Sony VAIO T14 and T15 touchscreen Ultrabooks arrive at Sony’s store, Best Buy starting at $770

Sony Vaio T14 and T15 arrive at Sony's store, Best Buy starting at $770

Sony flaunted its VAIO T series 14- and 15-inch Windows 8 touch-enabled Ultrabooks at CES 2013 last month, but we weren't able to do anything at the time but snap, film and fondle them a bit. Now those models have arrived on Sony's store for pre-order, giving us a complete picture of pricing, specs and availability. We knew about the 15.5-inch, 1920 x 1080 touchscreen for the T15, and now we also know it'll be available with 3rd generation Intel Core i3-3227U, i5-3337U and i7-3537U processors starting at $770, $950 and $1,150 respectively. You'll also get Intel HD 4000 graphics, HDMI out, USB 3.0 and a DVD burner, with 4GB of RAM and 500GB + 24GB hybrid hard drive (HHD) on the i3 model; 6GB of RAM and the same HHD on the i5 model; and 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD and Blu-ray disk player on the top Core-i7 model for $1,400.

The VAIO T series 14-inch models, meanwhile, will sport a 14-inch, 1366 x 768 touch display with 3rd gen Intel Core i5-3337U processors, 6GB of RAM, 500 GB + 24GB SSD HHDs, a DVD burner, Intel HD 4000 graphics, HDMI out and USB 3.0. That model will run $900, but of course you'll be able to customize it (or the T15) to your heart, and wallet's content. Meanwhile, Best Buy is also showing the VAIO T15 model with Core i5, 8GB of RAM and the 500GB + 24GB HHD for $930 or so. Sony's got most of them in stock, with custom models shipping by February 19th, well before its CES prognostication of "early Spring" -- so if you've been hoping to actually, you know, do something with those famous Windows 8 live tiles, hit the source.

[Thanks, Erik]

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Source: Sony Store, Best Buy

Sony unveils touch-enabled Vaio T13 Ultrabook running Windows 8, we go hands-on (video)

Sony unveils touchenabled Vaio T Ultrabook running Windows 8, we go handson

Here's the thing with Windows 8: staring at those live tiles feels kinda weird if you can't reach out and touch them. That's why Sony has upgraded its Vaio T13 Ultrabook with a touch panel (making it technically the T13-2), allowing you to reach out across the keyboard and swipe away to your heart's content. We've just left some fingerprints on a high-spec model with a Core i7 processor, 1366 x 768 resolution, 256GB SSD and 8GB RAM, which will sell in the UK from October 26th priced somewhere north of £1,000 (or $1,600, though Sony doesn't set exact prices). A more modestly equipped i7, with 4GB and a 500GB hybrid drive should be somewhere around £900 ($1,400), while an entry-level i3 will start at £700 ($1,100), give or take. Bear mind that the dollar prices will be much lower than these currency conversions suggest -- for reference, the original T13 starts at just $770.

Our first impression was that enabling touch on this traditional form factor was slightly awkward, especially if the purpose of touching the screen was to achieve something that would have been more readily accomplished with a tap on the keyboard -- such as adjusting brightness, scrolling or returning to the home screen. On the other hand, the UI was incredibly responsive on the Core i7 processor and over time the touchscreen may well come to feel more natural than the touchpad within Microsoft's new OS. Just bear in mind that enabling touch comes with a couple of sacrifices, aside from any price premium: it adds 100 grams and 1mm in thickness to an Ultrabook that was already on the chunky side, due to the addition of tougher hinges as well as the extra layer in the display. Check out our hands-on video after the break and make up your own mind.

Continue reading Sony unveils touch-enabled Vaio T13 Ultrabook running Windows 8, we go hands-on (video)

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Sony unveils touch-enabled Vaio T13 Ultrabook running Windows 8, we go hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Oct 2012 12:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony reveals Japan prices for Windows 8 devices, adds touchscreen to VAIO L, E14P and T13

Sony reveals prices for Windows 8powered Tap 20 and Duo 11 in Japan

With Windows 8 finally launching in less than four weeks, it's only a matter of time before the web is flooded with prices of upcoming PCs, the first among which this month hail from Sony VAIO's Japan branch. Starting with the Duo 11 slider PC, it's expected to go for about ¥150,000 ($1,930) when it launches in Japan on October 26th (alongside Windows 8), and it'll come with a 1080p display, 1.7GHz Core i5-3317U, 128GB SSD, 4GB RAM and WiMAX. Then we have three flavors of the Tap 20 portable all-in-one which will range from about ¥140,000 ($1,800) up to about ¥180,000 ($2,310) come November 3rd, with the main differences being the CPU (1.8GHz Core i3-3217U, 1.7GHz Core i5-3317U or 1.9GHz Core i7-3517U) and the RAM (4GB or 8GB), but all three will feature the same 20-inch 1,600 x 900 display and 1TB hard drive.

Also announced at the Tokyo event are Japan prices for three more existing VAIO models that now feature a touchscreen: ¥130,000 ($1,670) for the T Series 13 Ultrabook with Core i5-3317U, ¥150,000 ($1,920) for the VAIO E Series 14P laptop with Core i5-3210M, and from ¥210,000 ($2,700) to ¥240,000 ($3,080) for the VAIO L Series 24-inch all-in-one with Core i7-3630QM and 1080p display. The two laptops will be available in Japan from October 26th, whereas the all-in-one will join in from November 3rd.

There's no indication as to whether the US prices will match their Japanese counterparts (the former are usually a lot cheaper), but hey, stay tuned here and you'll know as soon as we do.

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Sony reveals Japan prices for Windows 8 devices, adds touchscreen to VAIO L, E14P and T13 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 01 Oct 2012 02:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony drops VAIO T from free PlayStation offer, hikes real cost of entry to $970

Sony drops VAIO T from free PlayStation offer, hikes real cost of entry to $970

Remember how it seemed too good to be true that Sony's back to school promo would let you buy a VAIO T and get a free PlayStation 3 or Vita worth a third of the value of the Ultrabook you just bought? Well, it was. Sony has quietly dropped the $750 laptop from the PCs that qualify for the deal, raising the real qualifying price to $970 for a 15.5-inch VAIO S. Some will cry foul at being denied such a killer bargain without warning, but it's easy to see why Sony backed out: that's a lot of gear to give away for little in return. Dreams of heading to class with an ultraportable in hand and a PS3 at the dorm will have to be postponed, then, even if it's still an ample discount.

[Thanks, Gabriel]

Sony drops VAIO T from free PlayStation offer, hikes real cost of entry to $970 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Jun 2012 14:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony kicks off back to school promotion with a free PS3 or Vita for VAIO PC buyers

Sony kicks off back to school promotion with a free PS3 or Vita for VAIO PC buyers

Not to be outdone by Microsoft offering a free Xbox 360 to students buying a new PC, Sony has now come out with a back to school promotion of its own that could net folks their choice of a free PlayStation 3 (160GB) or PlayStation Vita (the WiFi-only model). Unlike Microsoft's promo, though, you can't just buy any PC -- you'll need to purchase an eligible Sony VAIO computer, which includes a range of the company's laptops and all-in-one desktops starting at around $750. Alternatively, you can also choose to get $200 off your choice of other PlayStation gear, or simply get eight percent off the purchase price of the computer itself. Complete details on the offer (which is for college students and faculty only) can be found at the source link below.

Sony kicks off back to school promotion with a free PS3 or Vita for VAIO PC buyers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Jun 2012 15:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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