Sony's Vaio K Series ergnomically designed notebooks combine entry-level affordability with versatile multimedia and communications power. The eye-catching PCG-K27 features a gently slanted full-sized keyboard that provides a comfortable hand and wrist position. The enhanced widescreen format LCD lets you take full advantage of watching DVD moviews as well as view side-by-side page layouts. The K27 features an integrated 802.11b/g wireless LAN, 15.4-inch screen, 60 GB hard drive, combo DVD+/-RW drive, 2.8 GHz processor, and 512 MB of installed RAM. It also comes with Sony's Vaio Creation suite of multimedia applications.
The Basics
- Hard Drive: Though not world-beating in size, the 60 GB enhanced-IDE hard drive offers more than enough capacity for storing documents and productivity software for road warriors.
- Processor: The 2.8 GHz Pentium 4 processor is one of the fastest processors currently available on the notebook market--a definite plus for a video-centric PC. It also has a 512 KB L2 cache and a 533 MHz front-side bus speed.
- Memory: The 512 MB of built-in memory is a good start for power users. It has two memory slots in total, with a maximum memory expansion up to 1 GB (2 x 512 MB).
- CD/DVD Drive: It is equipped with a combo DVD+/-RW and CD-RW drive. For DVD+R discs, it has a 2.4x write and 4x read speeds. For DVD-R discs, it has a 4x read/write speed. For CDs, it has a 16x write/8x rewrite/24x read speed.
- Keyboard & Mouse: This notebook has an 86-key keyboard and electro-static touch pad.
Sound and Graphics The K25 features ATI IGP 345M graphics card with 64 MB of shared video memory (meaning that memory is taken from the PC's main RAM). It has a maximum resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. Sony's exclusive XBRITE LCD technology delivers ultra crisp and super bright graphics. It also has an AC'97 sound card that's integrated into the main board, and comes with two built-in stereo speakers.
Connectivity and Expansion Slots
The K25 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 decent--but not overpowering--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) ports 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).
Preloaded System and Software
This K25 comes with the Windows XP Home Edition operating system, and it features Microsoft Works 7.0 (for working with word processing and spreadsheet documents). It's also loaded with Sony's Vaio Creative suite of multimedia applications, which includes PictureGear Studio (digital photo), SonicStage (digital music), Sony MovieShaker, DVGate Plus (digital video), VAIO Media (network file sharing), and Click to DVD (for burning DVD discs). Other preloaded titles include a 60-day trial of Microsoft Office, Quicken 2004, Norton Internet Security (with 90-day trial subscription), InterVideo WinDVD, and a 90-day trial of AOL.
Dimensions and Weight
Measuring 14 x 1.6-2.2 x 10.9 inches and weighing 8.04 pounds (with battery), the K25 won't load you down, thought its size and weight aren't for the ultimate road warrior.
Power
The K25 comes with the PCGA-BP2NY rechargeable lithium ion battery; it has an estimated battery life of 1.5 to 3.0 hours.
What's in the Box
This package contains the Sony Vaio PCG-K25 notebook PC, rechargeable lithium-ion battery, AC adapter, and operating instructions.
The Sony VAIO K25 is equipped with wireless and multimedia features that take you from work day to movie night with ease.Watch movies come to life with the enhanced 15.4" WXGA LCD screen with XBRITE Technology. And with the DVD•À?RW drive, you'll even be able to create, edit and burn your own DVDs. The integrated wireless capabilities of the Sony VAIO K25 ensure that you can stay connected wherever you happen to go. This notebook is perfect for those with both work and play in mind.
1 Great Monitor, Not Great Computer
First off, the monitor is absolutely stunning.
On the more substantial, i bought the item in August and by September, I was getting the "Blue Screen of Death" on a regular basis. Technical Support was not much help. Of course, I realized this was more than just the new computer adjusting and by the time i brought it back to the store i bought it from, the 30 days ran out, so i had to ship my machine back to Sony.
They fixed it fine and in less than 10 days, but 30 days later, I was beginning to have spotty network issues and the cd/dvd drive died completely. After many hours on the phone with tech support, i am once again without my very expensive laptop for the second time in the five months since ive owned it.
When it works it is fine, but i would not recommend this computer because it has too many problems (i have since discovered many of the unhappy sony vaio owners) and you can get a decent computer for several hundred dollars less.
if they offered me a refund, or to buy me a lower end version of a Mac or even a Dell, i would take it in a minute.
2 look for private sellers
Buyers watch out for private sellers
There are a lot of private sellers trying to rip you off .prices look cheap when you send the money you wont get the product or your money back.
Look for the specific items that scammers try to do:
1. Look at the seller's id they look like some what irrelevant. Example (amazon_cheap)(Sony_Amazon)
2. Look at the sellers rating it says just launched because the sellers like to create many e mails as they can.
3. In the sellers comments they will say like "please contact me before buying. Otherwise I won't send you the item".
4. When you send the e mail to them they will say "we are a small company in Romania or UK or Spain trying to evolve to sell outside the country". They will say send money through western union. When I get the money you will get the notebooks with in 2 business days.
5. They will send detailed sellers address where to send the money western union (Spain). I said "I know the address in Spain can I come and pay to that address" he said "I will do only through online" this is cheater.
When you send money through western union you won't get your money back.
Escrow and Amazon secure payment are the trusted payment.
I got an e mail from a seller he said "I will get transaction only through Amazon secure payment. I thought he was good seller. Next e mail he wrote "tell me your complete address I will forward the address to Amazon" I gave him my address .
With in 1 day I got a e mail from "Amazon secure payment" from address looked like it was from Amazon, but when I clicked on reply the to address said "(something@yahoo.com) it was not a e mail from Amazon in that message it said Amazon wants you to make payment through western union. I wrote the email to Amazon they said we will not allow any one to pay through Amazon these are fake e mails trying to rip peoples money.
3 Great Laptop for Its Price!
I use my laptop at least 3 to 4 hours a day, and regularly travel between work, home, and school. I just bought this laptop and really enjoy the speed and large screen it affords. The built-in wireless network card works well, and has an "off" switch so you can turn it off when you aren't using it.
My only caveat is that the backlight for the LCD died after only 11 days of use and had to have it replaced. I haven't had any problems several months later, and am still satisfied. I've played games (though not the latest releases), developed software, and run office applications successfully on this machine.
4 Just got one on 8/1/04
Nothing screwy so far. The X-brite screen really stands out and makes everything so much sharper.
I use it 12+ hours a day, with alot of burning DVD's and editing.
I opted for the K-25 over the K-27 because it is essentialy the same but 2-3 hundred more for the CPU.
My only complaint is the ports are not covered, my old Grx series had "flaps" that covered the USB/Firewire/etc... to keep out dust and debris.
...
