Sony VAIO PCG-GRX570 Laptop (1.6-GHz Pentium 4, 512 MB RAM, 40 GB hard drive)

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Product Details

Product Manual [1.81mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 14 x 1.8 inches ; 8.4 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 8.4 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000065UPT
• Item model number: PCG-GRX570
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,761 in Computers & PC Hardware (See Bestsellers in Computers & PC Hardware)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: April 4, 2002

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description
If you're in the market for a new notebook or thinking about updating that clunky old PC, Sony may have the solution. Big and powerful and packed with features, its Vaio GRX series of notebooks sports a level of performance not normally found in portable computers. Although heavier (8 pounds) and slightly more cumbersome (14 by 11.5 by 1.8 inches) than some of Sony's less capable notebooks, the GRX series is just as at home on a desktop as in an airplane or hotel room. The GRX570 model in particular offers a solid combination of price and performance and may well be the only computer you need.

From its speedy 1.6 GHz Intel Pentium 4 processor with enhanced SpeedStep technology to its generous 512 KB of Level 2 cache and massive 512 MB DDR of RAM, the GRX570 will burn through anything you can throw its way. But blazing-fast data processing is just part of the story. Graphically, the unit is built to please. Featuring a potent 32 MB AGP-enabled ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 graphics card and a gigantic 16.1-inch, high-resolution 1,600 x 1,200 UXGA TFT display (the same viewing area as most 17-inch CRT monitors), the GRX570 provides a wonderful visual environment in which to conduct business activities and play 3-D games. You may even want to watch a few movies or archive data and burn music CDs via the unit's internal removable CD-RW/DVD combination drive (24x/16x/10x CD-RW, 12x DVD).

Whatever you do, be assured the GRX570's removable 40 GB hard drive--one of the largest found in any retail notebook--is ready to handle all your applications and files. The system also includes a Memory Stick media slot for Memory Stick or MagicGate media, an optional 3.5-inch floppy disk drive, and space for two Type I or Type II PC Card slots. Connectivity is offered in the form of a bevy of ports, including an i.Link IEEE 1394 jack for fast data uploads from devices such as digital camcorders, three USB ports for plug-and-play peripherals, a TV-out and external monitor-out, a parallel port, microphone-in, and headphone jack. An internal V.90 modem delivers low-speed Web and e-mail access, and a 10Base-T/100Base-TX Ethernet interface supports high-speed surfing and LAN connectivity.

Pre-installed software includes Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition, Quicken 2002 New User Edition, Microsoft Word 2002, Adobe Photoshop Elements, and a broad range of audio, video, and still-image tools and utilities.

Product Description
Sony takes mobile computing to a new level with this PCGGRX570 laptop. It has the features you expect in a desktop squeezed into the compact, portable design of a laptop. A 1.6GHz Intel Pentium 4 processor, 512MB DDR SDRAM memory, and 40GB hard drive help you fly through your work. The 16.1M-^T UXGA screen gives you plenty of viewing area, while a 10BASE-T/100BASE-TX Ethernet port and V.90 modem keep you connected. ThereM-^Rs even a combo CD-RW/DVD drive to provide some entertainment.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Desktop Replacement, April 9, 2002

By	"ekiss71" (Bensalem, PA USA) - See all my reviews

Pros
* The 16.1" screen is beautiful.
* DVD movies look incredible.
* Performance is good, especially for games.
* Has 3 USB slots and 1394 port.
* Ethernet and modem built in
* 512 MB RAM and 32 MB VRAM standard
* I never use my desktop any more

Cons
* Heavy and bulky due to size of screen
* Needs wireless lan card to be built in. Currently I have to use a PC Card wirless and the antenna keeps banging into everything.
* Can't expand to 1 GB ( Ithink that this is a limitation of the Pentium 4M chipset
* Cannot upgrade the 'quick ship' GRX models to the 3 year warranty (The built to order GRX models sold through Sony have the 3 year warranty option). This is scary because both my previous Sony laptops needed repair at least once.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Impractical laptop, poor harddisk, June 15, 2002

By	Mr. Rahul R. Pandhe "Arianman" (Union City, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was impressed with the nice big screen. However after using for a few weeks I realized some of the impracticalities of this machine that some of you prospective buyers may want to know about.

