Sony adds Sandy Bridge Vaio models for business and home

Sony has unveiled a new Vaio laptop and all-in-one models based on Intel's Sandy Bridge chips, including a 13in model designed for productivity, plus consumer models with eye-catching light-emitting cases.

The new systems include an updated Vaio S series, the Vaio C series with the light-emitting casings, the all-in-one L Series with a touch screen, and the F series 3D gaming laptops which were announced in January.

Available from the end of March, the 13.3in Vaio S series is a crossover system designed to appeal to professionals and consumers, according to Ruth Storey, Vaio marketing manager for Sony UK.

"We found there was demand from consumers for an ultra-portable that is powerful enough to let you create content rather than just consume it," she said, adding that many netbook users have been disappointed in this area.

The Vaio S ships with Windows 7 Professional as standard, and is based on Intel's Sandy Bridge Core i5-2410M processor with 4GB memory, 500GB hard drive and DVD super-multi drive. It also has a two-year warranty as standard.

One interesting feature of the Vaio S is an optional battery slice that clips to the bottom of the laptop and extends its quoted battery life from seven to 14 hours, according to Sony. This adds about 500g to the 1.75kg weight of the system.

The new Vaio S boots in about half the time of existing models, Storey said, while selected models feature built-in 3G broadband capability as well as the standard 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi.

Pricing for the new Vaio S is expected to start at about £1,000, while an upcoming version with more powerful Core i7 chips will cost about £1,500. The battery slice costs about £150.

For consumers, the Vaio C line is designed to stand out with a choice of case colours including black, white, pink, green and orange. The latter pair are light-emitting designs that glow when operating.

All Vaio C models have a 14in screen and run Windows 7 Home Premium, along with a separate quick-boot OS designed just for web browsing. This is Linux-based, and accessed by pressing a 'web' button instead of the usual power switch. The Vaio C series is priced from about £750 and will ship from the end of March.

The Vaio L series is an all-in-one PC coming in May. This has a 24in touch screen for gesture input, but also boasts touch-sensitive controls in the screen surround for functions such as closing windows, zooming in and out, and bringing up the on-screen keyboard.

The Vaio L series is priced from about £1,200 and is based on Core i5 and Core i7 processors with an optional Blu-ray recorder.

Sony also said its Vaio F series gaming laptop, announced in January, will be available from the end of March. This has a display that switch between 2D and 3D modes for playing games.