The application 3DMark05 was run on the VAIO FJ to test graphics performance, as expected the score was very low, gaming notebooks such as the Dell XPS2 will score in the range of 4,000 and above, the VAIO FJ with its integrated graphics did not.Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3 0647EBV laptop battery
3DMark05 Score: 199 ASUS G72GX battery
Battery
With a thin-and-light you hope that the battery is good enough to get you 4 -- 5 hours of life for those times you need to be on the go and mobile. That amount of battery life is wishful thinking with the FJ. Sony rates the included rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery as giving you between 1.5 -- 3.5 hours. That's a pretty wide range, in our tests here's what we found using the application Battery Eater Pro to get some benchmarks:Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3 0647EFV laptop battery
With notebook completely idle and screen at 50% brightness: 239 minutes (3h 59m)Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3 20039 laptop battery
With screen at full brightness and using notebook constantly: 76 minutes (1h 16m)You can get the lid in various colors such as blue, green, red, white or black. The model we're reviewing has an onyx black lid, which is really HP Pavilion dv5z battery
quite attractive and definitely what you'd want if looking for a more toned down professional look. The large silver VAIO lettering on the lid is distinctive and people will recognize the branding as being a Sony Electronics piece of equipment, for the style conscious that's a good thing.HP Pavilion dv6 battery
Wireless
Graphics Card: ATi Mobility RADEON x700 with 128MB DDR VRAM (Also available: GeForce Go6800 with 256MB GDDR3 VRAM)
Sony provides you with a built-in Intel PRO Wireless 2200BG card so you can connect to a nearby 802.11 b/g wireless access point. There's not much to say here other than the wireless worked well in tests. There's no fancy antenna extension into the screen like with some notebooks, but if you're within a 150ft of an access point and there's not too many obstructions in the way then you'll connect just fine. The 2200BG card is used in many a laptop and has proven a trusty component.Hp Pavilion dv6t battery
Software
The VAIO FJ170 comes with Windows XP Home, if you'd prefer Windows XP Pro then you'll need to get the VAIO FJ180. Here's a list of all the software you get included with the FJ:Dell F5608
The Click to DVD is a decent application for recording to DVD. The rest of the stuff is hit or miss and we could sure do without the ubiquitous AOL software, just another thing you'll have to remove.Dell D5540
Heat and Noise
This is an example of an image taken using the integrated VAIO FJ webcam, the quality is really quite good.
The raised mouse buttons are a nice size and easy to feel, no complaints there.Dell D5505
Screen: 17" WXGA+ (1440x900) standard matte (Also available: WSXGA+ (1650x1050) and available Ultrabright Glossy option)
Memory: 512MB DDR2 533 (2 x 256) Dual Channel (Maximum: 2GB)
Hard Drive: 60GB at 5400RPM (Also Available: 40, 80, and 100 GB at 5400RPM, and 60GB at 7200RPM TOSHIBA Satellite L745D Series laptop battery
The notebook itself has the following ports: 4x USB 2.0, 1x Firewire400, 1x S-Video out, 1x VGA-out 1x 10/100/1000 Ethernet LAN, 1x V.92 56k modem, 1x each Audio In/Out, 1x 4-in-1 card reader, and 1x Type II PCMCIA/CardBus32 slot. The USB ports are arranged 2 on each side, towards the back of the notebook. This provides a good position for use of an external mouse. The standard TOSHIBA Satellite L700 laptop battery
etter choice (especially for the modest price), as you would easily be able to fit two full windows on screen at once at that resolution, with the text remaining readable.SAMSUNG NT-RC530 laptop battery ,
Right side view, featuring the optical drive and 2 USB ports (view larger image Toshiba Satellite A660D laptop battery
Left side view, with CPU fan exhaust vent, Firewire port, S-Video out, and the other 2 USB ports.
