Sony Joins the 3-D Laptop Arena: Can it Match Up?

It was only a matter of time before Sony released its own version of the 3-D laptop, given current technology trends. Earlier this year the tech giant hit the market with its VAIO® F Series 3D laptop. Like other offerings, the VAIO® F Series 3D is meant to deliver quality video and enhance the experience for users.

Currently, the 3D laptop is one of the hottest and newest trends in the tech world. The biggest names have scrambled to capitalize on the ‘3D without the glasses’ idea. Sony’s relatively late entry might be a good thing. It has enabled the company to tweak the already innovative offering, helping to change the face of entertainment as we know it.

That electronics companies are moving fast on 3D is hardly surprising. The format has reenergized the movie box office, with the most notable example being 2009’s Avatar. Now the makers of television sets and some handheld game systems are trying to cash in on the technology. It would seem then that Sony unveiled its latest offering at just the right time.

A Look at the Features
Reviews so far has shown that while late to the field, Sony has gotten it right for the most part. While reviews for any tech product can vary, Sony’s 3D laptop is being widely regarded as a game changer. One feature which has caught the attention of users is the convenient 3D button. This allows you to watch standard 2D movies on DVD or Blu-Ray in 3D format with one click. This is not a basic feature of most other laptops, but we can expect to see more manufacturers adding it as demand for 3D products increases.

Naturally the display is not limited to the small laptop screen for those who think 16 inches might not be enough. The new Sony offering can be connected to HDTV via its HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) port. This feature, which has been around for a while allows the connection of both digital video and voice via one cable. This allows for better picture and sound quality. Another standout feature is the presence of what are known as shutter glasses which enhance the 3D experience. These have an independent power supply which is rendered inactive once there is no 3D content being viewed.

Other specs worth noting on this laptop include:
· Windows 7
· 640GB HDD
· S-Force front surround 3D system and Dolby® Home Theater v3
· A 3D compatible LED backlight
· 3D glasses with sync capabilities
· Blu-Ray player
· Bluetooth and WiFi

Gamers are expected to warm to this Sony offering as it delivers the kind of high end performance they would expect. Naturally the specs are subject to change depending on the market. Buyers may also have their own preferences when it comes to memory, operating system and hard drive size to name a few.

Some of the top 3D laptops on the market currently are:
· HP Envy
· Asus G51J
· Lenovo Ideapad Y560d
· Alienware M17xR3
· Toshiba 3D Dynabook TX/98MB

Releasing this laptop under the VAIO banner practically ensures that this product will have a ready audience. The brand is well established because of its reliability and spectacular features and most Sony Vaio reviews are positive. The VAIO F series 3D laptop is expected to retail for roughly $1,700 as its basic price. This is considerably higher than the standard price for most laptops on the market today, but it is in line with other 3D offerings. Price is not considered too big an issue when the power of these laptops is considered.

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Reader Reviews: HP Pavilion

Editors note: This HP notebook review was written by Joan Marie Warren

My current laptop is the HP Pavilion dv6; my daughter purchased two of these laptops on Black Friday in 2009, after waiting in line at Staples for hours, one for herself and one for me, as an early Christmas gift. Priced at $199.00, this was a steal for this machine and well worth the long wait in line.

This Pavilion model is top of line and looks classy with a dark bronze finish with the signature HP swirl designs. It has a 15.6 inch screen, and weighs about 6 pounds which makes it easy to take just about anywhere. The keyboard on the lap top is full size so it is very easy to type on, unlike the net book that this little prize replaced. The touchpad is the HP ClickPad with the technology to turn it on and off, which is great, because I prefer my trackball and my daughter prefers the touch pad. This laptop is also equipped with a built in web cam, a DVD drive, wireless LAN card, an onboard card reader that reads most of the external memory cards available today, built in speakers along with an earphone jack and a microphone jack. This model has four USB slots, two located on each side, which is great to connect peripheral hardware, such as my trackball or my iPod cord needed to charge my iPod and sync with iTunes. On the inside it is equipped with an Intel Core i3 processor (2.40GHz) and Windows 7 64-bit operating system, which runs any of my frequently used programs superfast. We are both college students and use Microsoft Office programs often, like Word, Excel and Power Point, along with iTunes. The video quality is great, as a long time desk top user I never knew that a lap top could provide this high quality video. I have watched DVD movies on my laptop along with many episodes of my shows from the internet.

