WHAT'S HOT: Digital-video specialists can get work done on the run with Sony's VAIO R505 JSP SuperSlim Pro. At 3.8 pounds (not including the AC adapter) and 1 inch tall, it's easy to tote wherever the action takes you. The truckload of basic photo- and video-editing software Sony includes with all its notebooks lets you create minor masterpieces in transit, and a 30GB hard drive offers more than enough space to store them. Sony tops it off with two USB ports, an IEEE 1394 port, and a Memory Stick slot for quick data exchanges.

In addition to a traditional touchpad, this model also features Sony's alternative pointing device, the Jog Dial, which is conveniently centered between the mouse buttons instead of in its usual spot on the right side of the case. Rolling the small plastic barrel with an index finger scrolls through menus; pressing it makes a selection. We could see how, with practice, we might eventually prefer it over the touchpad for most of our pointing work.

WHAT'S NOT: The SuperSlim lasted 2 hours, 31 minutes on one battery charge--not bad for an ultraportable, but still a half hour shy of the 3-hour average for all laptops we've tested. But unlike other ultraportables, the SuperSlim has a fixed battery, and gives you no way to stretch that battery life by adding a second power pack or replacing the main battery with a more powerful one. The 30GB hard drive isn't user accessible--an unfortunate limitation because it can store a lot of data, but you can't lock it away for security.

The SuperSlim follows traditional legacy-light ultraportable design, with no internal media bays or parallel, serial, or PS/2 connections. It's not unusual to have to buy a docking station to add these features, but Sony's 1.9-pound SlimDock is a bit disappointing. The drives it adds--in the $599 version we looked at, a floppy drive as well as an 8X DVD-ROM and 8X/4X/24X CD-RW combination drive--are fixed, and it doesn't include any speakers. Its arrangement contrasts with that of most ultraportable docking stations, which offer modular bays so you can add a battery and beef up the notebook's puny speakers with a better set.

WHAT ELSE: The stylish SuperSlim boasts a silverish-purple lid, a light-purple keyboard, and bright-purple touchpad and mouse buttons. The battery--a long, thick power pack that forms the back edge--gives the notebook a modest foot. All the connections are on the sides, including a monitor connection tucked neatly under a small door on the left. The SuperSlim's 12.1-inch screen is small but readable, and the keyboard is better than those on most other ultraportables. It has a somewhat shallow feel and cramped mouse buttons, but all the command keys are plenty big, and we didn't even mind using combination keystrokes to page up and down, because we could do it with one hand. With the SlimDock attached, the SuperSlim is still pretty compact: a reasonable 1.5 inches at the screen hinges, and 7.2 pounds including the AC adapter and phone cord.

Aside from adding missing legacy connections, a floppy drive, and an optical drive, the SlimDock offers another USB port (for a total of three) and a second IEEE 1394 port. A drop-down door cover protects all of its rear connections and clearly identifies them with both icons and text labels. The SuperSlim's simple, softbound manual is nothing fancy, but it covers all the basics. The SuperSlim earned a PC WorldBench 4 score of 78, about what we expect from a laptop with an 850-MHz/700-MHz Pentium III CPU and 256MB of RAM.

UPSHOT: Digital photographers or videographers on the move will appreciate the SuperSlim's compact size, many connections, and software bundle. Others looking for a small laptop without the multimedia applications should consider Fujitsu's LifeBook S Series or NEC's Versa TXi, each also around 3.5 pounds but with an internal bay, so you don't need a docking station.

SUMMARY

Sony VAIO R505 JSP SuperSlim Pro PC WorldBench 4 score of 78, 850-MHz/700-MHz Pentium III CPU, 256MB of SDRAM, 256KB L2 cache, Windows XP Professional, 12.1-inch active-matrix screen, integrated Intel I815 graphics chip with UMA, 30GB hard drive, 8X DVD-ROM and 8X/4X/24X CD-RW combination drive (included with docking station), built-in Soft 56 modem and network adapter, touchpad pointing device, 7.2 pounds (including docking station, AC adapter, and phone cord). One-year parts and labor warranty, free 24-hour unlimited toll-free technical support. $2599 888/315-7669 www.sony.com/vaio