Another way for it to justify its high price would be if it could offer decent performance - we'd love a notebook this thin that could cope with handling the odd RAW image on the road, for instance. Unfortunately, not only is its performance nothing special compared to the majority of netbooks, it's positively lacking when it comes to HD video streaming.
Lightweight, in more ways than one
Those with money to burn should also remember the oft-derided MacBook Air. At 1.3kg, it’s the heavier of the two but you get a more powerful Core 2 Duo processor, taking HD video from a flight of fancy to reality. The larger 13.3in screen offers a 1280 x 800 resolution and the base model is £50 cheaper. For £150 more will see you walking home with a faster Air with a 128GB SSD like the Sony's.
Verdict
If size - or looks - mean a lot then we can't argue: the X series is jaw dropping. But mere good looks, unbolstered by good value or above par performance, can't take the unwelcome focus off that astronomical price. ®
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COMMENTS
@andy 70
I agree with you completely, but also think this applies to ALL sony products...
Sony is overpriced across their whole model line. Their TVs cost more and don;t look or have as good of specs as LG or Samsung. Their PCs are too proprietary and also too expensive for the spec. Their HT receivers blow up too often. Their speakers pale in comparrison to others like Klipsch and HK. Their cameras have nice lenses, but again proprietary, as is the memory stick format. Ericson phones have left the earth almost completely due to either high price or inferior design or both, as have the Sony PDAs.
Having worked several years in a retail shop, i can also attest that Sony had the highest percentage of non-waranty repairs by far, and were close to the bottom for product reliability under waranty (we tracked our sales vs repairs and provided this to our customers if they asked). Sony's reapirs also seemed to take longer...
Today I have no single Sony product in my house. I'm still considdering a PS3 only because there's no viable competition, and no xBox games interest me that are not also available on PC. (not to mention the included BR player and now NetFlix supprot).
Spectacular design, but lost the plot
Portable means able to survive portability. I would have expected a company from a country where _ONLY_ a TouchBook or a "Dell Brick" can survive the Tokio subway morning gro^H^H^Hrush hour to know that.
No thanks, I would stick to my S10-e. It may weight 1.5 times as much, but it is at least capable of surviving being carried around.
Me coat, the big grey-blue trench one with an S10-e in the left pocket.
Sony Insanity
Sony have completely lost the plot. For a little more cash you can get their own TT-series.
50% higher weight at 1.2kg and thicker but you get same 11.1 form factor.
With that extra weight you get a proper core 2 duo that offers over double the performance of an atom, dvd or blueray burner, 4gig of ram, and HD capable graphics with HDMI port. Plus everything else the X series does and a lot more besides like TPM.
If you really want a sony netbook you have the V and W series to choose from. The W series is a bog standard netbook with Sony style - the V is a quirky almost MID sized netbook with WWWAN. Either option is better than the X.
IF you want second hand you can get the older , but still briliiant TZ ultraportable from Ebay for around £500.
What nutter at sony green lighted this?
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