Another plus that came with this laptop is the LightScribe technology that allows you to label a DVD or CD by etching the title you select or create yourself right on to the disc, a special LightScribe disc is required to take advantage of this feature. My only complaint with this laptop is the battery life and the AC adapter. The battery is a standard 6-Cell 55WHr Lithium-Ion Battery but it never lasts for more than two hours tops and the AC adapter connections appear to wear over time, sometimes it takes three or four tries to get the AC Adapter to show that is charging the battery, it appears to be a problem with the connection to the computer itself or between the box that joins the two cords. We are in the process of looking into getting the battery in mine replaced or the AC adapter, whatever the charging problem results to be.

Overall a great machine and well worth the money! I would recommend this to anyone.

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Tips For Buying Laptops On Sale

In this economy, everyone is constantly looking to save money. Fortunately for those of you looking for laptops, you have come to the right place in order to save money on your next laptop purchase. Read on to find out how to maximize your savings!

First off, and most importantly if you really want to save money, stay away from Macs. Don’t get me wrong, they are fantastic computers, but they are much more expensive then similar Windows counterparts. However, this does not mean you should run out and purchase the cheapest laptops for sale. Sure, you will save a lot of money, but you might also get a poor quality laptop.

When performing your laptop comparison there are a few essential points, other than price, that should be considered. One of these is the size of the hard drive. For most people, you don’t need one that is overly large, 500GB or more is probably not needed, 320GB is still probably more than you will need. A 200GB – 250GB hard drive is probably a safe amount for the majority of people, and if you want to save even more money, then a little smaller could probably work too.

The amount of memory, or RAM, is important too. I would suggest looking for a minimum of 2GB, but here more is always better, and 3GB or 4GB would be ideal. This will help your computer to run multiple tasks simultaneously without much problem.

The operating system is also important in your decision. The newest one Windows 7, is the best, but also costs more. Its predecessor, Windows Vista, is older and uses more resources than 7, but will be cheaper. Before Vista was Windows XP, which will be the cheapest and use the least amount of resources (at the expense of less features), and would run well on most computers. Which one you choose is ultimately up to you, but my personal preference is Windows 7. I think it looks the nicest, and it has some very handy features and does not use to many resources either, but do some research and decide which is the best for you, although I would try to avoid Vista.

The last thing you will see when shopping for a laptop is the processor. These come in many sizes and varieties, but you should not worry about this too much. If you are using your laptop for standard things such as the Internet, word processing, etc., then you do not need to worry much about this, as you will not notice a difference. A better processor would be much more noticeable to people using their computers to design using complex programs and software, so there’s no need to spend extra money on the latest and greatest processor.

So now you are armed with the information you need to save money on your next laptop purchase and make sure you are getting what you need. However, you still may be wondering, “What is a fair price for all of this?” Well the answer to this varies, but sometimes, if you search well and are good at finding a big sale on laptops, you can find a laptop with everything you need for about $300. You may not be able to find this, but I have seen it once or twice. Look to spend about $500 on a decent laptop that meets the suggestions here, and a little more if you decide to spring for some upgrades.

With all this in mind, you are now fully prepared to go out there and get the best deal on the purchase of your laptop. I wish you the best of luck on your endeavor, but don’t fret, as this really is not too difficult. With some patience, you can often find an amazing deal and save a great deal of money.

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Black Friday Laptop Deals

Black Friday 2010 is just around the corner, and with it the opportunity to find some excellent deals on all sorts of products. There’s no guarantee you’ll find any particular item or that you’ll be able to get the Black Friday pricing — often, the biggest savings are strictly limited in quantity and sell out within moments. But if you have some flexibility in terms of what you’re looking for, and do a little research, Black Friday can be a great time to purchase cheap laptops on sale.

Your first task is to check around on the Internet beforehand to see if any Black Friday deals are leaked. Some chain stores such as Best Buy may intend to offer a big sale on laptops, and this can help you plan which stores to visit to maximize your chances of finding what you want. Also, bear in mind that people are more likely to compete with you for the items if you go to the stores commonly associated with electronics, so remember to check out other locations such as Staples or Office Depot as well.

