|  The Sony VAIO A-Series’ aesthetic advantages are built on solid foundations. All A-Series laptops are performance-boosted by Intel’s Pentium M processors, and both consumer and professional ranges will feature machines based on the new Pentium M® 735/745 engineered to deliver the best mobile performance yet. What’s more, every Sony VAIO A-Series laptop bears the Intel Centrino certification. This means the latest mobile-optimised technology, yielding more power and longer battery life.
VAIO A Series notebooks feature large 15- or 17-inch displays and optional AV Entertainment Docks for integration with other audio and video devices. The base VAIO Series A notebook system requires a 1.5GHz Intel Pentium Processor running Windows XP Home. It comes standard with 256MB of memory in one slot. Additional memory options are available, up to a maximum of 2GB. Other standard features include a 40GB hard drive, a 15-inch XGA (Extended Graphics Array) display, and a CD-RW/DVD drive. Upgrades include a larger hard drive, a 17-inch WXGA (Wide Extended Graphics Array) display, and a DVD+RW drive. For wired connectivity, the notebook has a Gigabit Ethernet connection and an internal modem. Wireless 802.11b/g connectivity is optional. The notebooks include an i.LINK (FireWire) port, three USB (Universal Serial Bus) 2.0 ports, a Type II/Type I card slot, and a Memory Stick Media slot. For audio and video support, the notebooks come with built-in stereo speakers, a headphone jack, an external microphone jack, and an A/V minijack. The 15-inch model measure 1.7 x 13.5 x 10.9 inches (HxWxD) and weighs 7.1 pounds, while the17-inch model measures 1.8 x 16 x 11 inches (HxWxD) and weighs 8.6 pounds. Sony VAIO A-Series laptops feature Dual RW DVD&RW burners, providing users with maximum compatibility with dedicated consumer DVD players alongside the convenience of being able to build up archives over time using multi-session recording. Sony’s specially developed Click to DVD software is included to simplify and streamline the burning process.
In order to ensure that the Sony VAIO A-Series laptops deliver the sort of user experience expected of a true premium product, the design incorporates several less obvious but extremely useful features. Plug & Display can instantly step down the laptop’s super-high screen resolution to the appropriate lower level when certain video peripherals are connected. This greatly simplifies the use of devices like projectors, which do not support extended resolutions, as it requires no intervention from the user. Subtle and continuous ergonomic enhancement is provided by the Auto Luminance Sensor, which monitors ambient lighting conditions and automatically adjusts the brightness of the screen for comfortable viewing and battery saving. As a final touch, not only do most Sony VAIO A-Series laptops support Bluetooth for seamless wireless links to handhelds and mobile phones, they are also designed to be used with a wireless mouse. A specially designed RF mouse (radio frequency) mouse, which complements the Sony VAIO A-Series design aesthetic is available on the top-end 17” A-series laptop. |