While the keyboard does flex, it still provides for fast and easy typing (view larger image) TOSHIBA Satellite L745 laptop battery
Typing on this machine is fluid and the keys have good travel, despite the keyboard's excessive flex. I find myself making the fewest typos using this keyboard of any of my laptops, the sole exception being when I use the right "Shift" key. It is shortened substantially to make room for the arrow keys, and takes some getting used to.Sony VAIO PCG-R505 laptop battery ,
There are some odd choices of key placement, as well, namely the "Fn" key being left of the "Ctrl" key and the location of the "Del" and "Ins" keys above the "Backspace" key. The arrow keys are squished in pretty small, and the Function keys are compressed as well. Possibly the oddest thing, though, is that the "Print Screen" Toshiba PA3733U-1BAS
key is an Fn shortcut (Fn + Ins). The numeric keypad, on the other hand, is properly sized and laid out, and is very useful when entering serial numbers, registration codes, etc.Toshiba PA3733U-1BRS The touchpad is unremarkable, though I think the small, speed bump-style buttons are a bit too small to be easily found, and would have preferred larger buttons as on my Inspiron 9300 or 7422GX. It is otherwise like any other trackpad, with a single vertical scroll region and tapping features. It should be noted that the scrolling doesn't work with Firefox, but this can be remedied with a driver update. Toshiba PA3732U-1BAS
Touchpad view (view larger image)cause any "ripples" on the screen. The palm rests flex mildly, but the notebook's most notable flaw in this area is the keyboard: it has the worst flex of any keyboard I've used, bending down several keys surrounding the one you're striking by up to 2cm. The flex seems to get worse as you move towards Toshiba PABAS209
the left-hand side of the keyboard, but is generally not good all around. The touchpad also flexes a bit, although not nearly as badly as the keyboard. The flex doesn't impede typing, however, which is actually a Samsung AA-PLPN6LB ,relatively pleasant proposition. The PCMCIA port is covered by a spring-loaded door, which is a much better solution that an easily-lost plastic filler card, but there is nothing covering the 4-in-1 card reader or any other ports at all. And in a very pleasant departure from my Inspiron 9300, the "Intel Centrino" sticker is perfectly straight!SONY VGP-BPS20/B ,
The Z83v isn't a bad looking laptop itself (view larger image)Lenovo 42T4930
The size of the two laptops are very slim compared to other 17" laptops. The W2v is only 1.2" thick, and the Z83v being 1.5", and the weight of the W2v is what impresses me a lot. With the specifications as listed above for the W2v, it comes to a weight of 7.4 lbs, while the z83v comes at 8.3 lbs. Note that the lightest 17" before would have been the Dell i9300 at 8lbs. The W2v is about half a pound lighter!Lenovo 42T4931
The port replicator adds 4 more USB 2.0 ports, another FireWire port, a 9-pin serial port, an LPT port, a VGA-out, another S-video Lenovo 42T4931
Screen view in the dark, notice light leakage toward the top and bottom of the screen (view larger image)Lenovo 42T4806
Having used both glossy (on my Gateway 7422GX) and matte screens (AVERATEC 3270, Dell Inspiron 9300, and now this), I still find the glossy finish easier on the eyes and to provide brighter, truer colors. Compaq CQ-M300L
Still, it's mostly a matter of personal preference, so try to see some of each before making a decision. It should be noted, however, that previous reviews for Gateway's screens fall into two camps -- those on glossy screens that rave about their pixel-perfect beauty, and those on the matte finish screens that harp on backlight leakage and poor viewing angles.Compaq PP2051A
The screen may be fairly go
Left view of laptop (view larger image)Compaq 100045-001
On the right side of the laptop, starting from the left, we see another cutout for a mini FireWire port that does not exist. Moving along, we see the Type II PCMCIA PC Card Slot. Above that, we see a nice place for say, a multimedia card reader! But once again, we only see a blocked off piece of plastic. Moving along we have twin USB 2.0 ports,Fujitsu FMP-BP6 FMW29BP1
followed by a cutout of what you would presume to be an S-Video port. That's right; this has no TV-out. Further along, we have the RJ45 LAN jack and the RJ11 Modem jack. We finish with the HSF vent, which blows out warm air whenever the fan is on.Fujitsu CA54200-0506
Right side view of laptop (view larger image)fujitsu fpcbp217ap
The back side of the laptop houses the battery, VGA out, and security lock. The battery has both a release and lock lever, and feels very secure in place when locked. (And in case you're interested, when you take apart the area around the VGA port, you guessed it, there's a cutout for a DVI port!).Fujitsu CP098635-01 FMP-BP12
Laptop view of back (view larger image)
Build Quality
Before I continue, let me tell you I'm on my third TravelMate, and this is the best in terms of quality. My first one I picked up was faulty. When I closed the screen, it would BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) and the picture would scramble (and if anyone cares, it had Samsung ICs on the RAM). Also, the screen hinge wasn't as tight as my current one is. blogcity bralley rtribes mk2projects blog sns oricon