We've been keeping a close eye on
AMD's big laptop comeback over the last couple of months, and in addition to gaining steam with
HP,
Dell,
Toshiba and
Lenovo, it appears AMD's also gotten Sony back into its court. Both Fry's and Best Buy are now carrying AMD Athlon II X2-powered machines, and as you may expect, the prices are quite tempting. Conversely, the Intel-based lineup ranges from $699 to $799, but until we get our hands on one of these ourselves, there isn't exactly a fair comparison to draw at this point. You can hit the source links for the complete specs, but the 15.4-inch EE Series with 4GB of RAM / 320GB of storage and a Blu-ray player is going for $650 while the 17.3-inch EF with a 500GB hard drive for $720. Both also have integrated ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4250 graphics, but regardless, the move certainly bodes well for
AMD's newest processor / graphics, since it appears that Sony hasn't used AMD in its systems since 2005. We guess a welcome back hug is in order.
posted June 21st 2010 7:10PM
Time for AMD to make it's comeback
@MoonWalkerCTE Oh man there is something ironic about saying that and having MJ's picture right there.
@Born2Jew I also can't help but read his posts in a soft high pitched voice.
No. Stop it. You're ignorant, just ignorant.
Satan just called and said it's getting chilly down there.
I didn't expect this from Sony at all. Welcome to VAIO, AMD.
@michaspi
Sony a number of years ago built a ton of VAIO's built on AMD Athlon XP/Athlon 64 CPUs.
@michaspi yah well tell satin to get his parka ready because i have a feeling APPLE is going to be making a switch to AMD in the next 2 -3 years
@angelwolf Well if they do it means Hackintoshers wont have any more problems and there is a slight possibility the Macs will get cheaper.
@Born2Jew if the macbook goes from 999 to 699 with AMD then im willing to buy a mac
@angelwolf
The only reason Apple would switch to AMD would be a custom-ish chip for Apple machines that AMD sold to no-one else.
And yes it is coming....
Oh yea give me an ATI card on steroids and it's the Laptop of my extremely moist dreams!!!! LMAO
That vaio is one of the nicest looking PC laptops I have seen.
@PathogenX
Wait until you see its predecessor the Vaio NW
What? Why? I thought Sony VAIO was supposed to be the best?
@rstoplabe14
While Sony may market themselves as "the best" they aren't that great if you know what you're looking for; regardless, adding AMDs to the line up can only help. AMDs offer a better low cost alternative to Intels while still performing admirably and the added competition to Intel is a win/win for the market, consumers, and OEMs.
As a side note, I haven't seen a Vaio advertisement in a long time. Perhaps I'm watching the wrong shows?
@Walker I disagree. Vios ARE arguably "the best." They're incredibly balanced laptops, from performance, to to durability, to style, to battery life. My FW kicked the socks off of the 15" MBP that was out at the time, and for $1k less.
Sony also pays attention to the little things that even Apple ignores. The Battery Care function is possibly the most ingenious addition that everybody should, but doesn't, have.
Throw on a steep undervolt, and you can't even feel an FW get warm. They're amazing amazing laptops for the price. I wouldn't trade it for a MBP from the same generation.
> Insert Star Wars reference here
@Lord Vadur
You are more of a "Lord Faker" to me.
@Vman
What are you, 3 years old? How long did it take you to come up with that amazing insult?
@Lord Vadur
I foresee a down rank for the imposer.
@Lord Vadur
This is not the Lord Vader we are looking for.
So, when will you guys be reviewing some of these AMD powered laptops?
@daytripper As soon as they send them!
Can you install snow leopard with AMD processors? Or only over Intel PC's?
@brookey86 Intel only w/ stock kernel, Ati is possible with modified kernels
Yeah... no. I think I'll pass. My experience with AMD in laptops has been a hot and noisy one.
@Dafrety
THIS.
Amd laptop chips are not the best
@Dafrety Yes, hot and noisy, the way SEX is supposed to be, not fast and quiet (Points finger at Intel ULV laptop)
@Born2Jew
Of course, an Intel ULV will last a lot longer, giving you more time to have fun. ;P
@Dafrety
I agree. Desktop chips aren't bad, but a no go for notebooks.
@Dafrety
Agreed. AMD is way too far behind in laptop processors. They run way too hot and take up too much power compared to the Intel equivalent.
@Dafrety Have you used their new processors? I've heard the latest chips are pretty decent on power consumption and heat.
@jrm125
I just don't see how anyone can think he's so funny. He's not. He makes one little joke.
Okay, so maybe once in a while, he comes up with decent material. But most of the time, it's just rubbish. So one guy decides to rank him up. As soon as people see that he's getting ranked up, everyone else does it just to fit in and look "cool."
Why? Why do you do that?!?!
It's beyond me :/
*force crush* (
@Lord Vadur
so you think he's not funny and you try to impersonate him, i don't get it.
What is the resolution of the 15in model EE, will it offer full HD like the 15in intel variant offers?
@Lord Vadur You're just jealous.
So uh, can I run raids on WoW on this thing?
@clickgoplay
On sony vaio, raid runs you!