Customer Reviews
This computer has a "shocking" malfunction that Sony refuses to fix 
2008-04-28
I was given this Vaio as a gift and within a few weeks of normal use, the unit began shocking me through the chrome strip on the front and sides of the casing. I tested it with a multimeter and the unit is releasing up to 12 volts of electricity when its plugged in through this strip. It is a painful and annoying problem. I sent the unit in to Sony for repairs as it was still well within warranty, having only been purchased about a month previously then, and Sony refused to fix it, stating that there was nothing wrong and that even if it was shocking me, it would be well within UL limits. Sony also has a besmirched history across their brand for lack luster repair service, often telling customers with perfectly good warranties that their issue is not covered by Sony's all too vague warranty. Better hope your unit doesn't shock you or break, because Sony's already got your money and doesn't care.
excellent service and laptop 
2008-04-20
I originally went to Sony web site for this laptop to be built but Amazon had the same laptop ready to go, and I ordered it at 2pm on a Wednesday and it arrived the next day. It is a fantastic laptop, clean looking, all the applications I need were included, including some great trial applications I will purchase, for the money the Viao is a great buy
THE computer of MY DREAMS! 2008-04-20
I can't tell you how happy I was about three weeks ago when I got this Gorgeous Pink Sony Vaio as a gift! Let's just put aside that my favorite color is PINK and this is just the most beautiful pearly pink color I have ever seen. It's like an accessory. Which is the main reason you buy a colored laptop isn't it?
This is a critical part of my work. I'm a paralegal and I needed somthing light but sturdy to take back and forth with me to work. I went with the 14.1" screen because it is big enough to see exactly what I need. Bright and colorful as well. I don't use the computer for much but work and documents, so I'm not sure how it stacks up with things like game play, etc. But I can tell you that it is quick (maybe not the fastest laptop ever) enough for the everyday consumer! This computer also comes in a variety of high gloss colors at great prices!
It took me all of two minutes to have the Vaio up and running wirelessly online! (and I'm definitely NOT a computer savvy person) But it's very easy to set-up. The instructions are clear and effortless! It's all that I need and more. It's quick, runs my necessary programs, music interface and Microsoft Office Professional without a problem. I've owned other Vaios and have loved them all as well. *This one is my very favorite hands down.
It has a lot of room on the hard drive, is super quick, gorgeous color and user friendly. I'm not the most computer literate person, but this comptuter makes it easy to understand.
It's compact and light. Perfect Keyboard, I absolutely love it! I also bought the Sony case for protection and it matches perfectly and keeps the computer padded, protected and easy to carry around!
There are a ton of programs preinstalled on it though. Some I found useful and some I don't need at all. The virus program is great, along with Microsoft Professional and a few others. Mostly I love that it has everything I need on it and more in one tiny, compact, sturdy, and gorgeous machine. What I see so far is wonderful and I know that I'll have many years to come with this notebook!
For me, I couldn't ask for more! You'll have to decide what you need it for, but if you're looking for a machine that does what most everyone needs it for in a compact, light, yet sturdy form, I can't see why you wouldn't love this user-friendly product. Sony is a name I've grown to know and love and would buy their products again and again!
Perfect for students in both high school and college and for adults that use it as a second computer or one to travel with. Not only does it download and play my music, but it also burns cd/dvds, which is a plus! I hope this has been of some help in your decision making, I know I don't know a whole lot about "tech talk", but I do use it every day and couldn't be without it!
ENJOY! I am! I've gotten a ton of compliments on this notebook! It's certianly a conversation piece! A Quality Computer At A Quantity Price! This is THE computer of my dreams!
Seems nice, but... 
2008-04-18
I searched a lot to come to this PC. It looks nice, full of features and in a acceptable for the features price.
But...
It came without battery! I took it out of USA and then I found this problem. Amazon support was very nice, but the only thing tey were able to offer me in this situation was to refound me 200$. Thank you for this!Then - the only place this battery is available all over the Internet world is Sony Style - and they doesn't accept international credit cards...
