Customer Reviews

Sony VAIO VPC-W211AX/P 10-Inch Netbook (Pink)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is the newest model (W211AX) of Sony's Netbooks and has a extended battery life. While others may complain of the battery- I like the fact that it elevates the netbook up towards you. Depending on the surfing you do- you may have a bit less battery life than advertised. I ordered the pink Vaio and couldn't be more pleased. It was everything I expected it to be and then some. The Track pad is reasonably sized and much larger than most. The screen clarity is amazing. My only complaint is where the speakers are situated for the volume. I simply resolved this issue on my own and use my ipod head phones when listening to sound. To the lower right of screen you may also adjust zoom level. Your options are 100, 125, and 150. If you do increase the zoom level- You do loose a bit of viewing and must scroll from side to side. The keyboard buttons are a bit elevated and makes it easier for typing. The only other downfall that I could say would be that the netbook only comes with Windows 7 Starter. With this program starter version you are unable to change desktop background. Bummer... I love that I can install my SD card and download my photos too. Perfect for web surfing, downloading pics, typing, emails, etc.
AMAZING LITTLE NETBOOK!!!!!!!!
SONY CONTINUES TO IMPROVE THEIR APPEARANCE, MODELS INTERIOR, AND STAND BY THE SONY NAME WITH EXCELLENT CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!!!!!!

The first impression is its nice appearance. I've never had any netbooks before but this product from sony is quite satisfactory. The speed is acceptable. Still some people argued with the windows 7 starter edition but I would say it's designed for light computing and web surfing and it actually does a good job on these things. If you are looking for a second pc (or laptop) and this one might fit your need. However if you expect it for primary use then it might disappoint you. To share my personal use, I have a mac desktop at home and that serves as my primary computer. And when I go outside I only bring this little tiny creature with me. As long as the internet access is available I can always connect back to my home desktop and use some remote desktop to do whatever heavy tasks on the main computer. And if you really dislike windows, I'd recommend you to try ubuntu, a free linux os. I'm currently having dual systems on this vaio and honestly I'm on ubuntu most of the time. The system interface is neat and very efficient in doing those less heavy things. Also if you're worried about whether one GB RAM is enough to run win 7, using ubuntu can definitely be a nice alternative.

I really love this netbook. I had an Asus eeepc for about 2 weeks before I bought this one, and returned it thinking I just wasn't cut out for the netbook experience. I'm glad I tried one more time! One of the most helpful features that sets this netbook apart from others, are the "chicklet" keys. They help you type so much more easily in the smaller space of netbooks. I also love the matte finish, because it doesn't show fingerprints and random dirt as easily as a lot of the shiny, plastic finishes that a lot of the other netbooks have. I installed the extra 1gb of ram myself, and I'm no techie. You just buy a 2gb pc2-5300 cls 200 sodimm card, and watch the youtube video on how to put it in. Easy. This little netbook is fast, holds all of the files, pics, and music from my old laptop, and has tons of memory to spare. It's easy to surf the web on, connects to wireless from anywhere, and... best of all... it fits in my purse to take to work, and lasts all day without having to bring a charger with me! Everyone said that I wouldn't be happy with a netbook, because they are too small, but the resolution on this one is higher than on most netbooks, and this screen is crisp, clear, and easy to read. I got a program that let me work around the windows starter version, because it doesn't let you set your own photos on the desktop, etc. Once I downloaded a little free program I got by searching google, I was instantly able to set whatever photos I wanted as a background without buying the full windows 7. I've got the adobe c5s master collection (dreamweaver, flash editor, photoshop, & more) and the whole microsoft office 2007 suite(word, publisher, access, excel, powerpoint, outlook, infopoint), Sibeleus, Picasa, and iTunes installed on it, and they run flawlessly with multiple windows open at once. I don't think there are many things this little netbook won't do. The only complaint I have is that the internal speakers are a little soft. I just have to get some external speakers for it.

I bought this netbook for my wife and the two deciding factors were the high-resolution screen (1366x768) and its build quality. I checked out a lot of other netbooks and most have lower resolution screens and are built with too much plastic that makes them feel cheap. This Vaio is solid - it feels like a mini version of Apple's classic 12" Powerbook (without the heft). The screen is also fantastic in its brightness and clarity. It's perfect for movie viewing, web browsing and even book reading. The clarity makes reading a Kindle book a breeze even though horizontal mode isn't the ideal way to read an electronic book. The sound is excellent when using headphones but the built-in speakers are worthless, which seems to be typical of most notebook computers.

I'm a Windows XP user so it did take me some time to get used to Windows 7 but I haven't had any problems especially with its wireless capabilities. Connecting to my secure home network took a few minutes to set up and my connection is rock-solid. The Vaio is also quieter than other laptops I've used. You'll still hear the fan but it's more of a whooshing sound so it never really gets annoying. The bottom of the computer does warm up but it's nothing out of the ordinary.

On the downside, the chiclet-style keyboard is a bit cumbersome to use especially if you have larger hands but I was able to adapt and my wife doesn't have any problems with it. I do wish the right shift button was bigger and there were dedicated volume buttons (you have to use FN button + key or the on-screen slider for volume adjustment). We were not able to get the trackpad scrolling feature adjusted to our liking (scrolling was never smooth) so we ended up turning it off. This is one area that could use a major revamping especially when compared to an Apple Powerbook trackpad. The large capacity battery mars the sleek design of the machine but it's hard to argue with 8 hours of battery life and the resulting angle does help with typing.

The Vaio W does have some minor quirks but they're not enough to overshadow the build quality and exceptional screen that's hard to find in other netbooks.

I had read average reviews on this elsewhere.

I bought it because it's one of the few 10.1" netbooks with 1366x768 resolution (instead of 1024x600 which is normal for this size). That intrigued me because the more resolution means the more screen you get on a page. Usually that is better for browsing, word processing, etc.

Problem is I'm barely able to make sense of a 10.1" screen with 1366x768. I bet 1024 would be better. And then you get to the reviews -- which is that this thing slows down because it has more dots to put on the screen. So, I'm getting the bad side on both ends.

Also, the keys are a little crammed, another negative I've read and now agree with. It isn't that they're small because it's a 10.1" screen - unlike most netbooks, the keys go to the very edges left to right of the keyboard. So Sony could have made the keys bigger, but consciously decided not to, because they stop about a half an inch to the left and right.

This Vaio has no HD video accelerator, like Crystal HD. So any kind of HD videos are out.

The battery is good. It gets the 8 hours that it says. The only downside is that the battery isn't thin and flat -- it's used as the stand. Which is good on a table, it gives you the slant. It's less than comfortable tho when on your lap. But good news is that it doesn't get superhot when on your lap, either.

Otherwise, it's your standard netbook. N450, 1GB ram, etc. When you take into account that the screen isn't all that great with the extra resolution, and you look at the price compared to other netbooks -- there's probably better alternatives available. I figure you are paying $50 for the screen, and they should be giving you $50!

Hint: If you buy this or any Windows 7 netbook, turn some of the Aero screen special effects off --- they slow down the system immensely. It seemed sluggish even after this, but it's just the nature of a netbook. You'll really notice the difference if you have a regular or high-end laptop that you have (for work, etc.). You get what you pay for.

Things we love about this netbook are:
1. It is lightweight
2. superb screen resolution
3. has enough juice to do what's meant to do
4. keyboard is very nice to type on
5. it is NOT sluggish.

My husband bought me the earlier model 2 years ago. It has the three cell battery. It makes for a sleek look having the battery being flush with the netbook. At first this was great. I had a new baby, and couldn't nurse my baby and internet surf at the same time. my old laptop was heavy, bulky and was dying on me. He got this for me. It was good at doing the only thing I wanted my computer to do, go in the internet, e-mail and go to social networking sites. When I started going to college, it was good because I could carry it anywhere, but I soon began to notice that as I got into my BioChem major, it was not good at multitasking. I needed to have many windows and many programs going to do all my work. It wasn't keeping up very well with it. The battery life was also something that didn't work well for me as a student. i can get about an hour and a half on it with battery conservation mode on. My Vaio has also had some issues with the video card as well. the screen been to malfunction after 6 months and I have uninstalled and reinstalled it two times in 2 years. I don't know if it was a defective thing, or maybe I bumped it and messed it up. All in all I liked it when I didn't have to use it heavily, but now that I do have to use it heavily, it is not useful and I have switched to the dark side with a MacBook Air. This Vaio is not a good multi-tasking tool in my opinion. It did have a lot of durability and came with a pink case and mouse. It also did not cost me the price that is listed on Amazon. I think it cost about $400.00 or so. I hope someone finds this helpful if they are considering to get a net book.

has a very nice screen colors comparing to the same netbooks from other brands, but the sound quality is weak, looks nice and cute but it's better if u upgrade it to 2 ram... the background screen doesn't change with windows 7 starter.

it's convenient to bring somewhere, but it's kind of running slowly so it's a good idea to buy one more bigger laptop to use at home which is running faster than this one.

its worth the price purchased it for my mom she's new in the computer world but she learned fast, it's a girly type.........