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The Vaio S series was a line of notebook computers from Sony introduced in Summer 2004. They have been touted as business laptops, and their designs have focused on being thin and light. They also have features friendly to businesspeople, such as TPM chips, matte (anti-glare) displays, RAID SSDs, and extended sheet batteries, as well as continuing to include RJ-45 and VGA (D-Sub) connections.
Contents
2010
Sony introduced the VAIO S series in January 2010 to replace the SR series. The aspect ratio of the display was changed to 16:9 (1600x900) from the older 16:10 (1280x800). The CPU was upgraded from Intel's Core2 Duo to Intel's First-Generation Core i3/i5, and the system RAM was updated to DDR3. The graphics options were either the CPU-integrated Intel GMA HD Graphics or a discrete NVIDIA GeForce 310M. As with the SR, the S offered an optional Blu-ray Disc drive. Unlike the SR, the new VAIO S Series had a mini-PCI slot that allowed for an optional internal WWAN (mobile broadband) adapter. The keyboard was also redesigned with new backlit chiclet (island-style) keys.
2011: The SA/SB/SC/SE Series
The VAIO SA/SB/SC series was released in February 2011. It once again featured a 13.3" screen with a matte anti-glare finish, with a native 16:9 aspect ratio and maximum resolution of either 1366x768 or 1600x900. It was notably thinner and lighter than its predecessor, weighing just under 4 lbs (half a pound lighter) and 0.95" thick (1/4" thinner). It also had a completely redesigned chassis, replacing the large rounded hinge with a sleek and angular design, featuring chrome accents on the hinge and VAIO logo. The processors were updated to Second-Generation Intel Core i5 and i7 CPUs, and the graphic options were either AMD Radeon HD 6470M (512MB DDR3) or 6630M (1GB DDR3). The laptop also featured a physical switch that could disable or enable the discrete graphics card at will and make the computer use the integrated processor GPU to increase battery life. It had 4GB of DDR3-1333 memory soldered to the motherboard, and one open RAM slot which was customer-accessible and supported an additional 4GB of RAM. It also features a sheet battery that increases the battery life to 15 hours. The 3rd VAIO S Series was the first VAIO with a non-removable battery.
Reviewers noted that the display felt quite flimsy, and that applying everyday amounts of torque, such as opening the display from one corner, would result in noticeable bending. Sony responded that this was by design, saying that under torque it would bend rather than break.
In August 2011, Sony introduced the SE model as a larger variant of the existing S Series notebook. It featured a larger 15.5" IPS Panel with a native resolution of 1920x1080, and a full number pad was added to the keyboard. Its hardware was otherwise identical to the 13.3" S Series, with an optional Blu-ray Disc Drive and up to an Intel Core i7-2640M CPU and AMD Radeon HD 6630M GPU.
2011 Series SATA 6Gbps Controversy
The early release of SA/SB/SC had chipset support for SATA 6Gbit/s, useful for fast speeds in solid state drive. In late 2011, Sony released a BIOS update which disabled SATA 6Gbit/s speeds (thereafter capped at 3Gbit/s) for no apparent reason, and without notifying users in the update changelog. A hacked BIOS was subsequently created and spread via the internet which re-enabled SATA 6Gbit/s speeds.
2012
Another refresh of the VAIO S Series lineup was released in the spring of 2012, coinciding with the launch of Intel's 22 nm Ivy Bridge processors, the 3rd Generation Core i3/i5/i7 processors. The number of models were consolidated to only three versions: S13, S15, and S13 Premium. The S13 followed the basic model of the previous generation with a 13.3" screen at a native resolution of 1366x768, and retained the same overall angular design and backlit chiclet keyboard. From a physical standpoint the most major change was that the trackpad was changed to a "clickpad" and the dedicated buttons were removed. It weighed 3.8 lbs and was 0.95" thick. Most of the changes from the last generation of VAIO S laptops were update hardware. It featured dual-core 3rd Generation Intel Core i5/i7 processors. For the graphics options, Sony switched from AMD back to NVIDIA with the GeForce GT 640M LE with 1GB DDR3 dedicated video RAM. NVIDIA's Optimus technology allowed the laptop to conserve battery life by switching from the discrete GPU and the low-power Intel HD Graphics 4000 chip integrated in the CPU when high-powered graphics were not required. Like the 13.3" S notebook before it, it had 4GB of RAM soldered to the board, and 0, 2GB, or 4GB of removable memory in a user-accessible memory slot. It also had an optional internal Blu-ray reader or burner available, as well as a sheet battery for additional power.
The S13 Premium was constructed of carbon fiber (as opposed to the magnesium casing of the standard S13) and as such was slightly thinner (0.90") and lighter (3.69 lbs). It also featured a higher resolution 1600x900 display that was not available on the standard S13, and an option to upgrade to 2GB of dedicated video RAM instead of 1GB.
The S15 was the larger variant in the 4th VAIO S Series, with (like its predecessor, the SE) a 15.5" IPS Panel with a matte finish and a 1920x1080 native resolution. Also as with the SE before it, its additional size let it fit a full number pad in the keyboard as well as a 3.5mm microphone jack; both S13 models have only a headphone jack. It was upgradable to the quad-core Core i7-3612QM CPU, which was not available on either of the 13.3" models, and the first quad-core processor in the S Series. The graphics card was the same GeForce GT 640M LE found in the 13.3" models, and like the S13 Premium, the S15 had an option to upgrade to 2GB of dedicated video RAM. The S15 was remarkably slim for its size, weighing only 4.42 lbs and keeping the 0.95" thickness of the standard S13 model. There was no carbon fiber variant of the S15.
In October 2012, VAIO had a small refresh for the release of Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system. The quad-core Intel Core i7-3612QM processor that was available in the S15 was swapped for its updated replacement, the Core i7-3632QM. There were no other hardware changes, however Sony did reorganize their available configurations, slashing hardware upgrade prices and making the 1600x900 resolution display available as an upgrade on the non-premium S13.
In addition, they added new colors (Pink and Red) to the existing options of Black, White, Silver for the standard S13. These colors were not added to the S15 options, which remained Black, White, and Silver. The S13 Premium color options (Carbon Fiber Black, Carbon Fiber Gunmetal, and Carbon Fiber Gold) likewise were not changed.
2013 Discontinuation
On August 26, 2013 the Sony Vaio S Series was removed from the Sony Shop, as it has been dropped from their line of laptop computers. The Sony Outlet will continue to carry refurbished models including the S, E, and T series. On June 27 2014, the VAIO name was sold from Sony. The Sony Outlet will no longer sell VAIO.