At the end I got the battery, losing some money and time...
When I started the PC, I found:
The display is brilliant - amazing!
The PC is full with junk - and it's not easy to wipe it away...
Curently, I'm trying to make some order there.
Let's see...
bad purchase, no customer service 2008-04-06
the product broke down after two weeks. i called and emailed customer service and either got no response or an automated response that didn't even answer the question asked. the dvd players made a lot of noise then just broke down (froze). i guess i won't be able to use the dvd player on the sony. since they won't even fix or send me a new laptop. bad purcahse, no customer service at all.
Disappointment only 2008-07-25
My excitment of owning a vaio all went into the drain when I got first hand experience of its performance. In general its processing speed is worse than a pentium 3. And I dont have anything saved on my hard drive since I mostly use it for internet browsing. Everytime I switch on my computer I wonder what will go wrong in the processing today. e.g. internet browsers take ages to open, or if you type its takes ages for the text to appear. I have tried everything possible.
Sony is unwilling to admit that they have a defective model. I would not recommend anyone to buy this. HP, IBM or Dell will provide you with better processing speed. Otherwise you are buying a model claiming to be a core 2 duo and you are getting pentium 2 or 3 at best performance. So if this laptop cant take internet browsing... then if you do more stuff I am not sure how it will take.. it may just crash. So BEWARE!!
UPS lost item 2008-07-04
UPS lost the package,however Vann's was great and got me a very quick refund.I would buy from Vann's and Amazon again.
Good laptop with a bit of false advertising... 
2008-06-19
So I read the reviews on here before buying this laptop 3 months ago (thanks!). I bought it for a long backpacking trip - so I wanted something smaller, with long battery life. The reviews here said the battery life was not what it advertised, and the screen can be pretty dim - impossible to see outdoors when you're on low power consumption mode. They were right on both counts. I would not count on more than 2.5 or 3 hours of battery, even just to type or surf the web, and if you're outdoors, maybe less since you'll have to boost the brightness of the screen.
Other than that, after it's gone through all the start up - and all the preloaded programs, it's reasonably fast and a good size for travel, though I think I'd go even smaller for a trip like this - it's a good balance overall. The keyboard is very nice, but the keys click when you type, I'm not too crazy about that, and there is no "end", "page up", etc... which I quite miss.
Rating Likely To Improve 
2008-06-03
I purchased this lap-top as a birthday present for my wife, having had experienced excellent performance with a VAIO that I purchased for myself in back in 2004. I was a bit leary about making an on line purchase of such a potentially fragile item. Those worries were put to rest upon delivery, as it was apparent that extra care had been taken to ensure that delivery was prompt, and the product arrived in good condition.
My only regret in making this purchase, is that I didn't pay more heed to the concensus on reviews of the VISTA operating system (which came pre-installed on the unit). In the past, I had always heard of, (but pretty well dismissed) all of the negative publicity surrounding the release of a new O.S., because I had never experienced any insurmountable problems with O.S. up-grades over the years, some just took some getting used to. With VISTA however, you can add me to the list of "whiners". So many things are incompatible, and there are so many "unexplainable" malfunctions, that after 3 weeks of unsuccessful back-and-forth communications with Microsoft Vista Support (via another PC I might add, as we were unable to even perform e-mail & on-line functions with VISTA), I finally gave up & "up-graded" to XP. Things have been fine since then.
Love it!! 2008-05-25
After a few weeks of contemplation I settled on this as my first laptop for use when I start grad school in the fall. However, I've gotten much more than I expected. The graphics are AWESOME!! It's light and quiet, the keys aren't as hard to use as I'd expected after years of desktop use...I could go on and on : )
There are a few cons- there's a few more programs loaded on it than I think I really need and like most VAIOs it gets a bit hot but generally I have no complaints!!
I would advise that if you want something like this to get the newer model which is only $100 more- the CR420...it's processor is 2.1 GHz and it comes with 3GB of RAM....commit to Sony and enjoy : )
