Sony VAIO VGC-JS1E/S review

Unlike a few other all-in-one PCs, the Sony has no ExpressCard or CardBus slots (the kind usually found on laptops) for extra peripherals. These are unlikely to be missed, though, with Draft-n wireless networking and Bluetooth already built in.

Some of Sony’s previous computers have come with Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements. These versatile and powerful photo and video editing programs were a welcome change from the usual rubbish pre-installed on PCs. With this model, though, you have to settle for Sony’s own basic music and photo editing software.

Fruit punch

The VGC-JS1E/S is a well specified machine, especially compared to the Californian competition. Apple’s cheapest iMac costs £782 – £120 more – with a similar 20 inch display, Bluetooth and WiFi. But it only has 1GB RAM (you’d definitely need to upgrade this) and a 250GB hard disk. It does have a dedicated 128MB Radeon HD2400XT graphics chip which is better for 3D games, and since that’s something you can’t upgrade on the VAIO, it might sway some buyers. But the VAIO is a better all round PC for less money, especially if you need Windows, which doesn’t come with the iMac. Its real competition comes from Sony itself.

The VAIO FW11E laptop costs just £562 from www.microwarehouse.co.uk. It too has 3GB of RAM, although its hard disk is only 250GB and its Core 2 Duo P8400 is less powerful. Although its 16.4 inch 1600×900 screen isn’t as big as its desktop counterpart, it does have a 16:9 aspect ratio, meaning widescreen movies fill it completely rather than leaving wasted ‘letterbox’ space. With a Mobility Radeon HD 3470 dedicated graphics chip, it’s more capable than the all-in-one for games. And of course you can carry it around and use it away from the mains: it even demonstrated a respectable battery life of nearly three hours in our light use test.

If you’re not persuaded by the laptop’s advantages, however, the VAIO VGC-JS1E/S is a superb all-in-one desktop machine.