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Sony aio VGC-JS1E/S review

Our Rating :
Price when reviewed : £672.04
inc VAT and delivery

Specifications

2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E7200, 3.000000 RAM, 20.1in 1,680×1,050 display, Windows Vista Home Premium

http://www.dabs.com

Sony’s Vaio VGC-JS1E/S has a similar all-in-one design to the Eee Top, but its price and appearance make it clear that this system is designed to compete with Apple’s stylish iMac.

Like the Vaio VGX-TP3E, this PC places greater emphasis on compact style than on efficiency, but its active power consumption of just 80W is still remarkable considering this includes the integrated monitor.

The 21.1in widescreen LCD has a native resolution of 1,680×1,050 and its image quality is superb. The glossy finish isn’t too reflective, and the incredible brightness helps, too. We were particularly impressed by the accurate colour reproduction, which makes this a great choice for editing images or video. It isn’t a touch screen like the Eee Top’s display, though, so you’ll have to use the keyboard and mouse. We liked the iMac-style keyboard, which was comfortable to use.

The JS1E/S is powerful enough to handle demanding tasks thanks to a 2.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 processor and 3GB of RAM. Its integrated Intel GMA X4500HD graphics processor lacks the power to play modern 3D games, but it can handle HD video.

It’s a slight shame that there’s no TV tuner and no Blu-ray drive housed in the side of the system, but the DVD writer is fine given the price. If you’re desperate for either or both of these, there are enough USB ports to accommodate external versions.

At £625, the VGC-JS1E/S is better value than many of its rivals here. It beats Sony’s media centre, as the VGX-TP3E’s Blu-ray drive isn’t worth as much as a built-in 21in monitor. The JS1E/S also has more RAM and is more power-efficient, while the all-in-one design is more convenient. It’s also much cheaper than the equivalent Apple iMac. The 20-inch 2.66GHz iMac may have a faster processor, but its monitor, hard disk and RAM allocation are all inferior to the JS1E/S, yet it costs a whopping £929 including VAT and delivery. In this light, the VGC-JS1E/S is a bargain and the deserved winner of our Best Buy award.

Basic Specifications

Rating ***
Processor Intel Core 2 Duo E7200
Processor external bus 266MHz (1,066MHz quad-pumped FSB)
Processor multiplier x9.5
Processor clock speed 2.53GHz
Processor socket LGA775
Level 1 cache 2x 32KB
Level 2 cache 3,072KB
Memory 3.000000
Memory type DDR2
Maximum memory 4GB
Motherboard Sony VAIO
Motherboard chipset Intel P45
Power consumption standby 5W
Power consumption idle 62W
Power consumption active 80W

Ports

USB2 ports (front/rear) 2/3
Firewire ports (front/rear) 0/1
eSATA ports (front/rear) 0/0
Wired network ports 1x 10/100/1000
Wireless networking support 802.11n
Other ports none

Internal Expansion

Case all-in-one
PCI-E x1 slots (free) none
PCI-E x16 slots (free) none
Free Serial ATA ports 0
Free memory slots 0
Free 3.5in drive bays 0

Hard Disk

Hard disk model(s) Seagate Barracuda (ST3320813AS)
Interface SATA 300
Total storage capacity 500GB
Spindle speed 7,200rpm

Graphics

Graphics card(s) Intel GMA X4500HD
Graphics/video ports none

Sound

Sound Realtek High Definition Audio
Sound outputs stereo line out, 2x microphone in, optical S/PDIF
Speakers Sony integrated

Removable Drives

3.5in floppy drive no
Supported memory cards SD, Memory Stick Pro Duo
Optical drive model Sony
Optical drive type(s) DVD+/-RW DL

Display

Viewable size 20.1 in
Screen model Sony integrated
Native resolution 1,680×1,050
Screen inputs none

Other Hardware

Modem No
Keyboard Sony keyboard VGP-UKB3GB
Mouse Sony mouse VGP-UMS30

Software

Software included SonicStage Mastering Studio 2.5, WinDVD 8, Easy Media Creator 10
Operating system Windows Vista Home Premium
Operating system restore option restore partition

Buying Information

Warranty one year RTB
Price £672
Supplier http://www.dabs.com
Details www.vaio.sony.co.uk

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