Sony VAIO PCGTR1A Centrino Notebook Computer (Sony-PCGTR1A)

• Reviewed by: artherstrasse

  Strengths: size, display, quicker than I expected

  Weaknesses: Sony, Sony, Sony

  Overall: Lousy service, if something breaks its a throwaway (have to buy the whole keyboard to replace a tiny spring that that fell off and could not be located), absurd battery replacement cost (more than double the iBook's cost for a battery with less life) , proprietary Sony parts and the software is not generic Windows. This is a great machine as long as its running and you don't need to ever update the OS or any hardware. Then its a throwaway. Ours was replaced with an iBook and the Sony has not been turned on for almost a year.

• Reviewed by: kentonnewby

  Strengths: Small size, great display, built-in wireless networking ability, still comes with all standard connections (USB, Firewire, Ethernet) even though it's so small. Long batter life.

  Weaknesses: Standard office suite is weak (MS Works), only 30GB HDD, only 900MHz processor (but works suprisingly well), no floppy drive.

  Overall: I got this laptop as a replacement for my other Sony Vaio laptop that mysteriously died on my (no power to main board). It could not be fixed, but I got reimbursed for it and ended up with this beauty instead. This is a great laptop and does everything I need it to...email, music, WWW, word processing, etc. and does so VERY well. I was quite surprised that the 900MHz processor works so well, but I haven't had any problems with it in terms of speed. I love the fact that this laptop is so small since my other one boasted a 16.1 inch screen and was a beast to carry around when traveling. This one is light as a feather...about 3-4 lbs I think, but check the specs to be sure. I wouldn't suggest this for someone who wants to use it for heavy-duty gaming though, again, because of the specs. Same goes for those with poor vision or larger hands since it's so small. Probably best to find one on display at a local store and see how it looks and how well you'd be able to type on it before purchasing. I don't have too much of a problem with it and I have large hands, for whatever that's worth. A definite buy overall!