Sony VAIO P Refresh - This Summer?
March 26, 2009
Sony Insider is reporting that the 8″ Intel Atom-based Sony VAIO P series could be undergoing a refresh in coming months.
Keep in mind that not all models currently available elsewhere, are available in the US - US VAIO P models are currently limited to 1.33GHz Atoms. While the built-in GPS, high resolution display (1600×768) and other features for the not-quite-a-netbook have impressed some, others in the US have wondered about the CPU speeds.
SonyInsider dug up some potential new model numbers - currently in the US, all of the models start with 5, aka as part of a 500 series ( VGN-P598E/Q, etc.), but they’ve produced model numbers that look to be part of a 700 series (which as they point out, keeps in line with Sony naming schemes).
Model numbers found:
- VGN-P710T/B
- VGN-P710T/R
- VGN-P710T/G
- VGN-P710T/W
- VGN-P730A/Q
- VGN-P730T/Q
The Q designations are interesting, because of the P730 instead of P710. I agree that they’ll probably be a different CPU, SSD option, or possibly Windows 7 variants, since companies are starting to make plans for Windows 7. Windows 7 is a natural fit, and it’s already been demonstrated on the VAIO P (albeit unofficially).
Read:
- SonyInsider
via SlashGear
Lenovo Pocket Yoga (Pocket Notebook) Discussed
March 25, 2009
There has been a lot of talk about Lenovo’s “Pocket Yoga”, which closely resembles the form factor of the Sony VAIO P series (or rather, the VAIO P resembles it). In the words of Lenovo, it’s the smallest pocket notebook. The photo(s) were from two years ago.
Over at Design Matters, one of Lenovo’s official blogs, Johnson Li, who is the Director of Lenovo’s Beijing Inovation Center, has spoken about the concept product from Lenovo that was leaked out.
Note: If you are curious to see several images from the Pocket Yoga concept design, Lenovo has posted photos on the Lenovo Photo Library at flickr. Yes, there is a photo of it in somebody’s back pocket.
Li mentions what created the hoopla:
Last week some buzz was created by a photograph that someone snuck out of our Beijing design studio. The picture was of a pocket-sized PC we developed about two years ago, well before the current netbook craze and the introduction of a similar form factor by one of our competitors. Since the design has been shown in public in the past and received some attention, I thought it might be of some interest to discuss the design inspiration and share some photos and drawings of the device.
We in Lenovo’s Beijing design center refer to this concept as the “Pocket Yoga,” an extension of an award winning design we’ve shown in public based on a folding concept inspired by the practice of yoga by one of our New Zealand-based designers. The full Yoga concept was a folding notebook with a detachable keyboard. The system unit was covered in leather.
The use of leather is interesting - Li says that it can “transform a cold, plastic or metal machine into something warm and considerate, transforming it into something friendlier and more like a trusted and valued possession. Always there, always waiting.”
He also considered the “soft hinge” design that has three different modes, to be one of the major innovations. It allows the touchscreen display to rotate all the way over to lay flat, and turns the device into a Tablet PC.
Read: Design Matters (LenovoBlogs.com)
All Sony VAIO P Models/Options Benchmarked (Pocketables)
March 9, 2009
Jenn Lee over at Pocketables has assembled a comprehensive look at the 8-inch high-resolution (1600×768) Sony VAIO P Series, including faster models not yet available in the US.
The models available in the US are all powered by Intel’s 1.33GHz Z520 Atom CPU (the 1.6GHz Z530 and 1.86Ghz Z540 are not available as options yet), however the Pocketables article has information from the various options and models available worldwide.
Hard drive options are either 1.8″ 60GB conventional HDD, or 64GB or 128GB Solid State Drives (SSD).
The most surprising thing is that the faster Atoms, even though they maybe up to 0.53GHz faster (around 40%), the hard drive/SSDs were the biggest factor as far as boosting overall performance. There was a boost from the faster 1.6GHz or 1.86GHz CPUs, and it would be noticeable in some applications, however the 60GB HDD appears to have slowed down those VAIO Ps more than the CPUs. These HDDs are similar to ones available in the HDD-based iPods (not the iPod Touchs/Nanos or other flash-based iPods), and they are around 4200rpm (I believe).
Given the specifications of this ultraportable (Sony doesn’t prefer it to be called a “netbook” or lump it in with that category), it’s obvious that storage read/write access would play a major factor, but I was surprised it was this much of a factor.
Read: Pocketables
Sony VAIO P - Typing, Size, Performance (Pocketables)
February 3, 2009
Jenn K. Lee over at Pocketables has put together an extensive collection of articles on the new 8″ high-resolution Sony VAIO P series.
The model reviewed comes with Microsoft Windows Vista, and surprisingly, the amount of software that Sony included on the desktop with the VAIO P is very minimal, compared to past ultraportables that were loaded down with third party software. However, there was still quite a bit of 3rd-party and Sony-specific software installed - Microsoft Streets and Trips 2009, Microsoft Works, etc.. From boot-up to a desktop was around 6 minutes, and it took less than an hour to create the restore DVDs.
Jenn has included a series of photos comparing the VAIO P to other Sony ultraportables (such as the TZ), along with other netbooks including an HP 2133 and Samsung NC10, as well as benchmarks and typing tests.
Read:
- Setting up the Sony Vaio P
- Sony Vaio P size comparisons
- About the Sony Vaio P’s 3G SIM card slot
- Sony Vaio P (VGN-P588E) performance and benchmarks
- Video: Sony Vaio P typing test
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Sony VGN VAIO P Unboxed (Pocketables)
January 30, 2009
Jenn K. Lee over at Pocketables has put together an in-depth look at an unboxing of the 8″ Sony VAIO P, along with several good photos of the VAIO P itself.