The laptop is obviously good as per the features and the other reviews. However my experience will help some of the users to put the features in perspective and so I will focus on the negatives for this review. Please refer to other reviews for positive remarks. Combined you will have a good idea if you need this machine.

CONS:
1. Laptop is quite wide because of the big screen, so in domestic flights it was a pain to use it. Privacy is out of question as well!
2. Extremely noisy harddisk. May be its my machine only. But after sending twice for service, Sony support got back to me saying noise levels are normal harddisk operations. I use server side software for programming and it tends to write data to disk frequently. So get I guess I just have to get used to the constant crackling sound from the harddisk.
3. No InfraRed port for quick sync with Palm or other such devices. Ironically no serial port as well so you just cannot sync up a Palm with out additional USB device purchase.
4. 512MB is the maximum. For developers this will limit them in the future.
5. Jog Dial pretty useless with W2K.
6. Poor sound quality, CD does not operate unless system is booted, no hardware volume control so you have to struggle to reduce/increase the volume by software means.
7. No standard floppy drive.
8. The beautiful display does not work with other machines.

In summary, do not confuse your need to own a 16inch LCD with your laptop needs.
My recommendation:
1. Buy a good LCD monitor for about $500.
2. Buy any small foot print laptop with similar config. If you are a Sony fan, other Vaio models would be fine.

If you still want this one, consider following accessories:
1. USB 32MB flash memory as alternative to floppy drive.
2. USB InfraRed and Serial Port.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth every penny...., August 30, 2002

By	Russell J. Grasso (Massachusetts, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The GRX500 series machines are in a class by themselves. In my opinion, their large keyboard and screen size make them head and heals over competitor laptops. This can easily fill the role of being the only computer you need to own.

Sony's 16.1" TFT is a wonder, improving any graphic it displays. Graphics appear with more presence, ambience and continuity, making the TFT superior to CRT monitors. Simulators and games appear more realistic. Competitor TFTs are not as high of quality. DVD playback is obviously superior due to the larger screen, pre-empting some of us from having to buy a dedicated DVD player.

To give you an idea of what you can fit onto the standard 1600 x 1200 x 32 bit screen, consider the default-formatted Excel spreadsheet at 100% zoom with columns A through X and 57 rows visible!

I found the machine is usable on a plane despite its larger size. You would definitely appear more professional with this machine next to smaller laptops you see in meetings on conference tables.

The bundled software speaks to the superior audio and video output of this machine. The pute has terrific, blow you away sound (for a laptop, i.e. don't expect much bass) with its Yamaha sound card. The three USB ports are very considerately located on three different sides of the machine. Furthermore, there are much larger "wrist rest" areas than on other laptops, making it more comfortable ergonomically.

Cons:

1. As with several OEM putes, you do not get a bootable XP disk, so if you lose the drive, you must recover to day 1, unless you imaged the drive. I lost config.sys, and Sony said I needed to use the recover disks to get the pute back (and erase a perfectly good drive. However, if I had a MS XP setup disk, there is a utility to fix config.sys. Bottom line: image the drive if you get this pute after your customization.

2. Sony does not make or endorse a product which removes the inevitable fingerprints from the TFT screen.

3. Sony customer support is not always knowledgeable about the machine. For example, I asked if a USB floppy drive would be a bootable drive, the rep said no. In reality, I found the machine can boot off a USB floppy. (While I am on the subject, you should plan on eventually buying a USB floppy if you buy this machine for data exchange and drive image recovery. They are fairly affordable).

4. Sony's own VAIO system software windows are dwarfed on the default huge 1600 x 1200 screen, and they cannot be scaled up.

5. Sony does not appear to explain their audio/visual port specifications and how their power management system operates in concert with MS Windows XP power management.

6. The large adapter outputs 19.2 volts, an uncommon voltage.