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"Best Ultraportable for a Road Warrior" on by manishkhara
Pros: Size, Lightweight, Inbuilt Optical Drive, Stunning Battery Life, Very Bright and Crisp Display
Cons: None (Of course there are trade offs, but they are worth it for mobile professionals)
Summary: I had the option between a Dell D420, XPS M1210 and the Sony TX. In built Optical Drive was a must have for me so out went the D420 (anyways, with it's non glossy screen, it wasn't my choice). I actually went ahead and bought the XPS M1210 because of the great performance it offer with its top of the line components. I was also sceptical of the performance of the Sony TX due to it's Core Solo Processor and slower 4200 rpm hard disk.
After using the Dell XPS M1210 for two weeks, i chanced to have a hands on experience with the Vaio TX. Here are my reflections:
1. Screen: The TX Screen is one of the best out there. It is so bright and so crisp. In spite of it being only 11.1" in size, the text was outstandingly crisp. The Dell XPS on the other hand had a lousy screen in comparision. Trying to use the XPS in daylight was difficult even with the brightness set to maximum. In contrast, the VAIO TX Screen is very readable at around of 75% of the brightness.
2. Size: The XPS M1210 looks too huge when placed against a TX. It is also much heavier. The Vaio TX is a pleasure to work on your lap. Vaio is also much smaller in dimensions. It looks very good too. The Dell 1210 looks cheap compared to the TX.
3. Performance: I use the machine for regular office work, net surfing and the occassional movies while travelling. I did not find any substantial difference in these tasks between the two machines.
4. Battery Life: While the Dell gives me aroung 5.5 hrs on battery, the TX gives me around 8 hours!!! I can almost use it the entire day without needing a charging point.
5. Price: The Sony TX is definately very high priced. Almost 1.5 times the cost of the Dell 1210.
I have the choice to return either the Dell or the Sony by next week. I am going to keep the TX and return the 1210. Inspite of the slower processor (which makes no difference in the kind of work that i do anyway), the great life, portablity and stunning looks make it a winner for me. I wouldn't mind spending a couple of hundred dollars more on the Sony TX. In the past one week, I have found myself working much more on the TX, carrying it along with me everywhere I go (can't do that with heavier systems). I have also not found any flex problems on the screen and I feel it won't break unless one is really careless with it.
I hope this review helps mobile professionals looking for an ultraportable. For other resources hungry tasks, look at other core 2 duo systems. Sony SZ maybe... -
"While I agree with most of the comments of the other reviewers, I have a few comments I think that a" on by rfh49
Pros: Beautiful design, brilliant screen!
Cons: Slow disk saps energy of processor and memory
Summary:
Updated
I did not know that you could have fractional increments. Therefore I would say the systems deserves something between 7.5 -8.0 based upon all considerations.Updated
I broke the screen. Let me tell you how I was handling the Sony TXN laptop. I was moving it from a coffee table to an end table. I had my left hand under the left bottom of the TXN and my right hand was on the top right hand side of the screen. My right thumb was just inside the screen area. The very thin screen has very narrow borders with little room to handle the computer while open. While setting it down on the table, my thumb inadvertently applied a little extra pressure to the screen and there was a “Click” sound and the screen was gone. This is not covered under warranty and is extremely expensive. Lesson: Close the screen before moving it!Updated
I documented my upgrade “Vista Ready” Sony Viao TXN-15 to Vista this year after the terrible experience I had when I upgraded to XP. It took me 30 hours. I had multiple case numbers with HP, Linksys, Microsoft, Symantec, Sony and Costco Concierge Services. The first 5 hours were exciting and fun, the next 5 not so much fun and the rest a great deal of frustration. One of the main culprits was the 4500-rpm disk on the Viao 2.75 pound travel computer. It is a beautiful machine with a 1.2 GHZ and has 1 GB of memory but everything waits for the disk drive. It took 2 hours to load the Sony drivers from the install disk after Vista was installed. Vista alone took 4 hours from the install disk. Sony recommends you print out a 13-page install document before you start. About 4 pages are for multiple models but still you had to stay in front of the computer to override a number of things that Vista would do automatically. Never try to install with out printing out this 13-page document. Vista and the other programs took up 80% of the disk drive too.
