Sony Vaio VGN-P11Z, NETBOOK or ultra-portable

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Introduction

Sony Vaio VGN-P11Z model will be greatly successful, and this all credit goes to its design. Indeed, this aspect is particularly successful: the dress metallic keypad, colors at once sober and original hull (green, red, black and white), the discretion of skates on which the screen when closed. .. The finishes are good, even if the screen we felt a bit fragile.


Sony has been keen to emphasis that the Vaio P-series isn't a netbook and is instead called a lifestyle notebook by the company. Calling the P-series anything else will likely result in us having our ears clipped by Sony's marketing department – that's what ear defenders are for, though. As long as you don't utter filthy language when the P-series is within earshot, you're never going to need those ear defenders because the P11Z/R uses a completely fanless design. Indeed, the only moving part inside is the 60GB mechanical hard drive and that's substituted for a 128GB SSD in the more expensive models.

Measuring just 245 x 120 x 20mm (W x D x H) and weighing only minimum 636 grams with the standard battery attached, the P-series is certainly the lightest notebook on the market. It's also the smallest and most portable notebook we've seen to date. By comparison, the Samsung NC10 measures 261 x 186 x 30mm (W x D x H) and weighs 1.33kg.

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Eventhough Vaio P is smaller in size, the keyboard is one of the elements on which to focus special attention.CTRL key, so used in different shortcuts, is well placed in the lower left corner of the keyboard is a good example of this attention. Similarly, the size of the Enter button is satisfactory. However, the Tab key is too small and it is surprising to find a key "1 / &" as broad in the upper left corner of the keyboard while the Backspace key would have deserved a more prominent place.

Similarly, while a classical keyboard SHIFT key on the right has a size greater than that placed on the left, this is just the opposite. Otherwise be a little surprised.

But the biggest problem on this keyboard, Sony Vaio VGN-P11Z concerns the space bar. Indeed, when you type on the keyboard, we have the tendency to operate the buttons of the pointer rather than the space bar. In fact, the keyboard lacks a little depth, especially for large hands.

Another element to the questionable ergonomics, power up. It is marked by a push button on the front of the Vaio and whose handling is not the easiest. Instead, the button activating or deactivating the module Wi-Fi is it in its place and easy to use. Finally, the pointer buttons are three in number, but singularly lacking space.

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Sony Vaio P has an integrated Intel graphics card, but this would be far more expectations of having outstanding 3D performance, but to be honest who would with the 8-inch screen? Power-wise the P-Series has three hours of battery life with the standard battery pack, but there is also an optional additional pack which would boost up to eight hours. On the subject of battery life, another nifty feature that the P-series sports is the Xross Media Bar that owners of the PlayStation and PSP will be familiar with. Moving through the icons to browse the web, use the laptop as a media player or scroll through your pics without booting up the whole laptop. Handy if you’re on the move and a bit low on battery. We were able to watch movie clips with ease on the hoof, although performance dropped off with all Aero effects turned on in Windows Vista.

The 8-inch screen is more distinctive than the current crop of netbooks, with the widest aspect ratio we’ve seen. It features a resolution of 1600 x 768 – with images appearing considerably sharper than even the most high-end ultraportables. There’s enough space to work with a number of windows open simultaneously, although text and icons may appear too small for some users.

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Specification:

• Intel Atom Z520 processor (1.33GHz, 512KB L2 cache)
• Intel SCH US15W chipset with Mobile Intel GMA 500 graphics
• 2GB 533MHz DDR2-SDRAM
• 8-inch X-black LED-backlit display (1,600 x 768 native resolution)
• 60GB ATA/100 4,200 RPM hard drive
• Two USB 2.0 ports, one 3.5mm headphone jack and one port replicator connector (for Gigabit Ethernet/VGA)
• Built-in HSDPA (7.2Mbps) and 802.11b/g/Draft-n
• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
• Stereo Speakers and built-in microphone
• 0.3 Megapixel webcam
• Memory Stick and SD card slots
• Windows Vista Home Premium

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Battery Life

One of the benefits of being part of a larger publishing house is that we’re able to see a much broader perspective of products than ever before. Luckily with the Sony P-series, we’ve been able to test both the entry-level (this one) and flagship models in order to gauge the range of battery life we can expect.

As standard, the P19VN/Q comes with both the standard and extended batteries – part of the reason why it costs so much – while the P11Z/R only comes with the standard battery. With the standard battery, we found that, depending on the usage model, you’ll get anywhere between two and three hours of use out of the P11Z/R.

This didn’t change much on the P19VN/Q even though it features an SSD instead of the mechanical hard drive in the entry-level model. However, with the extended battery that comes with the P19VN/Q, you’ll get between four and six and a half hours – again, depending on your usage patterns.

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Sony Vaio P Backlogs

In Sony Vaio P Netbook the main disappointment is the lack of ports on the P-Series. The two USB ports are in-keeping with other ultraportable VAIOs, but there’s no display-out, modem or Ethernet connection. But, clever little Sony supply the P-Series with the VAIO port that adds Ethernet and VGA to the list of goodies. Another feature in keeping with the sleek feel of VAIO’s is the inbuilt 3G connectivity, just nip to your local SIM distributor purchse a 3G SIM, slot it in the back and you’re away. Other wireless connectivity are also impressive, with both 802.11n and Bluetooth in place.



Conclusion

The VAIO P-series is a curious machine, with no real rivals. The high-resolution screen and the stunningly usable keyboard will appeal to those who find netbooks slightly tweaky but the whooping price puts it out of anyone’s reach who’s looking for a cheap and cheerful portable notebook. If you’re looking for the ultimate portability, there are few machines that can compete with the P-Series.