Sony VAIO PCG-K35 15.4" Laptop (Mobile Intel Pentium 4 Processor 532, 512 MB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, DVD+/-RW Drive)

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Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 14.1 x 10.9 x 2.2 inches ; 8 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 13 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000625D8G
• Item model number: PCG-K35
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,883 in Computers & PC Hardware (See Bestsellers in Computers & PC Hardware)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 24, 2004

Product Description

Amazon Product Description
Sleekly styled and comfortably ergonomic, Sony's K Series notebooks offer affordable, all-purpose portability for home computing, home office needs, and students. The PCG-K33P balances your productivity and entertainment needs, with an integrated 54G wireless LAN to keep you connected inside and outside your home and a suite of preloaded Sony multimedia applications for managing your digital audio and photo collections. It also comes with a double layer DVD+/- RW drive that can burn both DVDs and CDs. Other features include a 15.4-inch screen, 80 GB hard drive, 512 MB of installed RAM, and a Memory Stick slot.

The PCG-K35 features a 15.4-inch WXGA widescreen display that is perfectly tailored to the aspect ratio favored by DVD movies.

The Basics Hard Drive: The 80 GB hard drive is larger than the average notebook's, enabling road warriors more than enough capacity for storing documents, digital media files, and productivity software. Processor: The 3.06 GHz Mobile Intel Pentium 4 is a powerful processor that was designed to be used with notebooks used as a desktop replacement PC. It includes Intel's Enhanced SpeedStep technology, which helps cut the power used by the chip and conserves battery power. It has a front-side bus (FSB) of 533 MHz and a 1 MB L2 cache. Memory: The 512 MB of installed RAM (2 x 256 MB, PC2100, 266 MHz DDR SDRAM) has become standard with notebooks, and it's a good start. But you'll want to take advantage of the 1 GB expandability to get the most out of this computer. CD/DVD Drive: The PCG-K35 offers the latest in DVD writing technology with a that's compatible with DVD+R dual-layer discs. Double-layered DVD+R discs can store up to 8.5 GB of data and can be written at 2.4x speed. It's also compatible with standard DVD+R/RW and DVD-R/RW discs (which can be written at 8x and rewritten at 4x). You can write and rewrite CDs at 24x. Keyboard & Mouse: This notebook has a standard 86-key keyboard with electrostatic touchpad.

Sound and Graphics The included ATI Radeon IGP 345M video/graphics card provides competent, but not overpowering, 3D graphics. It features 64 MB of shared video memory. This is taken from the main system memory, so you'll want to increase your RAM from the installed 512 MB if you plan on doing much gaming or video work. The enhanced widescreen format function (1280 x 800 pixels) lets you watch DVDs in full cinema mode as well as easily view spreadsheets and Web browsers side-by-side. It also offers an integrated audio card, built-in speakers, A/V connection out, and the ability to drive an external monitor.
	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

Connectivity and Expansion Slots
This PCG-K35 model has an integrated 802.11g wireless LAN (which is compatible with the more widespread 802.11b and offers faster data transmission rates). You get a standard offering of connectivity options, including both high-speed USB 2.0 and FireWire:

• 3 USB 2.0 ports for connecting a wide range of peripherals--from digital cameras to MP3 players
• 1 FireWire (also known as IEEE 1394 or i.Link) port for connecting digital video camcorders and other peripherals
• 1 VGA monitor port
• 1 PCMCIA (or PC Card) slot (Type I/II)
• 1 headphone jack and 1 microphone jack
• 1 Memory Stick slot (Memory Stick Pro compatible)

It also has an integrated 56K modem (V.90) and an RJ-45 LAN network port (for a 10/100 Ethernet connection to networks and DSL/cable modems). It also has a hot-swappable bay for adding an optional optical drive or second battery."

Preloaded System and Software This notebook comes with the Windows XP Home Edition, and it features Microsoft Works 8.0 (for working with word processing and spreadsheet documents). It also is loaded with a bevy of Sony multimedia software: PictureGear Studio (digital photo), SonicStage (digital music), Vaio Media (network file sharing, Click to DVD (DVD burning), and DVgate Plus (digital video). Other preloaded software includes Microsoft Money and Encarta, InterVideo WinDVD, and Norton Internet Security Center (with 90-day subscription). Dimensions and Weight Measuring 1.6-2.2 x 14.1 x 10.9 inches (H x W x D) and weighing 8.2 pounds, the PCG-K35 is bit larger than other notebooks in its range. It's best used as a desktop replacement while offering portability when you need it. Power The included rechargeable lithium-ion battery (PCGA-BP2NY) offers an average battery life range of 1.5 hours (depending on usage).

The PCG-K35 features a full suite of software applications, including SonicStage, which enables you to listen to, manage, and transfer your music library.

