Sony VAIO X

Performance

While the majority of netbooks feature an N-series Intel Atom processor, the VAIO X is equipped with a 2.0-GHz Intel Atom Z550 CPU, which is paired with 2GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD. While we couldn’t get PCMark Vantage to run, the VAIO X notched a Geekbench score of 963, which is the highest we’ve seen for a netbook, about 140 points above the netbook category average, and about 40 points higher than the Toshiba mini NB205-N210. During everyday tasks, such as writing this review in Microsoft Word and browsing the Web, the netbook performed well, but when watching an episode of The Simpsons at full screen on Hulu, video was slightly choppy.

Compare Geekbench results with similar laptops

The netbook’s 128GB Samsung SSD booted to Windows 7 Home Premium in 50 seconds (while the average is 55 seconds), and was able to copy a 4.97GB folder of mixed media files at a rate of 27.2 MBps—close to twice the netbook average of 15.2 MBps. When converting a 114MB MPEG-4 to AVI using HandBrake, the VAIO X took 26 minutes and 45 seconds; that’s just under 3 minutes faster than the netbook average, but the average ultraportable laptop takes 14:06. The $599 Acer Aspire Timeline 1810T, for example, took 11:24.

Graphics and HD Video Performance

Being a netbook (and not an Ion-powered one at that), the VAIO X doesn’t perform graphically demanding chores all that well. Its 3DMark03 score of 364 was nearly 290 points shy of the category average (3DMark06 would not run on the system). Still, a 720p MPEG-4 movie trailer (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs) played smoothly at full screen, even when output via VGA to a 32-inch Samsung HDTV (of course, the max output resolution was only 1366 x 768).

While taking the sightseeing tour in Google Earth, we were only able to average 5 frames per second with the app at full screen, and 3D buildings, such as those seen at Googleplex, took nearly half a minute to load. By comparison, the HP Mini 311, which has a discrete Nvidia Ion LE graphics chip, averaged 24 fps on the same test.

Wireless

At 15 feet from our wireless access point, the VAIO X’s 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi card notched a strong throughput of 21.3 Mbps, which is above the average of 19.7 Mbps. At 50 feet, the system fell back to a more mundane 14.6 Mbps, which is just about 2.0 Mbps slower than the category average.

The VAIO X is also equipped with both Verizon Wireless 3G broadband and GPS connectivity. We will update this review once those features have been activated.

Heat

Since it’s so thin, one of the main issues with the VAIO X is heat dissipation. During the middle of our transcoding test, the temperature between the G and H keys got as high as 95 degrees Fahrenheit; by aiming our laser thermometer at the space between the extended battery and the bottom of the chassis, we measured a temperature of 105 degrees. The good news is that the VAIO X itself won’t touch your lap when you have the external battery attached; that was cool to the touch. However, if you’re using only the 4-cell battery, you’ll definitely feel the heat. In fact, a sticker on the bottom of the Vaio X warns users that “Operating this computer in contact with your skin for a prolonged period could result in injury.”