion are examples of software that will be helpful to at least some users. These add-ons are unobtrusive and can be easily removed if unwanted.
Performance
With a Core i5-2410M processor and 4GB of RAM, our review unit is an upgrade over the base model that ships with a Core i3-2310M. The upgrade costs $80 and will be worth it for many users, not only because of the increase in clock speed from 2.1 GHz to 2.3 GHz, but also because the Core i5 offers Turbo Boost, which dynamically increases the processor’s clock speed when appropriate.
Image used with permission of the copyright holder
Intel’s Core i5 did not disappoint. SiSoft Sandra’s Processor Arithmetic benchmark showed an overall score of 38.17 GOPs, while 7-Zip’s benchmark reported a combined score of 7535 MIPs. These results are similar to those offered by Core i5 laptops from other brands.
The processor’s impressive performance is complemented by the Radeon HD 6470M GPU, which is standard on all S Series notebooks. This graphics solution offered a score of 5126 in 3DMark 06 and a performance score of 613 in 3DMark 11. Hardcore gamers won’t find these scores adequate, but casual gamers who want to burn World of Warcraft or Dawn of War 2 they will be satisfied with what is offered here.
Well-rounded is the best way to describe the S-Series’ performance. The combination of the Core i5 and Radeon HD 6470M makes for a balanced system that can handle everyday productivity tasks, processor-intensive software like Photoshop, and low- to medium-detailed 3D games.
Conclusion
The Sony S series has a lot of competition in the ultraportable space. Other brilliant laptops, such as the Asus U line, Acer’s Timeline and Toshiba’s Protege, also provide outstanding portability, but offer Core i5 processors for less than the basic Sony S series with a Core i3 under the hood. When it comes to value for money, this laptop can’t compete.
Still, the starting price of $899.99 is reasonably affordable, and the build quality is better than most of the competition, except for the thin screen cover. Consumers on a tight budget should seriously consider the Premium edition, which offers a 1600 x 900 screen and Blu-ray drive as standard features. The plate battery is also a huge boon and could make this laptop the choice for frequent travelers and other travelers who are often far from an outlet.
This product is classic Sony. It’s not the best value, but it makes up for its higher price with a premium design, some valuable options, and a top-of-the-line model with a high-resolution display. While buyers elsewhere could certainly spend less, those who choose this laptop are unlikely to regret their decision.
The tallest:
- Attractive
- Excellent keyboard and touchpad
- Metal linings in the interior look luxurious
- The premium model provides class-leading screen resolution
- The plate battery offers outstanding durability
Lowest values:
- Lightweight screen cover
- Loud system fan while under load
- Unimpressive bang-for-the-buck
- Bulky with a plate battery installed
Editor’s recommendations
Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn