Customer Reviews

Sony VAIO VGN-S150 Laptop (1.60 GHz Pentium M (Centrino), 512 MB RAM, 60 GB Hard Drive, DVD/CD-RW Drive)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Sony VAIO VGN-S150 Notebook Review

The pictures of the VAIO VGN-S150 on this page don't do it justice - this laptop is very small and stylish, and definitely has a cutting-edge, highly designed look. It's certainly as physically pretty as anything that Apple has to offer, and as far as I can tell, Sony designed this notebook to attract Apple customers (it's certainly a big style improvement over clunky Dell and IBM computers). The VGN-S150 is very small and light, but it has a wide screen format. This keeps the system very portable, but gives you critical extra screen space so the display doesn't feel cramped or undersized. The display is probably the high point of this system - it's fantastically bright and sharp looking. It uses Sony's XBRITE technology - I initially thought this was an expensive gimmick, but it really does look MUCH better than equivalent laptop LCD screens. It has all the depth and color richness of a regular monitor. The color black especially is much richer and darker than I've seen on other laptops, which is very important if you want to watch DVDs.
All in all, the system seems very well-designed: the ports all seem to be in logical places (there are none on the back, which makes sense), and the keyboard, though small, doesn't feel jammed together (if you have gigantic hands, it will make you miserable - it's not THAT spacious). Unfortunately, the keys feel a little bouncy, but I got used to it after just a little while of typing, and it didn't really slow me down.
On a more technical note, this is a pretty fast system, using Intel's relatively new Centrino processor, which seems to deliver on performance and battery life. The built-in wireless G is great - it's plenty fast, of course, and the switch is built right on to the front of the system (not hidden away underneath like something shameful). It worked perfectly right out of the box. The system also has a 32MB video card, something a little unusual in such a small laptop. The dedicated video can easily handle day to day tasks (of course), and is beefy enough to tackle most games on the market now (July 2004). I imagine that it will not cut the mustard with 3D games for very long (32MB is certainly on the low end of video ram), but I shouldn't think that many people will buy this computer to play games.
All in all, this is a great choice for students or executives who want a stylish, powerful computer to take with them on the road (In fact, it has some sort of proprietary monitor-switching technology for presentations, but I haven't tried it out yet). It's very versatile for a superportable computer, so DVDs and gaming are certainly not out of the question.

PROS
- Very stylish and sleek looking
- Superb display
- Tiny
- Has dedicated video RAM
- Intelligently laid out (this is a huge point with me - all the ports are in useful places)
- AC adapter is small and has a cool glowing light which will impress the kind of people who like glowing lights
- Has a mute button (the speakers are OK, about what you'd expect from a laptop)
- Flawless wireless G integration
- Battery life seems pretty good

CONS
- Keyboard is bouncy and not too big (and requires Function keys for end, page down etc)
- Included software is pretty much useless (but about standard for PC laptops), and comes with various advertisements (Actually, there are a few amusing programs for digital photography and media sharing among many VAIOs, but these are not exactly a hot selling point)
- Some ports covered with plastic lids - this actually makes the system look very sleek when they're closed, but I'm afraid that they might break off at some point, and they're kind of in the way when you're hooking things up (this could be either pro or con, really).
- According to The Internet, Sony's customer service is not great, but I haven't had any problems yet and thus haven't had to contact them.

As a upcoming freshman, I was looking for a powerful laptop with Centrino, but one that was lightweight and with good battery life. I already owned the HP ZT3010us which was excellent but too heavy to carry, and purchased and returned an Apple PowerBook 12" (lightweight and I liked the Mac OS, but I missed XP oddly enough). I had decided that a 15" screen was too big but a 12" screen was too small, and I wanted something between 4 and 5 pounds: hello S150! Performance is excellent, as expected from a P-M 1.6GHz Dothan chip. I upped the RAM to 768MB (note the laptop uses MicroDIMM instead of standard notebook DIMM). The most impressive part is the XBRITE LCD; once you see it, you will never be able to use a regular LCD again: colors are vibrant and everything jumps out at you. Battery life on the unit is more than I imagined: with the brightness at 5/8 with WiFi enabled, music streaming to an Airport Express from iTunes, while browsing the web, I achieved 4 hours and 43 minutes before the battery gave out (this was with the regular battery--extended is on the way--double the runtime and total weight of the laptop and extende battery is 4.55 lbs). I got through LOTR 3 using WinDVD 6 and its Centrino enhanced profile and still had 23% left (again, screen at 5/8).

WiFi (802.11g) works flawlessly as well; the laptop works throughout my home using only the Airport Express base station.

The laptop is well-built, the screen is gorgeous, the keyboard is comfortable (takes some getting used to). All in all, the best laptop I have ever used (History: old Fujitsu, Toshiba Portege, Sony F series, Toshiba S5000 series, VPR Matrix 205, HP TC1000 Tablet, HP zt3010us, Apple PowerBook 12").

Across the line, Sony had redesigned or refreshed most of their laptop product line, and the online photos do not do them justice at all. I had to see this one in person before we could pull the trigger - and seeing it - it's a beautiful machine.

Searching for a replacement for my wife's Sony SRX-77 laptop (the Sony TR series computers seem to be the direct replacement model for that one) we found few laptops that met the requirement of low weight without breaking the bank. We came across the S Series. We thought we were getting a pretty basic laptop, but when we started using this, I now want to steal it from her - it's got great power, a beautiful screen, integrated wireless-g which is a big step up. . . this whole package is awesome. Haven't hit any major flaws yet. I personally don't like the mouse buttons, but that's really about it - we are very happy with this purchase.

Well, I needed an upgrade from my previous laptop, Sony R505GL, and wasn't planning to get anything soon. I was looking at the V505, but then this laptop suddenly caught my eyes. I wasn't even aware Sony made a widescreen this small! After further inspection, I decided to take the plunge and made the purchase.

After 2 week of usage, I have to say that I'm extremely satisfied with my decision. This laptop outdo my old one by a large margin. Mainly because it includes the integrated CD/DVD-Rom, instead of lugging around a docking station for access to one. On top of that, it has integrated WiFi supporting BOTH b and g! Now, the icing on the cake was this gorgeous 13.3 inch widescreen display with XBrite technology. The clarity and color is truly stunning. Everyone that took a glimpse at my laptop had to come back and take a closer look because the screen was so vibrant! Even now, I'm still not used to looking at a screen this outstanding (I'm scare to even touch it in case the vibrant color disappears!). The only drawback to the screen is that it is a little glossy, but you get use to it fairly quickly.

Another improvement I like from this laptop over my previous one was the keyboard. The right and left shift keys are the SAME!!! Yayyy!! No more mistyping because I hated using the left shift key. The two function keys (s1 and s2) are also extremely handy features because I use them to control brightness and volume at the touch of a button.

Probably another thing I don't like as well on this laptop is the lack of a jog dial like in my R505. I miss it dearly. The chrome mouse button was also kinda cheesy. I prefer it be black to match the style of the notebook. Also, wish there was an additional function key on the right side of the cursor keys because I used the PGUP and PGDN buttons a lot to scroll through pages.

Speed-wise, the laptop is quite responsive (especially after uninstalling all the unneeded software and disabling a bunch of services). It throttles more than my previous laptop (which only switched between 600 and 1200 Mhz) so battery life is noticeably longer. Heck, I was surfing the web, checked my emails, play a little game, and watched a whole DVD during school and still had about 10% of my battery life left by the end of the day. Very impressive!

I think the only other improvement that I could foreseen is the inclusion of Bluetooth, S-video out, more USB ports, and a JOG DIAL (bring it back Sony!!! Please!!). Oh, I also debated between this and the smaller TR-series but the TR was way too small. It's just not practical. Imagine staring at a 10 inch screen with high resolution for over 4 hours! Your eyes will pop out of its socket! The TR was more for show then practicality, so that's why I chose this one. So if you're looking for a small laptop that has widescreen and other extra, please consider this notebook. You won't be disappointed!

the sony vgn s150 is one great laptop its 13.3" x brite technology screen has the greatest resolution i have seen.The weight of the laptop and size (4.2lbs) are great for mobility. although the battery life is only 3 hours your can still set the s150 to where it can give you more batterylife. the processor will run a little bit slower and give you a little bit less quality on x brite screen. but, you can still get your five hour battery life.Overall the sony vgn s150 is one great notebook to have.

Pros: looks great, very light (even with battery inserted), memory stick slot, convenient if you have a sony camera or mp3 player

Cons: doesnt come with backup windows cds. It uses some vaio program that reinstalls original programs but is kinda annoying. Comes with Office 2003 but it is only a trial version, if you want to keep it after 60 days you have to buy the cd key. Touch screen is kinda glitchy, mouse connected to usb port doesnt repsond sometimes. Wifi connection isnt that strong.

Overall, i would recommend this product. If you can get the software free then i guess the first few problems dont concern you. No ps2 port but i guess no one really uses that anymore anyway. I just wish that sony would give their customers a little more in terms of software for $2000.

The new xbrite screen is much more impressive than I imagined. It is extremely bright and sharp, making pictures and video seem much more vivid than on other screens...while also allowing text to be more readable at higher resolutions.

My only complaint are the covered usb and networking ports. Although it is nice that dust and other crud won't get lodged into them when packing it around, it makes it difficult to connect larger usb devices like keychain storage or a wireless mouse.

Overall, it is hard to beat for style and functionality.

Guys & Gals,

You will make a big mistake if you don't purchase this laptop. Let me tell you, I've had IBM T42p for 3months and after I saw this laptop on sonystyle.com, I said "I gotta have this"... I went out to bestbuy store to take a look at one... This is one incredible machine, finally something that I can appreciate from SONY.

Well, I got it for $1500 from SONY dealer, I know...(don't say anything) Brought it home, did fresh install of xp pro, downloaded all the drives from sony support site (available 4 free) and started to configure this puppy... Let me tell you, this one kicked my t42p's asssss hardcore... no, seriously

I got 100gig hdd from seagate and I couldn't be more happy with this lappy... ohh, and 1gig of ram

Sweeeeeeeeet....

I love everything about this computer, except the loud and annoying fan. It sounds like a jet engine at times.

I bought a Powerbook 12" originally to act as my portable to the monster Vaio A190 essentially my desktop -A190 is way to big to carry on a plane. Powerbook had dead pixel, and returned it to CompUSA, needed a laptop for a business trip, but no Powerbooks available. Did not want to spring an extra 700 for the 15" superdrive powerbook (which is very nice), so decided to take the S150 with a plan to return it. Well... I decided to take the silly stickers (Pentium inside! Made for Windows XP!, etc) off yesterday as I have come to really enjoy using this laptop which basically burns my ability to return this laptop. Despite the Windows XP, lack of iLife, lack of superdrive, I like it. It works well despite Windows. Makes sense for me because it feels like the shorter sexier sibling of my monster A190 (like Paris Hilton's sister who you never see anymore). Battery life is exceptional compared to previous corporate laptops I've owned. Widescreen is nice. Wireless works despite Windows XP trying to muck things up. Sony does for a Wintel laptop what it does for Palm OS handhelds -takes them beyond their shortcomings and limitations. If Sony ever licensed Apple OSX, that would be a machine worth buying.

So...I can't make movies as easily as I could with iMovie/iDVD. But the A190 is clearly adequate, and all works with my Sony digital video camera. The PC card slot is clearly a plus as the Powerbook 12" does not have one. I use a 2gB PC card drive to transfer work from home to work to laptop.

Also, the upgrade to XP SP2 has so far gone without a hitch which did not on my A190 (took 2 hours to get wireless to work again).

Summary: Equivalent to Powerbook 12" in terms of overall satisfaction

Pros: Xbrite screen is pure eye candy, works seamlessly in my workflow between office desktop, home A190 slabtop, and S150, Office 2003 works fine, am being productive on the road.
Cons: Sony service does blow, Apple's is clearly superior in everyway. No iLife, no superdrive, 4 port iLink inferior to 6 port Firewire. Ports hidden in flip down tabbed covers which will break off -very very cheap. Keyboard is weak and bouncy as noted above.

Give and take.
Having iTunes is okay. iDrive can be mapped. Sony's photo program is superior to the earlier iPhoto which I had running on my iBook. Sony products still cheaper than high end Apple products (iBooks are cheaper, but am tired of the kitchen appliance white)

And who keeps a Windows laptop for more than 2 years? There will be a cool running G5 laptop or tablet type device when I get tired of this S150.