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If you love the footprint of Apple’s redesigned MacBook Airs but need all-day battery life, Sony’s got a new Vaio up its sleeves for you… as long as you’re willing to compromise on thickness a bit.
Deemed the Sony Vaio S, the latest addition to the Vaio line boasts a 13.3-inch display running at a resolution of 1366 x 768, which is actually a little disappointing, given the 1440 x 900 pixel display you get as stock in the 13-inch MacBook Air. That said, the Vaio S doesn’t skimp much in other regards, starting at the case design: a thin profile represented by a wedge of magnesium alloy a little under an inch thick.
Specs-wise, the Sony Vaio S line comes with many options, but you can choose between any of Intel’s latest line of Sandy Bridge processors, and CPU options go all the way up to the Core i7-2620M. Like the MacBook Air, the Vaio S can be fitted with a 256GB SSD — an option we’d recommend for blistering performance and long battery life — or up to 750GB of HDD storage; you can also upgrade to 8GB of RAM. Graphics options max out at the Radeon HD 6630M with 1GB of RAM. As befitting a Sony laptop, Blu-Ray is optional. Rounding out the specs are the ubiqutious Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity, as well as a backlit keyboard.
What really sets the Vaio S apart, though, is battery life. With the stock battery, the Vaio S will run for 7.5 hours on a charge, which is great for a Sandy Bridge ntoebook, but choose the optional sheet battery that connects to the bottom of the laptop and you’ll get up to 15 hours of battery life.
The Vaio S comes in both black or white, starting at prices of just $969.99. If you want the 15 hour battery life, prepare to lay out another $150, though.
