Product Description

Stylish mobility. Serious power. The VAIO V505DXP Notebook is as stylish and professional looking as it is powerful and multi-faceted. This is the solution for you at work and on the go - an ultra-compact notebook that works hard, plays hard, and looks great! The integrated CD-RW/DVD combo drive keeps the profile portable, while enabling you to watch movies and enjoy your music while you're traveling. And Intel Centrino technology manages resources with mobility in mind, yielding more efficient power consumption and longer battery life. The V505DXP Notebook offers a massive generous hard drive and plenty of RAM.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5363 in Personal Computers
• Brand: Sony
• Model: pcg-v505dxp
• Platform: Windows XP Professional
• Dimensions: 1.38" h x 9.54" w x 10.90" l, 4.39 pounds
• CPU: Intel Pentium M 1.4 GHz
• Memory: 512MB DDR SDRAM
• Hard Disk: 60GB
• Graphics: ATI MOBILITY RADEON 16MB
• Processors: 1
• Networking: 10BASE-T/100BASE-TX Ethernet
• Battery type: Lithium Ion
• Native resolution: 1024-by-768
• Display size: 12.1
• Included Software: Microsoft Money 2003 Standard, Microsoft Works, Intervideo WinDVD 4 for VAIO PC, Microsoft Encarta Online, Sony DVgate Plus, Sony SonicStage, Sony PictureGear Studio, Sony VAIO Media Software

Amazon.com Product Description
Featuring Intel's exciting new Centrino technology and desirable amenities such as DVD playing and wireless communication, the Sony VAIO PCG-V505DXP Notebook is a perfect match for those who need a lightweight machine that transports easily and brandishes enough power and versatility for typical mobile tasks in a variety of environments.

What is Centrino? It's an Intel-developed technology built upon a triad of three interconnected elements -- an Intel Pentium M CPU (with 1 full GB of Level 2 cache), an Intel 855 chipset, and a cord-free network connection -- that work hand-in-hand to keep your notebook lightweight, wirelessly connected, power efficient, and faster than its rated CPU speed might indicate. The power section of the VAIO PCG-V505DXP includes a midlevel 1.4 GHz Pentium M processor, 512 MB of DDR SDRAM (expandable to a whopping 2 GB), and a surprisingly capable ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 graphics chipset with 32 MB dedicated video memory. Though the unit can't be recommended for high-end 3-D design and games or ultra-demanding business situations, it will handle most everything else.

Measuring a mere 10.9 by 9.5 by 1.4 inches and tipping the scales at just 4.4 pounds, the VAIO PCG-V505DXP is easy to carry and easy to use. Yet this level of portability doesn't come at the expense of creature comforts. Apart from an unexpectedly large 60 GB hard disk and a CD-RW/DVD combo drive through which you can burn audio and data CDs and enjoy the latest Hollywood blockbusters, the unit also features a 12.1-inch XGA TFT display capable of 1024 by 768 resolution, integrated stereo speakers, and three levels of communication -- a V.90 modem, 10BASE-T/100BASE-TX Ethernet, and an Intel PRO Wireless 2100 network connection for those times when you just can't plug in.

Other perks include a high-speed IEEE 1394 port for high-speed interaction with external peripherals such as digital camcorders, a pair of fast USB 2.0 ports, a Memory Stick media slot and an electro-static touch pad. With the exception of its operating system -- Windows XP Professional - this model is identical to the Windows XP Home-equipped VAIO PCG-V505DX. Other bundled software includes Microsoft Money 2004, Microsoft epic Age of Empires II game, and a broad array of multimedia utilities. Maximum battery life is estimated at 2.5 to an impressive 6.5 hours.

Customer Reviews

good travel companion with decently powerful features
I used a Sager laptop with best-in-breed features until very recently but it really weighed on (literally too !), ~ 10 pounds with the adapter, etc.

Traveling as much as I do, I decided to look for a sub 5 pound laptop with good features and after I looked at a few such laptops in CompUSA, this one seemed not only to be very good-looking but also decently feature-laden though obviously not THE best out there. 512 MB of RAM, a 60 GB hard disk, a CD-RW, USB 2.0, FireWire are all pretty good, if not THE best you can buy. The premium that Sony charges for its Vaios was an initial turn-off but with good mail-in rebate offers at BestBuy and a 250 gift-card, the effective price was more like 1375 for me and that's good enough.

Ok - how do I like it so far? Battery life is pretty good. It will actually want to turn off the optical drive when on battery first - you can say yes or no. And, if you are only gonna do document writing and choose NOT to go with the dimmed screen (which is REALLY hard on the eyes) and instead turn up the brightness, it looks like you should get 4.5 hours out of it. Now, with a dimmed screen and a turned off optical drive, you *might* get 5.5 or even 6 hours out of it, but unless you are using it as an expensive iPod equivalent, why would you do that ? anyway, I plan to buy one of those 1.78 pound extended battery packs (NOT from Sony - their double-capacity battery is ridiculously expensive) that should add another 3+ hours, so I'll be happy camper. The keyboard will need a little (an hour of continuous use I think) getting used to. Someone complained about the built-in speakers, but I put the Die-Another-Day DVD in and it sounded ok to me...obviously headphones will sound a LOT better I am sure....the laptop's very light, of course, so i love being able to carry it with 1 hand and its lighter than a big hardcover book, so that's neat. Other than MS-Office and Mozilla, I haven't run any 'demanding' apps, so can't comment too much about performance. Eventually I plan to partition the hard disk and run Win-XP on one partition and Linux on the other, etc. However I have run something similar on an old Vaio PCG-F690 (P3-850 MHz) and things ran very well and I read somewhere that a Centrino 1.4 GHz chip was the equivalent of a P-4 Mobile 2.0 Chip or so, so I am sure heavy duty apps (both Windows and Linux) won't be a problem....

Good luck if you decide to buy this ! btw, if you have an Amex card and you use that to buy this Vaio, Amex will double your warranty on this from 1 year to 2 years, but might depend on the specific Amex card you have. This might be important if you are worried that Sony only has a 1 year warranty and doesn't offer a 2 or 3 year warranty unlike other manufacturers...

Excellent Multimedia Laptop
I am vertically challenged so I wanted a small laptop that I could make easily portable. I, however, also wanted a laptop with a lot of punch and power. This laptop fit the bill and has been an excellent item.

My laptop has been on many trips and has survived and functioned well. It went to the San Francisco area three times (one business trip, one vacation and one service repair--more on that later). The cover does tend to get scratched somewhat easy but is not very noticeable given the color of the shell. I don't like the automatic feature of the screen dimming when you are on battery power but you can change that. I have not had any issues w/ the battery life. I have not, however, had it turned on for long periods of time so some of the other reviews have better details on that.

The built in software has been great and easy to manipulate. I have listed to lots of MP3's and played many DVD's on it at home and during travel. I generally use the laptop for websurfing. The wi-fi capability is good but sometimes a bit slow when you first open it up. It takes a while to notice the connection. Maybe 20 seconds tops. I did use it in San Francisco on free wi-fi networks and found that a real treat.

I did mention I had to have mine repaired and I was very impressed with Sony. They have a good customer service line and it was easy for me to ship the item and to have it returned. The rates were reasonable (I spilled soda on my laptop) and it was returned to me in under 2 weeks and has been great ever since.

I highly recommend this item for the multimedia, internet user who wants a small laptop to travel!