Sony VAIO X-Series review

The Sony VAIO X-Series is a laptop that divides opinion almost like no other. “Who,” cry some on seeing it, “would buy that? It’s just a glorified, overpriced netbook.” Others pick it up and swoon. “It’s so light! It’s so gorgeous! I want one.”

No-one can argue about the VAIO X-Series’ design credentials. At 12.2mm, it’s precisely as thick as an iPhone, and its matte-black finish is reminiscent of a sheet of graphite (the only design oddity is its brown bottom). Even the screen drew admiring gasps: it’s wafer-thin, measuring 4.4mm when we clamped our callipers around it.

The main chassis is similarly slight. It’s so skinny the D-SUB port on the right-hand side looks oversized. There isn’t even room for a conventional network port, but rather than force people to lug around an adapter, Sony has cleverly created a hinged port: when you want to use it, the idea is to raise two tiny feet and this gives the hinge room to expand enough for you to slot in your cable. (See the gallery for a close-up.)

There are two USB ports on the left-hand side of the chassis, plus a headphone socket, while slots for Memory Stick media and SD cards occupy the front. And that’s your lot. The rest of the design carries on this minimalist feel. Aside from a wireless switch, the only buttons to press are the two for the simple touchpad and the keyboard itself.

Power struggles
But what’s most controversial about this laptop, and the reason so many people fall instantly out-of-love with it, is the processor. It’s a 1.86GHz Intel Atom Z540, which may be the second fastest Atom around, and support Hyper-Threading, but the fact remains: it’s an Atom. These have become so synonymous with netbooks that they almost define them, but we tried to be broad-minded: was an Atom fast enough to power anyone’s main PC?

So we tried. We used the X-Series as a workaday machine for office tasks for a week. It had to power two screens and cope with Word, Excel, Outlook, Firefox, Internet Explorer and numerous other utilities – all using Windows 7 Professional rather than XP.

First impressions weren’t fantastic. With all Aero’s fripperies switched on, the X-Series felt sluggish, and even dragging windows around the desktop proved a chore. Once we optimised Windows for best performance, though, things improved markedly. Without Aero’s overhead, menus snapped to attention, there was no lag and it became perfectly usable. It just looked a little bit like Windows 98. We were also impressed once inside a program. Despite using testing formulae in Excel, the X-Series never felt slow, and likewise in Outlook responding to emails was effortless.

Another point in favour of the Atom is a lack of fan noise: during an average working day, we didn’t hear a single drone. It was only when we pushed this laptop to its maximum in our benchmarks that the fan came on (though note that it’s loud).

A week on one charge
Although we were pleasantly surprised by how usable the X-Series was during a working day, it seems ridiculous to spend this much and have to switch off the graphical effects. Our overall experience would have been a lot more pleasant if the graphics chipset was more powerful, but Intel’s GMA 500 chip is designed for power frugality rather than speed. And this frugality does reap dividends. The X-Series kept going over seven hours when idle, and even when pushed to its limit it kept going for three hours.

Considering this whole laptop weighs a miserly 766g (1.05kg with the power supply), that’s a stunning achievement. And if you’re after true stamina, take note of the extended battery Sony will be selling. This straps onto the bottom of the X-Series, and Sony estimates it will last 20 hours. It’s worth stepping back for a moment here: 20 hours! That’s the average PC Pro writer’s working week.

Everyday issues
There are some inevitable niggles we need to address. The first is the cramped keyboard. Sony does its best, with the isolated keys giving greater margins for error when typing, but the tiny right Shift key takes a lot of getting used to, as do all the keys in the bottom-right area: the full stop and cursor keys are a particular challenge. We never looked forward to using this keyboard.

The tiny touchpad is also an issue. It seems odd to include such a tiny touchpad when there’s plentiful space below the keyboard, especially since Sony has included a scrolling area at the bottom and far right of it. At least it’s responsive when you touch it in the right place, and coupled with the relatively small screen we found it usable when travelling.

The display itself again split opinion, though. It has a notable red bias, which affects skintones, and its horizontal and vertical viewing angles are a little limited. You could also argue that its 1,366 x 768 resolution is too high for an 11.1in screen, although if you’re finding it a struggle to read system text you can enlarge it easily via Windows 7.

In terms of features, the X-Series includes pretty much everything you could ask for. There’s Bluetooth, 802.11bgn WLAN, an integrated 3G modem that supports up to 7.2Mbits/sec, and a 0.3-megapixel camera.

Sony backs all this up with a three-year collect-and-return warranty, and we were quite impressed by the build quality of this little machine as well. The screen flexes as you’d expect, but when we gave it a solid bash on the lid there was little sign of it on the screen – if there is, it can indicate a vulnerability. If you look after this device, and note it comes with a carrying pouch and even a lint-free cloth to keep it shiny, it should stay looking classy for a good few years.

Know your market
Despite all this, it’s tricky to see who’s going to buy the X-Series. As we’ve seen, it is possible to use it as a main PC, but will a senior executive really be willing to put up with the occasional waits and niggles? While we understand why Sony opted for an Atom – there’s no room for a cooling system powerful enough to cool even an ultra-low voltage Core 2 processor – it will put too many people off.

So is it just a laptop for your travels? Well, the X-Series is eminently usable on the move and we still can’t get over at just how light it is. Slip it in a briefcase and you simply won’t notice the extra weight; it can even slide into your case’s side pocket, it’s that slim. But you only need to look elsewhere in Sony’s range to see more practical options. The TT-Series and Z-Series offer far greater power in packages that are bigger, but hardly by devastating amounts.

But the real problem for the X-Series is its price. It includes a solid state disk, inevitably adding to the cost, and Sony must try to recoup some of its substantial R&D outlay. Who, though, can lavish £1,130 exc VAT on a vanity laptop such as this? Very few. This exclusivity may well end up adding to the X-Series’ allure, and if you do buy one expect admiring glances from all who see it. Just don’t tell them it’s an Atom inside.

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