Vaio, the former Sony PC unit which was spun off in 2013 (Display Monitor Vol 21 No 27) has announced two new models for the US market. As normal, they have already been released in Japan.
Sticking with the company’s naming scheme, the first product is a notebook called the Vaio Z. This comes in two designs, the high-end Flip (a convertible designed for business professionals) and mid-range Clamshell (a regular notebook). Vaio says it has miniaturised the motherboard, leaving more room in the chassis for a larger battery and fans. Battery life is up to 11.5 hours on the Flip and 15.5 hours on the Clamshell.
Both models have 13.3″ displays, with 2560 x 1440 resolution (1920 x 1080 is an option on the Clamshell). The Flip supports touch on its screen, which can be rotated to use as a tablet. This model is also said to have a wide viewing angle (we imagine that it uses an IPS panel and the Clamshell is TN, but have been unable to confirm with Vaio).
The Z Flip and Z Clamshell use Intel Skylake processors (Core i5 or i7), with 8GB-16GB of RAM.
A third laptop, known as the Vaio Pro in Japan but sold in the USA as the Vaio S, will feature a magnesium alloy chassis and 13.3″ screen. Little has been revealed about the US version: only the fact that it will feature HDMI, VGA, USB 3.0 (x3) and RJ45 ports. We did find it on the Japanese site, which states that the Vaio Pro has 1920 x 1080 resolution, an IPS panel and touch as an option.
The new Vaio models will be on sale starting on the 8th February (Z Flip) or early March (Z Clamshell and Vaio S). Prices will start at $1,800, $1,500 and $1,100, respectively.
