This week Sony Australia launched a cavalcade of new VAIO PCs, including the company's first 3D notebook plus a flashy range of laptops that literally emit light.
Brightly (and sometimes garishly) coloured desktops and notebooks are nothing new; they've been a mainstay of PC manufacturers trying to set their designs apart for the past decade. But we don't think we've ever before seen such neon-infused thinking as that behind Sony's new VAIO C Series, launched yesterday.
Sony C Series.
The mid-sized 15.5-inch models are housed in a dynamic light-emitting plastic which "absorbs ambient ultra-violet light through its flat surfaces and creates a dramatic, glow effect along edges of the translucent PC lid and other surfaces." The units APC observed were in a well-lit room; we're not quite sure if we'd say they were positively glowing (but they were certainly vibrant).
Sony C Series.
The light-emitting models are available in green, pink and orange (with matching-colour accessories being sold separately), and you can also nab plain (ie. non-glowing) black or white units. Prices start at $1,499, with an Intel Core i5-2410M, 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive and an AMD Radeon HD 6630M.
Sony C Series.
The new VAIO F Series is Sony's first 3D notebook, and it's something of an entertainment powerhouse (although at $3,899 it'd need to be). For your outlay you get a 16-inch LED-backlit Full HD 3D display (which requires the included 3D Active Shutter glasses for the 3D effect) powered by a quad-core Core i7-2820QM CPU with 8GB RAM, an NVIDIA GeForce GT540M, Blu-ray disc drive and S-Force Front Surround 3D (with Inbox bass-reflex) speakers.
Sony F Series.
Taking things down a notch or two is the new VAIO Y Series. At 11.6 inches, Sony's presenting it as an ultra-portable, but its approachable $749 retail price indicates its spec is located somewhere nearer the netbook end of that particular spectrum (as opposed to Sony's notably pricier ultra-portables of a year or two ago). The 1.46kg Y Series sports an AMD Dual-Core APU E-350, Radeon HD 6310 graphics and HDMI out, and it's available in white, pink or green (which leads us to think Sony might be unwisely neglecting a few of the more conservative colour options available to them).
Sony Y Series.
For business users on the go, the new S Series offers 12-hour battery life: six hours from an external battery pack (which attaches to the notebook and is drained first) and six hours from the internal battery. The unit also features an anti-reflective finish on the display to help cut down on the light reflections that mar glossy screens. The S Series is available in four models and five colours, starting at $1,399 (packing a Core i5-2410M) and topping out at $2,599 for a Core i7-2620M variant (with a nifty 256GB SSD storage space).
Sony S Series.
Rounding out the new VAIO range announced yesterday is the L Series, a beefy reimagining of the oft-maligned desktop all-in-one. For $2,999 it features a 24-inch Full HD multi-touchscreen display, with a Core i7-2720QM under the hood alongside 8GB RAM, an NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M, Blu-ray burner, S-Force Front Surround 3D speakers and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. The tilt-adjustable display, held aloft by a stylish V-frame stand, can additionally be used as a standalone monitor when the PC isn't on.
Sony L Series.