Take your VPR Matrix back, Sony has it beat

[Ioman]

http://forums.designtechnica.com/showthread.php?postid=8963#post8963

Check out the links and pics of the new Sony VAIO Z1 Series Notebook. The only downside I see is that the video card sucks. The rest rocks!

[Yuniverse]

Wow! That looks great!
I can't honestly decide which is better - Powerbook or this.
But this is expensive... in the Powerbook league.
spec to price, Powerbook still has upper hand.
compairing between the 17 incher Powerbook and the most expensive PCG-Z1AP3KIT.
Price:
A: $3299
S: $3999

Processor:
A: G4 1.0 GHz
S: Intel Mobile Centrino 1.6 GHz

Display:
A: 17" Widescreen 1440x900
S: 14.1" SXGA+ 1400x1050 (dang, that's some fine dot-pitch)

Memory:
Sony has twice the memory than Apple - both DDR.(less than $200 difference)

Video:
A: NVIDIA GeForce4 440 Go 64MB DDR
S: ATI MOBILITY¢â RADEON¢â 16 MB video DDR SDRAM

HD:
same

Wireless:
A: 802.11g 54Mbps
S: 802.11b 11Mbps

Optical Drive:
A: DVD-R/CD-RW (x4 DVD-burning/x32 CD-R)
S: CD-RW/DVD-Rom (no DVD burning)

Misc:
A: 800Mbps Firewire 2, Gigabit Ethernet, Bluetooth built-in
S: 400Mbps FW, USB 2.0, memory stick

Dimensions:
A: 1.0" X 15.2" X 10.2" Weight: 6.8lbs
S: 0.9 -1.5" X 12.4" X 9.7" Weight: 5.4lbs

Batteries:
A: Li-ion Prismatic battery (4.5 hrs)
S: Double capacity (5 to 13 hours with dual batteries)

Yes, the Powerbook is much bigger, but not thicker...and barely heavier.

Ofcourse we're compairing apples and oranges(no pun intended)

[TroyG]

Great laptop - great design - TWICE THE PRICE!!!

I'll stick to my vpr Matrix. Don't know 'bout you, but I'm in the telecom industry, and let's just say we're not getting raises like we used to...

[Chris Shaeffer]

My heart nearly skippied a beat there for a moment- Sony is the brand I would have liked to buy when I bought my vpr. I just upgraded from a sony PIII 800 to the vpr 200a5 and I thought for a moment that Sony had produced a widescreen.

I bought the vpr because it has the best features for the price (with rebates and open box) but I would have kicked myself if I only had to wait (and save) another month for a Sony widescreen.

The 14.1 screen definately doesn't do it for me, though. That's a deal killer for me- high resolution or no. Sure, you can fit a lot on a high definition screen, but is gets very small after a while. And I use packed-busy-screen programs all the time on my lappy: pro tools, premiere, dreamweaver- too many small things to keep track of.

All the other specs look pretty sweet, though.

Chris

[Ioman]

aahhaha looks like I turned some heards here. I certainy like my VPR Matrix better for now. The Sony is nice, but it was just introduced and the price is still rather high. Plus, where is the slot loading DVD/CDRW combo drive eh? No widescreen or Video out. It still looks cool though.

[Angus]

For a second there I cursed the heavens and asked the big bearded man in the sky why I couldn't have waited a little longer to buy my notebook. But then I checked out the specs, and the price, and now I don't really care. Heh.

It's a damn fine looking piece of hardware though, I'll give them that much. I think it's even a bit more appealing than the Powerbooks to some extent. But for the price you could A) get a powerbook, or B) get two VPRs, or C) get a VPR and a really nice digital camera, or D) get a VPR and a $1500 LCD display.

And it's like I was saying about whatever VPR releases next... Unless they address those few specific things I'd like to see upgraded (wireless, gigabit ether, 6 pin FW, higher res screen, etc) I'm plenty happy with what I have in the VPR 200A5. And that Sony just isn't cuttin' it.

[Ioman]

Originally posted by Angus
For a second there I cursed the heavens and asked the big bearded man in the sky why I couldn't have waited a little longer to buy my notebook. But then I checked out the specs, and the price, and now I don't really care. Heh.

It's a damn fine looking piece of hardware though, I'll give them that much. I think it's even a bit more appealing than the Powerbooks to some extent. But for the price you could A) get a powerbook, or B) get two VPRs, or C) get a VPR and a really nice digital camera, or D) get a VPR and a $1500 LCD display.

And it's like I was saying about whatever VPR releases next... Unless they address those few specific things I'd like to see upgraded (wireless, gigabit ether, 6 pin FW, higher res screen, etc) I'm plenty happy with what I have in the VPR 200A5. And that Sony just isn't cuttin' it.

haha yeah I agree with you Angus. One thing I have noticed about these Centrino based laptops are that manufacturers really are not making them full featured. Have they not realized that we want thin, attractive AND powerful?

The Gateway system which was just announced is even worse! http://www.designtechnica.com/article.php?sid=2899

[amloops]

Tell you what guys, no matter how nice they make them look, they are still pieces of crap, overpriced, and if you think the VPR has some design flaws, wait until you have a sony. And have you ever needed to get a sony repaired? I have and it's no better, if not worse than everything I have read so far about the vpr service. I have worked as a manager in IT for more than a decade, and I have NEVER seen a sony make it more than a year without needing to be sent in for repairs. Oh wait I'm sorry, make that longer than a few months out of warranty. VPR parts are atleast cheap in comparison to sony. and if you want some supporting evidence, check out this thread. I have a Sony, and I am glad I didn't have to pay for it.

http://hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/5449

[senoryoshio]

Man you really had to go back to find this thread....1.5+ years?

[ECA]

And does it matter...
AS 1 year after you buy ANY of them, they are obsolete.