Sony VAIO PCG-K37 15.4" Laptop (Intel Pentium 4 Processor 538, 1 GB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW Double Layer Drive)

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Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 14.1 x 10.9 x 2.2 inches ; 8.2 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 13 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0002YAUOU
• Item model number: PCG-K37
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,631 in Computers & PC Hardware (See Bestsellers in Computers & PC Hardware)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 17, 2004

Product Description

Amazon Product Description
The Basics
A superb portable computer for businessmen on the move, the Sony VAIO PCG-K37 will crunch numbers and data faster than the vast majority of desktops yet won't break your back when you cart it from place to place. Its 3D graphics speed is not exceptional, nor is it recommended for anyone who requires extremely long battery life. Yet at this price point and with this level of raw speed, the VAIO PCG-K37 is a solid buy for the power user.

The PCG-K37 features a 15.4-inch WXGA widescreen display that is perfectly tailored to the aspect ratio favored by DVD movies.

Processor At the heart of any computer lies the CPU (or processor), a massive collection of miniature transistors that governs the speed and power of the entire unit. Some notebooks are equipped with high-end CPU's on par with those found in top-of-the-line desktop PCs, while others are quick enough only for basic duties such as word processing, email and the like. The VAIO PCG-K37 is on the top end of the scale, equipped with a blazing 3.2 GHz Intel Pentium 4 538 processor. It's important to note that the overall performance of any computer is also influenced by the speed and quantity of its memory and the quality of it graphics card. And as you'll see, Sony has effectively dealt with the former but somewhat neglected the latter.

Memory Computers typically store information on their hard drive, but they keep frequently and recently accessed data in Random Access Memory (RAM) for faster retrieval. More RAM means more efficient computing, superior multitasking and less strain on your hard drive. The VAIO VAIO PCG-K37 incorporates a startling one GB of RAM. This is a massive allotment for any notebook and substantially more than that of most desktops as well. Thusly, users can expect superb multitasking and virtually no slowdowns even during ultra-complex tasks.
	Sony VAIO PCG-K37 3.20 GHz Pentium 4 1 GB RAM 80 GB HD	Sony VAIO PCG-K35 3.067 GHz Pentium 4 512 MB RAM 80 GB HD	Sony VAIO PCG-K33 3.20 GHz Pentium 4 512 MB RAM 60 GB HD

Video
CPU's are usually so busy doing basic calculations that they need help translating visual output to the viewing screen. This is the duty of the graphics card (or graphics controller), which in this case is an ATI Radeon IGP 345M with 64 MB of "shared" video memory. Dedicated video memory is preferable to "shared" video memory (where the graphics controller appropriates a portion of the main system memory), because it takes much more of the load from the processor and thus frees it to handle other tasks. Nevertheless, this system's processor is so powerful that the lack of a high-end video controller isn't as essential as it otherwise might be. Demanding 3D games and 3D animation may cause the graphics to bog down somewhat, but most everything else should look quite smooth.

Display
The VAIO PCG-K37's 15.4-inch WXGA display may be smaller than the 17-inch monsters found in today's top-of-the-line models, yet it's larger than that of most notebooks and even some desktops. Furthermore, its widescreen format is perfectly tailored to the aspect ratio favored by DVD movies. It's highly sophisticated too -- sporting Sony's new XBRITE Technology for better contrast and a brighter picture, and a crisp 1280 by 800 maximum resolution.

Hard Disk
At a spacious 80 GB, the enclosed hard drive is a welcome perk for those who need to operate a broad range of applications and also keep a large library of space-gobbling music and/or multimedia files.

Optical Drive
An optical drive is essential in today's computing environment. A "CD-ROM" drive allows you to install CD-based applications and play music CDs. A "CD-RW" drive adds CD "burning", so you can also backup your important files to long-lasting discs and create personalized music CDs. With a DVD-ROM drive you can watch DVD movies. And with a DVD-RW drive, you can "write" home movies to durable discs and archive files to DVD (DVDs boast more than seven times the storage capacity of a CD). Some drives allow you to do a combination of all of these tasks. This system features a DVD+R Double Layer/DVD±RW Drive, through which you can do all of the above. The drive also supports today's hot new double layer DVD format that utilizes discs with double the capacity of traditional DVDs.

Audio
The unit is equipped with high-grade speakers and a powerful audio amplifier.

Keyboard and Controls
You'll control your notebook via an 82-key keyboard and a standard electro-static touch pad.

