Our first impression of the VAIO S was of a laptop primarily targeted to consumers looking for something more than a Chromebook or a slate tablet, merely based on the fact that it comes preloaded with Microsoft Windows 10 Home edition. With that said, a deeper look at the specs and design, reveals that this device offers far more than the eye can see.
In reference to design and build, the VAIO S includes some interesting features. For instance, when opening the laptop, the screen’s hinge lifts the back of the laptop to provide sufficient inclination to reduce stress on the wrist.
The keyboard portion of the laptop has a nice brushed texture around the touchpad, almost reminiscent of the surface finish used on some of the higher-end Asus laptops.
The keyboard is backlit, for good measure, with a 1.2mm stroke, and 19mm pitch.
The VAIO S 13.3 inch display supports a native Full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, powered by Intel HD Graphics 520.
In its entry-level iteration, this laptop is powered by a 1.3GHz Intel Core i5 Skylake, with 3MB Cache, while the more expensive options integrate a 3.1GHz Intel Core i7 processor with 4MB Cache.
The memory on the VAIO S seems to be restricted to 8GB of DDR3L 1600MHz, while the storage options available start with a 128GB PCIe SSD, with support up to 256GB.
Wired inputs and outputs are the same across all iterations of the VAIO S, which include a 1000BASE-T/100BASE-TX/12BASE-T LAN for wired networking, two SuperSpeed USB 3.0 ports, one of which can be used to recharge the laptop, one full-size HDMI port, and oddly enough, a good old-fashioned VGA port, as well as a combo headphone/microphone jack.
Wireless connectivity on the VAIO S supports the latest Wi-Fi standard, IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, as well as Bluetooth 4.1.
Multimedia options include a 1MP front-facing CMOS Sensor HD Web Camera, as well as Intel HD Audio and Integrated Monaural Mic recording.
The battery life, according to VAIO’s website, is reported at 8 hours and 45 minutes.
One point of concern with this device, is the lack of hardware-based TPM security, which usually comes with logic boards that support Skylake processors.
What makes this device ideal for business
The VAIO S laptop starts at $1099, with a rather powerful processor, and sufficient RAM and storage to run Windows 10 Store apps and desktop software smoothly and efficiently, with the ability to store between 128GB and 256GB of data on a fast PCIe SSD.
The 13.3 inch display, even without the staggering 3000 x 2000 resolution of a Surface Book, offers enough screen real estate to work comfortably with all MS Office applications.
Spending an extra $300 from the base model, really pays off in terms of performance, and storage, as the higher-end model features an i7 processor using Turbo Boost technology up to 3.1GHz, and 256GB of PCIe SSD.
Compared with other laptops, the VAIO S may not look as fancy, but the simplicity of its design and features are its strength. It’s a device that is simple, basic, with powerful hardware to get the job done, without bells and whistles.