Another strategy is to look to Internet retailers for specials. Many popular laptops for sale such as Toshiba, Asus, Sony, or Samsung are available through a number of online stores. Again, the most commonly thought of retailers for laptops are also the most likely to be sold out quickly, so build a list of all online stores you can think of that has laptops in their inventory. And don’t forget places like Dell or Sony’s online store — sometimes the manufacturers themselves will offer you great deals on Black Friday and you might be able to score laptops under $300.

What features should you look for in a laptop? You should try to buy a system with at least a dual-core CPU, 250GB hard drive, 4GB memory, a DVD+R/DVD-R/RW drive, 802.11n Wi-Fi built-in, and Windows 7 installed. This combination costs around $650-700 online, but look to buy for $100-150 less on Black Friday (or 15-25% off). Also look for TV-out capability, which will likely either be S-Video or DVI if present on the laptop; this can allow you to use your laptop to stream services like Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon On-Demand to your television set. Blu-Ray drives have also come down in cost lately, so keep an eye out for those as well if that interests you. Lower-end laptops are available for around $500 if you are unconcerned with performance, but you should ensure they come with a better operating system than Windows 7 Starter and more than 2GB of memory.

Before you shop, make a list of the features that are important to you in a laptop, and carefully compare them before you buy. Sometimes Black Friday electronics are stripped-down versions of regular electronics with a minor modification to the model number, so check each feature line-by-line. If in doubt, don’t buy; it’s better to pay a little extra down the road than to regret your purchase for years to come. If you’re planning on playing games, read as many gaming laptop reviews as possible, before you buy.

Hopefully, this will help you work out a plan to find the best deal on the laptop you want on Black Friday. There’s no one place to go or one perfect strategy, but between research of stores in your neighborhood and stores online you can maximize your chances of finding the deals that suit you.

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Laptops Under $300

For those of us who are on a tight budget know how frustrating it can be to find a decent laptop. So, I went on a mission to find some of the best deals from some of the best laptop brands. Now, if you are going for laptops under $300. There are some considerable challenges. When it comes to computers, you basically get what you pay for. If you are simply looking for something to browse the internet on and send e-mail this would be a good price range for you. If you are looking for something fast enough to game on, then you would need something with a bigger hard-drive and processor speed. So here are the best deals that I have found for laptops.

The first is from Walmart where you can find quite a few popular laptops for sale. The brand is eMachines, it has a 10.1” screen, eM350-2074 Netbook PC with Intel Atom N450 Processor and Windows XP Home operating system. The price of this laptop is $258.00. With this laptop you have a 1GB system memory, which allows you to do all the basics such as surfing the internet, emailing and storing documents. You can store 106,000 photos, 45,000 songs or 84 hours of HD video. This model comes equipped with Wi-Fi, and an ethernet connection. This model also boasts a 1.3 megapixel webcam, Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007 (60 day trial), a 60 day trial of Norton Security and a four hour battery life. It weighs about four and a half pounds and if you order Site to Store you get free shipping.

The next model I found was a Dell Latitude D610 laptop which has been refurbished. The price of this laptop is $260.00. This model also has a 14.1” screen, CD burning capabilities, 64MB dedicated RAM, ATI mobility Radeon X300, and brand new the system costs $1940.00. It is a nice, sleek model, and weighs about seven pounds. There are four USB ports, and overall this seems like a really good deal for a tight budget. This Dell laptops model is available on Amazon.com.

The last model that I came across $271.80. This is the Acer AO532H 2223 ATOM N450. This Acer has a 10.1” screen. It has 1GB memory, a 1.66 GHz processing speed, Windows 7 Home Premium which is brand new. It’s hard drive capacity is 160 GB. This laptop also comes with an Integrated Acer Crystal Eye WebCam, an eight hour battery life and it only weighs about three pounds which is great for portability. This system also has WiFi internet capabilities as well as an Ethernet port. In my opinion this would be the best deal simply for the wight and the system specs. This would be a great computer and has more good reviews than bad. This item is currently available on Ebay.com. It also is a newer model with a warranty. I had an Acer a few years ago and the customer service center fixed my computer for free and shipped it back for free as well.

Now that you know a few options that are available for your budget. Keep an eye out for a big sale on laptops at your local electronics store.  I hope you find what works for you and enjoy your new computer.

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