Sony VAIO VGX-TP1 Living Room PC (Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T5600, 2 GB RAM, 300 GB Hard Drive, DVD±RW/±R Drive, Vista Premium) | List Price: $1,599.99
Discount Price: $999.99
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Brand: Sony
Binding: Personal Computers
Features: - Futuristically styled round, white multimedia PC for use in your living room/entertainment center
- 1.83 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5600 processor, 300 GB hard drive, 2 GB RAM (max), dual-layer DVD/CD burner
- Integrated NTSC (standard) and ATSC (digital) TV tuners, HDMI audio/video output
- 54g Wi-Fi (802.11b/g), 10/100 Ethernet, Intel GMA 950 video card with up to 224 MB shared memory
- Pre-installed with Windows Vista Home Premium (with Media Center capabilities)
My original review was lost/removed. [Posted on 2007-07-21]
This PC would be nice to have only if SONY tested it more than just for basic functionality, a lot of problems out of a box. I'm still running it since July 2007 (for 5 months) and yes it would fo it job of being media PC and recording basic TV. Vista is the worst part of this PC. No wounder Dell allowed it customers to return to Win XP pro - make me think even MSoft and Dell agreed on Vista - not ready for general public even as of now December 2007. May be after Vista SP1( Feb-March 2008) this Sony PC will work the way it should be. From design stand point very well build media PC - best on a market for price/design/look/size. I would think that SOny will improve with new updates/patches within next 3-4 months.
Exclent Choice [Posted on 2007-08-07]
I bought this PC the day it came in and I really dont understand how can someone review any item without owning or using it just because its running with a new OS system and give it 2 out of 5 just becaus it has vista on it??? So here is reviwe from someone who has this item for more than 2 monts. First, it looks amazing, solid built and the Circular white shape gives it an edge above all other Multi Media PCs. Second, performance is solid and running window vista smoothly without any problems, third, you will have a verity of outputs, HDM,VGA,optical out and SV,AV for inputs for TV recording which works like a charm. I'm hooking it with the 70" Class Grand WEGA(tm) XBR(tm) series SXRD(tm) Rear Projection Full HD tv using HDMI through the Sony DG1000 Receiver and the Video(setting it at 720P) and Audio is just amazing. I got another one in my office hooked with the White LCD Samsung and it works smothly for all my office work.
Good idea, not well executed [Posted on 2007-08-15]
First, to be fair, I had to return this largely because I discovered my 5 year old plasma screen just doesn't support computer video well.
That said, there were other problems directly related to the product itself. For one thing, it is NOT as small and light as the pictures would have you believe. I took for granted the idea it would be something similar to Mac Mini. Boy was I wrong when I pulled it out of the box. I even compared it to my Mini and the Sony overwhelms it. The Mini is a practical portable device if you need to move it around. The TP1 definitely is not.
For reasons I will never be able to figure out, Sony requires that you connect two antennas to the back of the device. One for wifi, the other for the keyboard. Again, comparing it to the Mini, that was really strange for such an expensive and supposedly design-minded item. Clutter like that is a big disappointment.
I had problems with the keyboard connection. There was a funky procedure I had to use including pressing a button on the keyboard and pressing a button on the console at the right time. And for some reason, the touchpad button on it would "click" by itself with no action from me. So I would be moving the pointer around and accidentally open a program or something without even hitting the button.(Btw, I've had that problem on a HP laptop as well)
I didn't keep it long enough to test the television or disc burning capabilities. The above items irritated me enough to pack it up and ship it back right away. Amazon gets 5 stars for the prompt full refund.
Problems from the Beginning [Posted on 2007-08-26]
I can't give you an accurate review of this product as far as the features go if you can get it working, but I can give you an insight into how I feel their production units are not ready for prime time.
After receiving this item, I was quite excited to get it hooked up. Was surprised at how small the unit actually was - - the online pictures make you think it will be a bit larger but it's quite compact. The setup directions were OK, but it's more of the pict-o-graph format. There is NO owners manual, you have to print it out, which is a bummer.
After hooking it up to my Plasma I booted it up and the unit would not start up. It kept coming up with a Windows Error. I tried multiple restarts and power cycles to no avail. I called their tech support and they asked me to put in the restore disc. I was already a little uneasy that I would have to do this with something I just bought. After searching with the tech support on the phone for several minutes we determined that there is no system restore disc included with the item. Apparently the system restore is *ON* the disc itself, so it does no good for a system that won't boot up. I don't know if later production models will include the CD but mine surely did not.
Sony sent me a CD of the system restore but they mailed it to the wrong address (the tech support is in another country--and was not able to properly get my address due to language barriers). After a second call to them another disk arrived 2 weeks later. I put in the new disk and started the system restore. After 10 minutes of running, a blue screen came up and said "Fatal Error....". I tried this one more time but the same message. The unit now had no O/S on it at all, because it locked up during restore. At this point I just gave up and sent it back.
I was really looking forward to this unit, and had researched it online for months before release. I hope your experience will be a little better (the unit will actually work) but I've sort of lost faith in Sony PC division and in Vista / HTPC arena all together for now. I considered the more expensive Sony XL2 system but I'm uneasy with a Sony purchase right now. I'm looking into an Alienware Hanger 18 unit instead once it's released with Bluray in 2008.
Good luck to you should you choose to purchase this item. If it works, I bet it would be nice.
Sleek and contemporary [Posted on 2008-02-11]
This is a very awesome computer, and cool looking. We are using our LCD as a monitor and it looks great. The only problem that you might encounter when using a TV for the monitor is that the print on some of the websites might be too small to see and you will have to sit a little closer to the TV set. Other than that, it's a great product, and most people don't even know what it is!
Click here for more details and discount information...
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