What's in the Box
This package contains the Sony Vaio PCG-K35 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
Includes: lithium-ion battery, AC adapter, power cord, Microsoft Windows XP Home, Quicken 2005 New User Edition, Works 8.0, WinDVD, Norton Internet Security, & more. Sony PCG-K35 VAIO(R) Notebook PC - This eye-catching notebook computer is packed with powerful features that will make your mobile computing experience more productive, and more entertaining. Increase productivity with the powerful Mobile Intel Pentium 4 Processor 532 (3.06GHz) and 512MB of PC2100 DDR SDRAM. Combined, they give you the speed to handle nearly any task and application. When work is done, you can sit back and enjoy a DVD movie on the impressive 15.4" LCD. Its widescreen format is perfect for DVD viewing. LCD Native Resolution - 1280 x 800 80GB HDD ATI Radeon IGP 345M graphics with 64MB of shared video memory (memory is taken from the main system) Double Layer DVD Writer - up to 2.4x DL DVD+R, 8x DVD+R, 8x DVD-R, 4x DVD+RW, 4x DVD-RW, 24x CD-R, & 24x CD-RW 56k v.90 Fax Modem Windows Sound System with 2 built-in speakers Memory Stick Media Slot - supports Memory Stick(R) & Memory Stick(R) PRO 1 Type I/II PC Card Slot with CardBus support Ports - 10/100 Ethernet, VGA Monitor Out, Monaural Mini Microphone, Headphone, 1 FireWire, 3 USB 2.0, & 1 Parallel

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not recommended at all, freezes after hibernation, December 22, 2004

By	Raul Saavedra (Caracas, Venezuela) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Last Friday I went ahead and purchased a Vaio PCG-K35 from BestBuy. The screen is really great, and they had 24 months no interest plan to pay the $1350 after rebates. That all sounded like a good deal back then...

The Vaio K35 froze on me the first day after sending the notebook to hibernation. Needless to say I started testing how it did with hibernation/standby. The freeze didn't happen always, but it happened close to half the times it came from hibernation, never from standby it seems. I made sure the BIOS was not doing any power management, just Windows. Even the VAIO Power Management was disabled inside windows power management control panel. Also, I had the lattest drivers from Vaio Update. Still, it was freezing some times after hibernation.

Installed Windows XP Pro + Service Pack 2 + All the Vaio Drivers and Updates, and still the same thing. It didn't happen always, but yesterday night it froze again coming back from hibernation. Enough for me.

This morning I took the notebook to Bestbuy in the frozen state actually, so they could see it. The technician's verdict: "There's no mechanical problem, this is Microsoft's fault, the laptop is within Sony specifications." There was no appeal to this incompetent verdict despite my several attempts. I've used IBM notebooks for a long time at work, with no hibernation problem. And my brother has a Vaio S260 that so far doesn't have that problem. Microsoft had no problem with hibernation, at least not with other laptops. *This* laptop had the problem. In fact, later on I received an email from Sony indicating "According to the information you have provided, it appears that your Vaio will require service". But this I got after returning it to BestBuy. According to this "geek squad" technician, this wasn't a hardware failure. So far I'm being charged the restocking fee, but I'm planning to litigate that through BBB (Better Business Bureau).

These Vaios have a nice screen, but basicaly that's it. Battery doesn't last too long, just one hour watching a DVD. Fan is a bit noisy, and the laptop freezes whenever it feels like after hibernation. Definitely not recommended.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sony's desktop replacement a gem, May 20, 2005

By	Scooter McGee (Palm Beach, Florida) - See all my reviews

this laptop computer has faced many harsh reviews but I am not one such critic. The screen is unbelievable and people must remember that this laptop is meant to be a desktop replacement, not a super-portable laptop. It is super fast and has great versatility. The 3.067 ghz processor allows maximum speed and connectivity. This is an overall great machine and offers all the best inputs and accessories that are big on the market today, standard. 80 gb hard drive as well as more than half a gig of ram. Sony Vaio pcg-k35 is a great machine for all around home and student use in college!!!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars frustatedsonylaptopuser, July 14, 2005

By	johns "buyer@amazon" (Atlanta USA) - See all my reviews

I bought this laptop recently and i had enough problems .. My laptop recently crashed for a silly reason.. it went into recovery mode never to come back.. I had no recovery dsk (The recovery disk prepation failed... never y got thru. Called sony support waited for 25 mins.. talked to the person.. who was more interested in taking down my laptop model number,bill etcc. never bothered abt my problem... They asked me to buy a Recovery Disk for $25.. or send it to sony for service.. which would take more than 15 days.. I lost all my data and I had nowhere to go..
I repaired the laptop myself.. All i had to do was to erase the sony partition.. everything worked fine..
My DVD writer is not working.. it says "power calibration error" . I learned it is a known problem with the DVD writer that came with this model.. not usable
The batttery life is awful.. it only stands for 15 mins... no use for a laptop ...
The "weight".. Too heavey to carry around.. Loose your shoulder.
The "HEAT".. The laptops are supposed to "LAP" friendly.. i cannot use this laptop sitting on my couch.. it boils my thighs ..
The "NOISE" the laptop creates enough noice for u to get distrubed.. i usually do some logic progrmming at nights very calm... now with this laptop;s noise i cannot do it anymore..

I putting this on ebay for sale..
NEVER BUY THIS MODEL