In this instance, Lee had a VGN-P588E to work with.
Specifications:
- 1.33GHz Intel Atom
- 64GB SSD
- Onyx Black
- Vista Home Premium
With that 64GB Solid State Drive (SSD), this makes it the mid-rang VAIO P - around $1,199.99 (USD). There is a cheaper 60GB HDD version, along with a more expensive 128GB SSD version. The 128GB SSD version has noise-canceling headphones, in addition to everything else.
From the photos, you can see the The VGA/LAN adapter and how it attaches to the AC adapter. Being that it’s Sony, there is a proprietary connector for the VGA/LAN (although you could argue that it’s necessary, given the size constraints). The actual connector tucks away into the adapter itself, when not in use.
It’s definitely an elegant looking ultraportable (which really doesn’t fit the netbook-mold), and interest in the VAIO P is high, given it’s 1600×768 display - the highest in any devices under 10″ (and possibly under 12″).
Read: Pocketables
Sony VAIO P Series Shipping in the US
January 27, 2009
It looks like Sony has bumped up their shipping time for some US customers for the new 8″ Sony VAIO P, at least unofficially.
Originally, the VAIO P series was showing a shipping date of February 3, 2009. Engagdet has an article up showing that some customers have began receiving shipping notices - one Engadget reader has gotten a notice that their VGNP530H/Q shipped yesterday. The VGN-P530H/Q is Onyx Black, and comes with 60GB HDD, 1.33GHz, Vista Home Basic, for $899.99.
A quick check of the Sony Style Store shows that they are still listing February 3, 2009 as the shipping date.
Netbooks and Screen Resolutions
January 26, 2009
Doug over at CrunchGear has written a commentary about the state of netbooks and display resolutions. It’s more of a plea to netbook makers, and I agree completely. We’ve reached a point where outside of a new platform (NVIDIA Ion) or new CPUs (dual-cores), there’s nothing else that’s really going to shake up the netbook market. You can only change the style or the placement of the buttons so many times.
Right now, the state of any resolution higher than 1024×600, but with a display smaller than 12″ is this:
- Dell Inspiron Mini 10: 10″ Not available yet, will do 1280×720p at some point.
- Gigabyte M912/912v: 8.9″, 1280×768, not available in the US.
- HP Mini 2133: Some of the earlier models had 1280×768 displays, but this line is being discontinued at some point in the near future (and some later models had the lower resolutions).
- HP Mini 2140: Either in March or April of 2009, there should be a jump up to 1366×766.
- Sony VAIOP P - 1600×768, not available yet, and priced out of the range of many buyers.
We do have these 12″ and 13″ netbook-like devices:
- Asus S121: 12.1″ 1280×800
- Dell Inspiron Mini 12: 12.1″ 1280×800,
- MSI X-Slim X320 - 13.4″ 1366×768 display. Not available yet.
- Samsung NC20 - 12.1″, 1280×800, not available yet.
This last group of 12″ and 13″ devices - they start to fall well out of the netbook category either because of size or price (or both).
For those of us who would be using a netbook for word processing or other such text-related pursuits, Doug makes a very good case for a higher resolution display:
“Why don’t I buy a regular notebook, you ask? I arrange letters into words for a living. I could do this with a DX2/66. All I need is a cheap, light, portable computer for word processing that lets me see most or all of the three or four paragraphs I’m cobbling together. My life is almost entirely “in the cloud” so don’t need a big hard drive, a fancy OS, or lots of RAM — just a decent screen. Watching me type up a post on a netbook is like having front row seats at Scroll-Down-a-Palooza or Scroll-a-Thon-2009 or Scrollerblade Camp.”
I’ve been thinking about this myself - out of that group of devices listed above, the HP Mini 2140 looks like it will probably be the best choice if you want 10″ or less. I really want an Asus Eee PC T91 tablet/convertible (or something similar), but I could probably get a lot more use out of a 2140.
My perfect netbook at this point, putting aside the T91, would be an HP Mini 2140 with a dual-core Atom and the 1366×766. Those two things would sell me instantly on such a device. Should the 2140 be under $600 with that display, even with the current single-core Atoms, I think HP will find a winner on its hands among those of us who need a higher resolution and a good keyboard.
Read: CrunchGear
Sony VAIO GS at the FCC
January 18, 2009
This came out of nowhere - a new ultraportable laptop from Sony has shown up at the FCC to undergo various tests before it’s allowed to be sold in the US (most having to do with wireless networking).
The reason why I said it came out of nowhere - it appears, as several have pointed out, that this matches the Sony VAIO Type G that came out in the second quarter of 2007 in Japan. The model numbers typically started with “VGN-G1″.
One of the biggest indicators - it has a 12.1″ non-widescreen display, just like the original 2007 G did (with a 1024×768 resolution). The original G was based on Intel’s 945GMS Express chip set (GMA 950 graphics) and features Ultra Low Voltage (ULV) CPUs, both Core Solo and Core Duo.
The G-series was one of the first to ship with the option of a Solid State Drive (SSD) - originally a 32GB, which bumped the price way up.
The one at the FCC has an optical drive (maybe optional), what looks like a PC Card slot, and typical other options.
As the comments at Engadget point out, it doesn’t make a lot of sense unless the price is radically lower than the original asking price (which was in the $1800+ range). Why Sony waited so long to introduce this is a mystery.
