Just off the heels of CES, Sony throws in another little surprise announcement for us including new CPU options and enhancements plus new color options on various laptops. The Sony Store team is also giving away a free gift with purchase of a C series laptop in celebration of some new designs. Details are below and here are some of the highlights of the new announcement.
Let’s first start with the Z series. Rounding into spring is a new Carbon Fiber Silver option has been added along with an optional LTE mobile broadband built-in, supporting 4G data service. The Z series also received the latest 2nd generation Intel® Core™ processors ranging from the Intel Core™ i5 and up to the Core™ i7 with Turbo Boost speeds of up to 3.50GHz and RAID 0 solid state drives. Now technically we’re calling this a “refresh” however with spec changes like this, one could consider this a healthy upgrade from the already massively spec’d out power house of the VAIO line. Starting prices are $1949.99 and that includes the Power Media Dock ™ drive.
Also getting a spiffy new refresh is the S series. It now boasting the newest generation of Intel® Core™ processors. Both the 13” and 15” models include this update with up to Core i7. The S Series includes Hybrid Graphics with either an AMD Radeon™ HD 6470M (512MB VRAM) or AMD Radeon HD 6630M (1GB VRAM). The 15” will come standard with a 15.5” Full HD display (1920 x 1080) with IPS technology for improved image quality and viewing angles. The 13” S Serieswill start at $799.99. The 15” S Series will start at $979.99 and includes the Full HD display and Intel Core i5 processor. Both 13” and 15” models will be available starting early February. Now both the Z series and S series have the extended sheet battery worth checking out. The E series is also getting the CPU upgrade to the latest 2nd generation Intel Core processors.
My personal favorite are new designs for the C series laptop. Move over butterflies and bunnies. Kaleidoscope Pink (with an international alias “Elegant Flower”)is giving the spring mascots a run for their money. The design was inspired by an Art Nouveau floral pattern. Sony VAIO designers had an intention to give this design an intention to reflect light. In order to achieve this, the material which this design is on is actually paper and gave it two different layers for depth; one pass with a thick line and one pass with a thin line. Now the paper has a pep film lamination over it and if you see it up close, it looks engraved and textured. Even if you’re traditionally not a happy person, this computer could certainly give the impression you are. We were fortunate enough to get photos of the actual printing plate sent to us which we’re sharing here. This design is offered on both 14″ and 15.5″ screen sizes.
Next up is the Geometric Black model with it’s international alias of “Modern Geometric”. Think 60’s retro meets the Matrix. It’s shapes and shadows in various tones and not only is featured on the top case but creatively spreads onto the inside keyboard area (see the photos). Designers planned to give this laptop design a stereoscopic effect and in order to do that, they intentionally created layers of several geometric patterns and when you see it, it expresses a shining ripple across the top of the casing. This too replicates the same paper laying production process as above. What is especially interesting about this design decision is that it allows the owners I know who prefer the basic black design of laptops to have some personalization/expression without something being too obvious or over-the-top. I’m excited to see what our VAIO designers have up their sleeves next.
And to celebrate the fun, our Sony Store team is offering a free laptop sleeve with purchase of any 14” or 15” C series computer. Worth about $40, it’s a durable nylon outer layer with a super-soft interior. This special is offered now through 2/4/2012.
Now that’s the hardware and design, let’s chat software as the VAIO team also made some changes here this season. The new Media Gallery™ 2.0 includes a new look and feel along with new features for popular social networking services. The S Series will come with the update already installed and is available for other VAIO computer owners to download. Also available is the Music Unlimited promotion, providing 180 days of Music Unlimited basic service for free for first time users. The F Series laptop and L Series All-in-One come preloaded with Sony Imagination Studio™ Multimedia Edition, a collection of audio and video editing software, including the award winning Sony Vegas® Movie Studio HD.
So there you have a spring refresh extravaganza. Now obviously you may have some favorites so be sure to let us know. Write us in the comments area below. We’d love to hear from you.
