A few days ago,I was out on the hunt for a nice powerful laptop that would have an impressive array of features along with a reasonable price tag. Well I got my
notebook,but it did not come without effort. I literally tested tens of notebooks personally. During that testing,I came across the budget VAIO-N. At a price tag of below 1000 dollars,you should be already grateful(given that it is a VAIO). Well it is a VAIO alright,but it isn't great as the other VAIOs and nor does it provide you with the best deal if you are on a budget.Read on........
BASIC SPECS
Processor Type: Intel Core Duo(NOT Core2duo) 1.6GHz
Installed RAM: 1GB@533MHz (Supports a maximum of 2GB)
Hard Drive: 80GB
Optical Drive: DVD Writer (DVD-RW/ RW with support for Dual-Layer DVDs)
Flash Cards Supported: Memory Stick,Duo and PRO Duo
Display: 15.4" WXGA 1280x800 Widescreen Display with TFT Technology and Sony's XBRITE
Graphics: Intel GMA 950
OS: Windows XP 2005 Media Center Edition
WEIGHT: 6.8 Pounds
DESIGN AND BODY
When you'll first lay your eyes on the VAIO-N320, you will probably think "Hey,is this really one of those VAIOs?". I was pretty amazed too. The look of this notebook is nothing special at all. I would prefer a Dell over it anytime. The overall look of the notebook is to be polite,quite bland. There are no glossy or shiny areas at all. The keyboard area is quite ugly. The keyboard looks most unattractive,with black color for it,and a very plain gray for the case,not appealing at all. I think Sony had a very particular audience in mind when designing this one,probably those people who like nice,clean and plain looks. The only thing I liked about the design was the notebook lid,being of black color. When closed,the notebook looked really like a file rather than a laptop. The laptop is not the lightest in the business. Its OK for home use,weighing at approximately 6.9 pounds. The heat produced by the laptop is not very noticeable when you place it on your lap.
DISPLAY
The notebook boasts an impressive 1280x800 widescreen display. The screen is one of those glossy types(XBRITE). So ,sometimes you will notice a very vague reflection of yourself on the screen. Other than that,the display was of typical VAIO quality. The colors were very vivid,bright and sharp. Although I did not have much fun watching movies. DO NOT watch HD movies on this one because you probably will not notice any difference between DVDs and HD-DVDs,thanks to the integrated Intel950 graphics chip. Otherwise,for watching those TV-Shows and doing some pretty heavy browsing,the display is more than enough.
GRAPHICS
Nothing special here,seriously!!! The notebook sports the Intel 950 chip. So you cannot expect it to work wonders do you? HD quality movies showed no crispness at all. But still,owing to the relatively fast processor,I was able to play Doom3 and Quake4 at the minimum resolutions with all special effects turned off. Not bad for the casual gamer.
PROCESSING
The processing of this notebook is nothing inspirational(given that it is a budget SONY laptop). The notebook offers the old Core Duo technology. That was two processor cores simply put together and thats it,no energy-conservation technologies in that whatsoever. Nevertheless, the processing for a budget level notebook was quite about OK. Doing a little bit of Photoshopping did not disappoint me. Compared to my desktop PC(with 1GB RAM and 3.0GHZ HT) this was a bit flimsy. My PC boots up Windows Vista faster than this notebook boots Windows XP.
OPERATING SYSTEM
The notebook comes pre-installed with Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 and if you want,can support the burden of Windows Vista too. Although I would prefer Windows XP. The Media Center is a nice addition and always comes in handy when watching movies and TV-Shows,other than that,theres nothing really new here.
KEYBOARD AND NAVIGATION
The keyboard is a little less impressive than my current notebook's. It just did not feel like it was built for stuffy hands. I did not feel at home when typing with it. Otherwise,the keyboard works just fine and you should not have any problems with it. The touchpad is your typical one. Although I did notice that the click sounds were a bit louder than I expect from notebooks.
HARD DRIVE
The notebook is equipped with a humble 80GB hard drive. Meaning that you can store some of your favourite DVDs and HD-DVDs. But I doubt anyone who is media-crazy will find this to be of much use. But still,it is OK for those office documents and projects.
FLASH CARD READERS,PORTS,WIRELESS AND SOUND
The notebook supports Sony's Memory Stick format and thankfully the SD-Card format too. It also has two USB-Ports. More could have been welcome,but personally,I think these should suffice. The notebook also has support for wireless connection,although I did not get a chance to test it. Next to it you will find the mic-in and headphone out ports,then an Express Card Slot,monitor-out and finally a Firewire port too.
BATTERY-LIFE
It would be very unfair to call its battery life to be lacking. For a budget SONY offering,it is OK. Under normal usage,I got 3 Hours at most,satisfactory.
BUNDLED SOFTWARE
-MS Works 8.5
-MS Office 2003 60-Day Trial
-Norton Internet Security Trial(PLEASE do not use this,use AVG FREE EDITION instead)
-Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005
-AOL Services
CONCLUSION
If you would like to boast to your friends that you own a VAIO,then this would be just for you. But if you like to boast of the bargain notebook you just got,this is not for you. The VAIO is a nice step for Sony into the mainstream business but it still lacks some factors that could make it a solid-competitors. If you have the money to afford this one, DO NOT buy it!! Look at the competition and see the similar offerings they have.
