Sony Vaio VPCEG15EG/B & VPCEG18FG

Coming in at a tad bit more than five pounds, we do not normally cover laptops of this size and weight, five pounds being our limit. We are making an exception for the new Sony Vaio E this time because this is one very interesting looking laptop. The truss pattern texture" covering the lid and the palm rest, is unique and distinctive. It reminds us of a golf ball. The new Sony Vaio E's also come in at a price point which is almost 10% lower than last years models, still they would still not be the best value for money options. 

But they are not supposed to be. Buying a Sony Vaio, is like buying a Mac. You should be willing to pay more for the style these laptops bring. I am not just talking about the name on the lid, like Apple, Sony designs some very physically pleasing looking laptops.

The entry level model, Sony Vaio VPCEG15EG, sports a 14 inch wide (WXGA: 1366x768) TFT colour display with a Intel Core i3-2310M Processor (2.10 GHz), Intel HD Graphics 3000 and 2GB of RAM which is what you would expect in an entry level model. At Php36,999, it does carry a fair price premium, about 10K more, than similarly equipped laptops.

A bit of a disappointment is the 320GB hard drive a battery rated at 3.5 hours. We are guessing the battery is rated lower than the typical 4400 mAh unit you get in other entry level Sandy Bridge laptops. We were expecting a larger hard drive and bigger battery. It comes pre-installed with Windows 7 Home Basic. You get a DVD Writer and HDMI out, but absent is USB 3.0. 

Adding another 10K gets you the Sony Vaio VPCEG18FG, at Php46,999. It gives you a choice of four colors (Black, Blue, Whie and Pink), a faster Intel Core i5-2410M Processor (2.30 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.90 GHz), faster NVIDIA GeForce® 410M GPU, double the RAM, a larger 500GB hard driver and Windows 7 Home Premium. Still no USB 3.0 though.

Neither is a value for money option, but Sony Vaio's are well built and classy looking. Might be worth the additional cash.

Posted in: Thin-and-Light Laptops (4-5lbs.)