I would wait four to six more months before upgrading to Vista. The support staffs are just getting a grip on Vista and the others are still reading out of manuals because they have no comprehension of the problem.Updated
I documented my upgrade “Vista Ready” Sony Viao TXN-15 to Vista this year after the terrible experience I had when I upgraded to XP. It took me 30 hours. I had multiple case numbers with HP, Linksys, Microsoft, Symantec, Sony and Costco Concierge Services. The first 5 hours were exciting and fun, the next 5 not so much fun and the rest a great deal of frustration. One of the main culprits was the 4500-rpm disk on the Viao 2.75 pound travel computer. It is a beautiful machine with a 1.2 GHZ and has 1 GB of memory but everything waits for the disk drive. It took 2 hours to load the Sony drivers from the install disk after Vista was installed. Vista alone took 4 hours from the install disk. Sony recommends you print out a 13-page install document before you start. About 4 pages are for multiple models but still you had to stay in front of the computer to override a number of things that Vista would do automatically. Never try to install with out printing out this 13-page document. Vista and the other programs took up 80% of the disk drive too.
I would wait four to six more months before upgrading to Vista. The support staffs are just getting a grip on Vista and the others are still reading out of manuals because they have no comprehension of the problem. -
"brilliant machine, BUT screen suffers from keyboard" on by UPae
Pros: weight, battery life, screen picture, full equipment
Cons: keyboard scratches the screen
Summary: Such a marvellous traveller's PC. It is a real pleasure to use it, screen, keyboard, DVD-player, everything.
But actually carrying it together with your files or books will unavoidably push the flexible cover to the keyboard, despite the Sony semi-rigid protection case, so that the screen is scratched. So, put a thin cloth between the screen and the keyboard (peanuts, compared to the price) or hope that Sony develops a solid enough case.
By the way, Sony after sales service could not care less. -
"This review is for Sony's repair service" on by comicus
Pros: Fairly fast turn-around time
Cons: Only one repair center in the entire USA
Summary: I have the predecessor to this model (TX350P) and I’ve had it for one year. It’s been a fine ultra-portable pc, but I did have a couple of issues.
After about six or seven months, I noticed that if I picked up the pc by the left edge using only one hand while it was on and the screen was up, the pc would suddenly turn off, as if a short circuit would occur. I would then turn the unit back on and it would function fine afterward but this was a serious issue. Then I noticed that the speakers would make a horrible ‘screeching’ type sound if I rested my left hand on the hand rest. So after ignoring these issues for several more months and the warranty was expiring in one week, I called the Sony Customer Care line.
First and foremost, if you want any type of warranty service done with Sony you MUST have been the original purchaser of the product and have your original receipt and fax a copy of it to them or they will not honor the product warranty. Having said that, once you’ve established to Sony that your product was purchased by you and that the purchase date is still within the warranty period (in my case 1 year) Sony bends over backwards for you.
Sony sent out a special box via overnight shipping to me to place my pc in and instructions on returning the box and pc to them. All shipping is paid by Sony and they even pay to have the box picked up by FedEx from your home.
The turn-around time was about 6 business days. It turned out that the motherboard was bad, Sony replaced it and updated the bios as well.
My overall experience was very positive with Sony’s repair service so if your considering purchasing this new version, I can highly recommend it due to my usage of the Sony pc I own (TX350P) and due to my experience dealing with Sony’s repair service. -
"Traveler's Dream" on by erik624
Pros: battery life, screen, good wireless broadband
Cons: bloatware, not a tablet :)
Summary: AAAAA I wish so badly that this was also a tablet. But I can't knock off any points for that. This is surprisingly comfortable, surprisingly sturdy, surpisingly light, truly unbelievable battery life (I still can't believe it), all the features and specs of a big brother notebook except it's small, not to mention BEAUTIFUL. I don't know where CNET gets it's amazing prices from but starting at $2199?! Try $1749 http://www.clearanceclub.com/depot/quelle_showroom.cgi?sku=6496
Got mine in 2 days. I really couldn't be happier with this unless its screen swiveled around and I could write on it and talk to it for those long, long days in the van...
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