Original URL: https://www.theregister.com/2005/06/13/review_sony_vaio_vgn-t2xp/

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP

Ultra-portable perfection?

By Trusted Reviews

Posted in Personal Tech, 13th June 2005 14:59 GMT

Review An ultra-portable notebook is a wonderful thing, especially for someone in my line of work. When you're regularly globetrotting, covering technology expos and product launches, you need to have a notebook with you in order to write up your stories. But you don't want something big and heavy weighing you down, especially on those long days wandering the crowded halls of a trade show. I'm always pleased to see a new slim notebook appear on my desk, especially when it's just in time for a foreign jaunt, writes Riyad Emeran.

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XPBy chance, Sony delivered its new Vaio VGN-T2XP just a few days before I had to jet off to Taipei for Computex 2005. For me, there's no better way to test an ultra-portable notebook than to take it out in the field. Carrying it around for a few days and knocking out thousands of words of copy gives you a real feel for what the customer will be experiencing.

My favourite machine for duties like this is the IBM ThinkPad X40, but I have to say that after using Sony's new baby for a few days, my affection is starting to shift. The T2XP really is a fantastic solution for the business traveller, but it has also got all those consumer-focused features that Sony loves to throw in.

Let's start with the most obvious factors first: the Vaio VGN-T2XP is small, very small. It's not quite as svelte and as light as the Samsung Q30, but it does pack far more of a punch than its Korean competitor. Don't get me wrong, I love the Q30, but in the end the lack of a PC Card slot made it an unsuitable proposition for me, since I wouldn't be able to use my Vodafone 3G data card. Not only does the T2XP have a PC Card slot, it also has an integrated DVD writer.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves. As with all notebooks, there are three factors I consider to be paramount to an acceptable working environment: a good screen, keyboard and pointing device. Looking at the screen first, there's no doubt that Sony has pushed the boat out. The 10.6in widescreen display is a superb example, and the Xblack coating makes it ideal for watching movies while you're on the move. The resolution of 1280 x 768 gives you far more desktop real estate than most non-widescreen ultra-portable notebooks, which usually sport a native resolution of 1024 x 768. The image produced is bright and the colours vibrant, while the increased reflectivity from the Xblack coating didn't seem to cause me any problems no matter what lighting environment I used the T2XP in.

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP

Next up is the keyboard, and there have obviously been compromises here because of the reduced physical dimensions of the chassis. OK, so this little Vaio isn't ever going to have a keyboard as good as a ThinkPad X40, but it is nonetheless very impressive. The key size is reduced, so you may want to try one out before you buy if you have large hands. I had no problem typing at speed on the T2XP, but then I do have pretty small hands. That said, what really impressed me was that Sony has kept pretty good continuity with the relative key sizes, compared to a regular keyboard. The Shift, Caps, Tab, Return, and Backspace keys are all large, and the Ctrl key is located at the bottom left, just where it's meant to be.

The final part of the ergonomic equation is the touchpad, and Sony certainly hasn't skimped here. The silver touchpad is located far enough from the Spacebar to avoid any inadvertent cursor movement, so you don't have to worry about erasing large blocks of text when you're typing at speed. Below the touchpad are two silver buttons, which reflect the left and right buttons on a mouse. The far right side of the touchpad can be used to scroll up and down through a document, although there's no indication of this feature. Despite the fact that I prefer trackpoints to touchpads, this one is a fine example and pointer manipulation is quick and accurate.

Inside the T2XP, the specs are pretty impressive considering the size of the notebook. It's powered by an ultra-low voltage Pentium M CPU running at 1.2GHz - no doubt the choice of a ULV chip has helped Sony achieve a very impressive battery life. There's 512MB of memory installed, but 8MB has been dedicated to the integrated Intel 855GME graphics chipset. You could allocate up to 64MB to the graphics chipset, but it really isn't worth it - you're better off keeping the memory accessible by your applications.

Storage comes courtesy of a 60GB hard disk, which is a fair amount considering the size of the unit. If you want to free up some space on your hard drive, you can easily offload data via the integrated DVD writer, which will burn to both DVD-R/RW and DVD+R/RW media.

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP

Connectivity is very well catered for, with a 56Kbps modem and a 10/100Mbps Ethernet adaptor. If you don't want to be tethered to a phone line or network port, there's an 802.11b/g wireless adaptor as well as Bluetooth. The Wi-Fi makes up part of the Centrino branding, but it's always good to see Bluetooth, for those instances where you can't find a hotspot and need to connect using your mobile phone.

The right-hand side of the chassis is dominated by the DVD writer, but the modem socket and Ethernet port are also located here, behind sturdy plastic flaps. At the front you'll find volume controls and a mute button, along with headphone and mic sockets. There's also a hard switch for the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios.

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP

On the left-hand side there are a single Type II PC Card slot, a Memory Stick/Memory Stick Pro slot, two USB 2.0 ports, a four-pin FireWire port and a D-SUB port. Last but not least, above the keyboard and below the screen you'll find an array of indicator lights, the power button, and a set of multimedia controls. Pressing the DVD button will bring up Sony's own multimedia app, from where you can play music, look at photos or watch a DVD.

At the rear the you'll see that the battery protrudes slightly, but not enough to spoil the overall look of the machine. Personally I'm happy to have a slightly larger battery if the result is improved battery life, and that's certainly the case here. Running Mobile Mark 2002, the T2XP exhibited a battery life of over five and a half hours. That makes this machine very attractive to the road warrior who wants something small, light and usable on the move.

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP MobileMark

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP MobileMark

The SYSmark score of 164 overall is pretty decent, and puts similar notebooks like the JVC Mini Note in the shade. But it's in real world use that a machine like this stands or falls, and I have to say that the T2XP performed superbly in the field. In Taiwan, it proved to have the perfect blend of light weight, long battery life and features.

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP SysMark

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP PCMark

Considering that you're getting an integrated DVD writer, the weight of 1.38kg is very commendable, while the dimensions of 27.5 x 20.5 x 2.5-3.4cm mean that you can slip the T2XP into the smallest of bags. I also like the fact that there is no securing catch on this machine - the hinge is just sprung towards the closed position, making it easy to open the notebook quickly.

Sony always throws together a great software bundle for its notebooks. As well as Windows XP Pro, you get a copy of Microsoft Works 8, Adobe Premier Standard, Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0, Adobe Photoshop Album 2.0 Starter Edition, Adobe Acrobat Elements, WinDVD and Symantec Internet Security 2005 (with 90 days' of updates). Sony also throws in a bunch of its own software, including SonicStage, PictureGear Studio and Vaio Zone - which is the default multimedia playback application.

Of course, the T2XP doesn't come cheap, but then that's to be expected with a machine as slim and as sexy as this. That said, a price of just over £1500 is pretty much average for an ultra-portable machine from a big player like Sony. Personally, I think that the T2XP is worth every penny, and would be happy to use one as my travelling companion wherever I go.

Verdict

The Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP is a fantastic little notebook. It has pretty much everything you need integrated into its svelte chassis, but still manages to keep weight down to a minimum. The outstanding battery life just makes this machine even more attractive to the target market. If you want something small and light with great battery life and an integrated DVD writer, the T2XP should be top of your list.

Review by
TrustedReviews.com

Sony Vaio VGN-T2XP
 
Rating 90%
 
Price £1522
 
More info The Sony Vaio Notebooks site

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