Connectivity and Expansion The VAIO PCG-K37 features a bevy of connectivity facilities, including a 56K modem for low-speed dial-up Internet and email access, a 10BASE-T/100BASE-TX Ethernet port for high-speed wired network and Internet, and an integrated wireless connection for cord-free e-communication at home, at the office or on the road via a local public hotspot. Other key amenities include high-speed USB 2.0 ports for plug and play devices such as external drives and digital cameras, an IEEE 1394 FireWire port (commonly used for quick data uploads from digital camcorders), and Sony's usual high-end array of audio and video ins and outs. Operating System and Software Sony has fitted the system with Microsoft's Windows XP Home Edition operating system, a variety of productivity and business applications, and a broad range of digital photo, audio and video utilities.

The PCG-K37 features a full suite of software applications, including SonicStage, which enables you to listen to, manage, and transfer your music library.

Dimensions and Weight
Many of today's most powerful notebooks are also the largest, weighing ten or twelve lbs or more and definitely too big and cumbersome for extensive, continuous traveling. These are often referred to as "desktop replacements". On the other extreme are "thin and lights" or "ultra-portables", super-miniaturized units that are typically less powerful than their larger brethren but weigh as little as two lbs and will often fit comfortably inside a large purse. Despite its impressive power, the VAIO PCG-K37 tips the scales at just 8 pounds. It is, however, rather hefty at 14.1 by 2.2 by 10.9 inches.

What's in the Box
This package contains the Sony Vaio PCG-K37 notebook PC, rechargeable lithium-ion battery, AC adapter, and operating instructions. It's backed by a 1-year warranty for parts and labor, and 1 year of toll-free phone support.

Product Description
Get everything you need out of the VAIO K37 notebook. Its versatility combines the technology you need for workday survival with the essential features to keep you entertained at home or on the road. With a large hard drive and high memory, the K37 functions as your mobile office computer, while the DVD+R Double Layer/DVD+-RW Drive and Sony multimedia software ensures you can share, edit and burn movies, songs and pictures to CD or DVD.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A nice laptop, December 4, 2004

By	King Tut (Texas, USA) - See all my reviews

After searching among the large amount of choices on the market, I found the Sony K37 to have right mix of performance, features, and price. I was sold on two things in this laptop First it has the best picture/screen among other brands on the shelf, and the 1 Gig of Ram. Add to that the Pentium 3.2 HT processor with 533 front side bus, large 80 Meg hard drive, very fast wireless B/G adaptor even though my router is an old Linksys 11 Meg B standard, and the dual layer 8X +/- DVD writer, the rest of the specs are large 15.4 brilliant screen, full size keyboard, 56K Modem, 1 Fire wire 1394, 3 USB 2, Ethernet adaptor, 1 A/V out, Microphone in, Audio out, and a lot of multimedia and authoring software.

Set up is a breeze, the laptop is unpacked, hooked, and run in 5 minutes, you better have things to do right away. Performance is more than adequate when I run Macromedia's Dreamweaver and Fireworks applications, Microsoft Excel, Word, few browser windows, and Outlook email at the same time.

Here are few complains; AC adaptor is bulky, tiny printed user guide with all instructions and help files online, no recovery or software disks included, but instead the recovery files is saved on a special partition on the hard drive and you need to create the recovery media yourself using the provided utility, one blank DVD and one blank CD-R, battery life under 2 hours, hard drive speed is only 4200 RPM, the 2100 DDR-Ram speed is only 266 Mhz, and finally the video memory is shared with the default being 64 Meg(user configurable to 32,64, or 128 Meg through the BOIS), but with 1 Gig of Ram, sharing won't disappoint.

A word about Hyper Threading or HT processor, while it is a promising technology for tomorrow's fast memory and HT aware software, for today's user there is a little gain. First, HT was developed with the faster Rambus memory in mind - currently at 1066 speed, but for the slower DDR-RAM system the speed-up will be modest. Second, it will be a long time before software written or rewritten to take advantage of the HT. For now, most benchmark has showed little or no improvements over the non HT processor.

That been said, in the end of the day this is a handsome, quite, and fulfilling notebook for under $1,600.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Battery Failure, July 12, 2005

By	L. Park - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

After less than 3 months of use, the battery of my Vaio PCG-K37 died. I contacted Sony and they told me that the warranty on the battery was only 30 days and that I should buy a new battery. New battery cost me $200.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a machine!, January 19, 2005

By	T. G. Weaver - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Very powerful and versatile machine with immense capacity and effortless operation. It was out of the box and working witin five minutes. All Sony-installed software works fine. You don't really need a whole gigabyte of RAM and an 80 gigabyte hard drive on a laptop-but you don't really need a Mercedes, either!

Highly recommended!