Sony VAIO GRT series
Pricing not available
CNET Editors' Review
The good: TV-recording capability; awesome gaming performance; bright, 16.1-inch screen; built-in DVD+RW drive; many configuration options when you buy.
The bad: Huge and heavy; big AC adapter; short battery life; weak speakers.
The bottom line: The big Sony VAIO GRT is a perfect laptop for a multimedia buff who doesn't travel much.
Three operating system choices suit both home and work use: Windows XP Home, Windows XP Professional, and Windows 2000. The notebook is short on productivity software, including just the Microsoft Works 7.0 minisuite with Money 2004, but it's miles long on multimedia apps, with highlights that include PictureGear Studio for cropping and organizing photos; the aforementioned Giga Pocket for TV recording; SonicStage for music editing; and DVGate for importing, editing, and recording video to your hard drive or disc.3D graphics performance When running real-time 3D graphics, the Sony VAIO PCG-GRT260G has a major advantage: it packs the most powerful graphics subsystem of this small test group. As a result, the Sony VAIO GRT scored the highest by far of the three systems in our 3D test, outpacing the Fujitsu LifeBook N series and the Toshiba Satellite P25-S607. The Sony scored more than 25 percent higher than both, posting one of the highest laptop scores we've seen on this test. If gaming is your bag, rest assured that the Sony VAIO PCG-GRT260G has the goods to play games at a fast clip. 3D graphics performance (Longer bars indicate better performance)
To measure 3D graphics performance, CNET Labs uses Futuremark's 3DMark 2001 SE. We use 3DMark to measure desktop replacement notebook performance with the DirectX 8.1 interface at the 32-bit color setting at a resolution of 1,024x768. SysMark 2002 performance The Sony VAIO PCG-GRT260G came in last in maximum performance in this small roundup of desktop-replacement laptops. The Sony VAIO PCG-GRT260G had an Internet-content-creation score of 322 and an office-productivity rating of 135. Both of these scores are lower than the scores for the Fujitsu LifeBook N series and the Toshiba Satellite P25-S607. It's difficult to determine why the Sony scored so much lower, but it may have to do with its very large 80GB hard drive. Performance has been known to suffer in SysMark 2002 tests when running on hard drives larger than 60GB. Maximum application performance (Longer bars indicate better performance)
To measure maximum notebook application performance, CNET Labs uses BAPCo's SysMark 2002, an industry-standard benchmark. Using off-the-shelf applications, SysMark measures a desktop's performance using office-productivity applications (such as Microsoft Office and McAfee VirusScan) and Internet-content-creation applications (such as Adobe Photoshop and Macromedia Dreamweaver). Performance analysis written by CNET Labs assistant lab manager Eric Franklin. System configurations: Fujitsu LifeBook N series Windows XP Home; 2.8GHz Intel Pentium 4; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; ATI Mobility Radeon 8500 64MB; Hitachi DK23EA-60 60GB 4,200rpm Sony VAIO PCG-GRT260G Windows XP Home; 2.8GHz Intel Pentium 4; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Nvidia GeForce FX Go 5600 64MB; IBM Travelstar 80GN 80GB 4,200rpm Toshiba Satellite P25-S607 Windows XP Media Center Edition; 2.8GHz Intel Pentium 4; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Nvidia GeForce FX Go 5200 64MB; Toshiba MK6022GAX 60GB 5,400rpmTo complete a full run of MobileMark 2002, an industry-standard benchmark, a laptop's battery must last at least 90 minutes. Unfortunately, the Sony VAIO GRT series did not meet this requirement, but it's important to note that this is not that unusual. Many of the largest desktop-replacement notebooks don't complete this battery test. To measure mobile application performance and battery life, CNET Labs uses BAPCo's MobileMark 2002. MobileMark measures both application performance and battery life concurrently using a number of popular applications (Microsoft Word 2002, Microsoft Excel 2002, Microsoft PowerPoint 2002, Microsoft Outlook 2002, Netscape Communicator 6.0, WinZip Computing WinZip 8.0, McAfee VirusScan 5.13, Adobe Photoshop 6.0.1, and Macromedia Flash 5.0). Battery analysis written by CNET Labs assistant lab manager Eric Franklin. System configurations: Fujitsu LifeBook N series Windows XP Home; 2.8GHz Intel Pentium 4; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; ATI Mobility Radeon 8500 64MB; Hitachi DK23EA-60 60GB 4,200rpm Sony VAIO PCG-GRT260G Windows XP Home; 2.8GHz Intel Pentium 4; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Nvidia GeForce FX Go 5600 64MB; IBM Travelstar 80GN 80GB 4,200rpm Toshiba Satellite P25-S607 Windows XP Media Center Edition; 2.8GHz Intel Pentium 4; 512MB DDR SDRAM 266MHz; Nvidia GeForce FX Go 5200 64MB; Toshiba MK6022GAX 60GB 5,400rpmWhen you pay top dollar for a laptop, you want great service and support to go with it. Unfortunately, the Sony VAIO GRT series ships with a one-year warranty that includes return-to-depot service. To be fair, a one-year warranty is pretty much the industry standard for laptops, but we think you should get more for such an expensive piece of equipment. You can opt to extend the warranty to three years for another $200, a reasonable price. Toll-free, 24/7 telephone support lasts for the length of your warranty. Sony does a better job with the VAIO GRT's manual, which includes an extensive section on the Giga Pocket technology (if your system includes it) and other audio and video features. The searchable knowledge base on Sony's support Web site provides you with a hodgepodge of answers to keyword searches--some useful, some not. We'd rather see user forums and the ability to engage in a real-time chat with a tech-support rep. On the other hand, Sony has an excellent set of online tutorials on a wide range of subjects, including how to set up and use the Giga Pocket software. To find out more about how this product's warranty really stacks up and what you should look for in terms of service and support, take a look at CNET's hardware warranty explainer. Hide Review User ReviewsSee all user reviewsMost Helpful User Reviewstars 10 of 10 users found this review helpful "Powerful, huge, and NOT mobile..." By CKopperPros 16.1" display is awesome, sound is good, very quick and capable for its time. Able to run most games. Cons Too big to carry comfortably, battery life around 45 mins w/ screen dimmed! Also, mine runs very hot, and fan is constantly on! Summary This notebook is a strict multimedia desktop replacement; worthless as a mobile unit. Heat and fan noise are unbearable. However, processing and technical-wise I have had very little problems. Can't say it was worth the price... Most Recent User Reviews (Showing 2 of 19 reviews)Where to BuyPricing not available Compare to Editors' Top sSee All Best sWhere to BuyPricing not available Which laptop is right for me?
While a laptop has become a ubiquitous accessory for modern life, the actual process of choosing the right model can take some serious time and research. In this guide, we'll outline the different categories of laptops and which types are best for different users. We'll also take a look at CPU, hard-drive, and networking options. We've compiled a handful of typical user experiences that should help outline what type of laptop is right for you. Chances are, you'll fall somewhere in between two or more of these archetypes, so carefully consider what you'll be using your new laptop for. |
